June 22,2018-- Over the past 20 years, the suicide rates in almost every state of the U.S. have been rising and suicide has been one of the 10 leading causes of death in the US, according to a report released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta.
The CDC studied the suicide data from 1999 to 2016 and found the suicide rates across the US over the past decades increased by 25 percent. “Suicide rates are actually higher than what’s reported because homicides get more attention,” said Nadine Kaslow, former president of the American Psychological Association. Suicide has been a serious public health crisis regardless of region, race, sex and age.
More than half of the suicide committers did not have a known diagnosed mental health condition and economic problem is the principal factor.
The most common method of suicide is firearms.
“The crisis cannot be solved overnight and focus should be put on addressing the unfair distribution of wealth which causes a widening gap between the rich and the poor,” said Yuan Zheng, researcher with the Institute of American Studies, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.
By: Shi Dongdong
|