Alarming Numbers Of Suicidal Teenagers Pushing Health Experts To Take Action

Suicide rates among teenagers in the United States have increased alarmingly in recent years. Because of these, physicians and pediatricians are ramping up their efforts to screen patients for suicidal thoughts and risk factors.

According to the latest findings from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's National Vital Statistics Report, the fastest growing suicide rates from 1999 to 2014 occurred in girls aged between 10 and 14. A total of 150 suicides occurred in 2014 among teenage girls, CBS News reported. That number doesn't include suicide attempts that ended in hospitalizations instead of in death.

The American Academy of Pediatricians has identified the characteristics of teenagers at risk of committing suicide. That includes family history of suicide, LGBT or questioning sexual orientation and histories of physical or sexual abuse, mood disorders and substance abuse, a separate report from CBS News listed.

Teenagers who have tense relationships with their parents and don't live in their family homes are more likely to attempt suicide as well. Young people with problems attending school or do not attend school are at-risk, too.

Teenage girls are more likely to attempt suicide than boys. But teenage boys are three times more likely to die from attempting suicide because they use more fatal means like firearms.

Suicide And Bullying

Bullying also plays a huge part among at-risk suicidal teenagers. Dr. Benjamin Shain, a child psychiatrist at North Shore University Health System, said "there is now greater recognition of the connection between bullying and suicide," CBS News further reported.

Bullying doesn't just happen in face-to-face contact; it can also occur through social media and the internet. Cyberbullying is more serious now, given that teenagers spend plenty of times using technology and perusing the internet. Using social media for more than five hours a day puts teenagers at risk of higher levels of depression and suicidal thoughts.

The National Center for Education Statistics and Bureau of Justice Statistics' 2013-2014 School Crime Supplement found that 7 percent of students from grades six to 12 have been cyberbullied. The 2013 Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance Survey also found that 15 percent of high school students between grades nine and 12 experienced cyberbullying.

Prevention

Screening programs have greatly helped identifying suicidal people. Signs of depression or emotional distress are displayed by people considering suicide. When identified in time, intervention efforts and mental health services can be provided for at-risk teenagers.

Religion and close connections with parents, friends and school can help teenagers against suicide attempts. The AAP urges pediatricians to regularly ask their young patients if they are thinking of harming themselves. Antidepressants and mental health treatments can be done if teenagers are considered suicidal.