The Forgotten Chronic Disease: Mental Health Among Teens And Young Adults

Deadly chronic conditions garner much attention from health care providers and researchers seeking to prevent cancer, diabetes, and heart disease. However, often forgotten or overlooked are mental health disorders in young people, which can lead to serious persistent conditions in adulthood. Chronic diseases affect one in two Americans, and one in four has multiple chronic conditions. Chronic diseases cause the most overall deaths in the United States, with heart disease and cancer together accounting for 62 percent of all deaths in 2013, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Adding to the mounting challenges of effective evidence-based management and prevention of chronic conditions are co-morbid mental health problems that commonly go undetected and untreated. People who suffer from a chronic condition such as obesity or cardiovascular disease are more likely to also suffer from depression than are people without these conditions. The prevalence of mental health conditions in youth is higher than that of physical health conditions, such as asthma and diabetes. Not only do mental health disorders in youth cause tremendous emotional damage within families, they are the largest cost driver, accounting for greater costs than diabetes, cancer, and respiratory disorders combined. If depression and other mental health disorders are not treated effectively in our youth, research indicates that they will persist or reoccur in adulthood, or even lead to a more ...
Source: Health Affairs Blog - Category: Health Management Authors: Tags: Equity and Disparities Innovations in Care Delivery Long-term Services and Supports Organization and Delivery Population Health Public Health Quality Care coordination chronic conditions depression Mental Health substance use Youth Source Type: blogs