Bengaluru: Suicide has, of late, become one of the major public health problems around the globe, with causes a myriad as depression, academic failure and financial stress. A recent study conducted in India has revealed that women make more suicide attempts than men, but men lead in terms of fatalities. It also revealed that suicides are more rampant during the most productive ages, between 15 and 39.
The study was conducted by Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), Public Health Foundation of India (PHFI) and Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME) in collaboration with the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare along with health experts.
Explaining why women attempt more suicides than men, Dr Vinay Agarwal, former IMA national president, said, "Even though psychological issues like depression, which precedes almost every suicide commitment, women tend to attempt non-violent methods like overdosing or poisoning, which has chances of survival. But in case of men trying to attempt suicide, they often use hanging or shooting oneself with a gun, which provide highest chances of fatality. Hence even with the chances of attempt among women counterparts being twice, the higher fatality rate is among males.”
The study also revealed that suicide has been identified as the leading cause of death among the age group of 15-39 years in India.
Dr Shylaja Shyamsunder, Consultant, Internal Medicine, BGS Gleneagles Global Hospitals said, “A truism in suicide literature is that ‘not all persons who commit suicide want to die and not all persons who want to die commit suicide’. The intentionality and lethality of suicide are important. In India, top 10 causes for suicide are family problems, illness, unemployment, love affairs, drug abuse, failure in examination, bankruptcy, poverty, dowry harassment etc.”
Dr Rani Susan Abraham, Consultant Psychologist at Columbia Asia Hospital Whitefield said, “It’s a sorry state of the present times that suicide rates are on the rise. I would attribute it mainly to the lack of social connect and the fact that we are developing a culture of temporary quick-fix solutions and stressing more on momentary satisfaction.”
Experts also blamed media and internet for dispersing information about novel methods of committing suicide. They feel timely intervention can prevent suicides. “Early detection and adequate treatment of primary psychiatric disorder is of paramount importance,” they added.
