Grand City stress and mental health: A look at Mazda Adli's research

Grand City stress and mental health: A look at Mazda Adli's research

cities attract people for various reasons, be it because of the career opportunities, the cultural offer or the variety of social contacts. But life in the city also carries risks to mental health. Mazda Adli, researcher and chief physician of the Fliedner Klinik Berlin, deals with this topic and explains why cities can make us sick.

A reason for the increased risk of mental illnesses in the city is the large city stress. On the one hand, this arises from the high population density and on the other hand through loneliness. People who live in cities have twice as high schizophrenic risk compared to country residents. For city residents who grew up in the city, the risk is almost three times increased. The risk of depression and anxiety disorders is also higher in the city than in the country.

The big city lifestyle also offers many advantages that make everyday life easier. This includes better health care, individual development opportunities, a dense educational offer and a rich cultural offer. These advantages are summarized under the term "Urban Advantage" and make cities attractive lives.

However, the problem is that the risk of mental illnesses in the city is higher. Mazda Adli and his team are currently examining the causes of this in an interdisciplinary approach from medicine, psychology, urban research, politics and civil society.

A possible reason is social stress that arises when people live together in a limited space. Density and tightness can lead to stress. Loneliness and the feeling of anonymity can also lead to isolation stress. A good living situation plays an important role in mental health. The feeling of having a personal shelter is crucial. Unfortunately, the living space in the city is often expensive, scarce and not always well built. Many city dwellers live on a cramped living space, which leads to further stress.

Another risk factor for insulation stress is the high number of single households in large cities. A third of the population lives alone in Berlin. In pandemic, it has been shown how much these people were affected by isolation and loneliness. People with a migration background or members of minorities are more often affected by insulation stress, especially if they have social exclusion experiences.

The anonymity of the big city can be attractive on the one hand, but also leading to difficulties in making social contacts. This applies especially to people who do not get along with anonymity or make an exclusion.

People who come to the city later may have higher resilience towards mental illnesses. For schizophrenia it applies that the longer you grew up in the city and the larger the city, the higher the risk of developing in adulthood. This knowledge indicates a possible connection, which, however, must be researched even more precisely.

The conclusion from these findings is not that you should avoid cities if you want to get children. Cities offer many advantages, even for children. Children who grow up in the city have a greater chance of becoming democratic citizens because they grow up with the complexity of society. There are certain factors such as chronic social city stress and a lack of access to the advantages of the city that can make you sick.

Finally, it can be said that life in the city brings advantages and disadvantages. The research of Mazda Adli and his team should help to design cities in such a way that they are good for our psyche. It is about understanding the risk factors and finding solutions to promote psychological well -being in the city.

sources:
https://www.tagesspiegel.de/themen/Rro-Stadtforschung-In-in-uzreuen-gro-Stadtwehner-unser-inter-inter-inter-mazda-adli-befreicht-lebensqualit-t-in-stadt-an/2362760.html
https://www.berliner-zeitung.de/gesundheit-oekology/psychiater-adli-interView-mit-beriner-Zeitung-der-tauer-Stress-in-Großstadt-Earf-HISCHEN-LI.1696