Demand for an EU mental health strategy existed before the pandemic but has intensified since. This policy study explores the need for that strategy, given the increased prevalence of mental health conditions, and the corresponding demand for services and cross-national concerns about mental health in Europe.

This policy study examines mental health systems in France, Ireland and Poland, the scale of mental health issues that have arisen during the pandemic and the extent to which marginalised and at-risk groups receive targeted support. In the context of these findings, it considers the need for an EU-wide strategy for mental health systems to meet these challenges and build resilience in EU communities.

P.49 The prevalence of depression in the EU is 1.7 times higher in women than in men, and the prevalence of anxiety is twice as high. Gender differences in eating disorders are even higher, with almost three times more adult women than men suffering from this illness. The gender gap is reversed in cases of substance use disorders (SUDs), with internalising mental health disorders more common in women and SUDS more common in men. SUDs are twice as prevalent among men. SUDs account for only 13% of all healthy years of life lost among EU women overall. This share differs across EU countries. It ranges from 24 to 25% in Estonia and Poland, to less than 10% in southern European countries and the Netherlands.