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Suicidal Teens
Headline The percentage of high school students who report they have thought seriously about attempting suicide has dropped substantially, from 29 percent in 1991 to 17 percent in 2003, where it remained in 2005. (See Figure 1) Large decreases were experienced by both sexes. (See Table 1) Planning for and attempting suicide are obvious health risks for youth. Suicide is the third leading cause of death among teenagers ages 15-19.1 In addition, this is often indicative of serious mental health problems, and may signal other traumatic life events such as physical or sexual abuse. Youth are much more likely to think about and attempt suicide if they are depressed.2 Other risk factors for suicide include: co-occurring substance or alcohol abuse and mental disorders; a family history of suicide; physical illness; relational, social, work, or financial loss; and easy access to lethal methods, especially guns.3 Finally, youth who have experienced stressful life events, who have poor levels of communication with their parents, and who have been exposed to the suicidal behaviors of others are more likely than others to commit suicide.4 The percentage of youth who reported that they had thought seriously about committing suicide in the last year declined from 29 percent in 1991 to 17 percent in 2003, where it remained in 2005. However, the number of youth who reported having attempted suicide has remained between seven and nine percent. A much smaller proportion, two to three percent of high school students, reported requiring medical attention as a result of the suicide attempt. (See Figure 1) Differences by Gender Female youth are much more likely than males to report seriously considering suicide (22 percent versus 12 percent, respectively, in 2005) and attempting suicide (11 percent versus 6 percent, respectively, in 2005). (See Figure 2) However, males are far more likely to succeed in committing suicide.5 Differences by Race and Ethnicity6 In 2005, Hispanic and non-Hispanic white students were more likely than non-Hispanic black students to have given serious thought to attempting suicide (18 and 17 percent, respectively, versus 12 percent). Hispanic students were more somewhat likely than non-Hispanic black and non-Hispanic white students to report having attempted suicide (11 percent versus 7 and 8 percent, respectively). (See Figure 3) Differences by Grade Students in ninth and tenth grade were more likely than students in the twelfth grade to attempt suicide (10 percent and 9 percent, respectively, versus 5 percent, in 2005). (See Figure 4) Adolescents Who Feel Sad or Hopeless, Child and Youth Mortality, Teen Homicide, Suicide, and Firearm Death 2005 estimates for selected states and cities are available from the Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS) at: http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/ss5505a1.htm International Estimates None available The Healthy People 2010 program has set a goal for the reduction of teen suicide attempts. The measurable goal is to reduce the percentage of youth who report suicide attempts requiring medical attention from a twelve-month average of 2.6 percent in 1999 to 1.0 percent by 2010. Additional information available at: http://www.health.gov/healthypeople/document/html/objectives/18-02.htm (See Goal 18-2) What Works: Programs and Interventions that May Influence this Indicator Click here to view examples of programs and interventions that research has evaluated for this indicator. View programs
1Anderson, R. (2005). "Death: Leading causes for 2002." National Vital Statistics Reports. Vol. 53, No. 17. http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nvsr/nvsr53/nvsr53_17.pdf (See Table 1) 2U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Mental Health: A Report of the Surgeon General http://www.surgeongeneral.gov/library/mentalhealth/chapter3/sec5.html 3Shaffer, D., & Craft, L., (1999). Methods of adolescent suicide prevention. Journal of Clinical Psychiatry, 60 (Suppl. 2), 70-74. 4National Youth Violence Prevention Resource Center, "Teen Suicide." http://www.safeyouth.org/scripts/teens/suicide.asp 5Child Trends. Child Trends DataBank Indicator: Teen Homicide, Suicide, and Firearm Death. Retrieved July 7, 2006 from URL: http://www.childtrendsdatabank.org/indicators/70ViolentDeath.cfm. Original data from the National Vital Statistics System. 6Race/ethnicity estimates from 1999 and later are not directly comparable to earlier years due to federal changes in race definitions. In surveys conducted in 1999 and later, respondents were allowed to select more than one race when selecting their racial category. Estimates presented here only include respondents who selected one category when choosing their race. Students were asked the following questions: "During the past 12 months, did you ever seriously consider attempting suicide?" "During the past 12 months, how many times did you actually attempt suicide?" "If you attempted suicide during the past 12 months, did any attempt result in an injury, poisoning, or overdose that had to be treated by a doctor or nurse?" Data Source
Data for 1991: YRBSS: Youth Online, Comprehensive Results. Retrieved May 24, 2004 from URL: http://apps.nccd.cdc.gov/yrbss/.
Raw Data Source
Youth Risk Behavior Survey
Approximate Date of Next Update Summer 2008
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