Suicide By The Numbers
Number of US emergency room visits for self-inflicted injury: 438,000
Number of deaths: 31,655
Deaths per 100,000 population: 11.0
Firearm suicides - number of deaths: 17,108 - deaths per 100,000 population: 5.9
Suffocation suicides - Number of deaths: 6,462 - Deaths per 100,000 population: 2.2
Poisoning suicides - Number of deaths: 5,489 - Deaths per 100,000 population: 1.9
The World Health Organization estimates that in the year 2000 approximately one million people died from suicide. A global mortality rate of 16 per 100,000. One death every 40 seconds.
Canada, among western coutries has an unusually high rate - In Canada, suicide accounts for 24 percent of all deaths among 15-24 year olds and 16 percent among 16-44 year olds. Suicide is the second leading cause of death for Canadians between the ages of 10 and 24.
Seventy-three percent of hospital admissions for attempted suicide are for people between the ages of 15 and 44.
Suicide has accounted for about 2% of annual deaths in Canada since the late 1970s.
In the last 45 years suicide rates have increased by 60% worldwide.
Suicide is now among the three leading causes of death among those aged 15-44 (both sexes).
Suicide attempts are up to 20 times more frequent than completed suicides.
Although suicide rates have traditionally been highest among elderly males, rates among young people have been increasing to such an extent that they are now the group at highest risk in a third of all countries.
Mental disorders (particularly depression and substance abuse) are associated with more than 90% of all cases of suicide.
Suicide results from many complex sociocultural factors and is more likely to occur during periods of socioeconomic, family and individual crisis (e.g. loss of a loved one, employment, honor).
Suicide in the USA based on 2003 Statistics
In 2003 (the latest year for which we have national statistics), there were 31,484 suicides in the U.S. (86 suicides per day; 1 suicide every 17 minutes). This translates to an annual suicide rate of 10.8 per 100,000.
Suicide is the eleventh leading cause of death.
Suicide rates in the U.S. can best be characterized as mostly stable over time. Since 1990, rates have ranged between 12.4 and 10.7 per 100,000.
Rates of suicide are highest in the intermountain states. Eight of the top 10 states suicide rates are from those states.
Males complete suicide at a rate four times that of females. However, females attempt suicide three times more often than males.
Relative to those younger, rates of completed suicide are highest among the elderly (age 80 and over).
Elderly adults have rates of suicide close to 50% higher than that of the nation as a whole.
Youth (ages 15-24) suicide rates increased more than 200% from the 1950's to the late 1970's. From the late 1970's to the mid 1990's, suicide rates for youth remained stable and, since then, have slightly decreased.
Suicide ranks third as a cause of death among young (15-24) Americans behind accidents and homicides.
Firearms remain the most commonly utilized method of completing suicide by essentially all groups. More than half (54%) of the individuals who took their own lives in 2003 used this method. Males used it more often than their female counterparts.
The most common method of suicide for all females was poisoning. In fact, poisoning has surpassed firearms for female suicides since 2001.
Caucasians (12 per 100,000) have higher rates of completed suicides than African Americans (5.1 per 100,000).
Suicide rates have traditionally decreased in times of war and increased in times of economic crises.
Suicide rates are the highest among the divorced, separated, and widowed and lowest among the married.
In the US, the Centers for Disease Control reports that:
More people die from suicide than from homicide. In 1997, there were 1.5 times as many suicides as homicides.
Overall, suicide is the eighth leading cause of death for all Americans, and is the third leading cause of death for young people aged 15-24.
Males are four times more likely to die from suicide than are females. However, females are more likely to attempt suicide than are males.
Research Findings
- Although there are no official national statistics on attempted suicide (e.g., non-fatal actions) it is generally estimated that there are 25 attempts for each death by suicide.
- Risk of attempted (nonfatal) suicide is greatest among females and the young.
- Ratios of attempted to completed suicides for youth are estimated to range between 100 to 1 and 200 to 1.
- Mental health diagnoses are generally associated with a higher rate of suicide. Psychological autopsy studies reflect that more than 90% of completed suicides had one or more mental disorders.
- Those with the following diagnoses are at particular risk: depression, schizophrenia, drug and/or chemical dependency and conduct disorders (in adolescence).
- There is a relationship between depression and suicide; the risk of suicide is increased by more than 50 percent in depressed individuals. Aggregated research findings suggest that about 60 percent of suicides were depressed.
- There is a relationship between alcoholism and suicide; the risk of suicide in alcoholics is 50 to 70 percent higher than the general population.
Statistics on Teen Suicide
During the 12 months preceding the survey:
- 24.1% of students had thought seriously about attempting suicide.
- 17.7% of students had made a specific plan to attempt suicide.
- 8.7% of students had attempted suicide.
- 2.8% of students had made a suicide attempt which resulted in an injury, poisoning, or overdose that required medical attention.
Following is the breakdown by Gender, Race, and Age.
- Female students (30.4%) were significantly more likely than male students (18.3%) to have thought seriously about attempting suicide.
- Female students (21.3%) were significantly more likely than male students (14.4%) to have made a specific plan to attempt suicide.
- Female students (11.9%) were significantly more likely than male students (5.6%) to have attempted suicide.
- White students (24.9%) were significantly more likely than black students (20.0%) to have thought seriously about attempting suicide.
- Hispanic students (13.4%) were significantly more likely than white students (7.6%) to have attempted suicide.
- Students in grade 11 (26.3%) were significantly more likely than students in grade 12 (20.0%) to have thought seriously about attempting suicide.
- Students in grades 9 (10.6%) and 10 (10.1%) were significantly more likely than students in grade 12 (5.6%) to have attempted suicide.
- Students in grade 9 (4.1%) were significantly more likely than students in grade 12 (1.7%) to have made a suicide attempt which resulted in an injury, poisoning, or overdose that required medical attention.
Suicide is the eighth leading cause of death nationally and ranks above homicides and deaths from drunk driving.
One suicide occurs every 16 minutes, with one attempt every minute.
The highest suicide rate is among Caucasian men over 50 who are not medically ill.
Of the many millions of Americans who suffer from depression in any given year, over 80% can be effectively treated, but only 30% actually seek help, and of that number, slightly more than 15% are accurately diagnosed and effectively treated.
Although most gun owners reportedly keep a firearm in their home for "protection" of "self-defense," 83% of gun related deaths in these homes are the result of a suicide, often by someone other than the gun owner.
From suicides that occurred between 1970 and 1995, there are an estimated 4.53 million survivors in the U.S.; this number grows by 186,000 per year.
The number one cause of suicide is depression undiagnosed, untreated, or ineffectively treated.
This Suicide Statistics information has been gathered from a number of studies including (but not limited to): Anderson and Smith, CDC, WHO, Lubell, Swahn, Crosby, and Kegler, SAMHSA, The National Center for Injury Prevention and Control, The United States Surgeon General's Report, The United States Department of Health and Human Services.
