Almost 1 In 10 NYC Adults Was Depressed In 2016, Survey Finds

NEW YORK, NY — If life in the nation's biggest city takes a toll on your mental health, you're not alone. Nearly a tenth of all New York City adults — about 540,000 people — experienced depression at some point in 2016 but most didn't get help, according to the city Department of Health's first-ever report on the mental illness.

About 62 percent of those depressed New Yorkers hadn't gotten any mental health treatment in the past year, the study published Friday found.

"Behind these data are the life stories of more than half a million New Yorkers living with depression which underscores the importance of addressing barriers to care," Dr. Herminia Palacio, the deputy mayor for health and human services, said in a statement.

Depression is more prevalent among certain ethnic groups, the survey found. The disease impacted 13 percent of Latino adults but about half as many white adults (7 percent). Additionally, people with chronic health problems such as hypertension and diabetes were at least twice as likely to be depressed as those without them, the study says.

The results indicate experiencing violence can make New Yorkers more likely to be depressed. Some 17 percent of adults who felt their neighborhood was unsafe experienced the disease, more than twice as many as those who felt their neighborhood was safe. And those who'd been abused by a partner were three times as likely to report depression as those who hadn't.

There are even disparities by borough. Some 12 percent of Bronx residents experienced depression, compared with 7 percent of Manhattanites and 8 percent of Brooklynites, the study found.

City officials say the results underline the importance of ThriveNYC, the city's multimillion-dollar effort launched in 2015 to expand access to mental health resources. The program includes 54 initiatives, such as the NYC Well hotline that offers free counseling services.

"Mental illness touches every single one of us directly or indirectly through family and friends. And it's treatable," first lady Chirlane McCray, who leads ThriveNYC, said in a statement.

(Lead image: Photo by KieferPix/Shutterstock.com)