Qld: Suicide rates double in young men

AAP General News (Australia)
08-01-1999
Qld: Suicide rates double in young men

BRISBANE, Aug 1 AAP - A Brisbane university study has found that suicide rates for males
aged up to 34 have almost doubled in the past thirty years.

The university's Australian Institute of Suicide Research and Prevention compared
Australian suicide rates to those of other western nations and concluded that a better
understanding of cultural influences could help ease the problem.

The results of the study were published in The Medical Journal of Australia this week.

While the study showed suicide rates in those over 35 had fallen in the past three decades,
the suicide rate of males aged 15 to 24 and 25 to 34 years had more than doubled.

"Among 23 western nations, Australian suicide rates for 15-24 year-olds ranked fourth for
males and eighth for females," co-author, Senior Research Psychiatrist Christopher Cantor,
said.

"In contrast, rankings for those over 35 were more favourable, ranking between 13th and
15th for males and 14th and 17th for females."

Dr Cantor said that for both sexes, suicide rates for people in the middle years of life
had shown a favourable downward trend in recent decades.

"Male and female trends have been similar for these ages, quite unlike those of 15-34 year
olds.

"It remains unclear as to whether the rising suicide rates of younger people and the
falling rates of older people have plateaued as yet."

The study said a better understanding of cultural influences and how to positively modify
them might also be relevant to suicide prevention.

It found that Canada, and to a lesser extent the United States and New Zealand, had suicide
rates similar to Australia, with all four having common characteristics of European migration,
a comparatively short history, geographical isolation and climatic extremes.

This made them a potentially valuable source for a study of shared characteristics that
could affect suicide rates.

The report it said the Federal Government's recently announced national suicide prevention
policy provided for ages beyond youth.

"It correctly recognises that rising rates are not confined to the 15-24 ages group, that
suicide rates in the elderly are high and that a comprehensive policy must address the needs
of all ages, including those with more modest rates," Dr Cantor said.

AAP jfs/adh

KEYWORD: SUICIDE

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