Thomas Insel, the Director of the National Institute of Mental Health, tells us:

Five years ago, Colton and Mandersheidi surveyed mortality data from eight states and concluded that, on average, Americans with major mental illness die 14 to 32 years earlier than the general population. The average life expectancy for people with major mental illness ranged from 49 to 60 years of age in the states they examined — a life span on par with many sub-Saharan African countries, including Sudan (58.6 years) and Ethiopia (52.9 years).ii Average life expectancy in the United States is 77.9 years.iii It would appear that the increase in longevity enjoyed by the general U. S. population over the past half century has been lost on those with serious mental illness (SMI). In fact, this drop in life expectancy due to mental illness would surpass the health disparities reported for most racial or ethnic groups. Yet this population is rarely identified as an underserved or at-risk group in surveys of the social determinants of health. iv

Insel discusses the reasons for the disparities and concludes:

The unavoidable fact is that we will not improve overall longevity or contain health care costs in this nation without addressing the needs of the nearly 5 percent of Americans with serious mental illness. This is a population that not only dies early; they have multiple chronic diseases requiring expensive care, often in emergency rooms and intensive care units. We need better strategies for dealing with this urgent public health issue and we need to ensure that whether these strategies are collaborative care for depression or an innovative medical home for those with serious mental illness, we implement these interventions where the need is greatest.

The costs of dealing with mental health needs is staggering. Not doing so is even more staggering.

http://www.nimh.nih.gov/about/direct...l-health.shtml

[Gus1234U]

truer words never written, Byz. another well aimed arrow at the roots of ignorance. what do you think is the source of this disparity,, the abysmal bigotry of our culture towards brain chemistry disorders, behavioral impairments, or the unbearable stress of symptoms? perhaps all three? hope there is some rational discussion of this, would love to hear thoughtful replies. thanks again,, Gus

[missbelle]

Statistics show they die early probably because of more risky behavior due to that mental illness. Also the # of suicides would also factor in