The number of suicides in the US is at an all-time high in nearly three decades, according to a new report released on Friday by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
At a rate of 13 per 100,000 people in 2014, the rate of suicides has increased compared to 10.5 per 100,000 in 1999, with an overall increase of 24 percent, according to the National Center for Health Statistics.
The study found that the suicide rate has been on the rise for every age group and racial ethnic groups, except for two groups: black males and people over 75 years old.
American Indians and Alaskan Natives showed the largest increases at a rate of 89 percent among women and 38 percent among men.
The suicide rate for teenage girls and middle-aged women sharply increased over the course of the study. The rate for middle-aged women, ages 45-64, climbed to 63 percent and tripled among girls ages 10-14, as the number of girls in that age group who committed suicide rose to 150 in 2014 from 50 when the study began.
The study found that the suicide gap rate has narrowed between genders as the rate for females increased by 45 percent, compared to 16 percent for males. However, the suicide rate remains three times higher in males than in females.
Although the CDC does not offer concrete explanations for the increased suicide rate, some experts point to the financial downturn in the late 2000s and the increased abuse of prescription drugs as potential factors leading to the phenomenon.
“Many people view suicide as a mental health problem, but many people who die of suicide do not have a mental health problem. It’s a public health problem,” said Kristin Holland, a scientists at the Center for Disease Control, according to USA Today.
"This is part of the larger emerging pattern of evidence of the links between poverty, hopelessness and health," Harvard professor of public policy Robert Putnam told the New York Times.
