City Life and Mental Health

New studies show that our physical surroundings affect our mental health as well, in a greater degree than previously known. The people living in big cities face a nearly 40 percent higher risk of depression, a 20 percent higher chance of anxiety, and double the risk of schizophrenia than people living in rural areas.

Part of this situation is due to social problems like loneliness and stress, complicated further by living within breathing distance of others.

The one terrifying aspect of how the space we live affects our health is that many of the bad effects aren't even fully known to us, like mood swings, neuron damage, chemical imbalance and many brain-altering effects, that are yet to be fully studied.