Women’s Mental Health and Mental retardation

Abstract

Mental illness is associated with a signi icant burden of morbidity and disability. Lifetime prevalence rates for any kind of psychological disorder are higher than previously thought, are increasing in recent cohorts and affect nearly half of the population. Overall rates of psychiatric disorder are almost identical for men and women but striking gender differences are found in the patterns of mental illness. Gender is a critical determinant of mental health and mental illness. Gender differences occur particularly in the rates of common mental disorders depression, anxiety and somatic complaints. These disorders, in which women predominate, affect approximately 1 in 3 people in the community and constitute a serious public health problem [1].