General mental health declined rapidly in April during the first month of pandemic lockdown, according to the findings of a major study reported today.
Researchers found that up to one third of people were experiencing "clinically significant" levels of distress during April. This compared with about a fifth before lockdown.
The proportion reached 37% among young people, according to the report in The Lancet Psychiatry.
The findings come from a survey of more than 17,000 people taking part in large longitudinal survey, undertaken by Manchester University, King’s College, London, and the National Centre for Social Research
There was further evidence of the effect on those living with young children, showing a much larger increase in distress than others.
Dr Matthias Pierce, from Manchester, said: “This pandemic appears to be having a very detrimental effect on young people, and young women in particular.
“This group had already been experiencing worsening mental health in the years prior to lockdown and this is being exacerbated by the pandemic.
“We estimate as many as 44% of young women are experiencing clinically significant levels of mental distress compared with 32% before the pandemic.”
Mental health before and during the Covid-19 pandemic: a longitudinal probability sample survey of the UK population. Lancet Psychiatry 22 July 2020
http://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanpsy/article/PIIS2215-0366(20)30308-4/fulltext
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