New figures from Scotland’s Census show the number of people who reported having a mental health condition more than doubled between 2011 and 2022. A large increase in the number of younger people reporting mental health conditions is behind the increase.
In 2022, 617,100 people reported in the census that they had a mental health condition. The census form described this as a condition that affects your emotional, physical and mental wellbeing.
The increase from 4.4% to 11.3% of the population was the biggest change across the range of categories listed in the census question on health conditions.
A large increase in the number of younger people reporting mental health conditions is behind the increase.
Director of Census Statistics Jon Wroth-Smith said:
“In 2022 15.4% of people aged 16 to 24 reported having a mental health condition up from 2.5% in 2011.
“Females in this age group were twice as likely to report having a mental health condition at 20.4% compared to males at 10.5%.
“There were also increases in older age groups but the biggest increases were seen in younger groups and it is now more common for younger people to report a mental health condition. This is the reverse of what we saw in 2011.”
Younger age groups also saw increases in those with a health problem that limited their day-to-day activities. In the 16 to 34 category the number almost doubled from 93,300 to 183,700. This means around 1 in 7 people aged 16 to 34 had a health problem that limited their activities. However more people in that group reported their activities were limited a little rather than a lot. Older age groups (75+) are more likely to be limited a lot.