World Mental Health Day is organized by the World Federation
for Mental Health
New Delhi, 09th October 2019. This year’s World
Mental Health Day 2019 is supported by WHO, the International
Association for Suicide Prevention, and United for Global Mental Health.
For the occasion of World Mental Health Day, on 10 October,
WHO is releasing a number of materials with guidance on what different
professional groups can do to prevent suicide.
“Despite progress, one person still dies every 40 seconds
from suicide,” said WHO Director-General, Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. “Every
death is a tragedy for family, friends and colleagues. Yet suicides are
preventable. We call on all countries to incorporate proven suicide prevention
strategies into national health and education programmes in a sustainable way.”
Suicide rate highest in high-income countries; second
leading cause of death among young people.
Suicide was the second leading cause of death among young
people aged 15-29 years, after road injury. Among teenagers aged 15-19 years,
suicide was the second leading cause of death among girls (after maternal
conditions) and the third leading cause of death in boys (after road injury and
interpersonal violence).
Most common methods of suicide
The most common methods of suicide are hanging, pesticide
self-poisoning, and firearms. Key interventions that have shown success in
reducing suicides are restricting access to means; educating the media on
responsible reporting of suicide; implementing programmes among young people to
build life skills that enable them to cope with life stresses; and early
identification, management and follow-up of people at risk of suicide.
Key facts about suicide
According to a fact sheet of WHO –
Close to 800 000 people die due to suicide every year.
For every suicide there are many more people who attempt
suicide every year. A prior suicide attempt is the single most important risk
factor for suicide in the general population.
Suicide is the second leading cause of death among 15-29-year-olds.
79% of global suicides occur in low- and middle-income
countries.
Ingestion of pesticide, hanging and firearms are among the most common methods of suicide globally.
