Antidepressant use rising in U.S., mostly in women, CDC says

Sept. 4 (UPI) -- Nearly 18% of all adult women in the United States used antidepressant medication between 2015 and 2018, compared to just over 8% of men, according to data released Friday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Overall, during the decade between 2009-2010 and 2017-2018, antidepressant use increased to 14% from 11%, the agency found. Use increased more for women -- to 19% from 14% -- than for men -- to 9% from 7%.

In 2018, slightly more than 7% of adults in the United States said they suffered from a "major depressive episode," the agency said.

The findings are based on an analysis of data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey for the 10-year period between 2009 and 2018.

Depression is a mental health disorder in which sufferers experience a persistent depressed mood or loss of interest in activities, causing significant impairment in daily life, according to the National Institute of Mental Health.

Antidepressant medications are used to reduce the symptoms of depression, and include selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, or SSRIs, and serotonin and norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors, or SNRIs.

From 2015 through 2018, antidepressant use increased with age and was highest among women aged 60 and over, at slightly more than 24%, the CDC found.

In addition, use of the drugs was higher among non-Hispanic White adults, at 17%, compared with non-Hispanic Black adults, at 8%, and non-Hispanic Asian adults, at 3%.

Adults with at least some college education were more likely to use antidepressants than those with a high school education or less, the agency said.