EstimatedPrevalence of Anxiety Disorders(per 100,000individuals: data from 204 countries and territories)Information on nonbinary categorieswas not published
Age 25507515 25501575
Prepandemic
Pandemic
6,000 2,000Percent Changein Daily HelplineCalls (data from 19 countries and territories)–44812Weeks from OutbreakJune 2019Sept. 20206,000 3,000Female MaleBillions of CigarettesSold (U.S.) Drug Overdose Deathsper Year (U.S.)398.3(2001)203.7(2020)Alcohol Retail Sales (millions of dollars, U.S.)Beer, wine, and liquor storesRestaurants and bars19,394(2001)Nearly 100,000(2021)
Provisional data for 2020 and12 months ending in May 2021(^40200) –20
2019
2020
2022
2011
2013
2015
2017
8,000 6,000 4,000 2,000
0
Estimated NIH Funding (millions of dollars)
Infectious diseases Applied behavioral and social scienceEmerging infectious diseases Health disparitiesMental health Social determinants of healthBasic behavioral and social science Health services Immunization Vaccine-related CoronavirusesVector-borne diseasesInfluenza Burden of illness
Global Fossil Carbon DioxideEmissions (billion tonnes, Gt)
25.3 Gt(2001)
Projected:36.4 Gt(2021)
Mean Nitrogen DioxideConcentration across 122 U.S.Counties (parts per billion)
20 10 0 6 4
M a r. 11
Apr. 21
Jan. 9, 2020
Daily MeanConcentration of Fine Particulate Matter (micro-grams per cubic meter of air)
Prepandemic
Pandemic
County CharacteristicUrbanLate/no business closuresMean for all 122 countiesEarly business closuresRural
Number of Clinical TrialsHalted* (Citing COVID) and Later Restarted
†^
per Month
600 400 200
0
- Through Dec. 2020†As of Oct. 2021
Jul. 2020
Nov. 2020
Mar. 2021
Jul. 2021
Halted
Restarted
Prevalence of Self-Reported Stress Between Jan. 2020 and Oct. 2020, 1,625 clinical trials cited COVID as a reason for peoplehalting their workOnly 56.4% of those trials had restarted as of Oct. 2021
40%
0%
20%
Psychosocial StressorsStigma or discriminationfor spreading COVIDDeath of loved oneFeeling isolatedWorkplace exposureto COVIDHealth of familyand loved onesGetting ill from COVIDSocial Determinants of HealthHousing instabilityNot enough foodAccess to health servicesLoss of job or income
White (non-Hispanic)Black (non-Hispanic)
Hispanic/Latino
Native American/Alaska Native,
Asian, multiracial,
or another
race/ethnicity
Mar. 2020 Mar. 2020
SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH
Beginning in March 2020, some research projects screeched to a halt, whereas others suddenly ramped up. An urgency to understand
COVID—and the under
lying public health issues it has revealed—may have prompted a reevaluation of priorities inscientific research.CO(^2)
(^) •
According to CarbonMonitor.org, global emissions
of carbon dioxide, the greenhouse gas responsible for
the
majority of global warming, fell by a considerable 5.4
percent
in 2020 but have since rebounded to levels approximating those of 2019. Source: Global Carbon Project NO
(^2)
(^) •
Nitrogen dioxide is emitted through the burning of
fossil fuels and is associated with human respiratory problems. In the first several weeks of pandemic lockdowns in
the U.S.,
levels of this gas dropped by more than 25
percent relative to
the same period in the previous three years. Source: “Changes in U.S. Air Pollution during the COVID-19 Pandemic,”
by Jesse D.
Berman and Keita Ebisu, in
Science of the Total Environment
, Vol. 739;
October 2020 (
data
)
Fine Particulates
(^) •
Following lockdowns in the U.S.,
fine particulate matter (PM2.5) stayed relatively close to
prepandemic levels overall. Researchers did find, however, significant decreases in urban areas and those where nonessential businesses closed early.Source: “Changes in U.S. Air Pollution during the
COVID-19 Pandemic,”
by Jesse D. Berman and Keita Ebisu, in
Science of the Total Environment,
Vol. 739;
October 2020 (
data
)
Behavioral
science research
is on the rise
Reflecting on how misinformation
exacerbated
COVID’s impacts in the U.S.,
outgoing
nih
director Francis Collins told PBS
NewsHour:
“I wish we had more insights from
behavioral social science research into how this has
come to pass and why it could have gotten so
completely widespread. I
want to call this out as one
of my most major concerns as I
stepped down
from the
nih
, of looking at the situation in our
nation.” The
nih
’s increased investment
in the field in
2022 reflects
Collins’s
concerns.
Clinical Trials During the period of December 2019 through January 2021, 2,043 clinical trials globally were suspended or paused because of
COVID-19. Some of those have subsequently
restarted, but many have not. Source: Data from ClinicalTrials.gov, processed by Benjamin Gregory Carlisle (
unpublished analysis
)
Funding by the National Institutes of HealthOut of a total of 200 broad research areas, certain categories of
nih
funding experienced especially large
increases from 2019 to 2022 (which is a pro
jected budget).
Some seem clearly linked to the pandemic: social determinants of health, for example, are related to C O V I D ’ s d i s
p r o
p o r
t i o n a t e i m p a c t o n c e r t a i n p o p u l a t i o n s.
Other areas, such as influenza and vector-borne disease, received relatively little investment. Source: National Institutes of Health, June 25, 2021
(^ data downloaded from https://report.nih.gov
)
EMISSIONS
When governments issued lockdowns and other restrictions in response to COVID, transportation and commercial energy consumption dropped suddenly. The result was a striking decrease in air pollution. But studies tracking changes in carbon dioxide, nitrogen dioxide and fine particulates also show a rebound toward prepandemic levels.
Reducing
emissions is possible—
but how we get there matters
The pandemic’s immediate impact on
emissions proves that collective behavioral changes can produce swift results. But there is little about
the painful conditions of the pandemic that anyone
desires to replicate. One exception is the shift
to remote work for millions
of people who
formerly commuted by car. Policies that
support telecommuting could help sustain
a decrease in
emissions.
March 2022, ScientificAmerican.com 61