Suicide rates in the United States reached an all-time high in 2022 and are now more common in America than at any time since the Second World War, according to recently published data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
Around 49,500 people took their own lives last year in the U.S., with older adults between the ages of 45 and 64 seeing the largest increase of 7 percent compared to 2021. Suicides in younger adults between 25 and 44 also grew by 1 percent, representing the second most common cause of death among the age range, up from number four in 2021. White men had especially high rates of suicide in comparison to other demographics, according to the CDC.
The U.S. suicide rate incrementally increased from the early 2000s until 2018, in which levels reached their highest since 1941 – the year of the attack on Pearl Harbor. The rates increased again in 2021 by four percent and then again by 3 percent in 2022.
“I think it’s important to realize we’ve seen these increases for many, many years,” stated Dr. Debra Houry, chief medical officer of the CDC, when announcing the latest statistics, before adding: “There was a slight decline in 2019 and 2020, but really over the past 15 years, we’ve been on this trajectory.”
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