In a 2020 study, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that nearly 1 in 5 — or 18% — of American adults reported a professional diagnosis of depression, which is more prevalent in some states than others. The states with the highest-ranking depression rates fell in the Appalachian region, and Hawaii and California ranked as the states where depression is the least prevalent.
The study suggests that depression can correlate with other factors beyond mental health, such as physical health, social determinants and economic issues.
The news: The study found that nationwide, depression was more prominent among women, young adults ages 18-24, and adults with lower education levels. From a previous study in 2015-2019, depression rates increased the most in adolescents (12-17 years old) and young adults.
The regions with the highest percentage of adults with depression were in the Appalachian and southern Mississippi regions, and the regions with the lowest percentage were in parts of the upper Midwest, California and Hawaii.
Areas of the country with the highest rates of chronic diseases such as diabetes and cardiovascular disease occurred at higher rates in the Appalachian region, which also ranked highest in the nation for depression. This data suggests that “geographic variation in the prevalence of depression might partially reflect patterns of other chronic diseases.”
The rate of depression in the country coincides with social determinants of health, such as access to health care and economic status, according to the study. “For example, adults in the Appalachian region tend to have lower incomes, higher poverty rates and lower education levels, all of which can negatively affect health and well-being,” the CDC said.
Why study depression? Research has found that depression can go much deeper than mental well-being. A study published in The Primary Care Companion to the Journal of Clinical Psychiatry linked depression to a range of physical symptoms, such as chronic pain in all parts of the body, gastrointestinal issues and sleep disturbances. Healthline reported that depression could cause a “ripple effect,” potentially impacting the heart, kidney, nervous system and immune system.
Aside from the compounding mental and physical symptoms of the condition, the strain of depression on the body also can lead to financial issues. The CDC stated that depression is a “major contributor to mortality, morbidity, disability, and economic costs in the United States.”
Examining the pervasiveness of depression on state and county levels can aid local governments in efforts to “prevent, treat, and manage depression,” the CDC said. These data points can help pinpoint which areas are struggling most with depression so that government agencies can see where to offer evidence-based interventions and health resources in places with the “largest gaps or inequalities.”
U.S. states ranked by percentage of adults with a depression diagnosis (lowest to highest):
- Hawaii: 12.7%.
- California: 14.1%.
- Florida and Illinois: 14.7%.
- New Jersey: 15.2%.
- Delaware: 15.6%.
- Maryland: 15.7%.
- Alaska: 15.9%.
- South Dakota: 16.1%.
- Nebraska and New York: 16.8%.
- Georgia and Virginia: 17.2%.
- Arizona and Iowa: 17.4%.
- Nevada and New Mexico: 17.6%.
- Connecticut and Texas: 17.7%.
- Massachusetts: 17.9%.
- Wyoming: 18.3%.
- Colorado: 18.5%.
- Idaho: 18.9%.
- Kansas and North Dakota: 19.2%.
- Michigan: 19.5%.
- Minnesota, District of Columbia and Wisconsin: 19.8%.
- Pennsylvania: 20.2%.
- North Carolina: 20.8%.
- Mississippi: 20.9%.
- Rhode Island: 21.1%.
- Oregon: 21.2%.
- South Carolina: 21.4%.
- New Hampshire: 21.5%.
- Indiana: 21.9%.
- Ohio: 22.0%.
- Maine: 22.1%.
- Montana: 22.6%.
- Missouri: 22.8%.
- Oklahoma: 22.9%.
- Utah: 23.1%.
- Vermont: 23.3%.
- Washington: 23.4%.
- Alabama, Arkansas and Louisiana: 23.5%.
- Tennessee: 24.1%.
- Kentucky: 24.2%.
- West Virginia: 26.4%.