Voice of the White House

July 20, 2017

Washington, D.C.:
Here are some depressing figures sent to us by a reader who thought they might be of interest. No source was quoted, but we checked on the figures and they appear to be correct (and depressing):

  • One out of every four women in the United States are taking antidepressants.
  • In 2010, the average teen in the US was taking 1.2 central nervous system drugs. Those are the kinds of drugs which treat conditions such as attention deficit disorder and depression.
  • Suicide has now actually surpassed car accidents as the number one cause of 'injury death' in the United States.
  • More American soldiers killed themselves than were killed in combat last year.
  • One-third of American employees suffer chronic debilitating stress, and more than half of all millennials (18 to 33 year olds) experience a level of stress that keeps them awake at night, including large numbers diagnosed with depression or anxiety disorder.
  • 28 million Americans have a drinking problem and about 22 million Americans use illegal drugs.
  • People in the US are tied with the UK for the highest average number of hours spent watching television: 28 hours per person per week.
  • One out of every three children in America lives in a home without a father.
  • For women under the age of 30 living in the United States, more than half of all babies are born out of wedlock.
  • The United States has the highest child abuse death rate in the developed world.
  • In the United States today, it is estimated that one out of every four girls is sexually abused before they become adults.
  • It is estimated that about one out of every six Americans between the ages of 14 and 49 have genital herpes.
  • One out of every four teen girls in the US has at least one sexually transmitted disease.
  • America has the highest incarceration rate and the largest total prison population in the entire world by a very wide margin.