Depression along Gulf Coast rises after oil spill

The BP oil spill has had a major impact on the mental well being of people along the Gulf Coast.

A recent Gallup poll has found that depression is up over 25 percent in counties along the Gulf.
The poll included nearly 2600 people in 25 Gulf Coast-facing counties from Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Florida, and Texas.
Florida counties involved in the poll reached from Escambia to Gulf counties.
Residents of Gulf Coast-facing counties reported 25.6% more clinical diagnoses of depression in the period after the oil spill compared with before it.
The study found that not only has there been a marked increase in depression, but Gulf coast residents are also now less satisfied with the "city or area where they live."

Even though Franklin County was not part of the study, a health survey conducted in July by the University of Florida and the University of Maryland found that the post-oil spill rate of depression in Franklin County is at least 37 percent and could be much higher.

The study also found that there is an elevated rate of anxiety disorders in the community and there is an increase in fatigue and confusion.

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