Lesbian, gay and bisexual members of Generation Z report higher levels of anxiety and sadness than their peers, according to a poll.
A Gallup poll released Thursday showed 71 percent of 18- to 25-year-olds who identify as a sexual orientation other than straight or heterosexual reported feeling anxiety for a lot of the previous day. Only 52 percent of that age group who identify as straight said the same.
Lesbian, gay and bisexual young adults were also much less likely to report that they were happy the day before, with only 65 percent saying so compared to 80 percent of straight or heterosexual respondents in the age group who said they felt happiness a lot of the previous day.
More than three-quarters of those with sexual orientations other than heterosexual said they felt stressed, and more than 40 percent said they felt sad a lot of the day — each 8 points higher than the figure for straight individuals.
Pollsters also found that lesbian, gay and bisexual young adults were more likely to report worse levels of mental and physical health than straight young adults.
More than 60 percent of lesbian, gay or bisexual individuals said they have only fair or poor mental health, and more than half said they have only fair or poor physical health.
Meanwhile, more than 60 percent of heterosexual individuals said they have excellent or good mental health, and nearly 70 percent said they have excellent or good physical health.
Gallup said in its analysis of the results that mental, emotional and physical health issues have increased among all Americans, but Generation Z members in the LGBTQ community are experiencing these issues at higher rates than their peers.
“Results suggest these young adults’ daily emotional struggles impact their physical and mental health and require further support to ensure they can thrive in their postsecondary pathways, careers and lives,” according to the Gallup analysis.
The poll was conducted from April 24 to May 8 among 18- to 25-year-olds, including 543 respondents who identify as straight or heterosexual and 239 respondents who identify as another sexual orientation. The margin of error was 8.3 points.