According to a new study based on UK National Health Service (NHS) data, adults with severe mental illness die 15 to 20 years earlier than the general population. An analysis by the charity Rethink Mental Illness reveals that this high mortality rate is largely driven by preventable physical illnesses.
Researchers estimate that adults receiving specialized mental health services face an almost fivefold higher risk of dying before age 75. Specifically, the likelihood of death from liver disease is 6.3 times higher, from respiratory conditions 6 times higher, from cardiovascular disease 3.8 times higher, and from cancer 2.3 times higher. While suicide risk is also markedly elevated—14.6 times higher than the baseline rate—suicide accounts for just 7 percent of premature deaths overall, with physical illnesses accounting for the rest.
The report’s authors attribute this stark inequality to several factors, including poverty, poor housing conditions, high smoking rates, medication-related weight gain, and fragmented healthcare. However, one of the primary drivers identified is “diagnostic overshadowing”—a phenomenon where physicians mistakenly attribute a patient’s physical complaints to their mental health condition, causing delays in adequate screening and timely treatment for potentially life-threatening illnesses.
Mark Winstanley, chief executive of Rethink Mental Illness, described the findings as scandalous, underscoring that these patients are frequently in contact with the healthcare system, meaning the failure to address their physical conditions represents clear missed clinical opportunities. Professor Subodh Dave, president of the Royal College of Psychiatrists, stated that mental illness should not be a premature death sentence and called for routine physical health checks to address the crisis. In response, a new national health strategy is currently in development to open 100 new community mental health hubs and deliver more integrated care for patients.
