Epidemiology of mental health disorders in the citizens of Tehran: a report from Tehran Cohort Study

BACKGROUND

Mental health disorders (MHD) impose a considerable burden on public health systems. With an increasing worldwide trend in urbanization, urban mental health stressors are affecting a larger population. In this study, we evaluated the epidemiology of mental health disorders in the citizens of Tehran using the Tehran Cohort Study (TeCS) data.

METHODS

We utilized data from the TeCS recruitment phase. A total of 10,247 permanent residents of Tehran metropolitan (aged 15 years and older) were enrolled in the study from March 2016 to 2019 via systematic random sampling from all 22 districts of Tehran. The participant's demographic, socioeconomic, and medical characteristics were evaluated by conducting comprehensive interviews. The standardized Persian version of the General Health Questionnaire version 28 was utilized to assess the mental status of the patients according to four central mental health disorders.

RESULTS

Almost 37.1% of Tehran residents suffered mental health problems (45.0% of women and 28.0% of men). The greatest incidence of MHDs was seen in the 25-34 and over 75 age groups. The most common mental health disorders were depression (43%) and anxiety (40%), followed by somatization (30%) and social dysfunction (8.1%). Mental health disorders were more frequent in the southeast regions of the city.

CONCLUSIONS

Tehran residents have a significantly higher rate of mental health disorders compared to nationwide studies, with an estimated 2.7 million citizens requiring mental health care services. Awareness of mental health disorders and identifying vulnerable groups are crucial in developing mental health care programs by public health authorities.

Association of smoking with other lifestyle factors and mental health status of Japanese factory workers

A self-administered questionnaire survey was conducted among factory workers in Japan. The questionnaire included items concerning eight health practices recommended by Morimoto and the General Health Questionnaire-28. Data from 1598 male workers were analyzed. There were few differences in comprehensive health status due to smoking status, but smokers under the age of 30 years had worse lifestyle habits than nonsmokers with regard to favorable drinking and eating breakfast, and smokers between the ages 30 and 44 years had worse lifestyle habits with regard to favorable drinking and eating breakfast, and better habits regarding sleeping hours and working hours. Smokers under 30 showed worse mental health status than ex-smokers with regard to social dysfunction, though there was little difference between those aged from 30 to 44 and those 45 and older. The results suggested the importance of considering the difference in lifestyle and mental health status due to smoking status when providing advice for improving health habits.

Effects of shiftwork on lifestyle and mental health status of employees of a major Japanese electrical manufacturer

To examine the effect of shiftwork on lifestyle and mental health, a self-administered questionnaire survey was conducted among employees of a leading electrical appliances manufacturing company in Japan. The questionnaire included eight health practices recommended by Morimoto, the General Health Questionnaire-28 (GHQ-28) and demographic variables. Considering the effects of type of occupation, working hours and gender, analysis was focused on 295 male blue-collar mere employees working less than 8 hours per day and engaged in daytime work or two-shift work.Scores for Health Practice Index (HPI) and physical exercise of shift workers were significantly lower than those of daytime workers for those from 30 to 45 years of age (p<0.05). However, in scores for HPI and each lifestyle factor, no significant difference was found among shift workers and daytime workers 29 or younger and 46 and older. In scores for the total GHQ-28 and its four subscales, no significant differences were found among shift workers and daytime workers 29 or younger, between 30 and 45, and 46 years of age and older. No significant effect of shiftwork was found on mental health status and lifestyle practices excluding physical exercise.The findings suggested reduction of physiological and psychological stress due to shiftwork among employees of the major company. However, the effect of shiftwork on lifestyle practices and mental health status might be affected by various factors. Therefore an investigation of the work load in regard to shiftwork should be conducted precisely in the future.