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. 2023 Jun;114(3):368-377.
doi: 10.17269/s41997-023-00772-7. Epub 2023 Apr 24.

Depression, anxiety, and suicidal ideation in a population-based cohort of young adults before and during the first 12 months of the COVID-19 pandemic in Canada

Jean-Philippe Gouin  1 , Sasha MacNeil  2 , Alejandro de la Torre-Luque  3 , Elise Chartrand  4 , Nicholas Chadi  5 , Alexandra Rouquette  6   7 , Michel Boivin  8 , Sylvana Côté  9 , Marie-Claude Geoffroy  10   11
Affiliations

Depression, anxiety, and suicidal ideation in a population-based cohort of young adults before and during the first 12 months of the COVID-19 pandemic in Canada

Jean-Philippe Gouin et al. Can J Public Health. 2023 Jun.

Abstract
in English, French

Objectives: Findings from a birth cohort study indicated that the mental health of young adults had not worsened during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, compared to 2018. This study examined longitudinal changes in mental health between March 2018 and June 2021 in the context of protracted public health mitigation measures about 12 months after the onset of the pandemic.

Methods: Participants from the Quebec Longitudinal Study of Child Development (n = 2120 at inception; n = 1461 during the COVID-19 pandemic), a population-based cohort of individuals born in 1997/1998, reported on their depressive and anxiety symptoms as well as suicidal ideation prior to the pandemic in 2018 (age 20), and during the pandemic in the summer of 2020 (age 22) and spring of 2021 (age 23).

Results: Depressive (Cohen's d = 0.15 [95% CI: 0.09 to 0.20]) and anxiety (Cohen's d = 0.33 [95% CI: 0.27 to 0.39]) symptoms increased between 2018 and 2021 for both males and females, but suicidal ideation did not change. There was also a significant increase in moderate to severe depressive (31.7% to 36.3%) and anxiety (14.7% to 24.8%) symptoms from 2018 to 2021. Youth who were students, those who were experiencing financial stress, food insecurity, and loneliness, and those without pre-existing poor mental health experienced the largest increase in depressive and anxiety symptoms over time.

Conclusion: These findings highlight the mental health burden experienced by young adults during the COVID-19 pandemic, highlighting the need for preventive services and continued longitudinal follow-ups of these youths.

RéSUMé: OBJECTIFS: Les résultats d’une étude de cohorte de naissance ont indiqué que la santé mentale des jeunes adultes ne s’était pas détériorée au cours de la première vague de la pandémie de la COVID-19, en comparaison à 2018. La présente étude examine maintenant les changements longitudinaux de la santé mentale entre mars 2018 et juin 2021, dans le contexte de mesures prolongées de santé publique, environ 12 mois après le début de la pandémie. MéTHODES: Les participants de l’Étude longitudinale du développement des enfants du Québec (n = 2120 à la création; n = 1461 pendant la pandémie de COVID-19), une cohorte basée sur la population de personnes nées en 1997–98, ont rapporté leurs symptômes de dépression et d’anxiété ainsi que leurs idéations suicidaires avant la pandémie en 2018 (20 ans), pendant la pandémie à l’été 2020 (22 ans) ainsi qu’au printemps 2021 (23 ans). RéSULTATS: Les symptômes de dépression (d de Cohen = 0,15 [95% IC: 0,09 à 0,20]) et d’anxiété (d de Cohen = 0,33 [95% IC: 0,27 à 0,39]) ont augmenté entre 2018 et 2021 chez les hommes et les femmes, mais les idéations suicidaires n’ont pas changé. Une augmentation significative des symptômes dépressifs modérés à sévères (31,7 % à 36,3 %) et des symptômes d’anxiété (14,7 % à 24,8 %) a également été observée entre 2018 et 2021. Les jeunes qui étaient étudiants, ceux qui rapportaient un stress financier, de l’insécurité alimentaire et de la solitude, ainsi que ceux qui avaient une bonne santé mentale en prépandémie, ont connu la plus forte augmentation des symptômes de dépression et d’anxiété au fil du temps. CONCLUSION: Ces résultats mettent en évidence l’impact de la pandémie de la COVID-19 sur la santé mentale des jeunes adultes, et soulignent la nécessité de mettre en place des services de prévention et de poursuivre le suivi longitudinal de ces jeunes.

Keywords: Anxiety; COVID-19; Depression; Suicide; Young adult.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no competing interests.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Change in depressive (panel A) and anxiety (panel B) symptoms from 2018 to 2021 among young adults. Note: Data were compiled from the final master file of the Québec Longitudinal Study of Child Development (1998–2021), ©Gouvernement du Québec, Institut de la statistique du Québec
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Change in depressive (panel A) and anxiety (panel B) symptoms from 2018 to 2021 among young adults as a function of pre-pandemic poor mental health. Data were compiled from the final master file of the Québec Longitudinal Study of Child Development (1998–2021), ©Gouvernement du Québec, Institut de la statistique du Québec
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