City residents live with mental illness at higher rates than general population

In fact, the Centre for Urban Design and Mental Health estimates that city dwellers face a nearly 40 percent higher risk of depression, 20 percent higher chance of anxiety, and double the risk of schizophrenia than people living in rural areas. Meyer-Lindenberg and his research partner Matilda van den Bosch, an environmental health researcher at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, recently reviewed the scientific evidence for these and a number of other physical stressors to find out whether they contribute to depression. Kioumourtzoglou also hopes to see research probing whether exercise, time in nature, or other actions could offset the risks that air pollution and other hazards pose to our mental health.

Source: www.popsci.com