Young adults in India ranked 60th out of 84 countries in Sapien Labs’ Global Mind Health 2025 report, with Indians aged 18–34 scoring an average Mind Health Quotient (MHQ) of 33 — a level the study places in the “Distressed or Struggling” category. The same report finds Indians aged 55 and over score close to 100 on average, in the “Managing or Succeeding” range, and places older Indians 49th globally. The findings draw on more than one million internet-enabled respondents across 84 nations during 2024 and 2025.
The generational gap is global: the 18–34 age group performed worse than older adults in every country surveyed. Tara Thiagarajan, founder and chief scientist at Sapien Labs, said: “Since we began measuring in 2019, the mind health of adults aged 55 and older has remained consistently at scores of about 100, exactly where a normal population is expected to be on the MHQ scale.” She added that younger adults “were already struggling relative to their parents and grandparents before the COVID-19 pandemic” and “took a sharp nosedive during the pandemic from which they have never recovered”.
The report identifies stronger outcomes in several Sub-Saharan African countries, including Ghana, Nigeria, Zimbabwe, Kenya and Tanzania, while Japan, Taiwan, Hong Kong, the United Kingdom and China sit near the lower end of the rankings. Finland, often high on life-satisfaction indices, ranked 28th for those over 55 and 40th for the 18–34 group. Sapien Labs notes the decline in youth mind health appears more pronounced in wealthier, more developed countries.
Researchers examined potential drivers over four years, pointing to diminished family bonds, reduced spirituality, earlier smartphone exposure and rising consumption of ultra-processed foods. Thiagarajan urged response strategies that tackle “root causes rather than simply treat symptoms.” Family ties emerged as a key factor: respondents reporting poor family relationships were almost four times more likely to be distressed. About 44% of people who did not get along with anyone in their family had low MHQ scores, compared with 12% of those close to many family members. An India-focused analysis found family closeness influenced mind health more than income.
In India, nearly 64% of respondents aged 18–34 said they were close to their families, versus about 78% among those over 55. The report also notes the average global age for first smartphone is 14 (16.5 in India) and that 44% of young Indian adults consume ultra-processed food, compared with 11% of older respondents. It questions whether large increases in Western mental-health spending have improved outcomes, citing US research and treatment budgets and UK NHS mental-health expenditure, and warns that current models may provide only incremental symptom relief without addressing deeper causes.
Original Source: https://www.indiatodayne.in/healthcare/story/indian-youth-rank-60th-in-global-mind-health-study-trail-older-adults-1353264-2026-03-01?utm_source=rssfeed
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Publish Date: 2026-03-01 13:51:00
