| Suicide |
|---|
Suicide in Belarus is a common cause of unnatural death in the country, which in 2016 ranked in the top 10 worldwide by its total suicide per 100,000 people. [1] Prior to the 1998 Russian financial crisis, suicide numbers had been decreasing year-upon-year, yet saw a noticeable increase in the years following. [2]
Figures suggest that there is a correlation between alcohol consumption and suicide rates in Belarus; most people who committed or attempted suicide had been abusing alcohol for at least a year prior to their death. Alcohol is very cheap to purchase in Belarus, making it readily available and compounding the problem. Belarusians tend not to seek help or counseling if in need of support as they remain afraid of being on record as receiving psychiatric treatment, resulting in around 90% of people who committed suicide never having sought psychiatric support. [2]
The most common suicide method is by hanging or jumping, accounting for around 80% of the total number of suicides. [2]
Statistics in 2012 showed that a greater number of Belarusians committed suicide than those that died from road traffic accidents. A large number of the country's suicides occur in rural areas, in contrast to other higher ranking countries. [2]
| Suicide rates (per 100,000), by gender, Belarus, 1981-2009 | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gender | 1981 | 1985 | 1990 | 1995 | 2000 | 2003 | 2007 | 2009 |
| Male | 43.0 | 40.6 | 34.5 | 56.1 | 63.6 | 63.3 | 48.7 | 49.6 |
| Female | 8.7 | 8.0 | 8.0 | 9.4 | 9.5 | 10.3 | 8.8 | 9.8 |
| Total | 24.6 | 19.1 | 20.4 | 31.2 | 34.9 | 35.1 | 27.4 | 28.4 |
| Source: World Health Organization [3] | ||||||||
| Number of suicides by age group and gender, Belarus, 2009 | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Age (years) | 5-14 | 15-24 | 25-34 | 35-44 | 45-54 | 55-64 | 65-74 | 75+ | All |
| Males | 9 | 270 | 445 | 439 | 464 | 282 | 184 | 145 | 2238 |
| Females | 3 | 45 | 74 | 69 | 96 | 64 | 80 | 74 | 505 |
| Total | 12 | 315 | 519 | 508 | 560 | 346 | 264 | 219 | 2743 |
| Source: World Health Organization [3] | |||||||||
As of the 2021 census, the population of Russia was 147.2 million. It is the most populous country in Europe, and the ninth-most populous country in the world, with a population density of 8.5 inhabitants per square kilometre. As of 2020, the overall life expectancy in Russia at birth was 71.54 years.
The demographics of Belarus is about the demographic features of the population of Belarus, including population growth, population density, ethnicity, education level, health, economic status, religious affiliations, and other aspects of the population.
There are more than 720,000 estimated global suicide deaths every year. Suicide affects every demographic, yet there are some populations that are more impacted than others. For example, among 15–29 year olds, suicide is much more prominent; this being the fourth leading cause of death within this age group.
Health in the United Kingdom refers to the overall health of the population of the United Kingdom. This includes overall trends such as life expectancy and mortality rates, mental health of the population and the suicide rate, smoking rates, alcohol consumption, prevalence of diseases within the population and obesity in the United Kingdom. Three of these – smoking rates, alcohol consumption and obesity – were above the OECD average in 2015.
Life expectancy has been rising rapidly and South Korea ranked 3rd in the world for life expectancy. South Korea has among the lowest HIV/AIDS adult prevalence rate in the world, with just 0.1% of the population being infected, significantly lower than the U.S. at 0.6%, France's 0.4%, and the UK's 0.3% prevalence rate. South Korea has a good influenza vaccination rate, with a total of 43.5% of the population being vaccinated in 2019. A new measure of expected human capital calculated for 195 countries from 1920 to 2016 and defined for each birth cohort as the expected years lived from age 20 to 64 years and adjusted for educational attainment, learning or education quality, and functional health status was published by The Lancet in September 2018. South Korea had the sixth highest level of expected human capital with 26 health, education, and learning-adjusted expected years lived between age 20 and 64 years.
Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Mental disorders, physical disorders, and substance abuse are common risk factors.
Gender differences in suicide rates have been shown to be significant. There are different rates of suicides and suicidal behavior between males and females. While females more often have suicidal thoughts, males die by suicide more frequently. This discrepancy is also known as the gender paradox in suicide.
World Suicide Prevention Day (WSPD) is an awareness day always observed on 10 September every year, in order to provide worldwide commitment and action to prevent suicides, with various activities around the world since 2003. The International Association for Suicide Prevention (IASP) collaborates with the World Health Organization (WHO) and the World Federation for Mental Health (WFMH) to host World Suicide Prevention Day. In 2011 an estimated 40 countries held awareness events to mark the occasion. According to WHO's Mental Health Atlas released in 2014, no low-income country reported having a national suicide prevention strategy, while less than 10% of lower-middle income countries, and almost a third of upper-middle and high-income countries had.
Alcohol consumption in Russia remains among the highest in the world. According to a 2011 report by the World Health Organization, annual per capita consumption of alcohol in Russia was about 15.76 litres of pure alcohol, the fourth-highest volume in Europe. It dropped to 11.7 litres in 2016, dropping further to about 10.5 litres in 2019. Another general trait of Russian alcohol consumption pattern was the high volume of spirits compared with other alcoholic drinks.
Health in Russia deteriorated rapidly following the dissolution of the Soviet Union, and particularly for men, as a result of social and economic changes.
China's suicide rates were one of the highest in the world in the 1990s. However, by 2011, China had one of the lowest suicide rates in the world. According to the World Health Organization, the suicide rate in China was 9.7 per 100,000 population as of 2016; Among men, the rate was 9.1 per 100,000 population. As a comparison, the suicide rate in the U.S. in 2016 was 15.3. Generally speaking, China seems to have a lower suicide rate than neighboring Korea, Russia and Japan, and it is more common among women than men and more common in the Yangtze Basin than elsewhere.
According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, the age standardised death rate for suicide in Australia, for the year 2019, was 13.1 deaths per 100,000 people; preliminary estimates for years 2020 and 2021 are respectively 12.1 and 12.0. In 2020, 3,139 deaths were due to suicide ; in 2021, 3,144 deaths were due to suicide.
Suicide in Bangladesh is a common cause of unnatural death and a long term social issue. Of all the people reported dead due to suicide worldwide every year, 2.06% are Bangladeshi.
Suicide in Ukraine is a common cause of unnatural death and a serious social issue. In 2009, Ukraine ranked 13th in the world by its total suicide per 100,000 people. Suicide is Ukraine's most common type of injury death.
Suicide in Kazakhstan is a very common cause of unnatural death in the country and a long term social issue. According to the 2011 report of World Health Organization, of all the people reported dead due to suicide worldwide every year, 3.23% belong to Kazakhstan. Suicide of teenaged and young aged people is a big issue in the country. In the age group of 15-49 year olds, suicide makes up for 12.2% of all deaths in Kazakhstan.
Suicide in Russia is a significant national social issue, with the suicide rate at 10.6 suicides per 100.000 people. In 2021, the suicide rate in Russia was 10.7 per 100,000 people, according to national sources, down from 39.1 in 2000 and 41.4 in 1995. Since 2002 the number of suicides has fallen in each consecutive year and has dropped to its lowest level in more than 50 years.
Suicide is a significant national social issue in the United Kingdom. In 2022 there were 5,642 registered deaths by suicide in England and Wales, equating to an average of 15 suicides per day. 74.1% of suicides in England and Wales in 2022 were males. In Scotland there were 762 probable suicides in 2022, equating to an average of 2 suicides per day. In Northern Ireland there were 203 suicide deaths registered in 2022. Suicide is the biggest killer of men under the age of 50 in the UK.
Over the past few decades, mental health has become an increasingly serious issue in health in South Korea. A 2021 survey conducted by the Ministry of Health and Welfare found that 32.7% of males and 22.9% of females in South Korea developed symptoms of mental illness at least one time in their lives. Suicide in South Korea is the most frequent cause of death for people aged 9 to 24. Mental health issues are most common among the elderly and adolescents.
Suicide in Ireland has the 17th highest rate in Europe and the 4th highest for the males aged 15–25 years old which was a main contributing factor to the improvement of suicides in Ireland.
