Why is the suicide rate in the United States particularly high for men over 55?

2023.11.16 Thu posted at 20:10 JST

（ＣＮＮ） Suicide rates in the United States are particularly high for men over the age of 55, more than twice the overall average, a new report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention finds.

According to a report released by the CDC on the 15th, the suicide rate in the United States began to rise again in 2021 after declining for two consecutive years starting in 2019.

Looking at the suicide rate in 2021 by gender and age group, the suicide rate for 55-year-old men was about 30 per 100,000 people, far higher than the overall average of about 14.

The group with the highest risk of suicide was men over 85, with nearly 56 suicides per 100,000 people.

According to Yates Conwell, a professor of psychiatry at the University of Rochester, there are five main risk factors for suicide: depression, illness, disability, loneliness, and the method of death. The more factors come together, the greater the risk.

The risk of suicide is thought to increase as people age, as they are more likely to suffer from illness, disability, or become socially isolated.

The suicide rate for women over the age of 55 has also increased over the past two decades, but is still much lower than that for men, at about 6 per 100,000 people in 2021.

Experts say this difference between men and women appears to be related to the method of suicide. At least three-quarters of men over the age of 65 who committed suicide in 2021 used a gun, while about the same number of women in the same age group committed suicide by gun or poison.

According to a 2017 survey, men are more likely to own a gun than women, and older people are more likely than young people to own a gun. Men also tend to be more familiar with guns due to their military training and hunting experience. Many older men in the United States are Vietnam veterans.

Conwell also pointed out that men don’t have the skills to make and maintain relationships with as many people as women, making them more likely to become lonely.

According to him, men’s identities are largely tied to their jobs, which they lose after they retire. Many men feel that it is unmanly to admit or receive care when they experience symptoms of depression.

Regarding the statistics surrounding suicide in this age group, he pointed out that if we think of it as “how many years of life are lost,” we would be disrespecting the lives of the elderly. He argued that it also devalues ​​life experience, wisdom and knowledge. “What I would use instead is the expression of years of life experience being lost.”