Stress and mental disorders

How many are suffering from stress and how many have mental disorders in Denmark? How is the mental health of the population?

Note: Below, we provide links to Statistics Denmark and others who make statistics on the subject. In some instances, the sources referred to below have content in Danish only or limited content in English.

Stress

"Den Nationale Sundhedsprofil” is a national health profile (in Danish), which includes information on stress – see results from the surveys:

• The latest publications are "Danskernes sundhed - Den nationale sundhedsprofil 2025" 
• Results from 2010, 2013, 2017, 2021, 2023 and 2025 can be found in the database Danskernes sundhed

The Danish Work Environment Authority (Arbejdstilsynet) monitors the working environment among employees - including the psychological working environment and stress.

• Read more and see data from ”National Overvågning af Arbejdsmiljøet blandt Lønmodtagere” (NOA-L)
• See also the article ”Stigning i anmeldte psykiske sygdomme i 2023”

Mental disorders

Psykiatrifonden is the Danish mental health fund and provides general figures for the incidence of mental illness in the population:

• See their website with Prevalence of mental illness (Forekomst af psykisk sygdom - in Danish), which includes source references.

At the request of the Danish Health Authority, the National Institute of Public Health (NIPH) has carried out a major study of the burden of disease in Denmark. 

• "Sygdomsbyrden i Danmark - Sygdomme" (2023) (in Danish). The study compares e.g. depression, anxiety and schizophrenia in terms of various parameters such as incidence, mortality, treatment, sickness absence, disability pension, etc. 

The Danish Health Data Authority is responsible for the register of medicines statistics, Lægemiddelstatistikregisteret (in Danish), which holds information on all sales of medicines in Denmark. 

• The register is used for e.g. analyses of the consumption of ADHD medicine, antidepressants and anti-psychotics (in Danish)

Stress, mental disorders and mental health of children and young people

Psykiatrifonden (The Danish mental health fund):

• See the page Prevalence of mental illness in children and adolescents (Forekomst af psykisk sygdom hos børn og unge - in Danish)

The Danish Health Authority:

• "Stress i Danmark - Med særligt fokus på unge og personer uden for arbejdsmarkedet" (2024) (in Danish)

• "Stress blandt unge" (2007) (in Danish) presents the results of the first survey on stress among pupils in the final years of secondary school.

Vidensråd for Forebyggelse (Danish knowledge council for prevention):  

• The report "Mental sundhed og psykisk sygdom hos 0-9-årige børn" (2021) (in Danish) maps e.g. the prevalence and distribution of mental health issues and mental illness among 0-9-year-old children.

• The report "Mental sundhed og sygdom hos børn og unge i alderen 10-24 år" (2020) (in Danish) has data on children and young people with ADHD, autism spectrum disorders (AFS), anxiety, depression, obsessive-compulsive disorders (OCD), Tourette’s syndrome, behavioural disorders, eating disorders and psychoses in the schizophrenic spectrum. The report incude a section on the occurrence of stress in the age group.

Børns Vilkår og TrygFonden:

• The report "Krop, køn og digital adfærd : hvordan mindsker vi presset på børn og unge?" (2020) (in Danish) contains a section about children and young people's experiences of pressure and stress in everyday life.

The Danish Health Data Authority:

• In their report "Prævalens, incidens og aktivitet i sundhedsvæsenet for børn og unge med angst eller depression, ADHD og spiseforstyrrelse" (2018) (in Danish), the Health Data Authority has collected data on the prevalence, incidence and activity in the healthcare sector for children and young people suffering from anxiety, depression, ADHD or eating disorders.

[This page was last reviewed in August 2026]