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Suicide Prevention Basics
About Suicide
Suicide is a major public health problem. In 2002 ¹
- 31,655 people died by suicide in the United States.
- Suicide was the 11th leading cause of death in the United States.
In the U.S., more people die by suicide each year than die because of HIV or homicide.
- 11 out of every 100,000 Americans died by suicide.
There are gender, ethnic, and age differences in suicide
²
- Males are four times as likely to die by suicide than as females
- although females attempt suicide three times as often as males.
- White Americans are more likely to die by suicide than Americans
of other racial backgrounds.
- Suicide is the 3rd leading cause of death among Americans
between the ages of 15-24 and the second leading cause of death among those between
the ages of 25-34.
- Suicide rates increase with age. Elderly people who die by
suicide are often divorced or widowed and suffering from a physical illness.
There is a strong association between suicide and mental illness.
- Ninety percent of suicides that take place in the United States
are associated with mental illness, including disorders involving the abuse of
alcohol and other drugs ³.
- Fifty percent of those who die by suicide were afflicted with
major depression, and the suicide rate of people with major depression is eight
times that of the general population 4.
Suicide is a preventable public health problem
5.
References
- Data generated by the Center for Disease Control
and Prevention's WISQARS system in September, 2005.
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
(2004). Suicide Fact Sheet.
- Goldsmith, S, Pellmar, A, Kleinman, A, Bunney, W.
(editors) (2002).
Reducing Suicide: A National Imperative.
Washington, DC: National Academy Press.
- Jacobs, D, Brewer, M, and Klein-Benheim, M.
(1999) Suicide Assessment: An Overview and Recommended Protocol.
In The Harvard Medical School Guide to Suicide Assessment and Intervention
edited by D. Jacobs. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
- Goal 1. National Strategy for Suicide Prevention
(2001). Rockville,
MD: United States Public Health Service.