Gender Differences in the Prevalence of Mental Health, Psychological Distress and Psychotropic Medication Consumption in Spain: A Nationwide Population-Based Study

Clara Maestre-Miquel, Ana López- de-Andrés, Zichen Ji, Javier de Miguel-Diez, Arturo Brocate, Sara Sanz-Rojo, Antonio López-Farre, David Carabantes-Alarcon, Rodrigo Jiménez-García and José J. Zamorano-León
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Clara Maestre-Miquel: School of Health Sciences, Universidad de Castilla la Mancha, 45600 Talavera de la Reina, Spain
Ana López- de-Andrés: Department of Public Health & Maternal and Child Health, Faculty of Medicine, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, 28040 Madrid, Spain
Zichen Ji: Respiratory Care Department, Hospital General Universitario Gregorio Marañón, Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria Gregorio Marañón (IiSGM), Universidad Complutense de Madrid, 28040 Madrid, Spain
Javier de Miguel-Diez: Respiratory Care Department, Hospital General Universitario Gregorio Marañón, Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria Gregorio Marañón (IiSGM), Universidad Complutense de Madrid, 28040 Madrid, Spain
Arturo Brocate: Sport Science School, Universidad Castilla de la Mancha, 45071 Toledo, Spain
Sara Sanz-Rojo: Department of Public Health & Maternal and Child Health, Faculty of Medicine, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, 28040 Madrid, Spain
Antonio López-Farre: Department of Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, 28040 Madrid, Spain
David Carabantes-Alarcon: Department of Public Health & Maternal and Child Health, Faculty of Medicine, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, 28040 Madrid, Spain
Rodrigo Jiménez-García: Department of Public Health & Maternal and Child Health, Faculty of Medicine, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, 28040 Madrid, Spain
José J. Zamorano-León: Department of Public Health & Maternal and Child Health, Faculty of Medicine, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, 28040 Madrid, Spain

IJERPH, 2021, vol. 18, issue 12, 1-15

Abstract: Background: To assess gender differences in the prevalence of self-reported mental disorders, psychological distress and psychotropic drug consumption, and to identify sociodemographic and health-related variables associated with these conditions in the male and female population (aged ? 18 years). Methods: A cross-sectional study was carried on 22,141 subjects aged 18 and over, using data from the Spanish National Health Interview Survey 2017. Results: We found an overall prevalence of mental disorders, psychological distress and psychotropic drug consumption of 13.8%, 18.3% and 13.9%, respectively. After multivariable adjustment, women showed significantly increased probabilities of 1.74-fold for mental disorders, 1.26-fold for psychological distress and 1.26-fold for psychotropic drug consumption compared to men. Variables such as gender, age, nationality, marital status, educational level, self-rated health, the presence of different chronic disorders, alcohol consumption and smoking habit were independently associated with mental disorders, psychological distress and psychotropic drug consumption. Several variables showed a differential effect on mental health status and psychotropic drug consumption according to gender. Conclusions: Women suffer from mental disorders, experience psychological distress and consume psychotropic drugs significantly more than men in Spain. Possible explanations for these results may be related to differences in emotional processing, willingness to report diseases and even intrinsic biological traits. Screening for mental health status and psychotropic drug consumption should be considered, particularly in Spanish women, younger adults and individuals who are not married, are obese, have poor self-rated health, suffer from chronic diseases or have a smoking habit.

Keywords: mental health; psychological distress; psychotropic medication; sex differences; prevalence (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
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