The United States has dropped off the World Happiness Report’s list of the 20 Happiest Countries for the first time in the list’s 12-year history.
The annual World Happiness Report was released on Wednesday and the U.S. was listed in 23rd place, down from 15th place the previous year.
Finland is the happiest country in the world, followed by Denmark in second, Iceland in third, Sweden in fourth, and Israel in fifth.
Afghanistan is the least happy country, at 143rd place.
When looking only at residents under 30, the U.S. dropped all the way down to 62nd place. However, when looking only at respondents over 60, the United States jumped up to 10th place.
“There is widespread concern, especially in the United States, about an emerging epidemic of loneliness, and about the consequences of loneliness for mental and physical health,” the study found.
The study also found loneliness is almost twice as high among the Millennials than among those born before 1965.
“In comparing generations, those born before 1965 are, on average, happier than those born since 1980,” the report explains. “Among Millennials, evaluation of one’s own life drops with each year of age, while among Boomers life satisfaction increases with age.”
