Gender Inequality and Women Mental Health: Where Do We Stand?

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), gender is one of the main determinants of health. Thus, there is an urgent need to understand and eliminate gender disparities in mental health, as gender equality is fundamental in science, medicine, and global health. Gender is a variable that influences several aspects of mental health, including the prevalence of mental disorders, clinical expression, disease course, response to treatment, and help-seeking attitudes. Depression is three times more frequent in women than in men, anxiety and panic disorders are twice as frequent in women than in men, bulimia three times, and anorexia nervosa 13 times. On the other hand, early-onset schizophrenia, substance use disorders, and neurodevelopmental disorders such as autism spectrum disorder and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, are more prevalent in males. Gender differences in the pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of drugs are responsible for their different efficacy and possible side effects. However, women are underrepresented in biomedical clinical studies. Indeed, an individual may respond to stimuli such as drugs based on circulating levels of sex hormones that fluctuate during the female reproductive cycle and are different in men and in people taking hormone treatments. A neglected problem is paternal and maternal perinatal depression. The perinatal period is an extremely delicate passage in a woman’s life. There is clear evidence that one in five women suffer from maternal mental disorders in the perinatal period and that relapses of major depressive disorder and bipolar episodes can frequently occur. It is also important to focus on the emotional well-being of co-parents in the perinatal period as it affects both of them and the mother and baby. Many screening programs and interventions are developing to promote healthy parenting and family bonding, targeting mental health, medication counseling, and reducing neurodevelopmental risk factors in offspring. Addressing gender inequality and incorporating gender differences into mental health and pharmacology are essential to establishing an effective and safer treatment strategy.