The COVID-19 outbreak has had a significant influence on the mental health of Americans, contributing to an increase in chronic and high depression.

The first year of the outbreak was less likely to be marked by depression in people with more physical, social, and financial assets, says a new study.

According to a new study from the Boston University School of Public Health (BUSPH), those with a lot of money are less likely to suffer from depression.

The study discovered that one in five adults experienced persistent depression during the pandemic’s initial stages in March and April 2020 and one year later, but those with more physical, social, or financial assets—particularly higher incomes and savings—were less likely to experience sustained depressive symptoms.

In the first year of the outbreak, job loss, financial difficulties, and relationship troubles were all significant predictors of depression, according to the data.

The study is the first of its type to look at the link between assets and persistent depression in the first year of the crisis in the United States.

“We have been observing particularly high rates of depressions since the beginning of COVID that have persisted throughout the first year of COVID,” explains study lead author Catherine Ettman. “This suggests a substantial burden of poor mental health in the population that is persistent, particularly among those who have fewer assets.”

Ettman and colleagues looked at longitudinal survey data on depression prevalence, assets, and stressors in a nationally representative sample of US people aged 18 and above for the study. At the beginning and conclusion of the first year of COVID-19, almost 25% of women had symptoms of persistent depression, compared to 15% of men, and adults aged 18 to 39 suffered persistent depression more than any other adult age group.

People in low-income households and those with smaller savings had the highest rates of persistent depression.

When demographics were taken into account, those with a household income of less than $20,000 were more likely to suffer from chronic depression than those with a household income of $75,000 or more. Similarly, those with less than $5,000 in savings were more likely to suffer from long-term depression than those with $5,000 or more in savings. People with only a high school diploma were more likely to suffer from depression than those with a college diploma or higher, and those who were not married were more likely to suffer from depression than those who were.

Notably, the researchers discovered that these assets did not protect people from developing chronic depression during the first year of the pandemic if they were still dealing with job loss, financial difficulties, or relationship problems. However, in the absence of these stressors, possessing assets reduced the likelihood of a person suffering from persistent depression in March or April 2021.

“These findings show that mental illness is one of the consequences of the pandemic, and one that will stay with us for years to come,” the author adds.

Identifying strategies to strengthen financial assets and alleviate pressures for those experiencing mental health issues will be crucial beyond the crisis, according to Dr. Sandro Galea, dean of BUSPH and Robert A. Knox professor.

“It will be important to make sure that we have the resources available to help people with depression in the long-term after COVID-19, particularly those who already have fewer economic assets to protect themselves from the mental health consequences of the pandemic,” Galea adds.

Source: 10.1126/sciadv.abm9737

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