Lesbian, gay, and bisexual men and women in England are more likely to suffer from poor health than the general population, according to a recent study.

Researchers found that lesbian, gay and bisexual populations are more likely to report unfavorable experiences with the health care they received in general practices in England's health care system, the National Health Service.

"Our results show that sexual minorities suffer poorer health and have worse experiences with health care," Marc Elliott, lead author of the study and a principal researcher at RAND, a nonprofit research organization, said in a statement. "This suggests a need to develop programs tailored toward the health care needs of lesbian, gay and bisexual patients."

For the study, researchers analyzed data from more than 2 million respondents to the 2009/2010 English General Practice Patient Survey. The respondents included more than 27,000 people who described themselves as lesbian, gay or bisexual.

The findings confirm results from previous studies -- particularly from the United States -- that members of sexual minority groups are more likely than the general population to suffer from mental health problems, particularly depression, anxiety and substance abuse.

Based on the findings, sexual minorities were two to three times more likely to report having a longstanding psychological or emotional problem than heterosexual counterparts.

The research team also found that lesbian, gay and bisexual individuals were up to 50 percent more likely than heterosexuals to report negative experiences with primary care services, including trust and confidence with their primary care physicians, communication with both primary care physicians and nurses, and overall satisfaction.

"The results raise the possibility that the poorer health reported by sexual minority group members may be due in part to hostile and stressful social environments created by the stigma, prejudice and discrimination that they face," Dr. Martin Roland, senior author of the study and project leader, said in a statement. "It is possible, too, that this hostile environment may carry over into the medical practice, leading to poor health care experiences."

The findings were recently published in the Journal of General Internal Medicine.