Black Teen Suicide Reaches Historic Highs
Westside GazetteNov 13, 2019
"Parents should take heed when they observe specific warning signs like changes in behavior, including difficulty concentrating, difficulty focusing on school or following routine activities, researching ways to kill oneself on the internet, increasing the use of alcohol or other drugs, and acting recklessly," said Dr.
A new study analyzing suicide among American teens by a team led by researchers at the
Researchers discovered that between 1991 and 2017, there has been an increase in the number of
The researchers did not cite a reason for the trend.
"Lack of accessibility to mental health care, the inability to pay for medications and healthcare coverage, the lack of acceptance of mental illness among some members of the Black community, and the availability of firearms," Prasad stated.
Prasad was not among the researchers involved in the study.
"Young people in these groups are less likely to share their issues surrounding depression and thoughts of suicide with friends and family than youth in other racial and ethnic groups," King stated.
Among the answers is starting the conversation on depression and suicide in highrisk groups," he said.
"A partial answer is giving young people permission to give voice to their experiences and feelings, without recrimination, such as 'If you were stronger in Christ this wouldn't be happening,' or 'What do you have to be depressed about, we've given you everything. Your father and I started our life with nothing,' and so forth," King stated.
Researchers in the
The study also revealed that, in 2017, approximately 2,200 teens between the ages of 15 and 19 died by suicide.
Researchers gathered information provided by the
Among high school students of all demographics, 1 in 5 said they were thinking about suicide, and 1 in 10 said they had made a plan to end their lives.
In Black children ages 5 to 12, the suicide rate was found to be two times higher compared with white children, according to CNN Health.
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