A recently completed study in Britain has found the women are twice as likely to suffer from anxiety disorders as men, and those living in North America and Western Europe are leading the pack when it comes to these types of problems.
An article on UPI, says lead researcher Olivia Remes, of the department of public health and primary care at the University of Cambridge’s Strangeways Research Laboratory, and her colleagues examined the data of over 1,200 previous studies about the disorder, focusing on 48 of those studies.
Anxiety disorder sufferers have symptoms such as excessive worry, fear, and they avoid potentially stressful situations, particularly social gatherings and settings. The study found that in North America, one of every eight people are stricken with some form of the disorder, while East Asia recorded the lowest number of sufferers, with fewer than three of every 100 residents.
The results also found that twice as many women as men were likely to have an anxiety disorder, and that as many as 10 percent of men and women under the age of 35 were affected. The number has remained relatively unchanged since 1990, according to the researchers.
“Anxiety is important and shouldn’t be overlooked,” commented Remes. “Sometimes people think that anxiety is just a part of their personality or that there’s nothing they can do about it, but there is.”
Remes added the research did not identify the reason why more women suffer from the disorder, but they team suspected differences in the brain’s chemistry between women and men could be playing a part. Women are also more likely to experience other mental health issues, such as depression, but noted men are generally less likely to report issues with mental health, and that could be skewing the numbers.
The study also noted those with other health conditions were more prone to experience anxiety disorders, with as many as 70 percent reporting they had anxiety issues along with their other physical problems. Patients with multiple sclerosis were the most affected, with 32 percent of those diagnosed reporting anxiety problems.
In the US alone, anxiety disorders account for an estimated $42 billion per year, in cost of treatment and other related issues. The findings from the study were published in the June issue of the journal Brain and Behavior.