New brain imaging technologies visually illustrate the differences in the brains of healthy people and people with serious mental disorders, such as schizophrenia. They show reductions in the overall volume of the brain and distinct differences in the way in which the brain processes information. Mental illness affects most extended American families. One in five Americans suffer from mental illness at some point in their life. These illnesses strike all kinds of families, regardless of race, socioeconomic class, educational level or place of residence.
Schizophrenia occurs at equal rates regardless of education, socioeconomic status, or culture.
Depression, panic disorder and obsessive compulsive disorders are also equal opportunity illnesses. Women suffer from depression at twice the rate of men regardless of where they live, their culture, or socioeconomic status. Five million older Americans suffer from depression, and one in ten children and adolescents suffer from some type of mental illness. Mental illness can happen to anyone. Depression is a diagnosable, treatable illness that affects 19 million adult Americans each year.