Are You Getting Help For Your Depression? Study Shows Most People Aren't

Many people deal with depression, yet few are seeking out help. U.S. health officials reported that almost 8 percent of Americans aged 12 and older were moderately to severely depressed during 2009 to 2012, but only about one-third of them sought professional help.

"Not enough people are getting appropriate treatment for depression," said lead study author Laura Pratt, an epidemiologist at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS), via Health Day.

The U.S. National Institute of Mental Health lists a wide-range of mental health symptoms, ranging from persistent anxiety and sadness, feeling of hopelessness, helplessness and guilt to lack of energy, fatigue and even thoughts of suicide.

Study results showed that about 3 percent of Americans aged 12 and up showed symptoms of severe depression, with depression being more common in women between the ages of 40 and 59.

Black people were also slightly more likely to suffer from severe depression at 4 percent while white individuals suffered at about 2.6 percent.

Depression was also more common among poor individuals and those living below the poverty line. They were about 2.5 times more likely to have depression than those at or above the poverty level. Furthermore, about 15 percent of people living in poverty had depression when compared to about 6 percent of those living at over above the poverty level.

Researchers hope that this and future statistics raise awareness about the prevalence of depression.

"It's serious, it really affects your life and we need to figure out a way to get people treated appropriately," she concluded, via the TIME.

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