Climate Change Significantly Affects Mental Health, Especially Among Younger Adults

More than half of adults (55%) believe climate change is impacting Americans’ mental health, while four in 10 adults say they have personally experienced effects on their mental health, according to a new APA Healthy Minds poll, conducted by Morning Consult on behalf of APA.

More than one-third of poll respondents (35%) worry about climate change on a weekly basis, indicating that for many, this is a persistent source of stress.

Among 10 areas of life possibly affected by climate change, respondents rated their own mental health as the most impacted. A total of 18% said climate change was having a significant impact on their mental health, with 26% saying it was having somewhat of an impact. Other categories noted by at least 40% of respondents included “access to food,” “your physical health,” and “your family.”

The data also highlighted generational and parental divides in perceptions of climate change’s mental health impact. Younger adults ages 18 to 34 were significantly more likely than those 65 or older to report that climate change is affecting their personal mental health (65% versus 30%). Parents (52%) were significantly more likely than non-parents (42%) to report climate change is currently impacting their mental health.

These patterns suggest that those with longer perceived futures—due to either age or the responsibility of raising children—may feel more urgency and emotional burden around climate change, according to an APA statement released in response to the survey.

“As psychiatrists, we see how climate distress and its associated negative emotions affect our patients in various ways, such as grief after a natural disaster or anxiety due to the threat of climate change,” said APA President Theresa Miskimen Rivera, M.D. “These impacts are real; if you’re feeling them, know you’re not alone.”

“Eco-anxiety,” sometimes called climate anxiety, is a chronic fear or worry about the environment and its state, often stemming from concerns about climate change and its impact. Learn more about the connection between climate change and mental health on APA’s website (in English and Spanish).

The Healthy Minds Poll was conducted on March 18-20, 2025, among a sample of 2,208 adults ages 18+ in the United States. Results have a margin of error of plus or minus 2 percentage points.

For related information, see the Psychiatric News article, “What Every Psychiatrist Should Know About the Climate Crisis.”

Also, APA members can check out this month’s free CME course: “Apocalypse Now! Climate Change and its Impact on the Practice of Psychiatry.”

(Image: Getty Images/iStock/leolintang)

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