The most common mental and neurological disorders in the elderly are depression, anxiety, and dementia. According to the WHO, clinical depression affects approximately 7 percent of the world’s aging population, while anxiety disorders affect around 3.8 percent of the elderly.
At the same time, roughly 5 percent of older people have Alzheimer’s and other forms of dementia globally.
Other mental health concerns in the elderly involve bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, substance use problems, and self-harming behaviors. The WHO’s data suggests that around one percent of the aging population struggles with substance abuse and that these problems are often overlooked in the elderly. Also, around a quarter of deaths from self-harm are among people aged 60 or older.
