Suicide Rates on the Rise for Asian American and Pacific Islander Youths

FRIDAY, Aug. 2, 2024 (HealthDay News) -- There were significant increases in the number of Asian American and Pacific Islander youths who died by suicide between 1999 and 2021, according to a research letter published online July 25 in JAMA Network Open.

Brian TaeHyuk Keum, Ph.D., from Boston College, and colleagues examined suicide rates among Asian American or Pacific Islander youth (aged, 10 to 19 years) by sex from 1999 to 2021 using National Center for Health Statistics data.

The researchers found that the age-adjusted suicide rate increased by 72 percent for male youths (from 3.76 to 6.49 per 100,000 individuals) and 125 percent for female youths (from 1.65 to 3.72 per 100,000 individuals) during the study period. In 2019, suicide rates among male youths peaked (7.96 per 100,000 individuals), while the peak was in 2020 for female youths (3.76 per 100,000 individuals). A declining trend was seen for male youths from 1999 to 2009 (annual percent change [APC], −1.39 percent per year), followed by a significant increasing trend from 2009 to 2021 (APC, 7.25 percent per year). For female youths, a declining trend was seen from 1999 to 2004 (APC, −6.41 percent per year), followed by a significant increasing trend from 2004 to 2021 (APC, 6.34 percent per year).

"The distinct increase in both groups calls for an examination of culturally informed etiology and trajectory of suicide risks with an eye toward gendered and racialized factors (e.g., gendered racism and gender norms)," the authors write.

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