Mental Health

Suicide rates for children, young people jumped between 2007 to 2017: CDC

The suicide rate among those between ages 10 to 24 jumped between 2007 and 2017, according to a report released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on Thursday.

The 56-percent jump in that decade contrasted with a more stable suicide rate among the age group previously. In 2007, there were 6.8 suicides per 100,000 people among ages 10 to 24, while in 2017 there were 10.6 suicides, according to the CDC.

{mosads}Suicide is the second leading cause of death among people in that age range, behind accidents, according to The Washington Post. The suicide rate was higher than the homicide rate in that age group starting in 2011.

When broken down by age groups, the suicide rate for those aged 10 to 14 almost tripled between 2007 and 2017. For teenagers 15 to 19, the rate surged 76 percent in that decade.

For 20- to 24-year-olds, the rate of suicides has been increasing from 2000 to 2017, at a rate of 36 percent.

The Post noted researchers do not know the reason for the spike in the suicide rate among teens and young people, though they saw it as cause for alarm.

“Just looking at these numbers, it’s hard not to find them completely disturbing. It should be a call to action,” Lisa Horowitz, a pediatric psychologist at the National Institute of Mental Health, told the Post. 

Tags center for disease control and prevention children Suicide suicide rates teens

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