University of Washington study finds wildfires can worsen mental health

PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) – A new study led by University of Washington researchers found that large wildfires appear to exacerbate preexisting mental health conditions and comes as wildfires are expected to increase in the western United States in the next two decades, according to researchers.

The study -- published Feb. 26 in JAMA Open Network -- analyzed drug prescription data in California near 25 large wildfires over the course of eight years.

Researchers found a significant increase in prescriptions for certain psychoactive drugs in the six weeks after fires that each burned at least 25,000 acres.

The study – encompassing seven million people who lived near wildfires – found an increase in prescriptions for antidepressants, anxiolytics, and mood-stabilizing medications during the fire period compared to the period before the fire.

The increase included new prescriptions and refills – including drugs taken to treat depression, anxiety, and bipolar disorder, and did not see parallel increases in prescriptions for anti-psychotics, hypnotics, or cholesterol-lowering statins, which were the control drugs.

“This research adds a significant amount of evidence that there is a really substantial mental health impact related to wildfire in our communities,” said lead author Zack Wettstein, a UW Medicine emergency medicine doctor. 

Previous studies have examined the mental health effects of earthquakes, hurricanes, and floods. However, there's little research on how wildfires impact mental well-being on a population level, Wettstein said.

“We have a lot of research that supports that wildfires have huge impacts on respiratory health and cardiovascular health,” Wettstein said. “But people don't think as much about the mental health impacts, which affect all of us. It's important that we now have stronger evidence that associates wildfire exposure, wildfires in our communities and impacts on our mental health.”

“As a clinician during wildfire season, I certainly feel like it's caused me to feel more stressed or affect my sleep,” Wettstein added. “I’ve cared for patients who present for not just the respiratory and cardiovascular disease that we all know about, but also for things like stress and anxiety and exacerbations of their underlying mental health conditions.”

The database used in the study only included patients with health insurance, and it is less clear how wildfires impact the mental health of rural residents who have less access to mental health care, researchers said.

According to Wettstein, the study shows the need for a mental health approach to wildfires and to ensure access to mental health resources for people during and after fires.

“We certainly need more research, but I think this is enough to inform policy discussions around resource allocation,” Wettstein said. “We have a lot of work to do in terms of preparing for and responding to wildfire season from a mental health standpoint.”

As climate change continues to alter weather patterns, wildfire activity is expected to increase in the western United States in the coming decades, the University of Washington noted.

Wettstein conducted the study as a guest researcher for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention with colleague Ambarish Vaidyanathan.