According to statistics issued this week by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the suicide rate in the United States grew by 2.6% in 2022 to 49,449 persons, as official data continues to show an upward trend after suicide numbers declined in 2019 and 2020.
The increase in 2022 follows a 5% spike in suicides among US citizens in 2021, with advocates claiming the numbers reflect a deepening mental health problem in the country.
“Mental health has become the defining public health and societal challenge of our time,” said Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy in a statement announcing the new findings. He described the figures as a “sobering reminder of how critical it is that we extend access to mental health care.
Suicides among US people aged 65 and up increased by 8.1% in 2022, to 10,433 cases. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the suicide rate among those aged 65 and over increased by 62% between 2007 and 2021.
According to the report, the mental health problem in the United States affects people of all ages. According to a CDC poll done in March, around one in every three teenage high school girls has considered suicide at some point. More over half (57%) also reported feeling “persistently sad or hopeless.”
“Nine out of ten Americans believe the United States is in the grip of a mental health crisis.” “The new CDC suicide data demonstrates why,” US Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra said of the findings on Friday, according to CBS.
“One life lost to suicide is too many,” Becerra added. Nonetheless, far too many people assume that asking for aid is a sign of weakness.”
According to CDC data from June, nearly one in every five (18.4%) US individuals has been diagnosed with depression at some point in their lives.
However, according to the report, a person is more likely to be diagnosed with depression based on their circumstances, such as where they live. Approximately 13% of Hawaiians reported.
