Health & Wellness,LifestyleOCT 5, 2026

YOU WONT BELIEVE: Patient health now genz versus past - You Need To See This

Growing up, most of us probably assumed that getting older meant dealing with a few new aches, pains, and doctor’s appointments along the way. Not gonna lie, we were right, but medicine can reveal a very different picture when you look at how younger generations compare with those who came before them.

Doctors and nurses who have spent decades treating patients have watched those changes unfold firsthand. When one Reddit user asked healthcare workers what conditions they were seeing more often in Gen Z than in previous generations, thousands of people joined the conversation, including professionals sharing observations from years on the job.

The conversation bursted with 7.7k upvotes and 4k answers, ranging from familiar health concerns to conditions that might make you wonder why some problems are appearing more often or at younger ages. We’re taking a closer look at what these medical professionals noticed, and what research can tell us about the trends behind their observations.

#1

A young boy with chubby cheeks holding a fork and knife, representing early onset health problems in Gen Z.

*dangerously overweight kids and incredibly poorly behaved kids of all shapes and sizes*.

tiny_chaotic_evil, magnific / Magnific

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22points

#2

Young woman applying eye drops while sitting on a bed, addressing common Gen Z health problems.

A relative told me that their eye doctor (cornea specialist) mentioned that they see a lot more dry eye issues in younger people. Primarily because so much screen time causes them to stare more and not blink as often as they should. Not as serious as other things mentioned in the comments but I find it interesting. So please do your eyes a favor and blink more often while you're on your computers, tablets, and phones. Yes, you reading this right now, blink!

ScamperingSnail

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19points

Most people do not think of young adulthood as a time for chronic health problems. However, this has changed. In the U.S., 59.5% of adults ages 18 to 34 reported at least one of 12 chronic conditions in 2023, compared to 52.5% in 2013. Much of this rise is due to obesity and depression.

The trend is even more noticeable when people have more than one condition. The percentage of young adults with at least two chronic conditions went up from 21.8% in 2013 to 27.1% in 2023. This supports what doctors have noticed: more health problems are showing up earlier in adulthood. It also leads to the question of which conditions are most common.

#3

Close-up of a doctor writing on a notepad, discussing rising Gen Z health problems with a patient.

Our hospital system went down. We had to resort to paper charting. None of the Gen Z nurses can spell without autocorrect.

MAGAPika, armmypicca / Magnific

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18points

#4

Frustrated young man with his head in his hands studying a book, illustrating health problems in Gen Z.

Speech pathologist here, but: reading difficulties - decoding, sight reading, comprehension, the whole lot.

domdatapoint, pressfoto / Magnific

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18points

Mental health stands out clearly in this data. In 2022, 26.4% of adults ages 18 to 34 reported having experienced depression, compared to 22.0% of those ages 35 to 49 and 15.3% of adults 65 and older. Frequent mental distress showed a similar trend, affecting 23.2% of the youngest adults.

These numbers match a longer trend in chronic conditions. Depression among U.S. adults ages 18 to 34 increased from 16.4% in 2013 to 25.0% in 2023. While this does not explain the reason for the rise, it helps show why mental health is such a focus when doctors compare younger people to earlier generations.

#5

Woman holding her abdomen in pain, illustrating common Gen Z health problems related to digestion.

My sister's an ER nurse and she says the UTIs in girls in their early 20s are out of control now. like not the normal ones, the kind that go to your kidneys because they held it for 9 hours at work or waited three days to get seen. she had a 23 year old last month who nearly went septic over something that used to be a quick round of antibiotics. it's the ignoring your body thing, everyone's too busy or too broke to deal with it until it's an emergency.

ResearcherFit5425, ArtPhoto_studio / Magnific

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16points

#6

A young woman sitting in a chair holding her stomach, showing signs of Gen Z health problems.

My mother has worked in the ER since the 80s. She is the first person you meet and does the initial triaging. She said in the pre-2000s she never saw a young person with a kidney stone, it was a problem mainly 40+ suffered from. These days it's not uncommon to see young people get them.

Her theory is that it's energy drinks, but she doesn't really know. Something has changed though, causing younger people to get kidney stones than just a few decades ago at least. We are Swedish.

Robinsonirish, jcomp / Magnific

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14points

Mental health is just one piece of the puzzle, since sleep is a central part of daily life. In 2024, 30.5% of U.S. adults got less than seven hours of sleep on average. Among adults ages 18 to 34, 18.3% had trouble falling asleep, but this problem was less common in older adults, dropping to 12.8% for those 65 and older.

Sleep problems are also closely tied to the chronic conditions discussed earlier. Poor sleep is linked to issues like obesity and depression, so it is more than just feeling tired. Sleep connects the mental health challenges doctors notice with the daily habits that affect younger adults’ well-being.

Did you know that before electric lighting transformed the night, people did not always treat sleep as one uninterrupted block? Historian A. Roger Ekirch documented references to a “first sleep” followed by a period of wakefulness and a “second sleep,” with people using that middle-of-the-night interval to pray, read, talk, or tend to household tasks.

#7

A silhouette of a child looking at a smartphone, representing mental health problems in Gen Z.

Smartphones giving 20 year olds the necks of 60 year olds.

funleavy

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14points

#8

Pregnant young woman sitting on a sofa, highlighting rising Gen Z health problems.

I only work on the ambulance but I'm getting younger patients with obesity, diabetes, pregnancy, behavioral problems. Last summer I had a 12-year-old that had already been to rehab and was now on the ambulance with her mother for pregnancy complications. I also find us responding more and more to the schools for fights. This past spring it was a 6th grader that knocked out her principal with a metal folding chair À la WWE.

-Gumbercules, wavebreakmedia_micro / Magnific

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13points

#9

Close-up of a hand holding a vape pen surrounded by thick smoke, highlighting health risks in Gen Z.

Vape obsession. It leads to zero appetite. Usually hand in hand with anxiety. I’m seeing this as extremely thin young men with no appetite and complaining of “ difficulty swallowing” / eosinophilic esophagitis. Additionally, colon cancer. Prolly combo of fast food, preservatives, low fiber, chemicals and pesticides in our food, all affecting the gut microbiome.

Unique_Security3993, ArthurHidden / Magnific

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13points

Sleep isn’t the only daily habit that has changed a lot. Many younger adults now spend a lot of time sitting and looking at screens, which can affect their health. Sitting for long periods is linked to a higher risk of neck pain, especially when using phones and computers for extended times.

Using mobile phones is most strongly linked to neck pain, with computer use coming next. The risk goes up the more time people spend sitting. However, screens are not the only reason for neck pain. Posture, physical activity, work habits, and other factors also play a role in how much strain people put on their necks.

#10

A man sitting and clutching his head in pain, representing stress and health problems in Gen Z.

Anxiety, a lack of strong emotional connection with parents, a lack of sense of self, an impatience with the future, an inability to be here now, holy cow, would ppl please just take a breath?

Not a criticism of the patients… a criticism of their parents, leaders, and governments.

Whatsthathum, Drazen Zigic / Magnific

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12points

#11

An illustration of a heart with a clogged artery, representing cardiovascular health problems in Gen Z.

My 75-year-old husband recently had a quadruple bypass surgery (four new arteries placed during open heart surgery). It’s a big deal and a very severe surgery.

While sitting up in the ICU with him one night, the RN and I got to talking. She told me that they’re seeing an abundance of 40-somethings come in needing the same surgery.

In other words, young folks have already clogged up their arteries by age 40+. .

Basic_Incident4621, imgstocker / Magnific

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12points

#12

Woman stretching her aching back while working at a laptop, a common health problem in Gen Z.

I've been practicing for 3 years (resident neurologist). Last week I had in my clinic 3 women, 2 26yo and a 31yo, for back pain. All 3 had herniated discs and one of them had degenerative changes in her vertebrae which are normal for post menopause women. The 31yo had a cervical hernia from a few years ago, though it was thankfully not causing issues. My older colleagues have all noticed a trend of young people getting spinal disorders more and more often. It used to be that there would be maybe 10 patients under and around 30 the clinic would treat a year. Now there's 2-3 every month.

The consensus is more and more people spend their days barely moving. Or on the other end, there's people who go way too hard at the gym. Lifting weights with poor form or lifting over what they should be.

Deady2X, stefamerpik / Magnific

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12points

Another group of complaints often begins with something deceptively ordinary: stomach pain, bloating, constipation, or unpredictable bowel habits. Among adults ages 18–34, 6.9% meet the criteria for irritable bowel syndrome, compared with 2.3% of adults 65 and older.

Digestive problems can also appear relatively early in adulthood. Irritable bowel syndrome peaks around ages 18–34, while functional dyspepsia affects 9.5% of adults ages 18–35, compared with 3.9% of people over 65. Together, these figures show how common persistent digestive symptoms can be among younger adults.

#13

Woman applying face cream while looking in a bathroom mirror, treating Gen Z health problems like acne.

My wife is a nurse. She’s 36.

She has said a few times that she’s amazed at how many more younger women in particular have autoimmune and skin issues compared to women in their 30’s and older.

VikingRodeo9, magnific / Magnific

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11points

#14

A doctor wearing gloves performing an abdominal exam on a patient to address health problems in Gen Z.

Oncology NP here. I’ve diagnosed entirely too many stage IV colon cancers in patients

CapitalFloor3260, magnific / Magnific

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11points

#15

A bored or fatigued young woman at her desk with a pencil under her nose, symbolizing health problems in Gen Z.

Heavily medicated ADHD, anxiety, depression.

Tachycardia. Chest pain.

Polypharmacy.

Women utilizing hormonal birth control who've never had a pelvic exam until they develop a history and symptoms consistent with STI.

Ignorance and indifference to their own medical history. If you have a history of allergy to a previously prescribed medication, it is essential that you know the name of that medication, unless you enjoy experiencing potentially life-threatening symptoms. It is not adequate to tell us that you "nearly died" but have no idea as to what medication led to that scenario.

Inability to self-assess severity of symptoms. Inability to treat symptoms with readily available, inexpensive over-the-counter medications. Inability to experience minor symptoms for even one day prior to seeking medical care, with which they are then disappointed because no instant cure for viral symptoms yet exists.

If you are unable to swallow pills, are over the age of 12 and under the age of 75 and have no diagnosed medical condition which would make this issue obvious, please tell us BEFORE we send a script for tablets or capsules to your pharmacy. Please do not assume that all tablets are safe to crush, or that all capsules are safe to open. They aren't.

pooppaysthebills, magnific / Magnific

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9points

Now that we've looked at the numbers, let's go back to the original question: what does a doctor notice after years of seeing patients? Over time, doctors gain knowledge from seeing many cases, spotting patterns, and using their judgment. Evidence-based medicine values this experience and brings it together with the latest research.

A doctor might honestly see some complaints becoming more common among their patients, but this alone does not prove a trend in the whole population. Research helps check if these patterns show up in larger groups, while a doctor's experience can help researchers decide which questions to study.

Do you think doctors are really seeing different health problems in Gen Z, or could other factors explain the change? Which observation stood out to you the most? Share your thoughts in the comments!

#16

Diabetes.

Naughty_Side_777, suriyawutsuriya / Magnific

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9points

#17

A man with his hand on his head with scribbles over him, representing psychological health problems.

ADHD diagnosis and medication, whether substantiated or not.

Sed59, BillionPhotos / Magnific

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9points

#18

A young woman in pajamas holding her stomach in pain, highlighting growing health problems in Gen Z.

Nurse in a PACU in the NHS, mainly seeing a lot of gynae issues especially around endometriosis. But for the men outside the normal broken bones etc I'm not seeing a lot of gen z men.

I am seeing a lot more bowel/GI Cancer issues and Strokes aswell, the age groups seemingly getting younger.

PsychdelicBlueBear, gpointstudio / Magnific

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7points