Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Risk factors for suicide include mental disorders, neurodevelopmental disorders, physical disorders, and substance abuse. Some suicides are impulsive acts driven by stress (such as from financial or academic difficulties), relationship problems (such as breakups or divorces), or harassment and bullying. Those who have previously attempted suicide are at a higher risk for future attempts. Effective suicide prevention efforts include limiting access to methods of suicide such as firearms, drugs, and poisons; treating mental disorders and substance abuse; careful media reporting about suicide; improving economic conditions; and dialectical behaviour therapy (DBT). Although crisis hotlines, like 988 in North America and 13 11 14 in Australia, are common resources, their effectiveness has not been well studied.
Suicide is the 10th-leading cause of death worldwide, accounting for about 1.5% of deaths. In a given year, this is roughly 12 per 100,000 people. Though suicides resulted in 828,000 deaths globally in 2015, up from 712,000 deaths in 1990, the age-standardized death rate decreased by 23.3%. By gender, suicide rates are generally higher among men than women, ranging from 1.5 times higher in the developing world to 3.5 times higher in the developed world; in the Western world, non-fatal suicide attempts are more common among young people and women. Suicide is generally most common among those over the age of 70; however, in certain countries, those aged between 15 and 30 are at the highest risk. Europe had the highest rates of suicide by region in 2015.
