Mental Health at Home, Lost Opportunities for Children: Evidence from Senegal’s DHS Data

Mental illness within households in Senegal significantly harms children’s nutrition and schooling, making them more likely to be underweight, complete fewer years of education, and fail to finish primary school. Using 2023 DHS data, the study shows that ignoring mental health risks deepening intergenerational poverty and inequality, making mental health investment essential for child development and long-term growth.

Prepared by researchers from the African Development Bank and UNESCO’s International Institute for Educational Planning, this Africa Economic Brief examines how mental illness inside households affects children’s health and education in Senegal. Using data from the 2023 Demographic and Health Survey, the study shifts attention away from mental illness as an individual medical issue and places it firmly within the broader development debate. At a time when mental health disorders affect nearly one in eight people globally and remain poorly documented across Africa, the brief argues that ignoring mental health undermines progress in education, nutrition, and long-term human capital formation.

How Common Is Mental Illness in Senegalese Households?

The survey data reveal that about 4.8 percent of households in Senegal reported at least one member suffering from mental illness at the time of the survey. In most cases, only one adult in the household was affected. Respondents identified stress, overwork, addiction, poor living conditions, and family conflict as the main factors harming mental health. These causes highlight the close connection between mental illness and economic and social vulnerability, rather than viewing mental illness as an isolated or rare condition. The brief then explores how this household-level challenge shapes the lives of children growing up in these environments.

The Impact on Children’s Health and Nutrition

Children under the age of five in Senegal already face widespread nutritional challenges, with average height and weight levels below international reference standards. However, children living in households affected by mental illness are significantly worse off. Using standard World Health Organization indicators, the study finds that these children are more likely to be underweight and malnourished. The gap is particularly large for weight-for-age, a key indicator of child health. The proportion of underweight children is more than seven percentage points higher in households with a mentally ill adult, suggesting that mental illness at home is strongly linked to poorer early-life health outcomes.

Education Losses Begin Early and Deepen Over Time

The negative effects extend well beyond physical health and into education. Children aged six to eighteen who live in households affected by mental illness complete fewer years of schooling on average. By adolescence, the consequences become especially severe. Among children aged fourteen to eighteen, those exposed to mental illness at home are more than nine percentage points less likely to have completed primary school, despite education being compulsory for most of this age range. Even after accounting for household wealth, location, and parental characteristics, the link between mental illness and poorer education outcomes remains strong.

Why These Effects Matter for the Future

The brief explains several pathways through which mental illness harms children’s outcomes. Adults with mental illness often earn less or are unable to work, reducing household income. Families also divert limited time and money toward medical care, leaving fewer resources for children’s food and schooling. Older children may leave school early to support family income, while younger children receive less care and supervision. Social factors add further strain: children may experience stigma, embarrassment, bullying, and emotional stress linked to a parent’s mental illness, all of which undermine learning and well-being.

Although the analysis focuses on short-term outcomes, the long-term implications are serious. Poor nutrition in early childhood is linked to lower cognitive skills, weaker health, and reduced earnings in adulthood. Education, meanwhile, is known to protect mental health later in life. By damaging both health and schooling, mental illness within households risks creating an intergenerational cycle in which today’s children face a higher likelihood of mental illness and poverty as adults.

The brief concludes that mental health must be fully integrated into national policies and social protection systems. Expanding community-based mental health services, protecting children through targeted nutrition and education programs, and systematically collecting mental health data across Africa are essential steps. Investing in mental health, the authors argue, is not only a public health necessity but a powerful strategy for protecting children, reducing inequality, and securing sustainable development.