11.5% Of U.S. Youth Are Experiencing Severe Major Depression

During the past year, 11.5% of youth in the United States experienced severe symptoms of major depressive disorder.  Rates of a severe major depressive episode (MDE) were highest among youth who identified as more than one race, at 16.5% (about 123,000 youth).
South Dakota had nearly four times the percentage of youth that experienced severe MDE in 2022 than South Carolina. Overall, the states with the highest percentage of youth with severe MDE were South Dakota (19.9%), Oregon (19.0%), and Idaho (17.5%). The states with the smallest percentage of youth with severe MDE were . . .