Mental health of youth and young adults: Overview
Exploring trends in mental health among youth and young adults living in Canada from 2015 to 2022, while considering the role of intersectional identities.
- Last updated: 2025-06-19
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Background
Mental health includes both:
- positive mental healthFootnote 1
- mental ill-health that includes mental illness
In Canada, youth and young adults are vulnerable populations. Their mental health has declined over time (positive mental health has declined while mental illness has increased)Footnote 1Footnote 2Footnote 3Footnote 4. Compared to older age groups, they are less likely to report "excellent" or "very good" mental health. This trend has been consistent over the last decadeFootnote 3.
In younger age groups, not everyone experiences the same mental health challenges. For example, worse mental health is typically reported amongFootnote 1Footnote 4Footnote 5Footnote 6:
- female youth and young adults (compared to males)
- those in the lowest income quintile (compared to higher)
Other studies on youth mental health have also found differences across sociodemographic groups, such as ethnic or cultural background and immigrant statusFootnote 7Footnote 8Footnote 9.
In this study, we analyzed if declining mental health affects some sociodemographic groups more than others among 12 to 25 year olds in Canada. We also looked at sex differences. By identifying inequalities between groups, we can inform mental health promotion. This knowledge contributes to health equity, which is a priority of the health portfolio in CanadaFootnote 10.
About the study
This data tool presents information on 4 mental health outcomes: 3 positive mental health outcomes and 1 mental illness outcome. Mental health data is available for youth and young adults aged 12 to 25 living in Canada, from 2015 to 2022.
The positive mental health outcomes included in the tool are:
- high self-rated mental health (data years included 2015 to 2022)
- mean life satisfaction (data years included 2015 to 2022)
- high happiness (data years included 2015, 2019 and 2020)
The mental illness outcome included in the tool:
- mood and/or anxiety disorder (data years included 2015 to 2021)
This tool uses data collected from 8 cross-sectional cycles of the Canadian Community Health Survey (2015 to 2022). Not all measures were collected in all 8 cycles. This study only makes comparisons between cycles 2015 and 2021 due to differences in how the survey was collected in 2022. Please see the technical notes section for more information.
For detailed information, additional breakdowns and information on positive mental health, visit the Positive Mental Health Surveillance Indicator Framework (PMHSIF). Additional data on mental illness can be found in the Canadian Chronic Disease Surveillance System (CCDSS).
Key findings
- From 2015 to 2021, positive mental health decreased among those aged 12 to 25 years old.
- From 2015 to 2021, mental illness increased among those aged 12 to 25 years old.
- Females (compared to males) and young adults (compared to youth) generally reported worse mental health.
- Trends varied depending on the outcome assessed and sociodemographic group, with some sex-specific differences:
- Among female youth (12 to 17 years old), some decreasing trends in mental health from pre-pandemic intensified during the pandemic.
- Before the pandemic, those in the lowest income quintile (compared to the highest) reported lower positive mental health. These disparities disappeared during the pandemic because of decreases in positive mental health among those in the highest income quintile.
Sex
- Compared to 2015:
- the prevalence of high self-rated mental health (by sex) was lower for both males and females in 2021
- mean life satisfaction (by sex) was lower for females only in 2021
- the prevalence of high happiness (by sex) was lower in 2020 for both males and females
- the prevalence of mood and/or anxiety disorder (by sex) was higher in 2021 for females but not males
- In each year we studied:
- fewer females reported high self-rated mental health (by sex) compared to males
- a larger proportion of females reported a mood and/or anxiety disorder (by sex) compared to males
Age group
- In each year we studied:
- young adults (ages 18 to 25 years old) reported lower levels of high self-rated mental health (by age group), high happiness (by age group) and mean life satisfaction (by age group) than youth (ages 12 to 17 years old)
- a larger proportion of young adults reported a mood and/or anxiety disorder (by age group) compared to youth
- Compared to 2015:
- female youth and young adults had the largest absolute decline in high self-rated mental health (by age group) in 2021
- female youth had the largest absolute increase in the proportion reporting a mood and/or anxiety disorder (by age group) in 2021
Ethnocultural group
From 2015 to 2021, the prevalence of high self-rated mental health (by ethnocultural group) decreased for racialized individuals, First Nations off reserve, Inuit or Métis, and non-racialized individuals.
Province
From 2015 to 2021, there were large absolute decreases in high self-rated mental health (by province) and mean life satisfaction (by province) among those living in Saskatchewan. Females in British Columbia also had large decreases.
Household income
Pre-pandemic (between 2015 and 2019), those living in the lowest income quintile (Q1) reported lower positive mental health (by household income) across all outcomes than those living in the highest income quintile (Q5). These differences disappeared over the pandemic due to decreases in positive mental health reported by those in Q5.
Place of residence
Overall, between 2015 and 2021, those living in population centres (like cities) tended to report lower mean life satisfaction (by place of residence) than those living in rural areas.
Immigrant status
Overall, between 2015 and 2021, a greater proportion of those born in Canada reported having a mood and/or anxiety disorder (by immigrant status) compared to immigrants.
References
- Footnote 1
-
Public Health Agency of Canada, Centre for Surveillance and Applied Research. Positive Mental Health Surveillance Indicator Framework [Internet]. Ottawa (ON): PHAC; 2024 [cited 2024 Dec 4]. Available from: https://health-infobase.canada.ca/positive-mental-health/data-tool/
- Footnote 2
-
Statistics Canada. Canadians report lower self-perceived mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic [Internet].Ottawa (ON): Statistics Canada; 2020 [cited 2024 Nov 27]. Available from: https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/pub/45-28-0001/2020001/article/00003-eng.htm
- Footnote 3
-
Statistics Canada. Portrait of Youth in Canada: Data Report - Chapter 1: Health of youth in Canada [Internet].Ottawa (ON): Statistics Canada; 2021 [cited 2024 Nov 27]. Available from: https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/pub/42-28-0001/2021001/article/00001-eng.htm
- Footnote 4
-
Wiens K, Bhattarai A, Pedram P, Dores A, Williams J, Bulloch A, Patten S. A growing need for youth mental health services in Canada: examining trends in youth mental health from 2011 to 2018. Epidemiol Psychiatr Sci. 2020 Apr 17;29(115):1-9. https://doi.org/10.1017/S2045796020000281
- Footnote 5
-
Library of Parliament. Youth and Mental Health in Canada [Internet]. Ottawa (ON): Library of Parliament; 2022. [cited 2024 Nov 27]. Available from: https://hillnotes.ca/2022/11/17/youth-and-mental-health-in-canada/#:~:text=According%20to%20Statistics%20Canada%20data%20from%202019%2C%20fewer, households%20reported%20having%20positive%20mental%20health%20less%20frequently.
- Footnote 6
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Statistics Canada. Mental disorders and access to mental health care [Internet]. Ottawa (ON): Statistics Canada; 2023. [cited 2024 Nov 27]. Available from: https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/pub/75-006-x/2023001/article/00011-eng.htm#a4
- Footnote 7
-
Filion N, Fenelon A, Boudreaux M. Immigration, citizenship, and the mental health of adolescents. PLOS ONE. 2018 May 3;13(5):1-12. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0196859
- Footnote 8
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Merikangas KR, He JP, Burstein M, Swanson SA, Avenevoli S, Cui L, Benjet C, Georgiades K, Swendsen J. Lifetime Prevalence of Mental Disorders in U.S. adolescents: Results from the National Comorbidity Survey Replication--Adolescent Supplement (NCS-A). J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry. 2010;49(10):980–989. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jaac.2010.05.017
- Footnote 9
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Zarei K, Kahle L, Buckman DW, Ohlis A, Aradhya S, Choi K, Williams F. Parent-Child Nativity, Race, Ethnicity, and Common Mental Health Conditions Among United States Children and Adolescents. J Pediatr. 2023 Dec 1;263. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jpeds.2023.113618
- Footnote 10
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Health Canada. Health Portfolio Sex- and Gender-Based Analysis Plus Policy: Advancing Equity, Diversity and Inclusion. [Internet].Ottawa (ON): Health Canada; 2021 [cited 2024 Dec 4]. Available from: https://www.canada.ca/en/health-canada/corporate/transparency/heath-portfolio-sex-gender-based-analysis-policy.html#fn2
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