What Are the Causes of Mental Illness?

Biological Causes

Brain studies are shedding new light on additional biological causes of mental illness. For some time, scientists have recognized the correlation between chemicals in the brain and mental illness. Now they are learning more about the specific chemicals and locations in the brain where reactions take place. For example, a July 2006 research study that was published in "Science Magazine" saw changes in the brain with people who have obsessive-compulsive disorder. Reports by the United States Surgeon General explain that if chemicals in the brain called neurotransmitters are not balanced or working correctly, mental illness symptoms may appear. Researchers also know that many times these imbalances can be genetic.

Forms of mental illness can also be caused by physical injury and trauma. In addition, certain diseases such as infections have been found to cause mental illness symptoms. According to the National Institutes of Health, a condition called pediatric autoimmune neuropsychiatric disorder that is linked to the Streptococcus bacteria is believed to be associated with obsessive-compulsive behavior.

Some of the psychological causes of mental illness have been known for over a century. It is recognized, for example, that sexual and physical abuse can result in a range of mental illness symptoms from anxiety to multiple personality. Other psychological causes include neglect and loss of a loved one at an early age. Most of these problems lead to low self-esteem and self-confidence.

Environmental triggers leading to mental illness include living in poverty, being raised in a dysfunctional family and frequently changing schools or home situations. Certain societal attitudes, such as about weight and physical appearances, for example, may also make people anxious or depressed.

Increasingly, researchers are looking more at the correlation between food and mental illness. For example, scientists at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, as reported in a 2008 "Science Daily," have found that normal brain development in infants and children may be hindered due to a diet lacking in omega-3 fatty acids. Omega-3 acids, which are found around nerves in different parts of the body, are a major factor in the speed with which neurons react, and are responsible for forming large lattices of complex links among neurons in the brain.

Mental illnesses are often found to run in families. When looking at a family tree, for example, one can often trace mental illness from one generation to the next. This is because there are certain mental illnesses that may be linked to genes. A person may not necessarily become mentally ill, but will have a greater risk of developing a mental illness.