Suicides are no new to the world, it’s peculiar that people take life so casually and then resort to self killing. The following stats are pretty much alarming. Over one million people die by suicide worldwide each year. The global suicide rate is 16 per 100,000 population. On average, one person dies by suicide every 40 seconds somewhere in the world. 1.8% of worldwide deaths are suicides. Global suicide rates have increased 60% in the past 45 years. Following is the list of the countries with the highest suicide rates in the world.
10. Russia
Russia’s suicide rate hit its peak during the economic and social maelstrom of the 1990s after the breakup of the Soviet Union, when the rate rose to 42 per 100,000 in 1995.
But the high rates have remained stable among children, with the suicide rate standing at 20 per 100,000 among 15-19 year-olds, against a global average of 7.3,
9. Belgium
On the list of the countries with the highest suicide rates, next comes the chocolate place that is Belgium, weird, right? Unfortunately it is true, It has 18,4 suicide rates per 100,000 which is pretty high. it is also top the European countries with the highest suicide rates. The most notorious suicide is the Nobel Prize laureate in Medicine, Christian de Duve, who, two years ago, killed himself in front of his four children. Six suicides a day. Suicide is indeed the first cause of mortality among Belgians between 25-44 and the second leading cause, after vehicle accidents, between 15-24.
8. Hungary
Annual suicide rates of Hungary were unexpectedly high in the previous century. Factors that may influence suicidal behavior are alcohol and tobacco consumption, antidepressant prescription, unemployment rate. In Hungary, similar to the great majority of developed countries, males consistently show much higher suicide rates than females [2,27]. However, the female suicide rate decreased more markedly between 1983 and 2010 (females, 61% decline; males, 39% decline) and while the male-to-female suicide ratio was 2.53 in 1983, the same figure was 3.93 in 2010.
7. Japan
Hailing down the list of countries with the highest suicide rates, we come down to the tsunami country, Japan which has the suicide rate of 19.4 per 100,000. Suicides in Japan have become a significant national social issue. Seventy-one percent of suicides in Japan were male and it is the leading cause of death in men aged 20–44.Factors in suicide include unemployment (due to the economic recession in the 1990s and in the late 2000s/early 2010s), depression, and social economic pressures.
6. Bhutan
The suicide rate of Bhutan was 16.2 per 100,000 people. The old age, unemployment and depression are the most common causes of suicide which is far higher among males than females in this country. However excessive alcohol consumption, money worries and mental illness are also thought to be significant factors. Under Bhutanese law, committing suicide or attempting to commit suicide is not punishable. However, abetting a suicide is regarded as a crime. The problem is acute in rural areas where committing suicide is almost a norm.
5. Ukraine
It has a suicide rate of 48 per 100,000. Like many nations of the Soviet Union, Ukraine is scarred by both a high suicide rate and high incidences of alcoholism. Suicide in the Ukraine is overwhelmingly a male phenomenon (41 of the 48 people). Ukraine’s Defense Ministry reported that over the last two years, nearly one-third of service member deaths were outside of battle. Suicide was the leading cause of deaths outside of battle during the last two years for Ukraine’s military.
4. India
At least 15 suicides took place every hour in this country during last year, which saw over 1.31 lakh people ending their lives, with government data also noting that Maharashtra saw the highest number of such cases while Chennai heads the list among cities. Thus helping it securing a position in the countries with the highest suicide rates Family problems (other than that linked to marriage) contributed to 21.7 per cent of the suicides while illness related-issues were behind suicides in 18 per cent of the total cases reported last year. Data also shows that one out of every six suicide cases was a housewife and the overall male-to-female ratio for suicides during the 2014 was 68:32.
3. Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka still has one of highest suicide rates in the world, with almost 4,000 people killing themselves per year, or about 11 per day. The majority of victims reported were aged 15 to 44. This island nation witnesses poverty, joblessness, high debt burdens and other social problems on large scale which also happen to be the main factors behind the high suicides rate.The area is prone to flood even with light raining.
2. Lithuania
As we come to almost winding up of the article throwing light on the countries with the highest suicide rates, we cannot forget mentioning Lithuania. The uncertainty and unpredictability of the economic situation usually has such a detrimental effect on the psyche of the people that it forms the major reason behind the highest suicide rates of this European country.
1. Guyana
The country that reigns the countries with the highest suicide rates is Guyana. This South American country, also the neighbor of many Caribbean island has the highest suicide rates and even more appalling is the fact that the suicide rate is on ever increasing spree with no signs of slightest of the deviation in the number. Some scholars have theorized that exposure to certain herbicides and pesticides used in the country makes farmers more prone to suicidal behaviour. One of the most frequently used suicide methods in the country is the ingestion of pesticide. As many people are farmers, pesticides are readily available and contribute significantly to the high suicide rate. Pathetic it sure is, all we can hope is that situations turn out better.
Finally the rundown of the top countries with the highest suicide rates gets over and we hope that the alarming numbers soon get abated over the course of time and we wish prosperity and luck to the aforementioned countries. You may also like to see the list of 10 celebs who committed suicide.
10 Countries With The Highest Suicide Rates
- Guyana
- Lithuania
- Sri Lanka
- India
- Ukraine
- Bhutan
- Japan
- Hungary
- Belgium
- Russia
Author – Palak Gupta