Q&A: How common is mental illness?

Q: How common is mental illness?

A: Mental illnesses are not uncommon. Truth be told, they occur more than cancer, heart disease, or diabetes. Based on the US Surgeon General, an estimated 23% of American adults (those ages 18 and older) or about 44 million people, and about 20% of American children bite it from a mental disorder at any given year.

Even though mental disorders are common, the main problem that comes with this illness is concentrated in a much smaller proportion, about 6 percent, or 1 in 17 Americans, who have a serious mental illness. It is estimated that mental illness impacts 1 in 4 families in America.