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From 1999 to 2014, suicide rates in the United States have increased by 33%, but the incidence always has been higher among men than women in all age groups.
In 2016, nearly 45,000 Americans age 10 or older died by suicide. Suicide is the 10th leading cause of death and is one of just three leading causes that are on the rise.
....from 0.67 percent of all kids treated in 2008 to 1.79 percent in 2015, according to data from 32 children's hospitals across the United States.
Suicidal thoughts or attempts among kids appear to fluctuate with the school calendar, reaching their lowest levels during the summer and spiking in the fall and spring....
The Trust for America's Health (TFAH) and the Well Being Trust released Pain in the Nation: Education Brief, which reports that suicide rates almost doubled in youth aged 17 years and younger during the past 10 years and that it more than tripled in girls aged 10 to 14.
Moreover, more than one million adolescents had a substance abuse disorder in 2016.
The report authors call for the development of partnerships between educators, school- and community-based health professionals, state and federal government agencies, businesses, and healthcare organizations to design and implement screening and care programs for youngsters.
"This brief is a reflection of the fact that we're seeing a dramatic increase in gaps associated with drug and alcohol abuse and that we have a particular interest in preventing those deaths by working with children, adolescents, and families to propose policies that decrease the likelihood that those students will develop addictions or suicide," John Auerbach, MBA, president and CEO of TFAH and associate director for policy, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, told Medscape Medical News.
"The good news is that there are a number of programs that have been shown effective, some based in schools or in schools working together with other community organizations, and we shine a light on what these programs are," he said.
TFAH is "a nonpartisan organization that focuses on prevention and public health policies and programs throughout the country," Auerbach reported. Because the foundation is "intentionally" not funded by governmental or corporate sources, "we can be a trusted, independent voice for policies and approaches that will be most useful for promoting the health and well-being of the American people," he said.
The brief reports that deaths from suicide among persons aged 17 and younger rose 84% from 2007 to 2016, with a 10% increase in from 2015 to 2016 in those younger than 18 years.
The statistics are particularly alarming for girls aged 10 to 14, whose suicide rate rose by 231% in the past decade and by 8% in 2016 alone.
The report shows that more than one million adolescents (aged 12 to 17) had a substance use disorder (either alcohol or drugs) in 2016 and that one fifth reported alcohol consumption within the past month.
An estimated 90% of adolescent drinking was binge drinking; 2 in 5 high school students reported consuming eight or more drinks on a single occasion.
The report touches upon broader systemic reasons for these alarming statistics, including "despair deaths" that "are straining our country's child welfare system, as more and more children are forced into foster care because of parental death or substance misuse.” In 2016 alone, the number of children in foster care increased for the fourth consecutive year. Parental drug misuse constituted the reason for the child's removal in more than one third of cases.
Adverse childhood experiences increase the risk for negative outcomes, including substance use disorders, and increase the odds of suicidality in offspring. Alcohol use during pregnancy leads to an array of adverse birth outcomes, as well as a higher risk for subsequent abuse by parents.
...increasing 25 percent nationally, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported. In 2016, there were more than twice as many suicides as homicides.
Mental Health Update | Suicide-related encounters at US children’s hospitals more than doubled between 2008 and 2015, according to a study published online in Pediatrics.
Suicide is rising in younger age groups, as is self-harm or non-suicidal self injury (NSSI) which can result in unintended fatality.
The factors affecting young men and women are different, and also overlap. Understanding the risk factors combined with careful assessment and clinical decision-making is the standard of care at this time, though in the future we may have neuroscience-based techniques to provide more objective and reliable assessment. In the meantime, researchers continue to identify relevant risk factors, which clinicians and patients include in treatment planning, especially when there is concern about suicide and self-injury.
In order to investigate the role of hormonal contraception on suicide-related factors, Skovlund and colleagues (2017) analyzed population data to look for patterns in contraception use and suicide risk factors. They note that hormonal treatments are used by 100 million women around the world for purposes ranging from contraception, to relief of menstrual symptoms such as pain and bleeding, and premenstrual syndrome.
Hormonal contraception has been associated in previous studies with depression and negative effects on mood, and has also been show to increase the risk of suicide and suicide attempts in multiple studies (Skovlund et al., 2016; Schaffir et al., 2016; Bertolote et al., 2003).
Prior research with large cohorts have been mixed, with some studies showing no elevated risk related to suicide, and others showing a significant increase in risk. In addition, hormonal contraception has been associated with risk for some diseases, including some forms of cancer and problems with blood clotting too easily.