Statistics on Senior Suicide
- In the population at large, there are more than 30,000 deaths by suicide annually.
- It is the fourth leading cause of death in the 18 to 65 age bracket.
- Studies show that every 16 minutes in the U.S., a person dies by suicide.
- Accounting for all age groups, suicide is the 11th leading cause of death.
- Female suicide attempts are 2 times the rate of their male counterparts but there are 4 males compared with 1 female who do die as a result.
- It is estimated that in the U.S. a person successfully commits suicide every 16 minutes and attempts are made once every minute.
- In the senior population, age 65 and above, suicide happens approximately every 80 minutes.
- Making the situation worse (if that is possible) is that elderly suicides tend to be violent deaths with 8 of 10 men age 65 plus using a firearm to kill themselves.
- White males over 80 are 6 times more likely to commit suicide than other groups.
It should come as no surprise that depression occurs in about 15 percent of those 65 or older. Overall, depression affects 6 million seniors. But only 10% of elderly sufferers actually seek out medical help. Nursing homes have a suicide rate of over 25% within their resident populations.
These are alarming numbers of deaths in the elderly population. Most everyone has relatives or friends who are 65 plus years of age. It helps to know what to look for and what the risk factors are for senior suicide.
