Suicide

 "Act of taking one's own life"

There is discussion about the appropriateness of the term "commit", and its use to describe suicide. Those who object to the use of commit argue that it carries with it implications that suicide is a criminal, sinful or morally wrong act. There is growing consensus that it is more appropriate to use "completed suicide," "died by ` media guidance. Despite these efforts, "committed suicide" and similar descriptions remain common in both scholarly research and journalism. 

 Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Risk factors include mental disorders such as depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, personality disorders, alcoholism, or substance misuse. Others are impulsive acts due to stress such as from financial difficulties, troubles with relationships, or from bullying. Those who have previously attempted suicide are at higher risk for future attempts.

According to different researches there are different factors which is causing suicide to attain a huge rate overall the globe. Some factors we are going to discuss are as follows:-

Gender and suicide 
Talking about USA, males are four times more likely to die by suicide than females, although more women than men report suicide attempts. Male suicide rates are higher than females in all age groups (the ratio varies from 3:1 to 10:1). In other western countries, males are also much more likely to die by suicide than females (usually by a factor of 3–4:1). It was the 8th leading cause of death for males, and 19th leading cause of death for females. Excess male mortality from suicide is also evident from data from non-Western countries. 

 Race and suicide
In 2003, in the United States, whites and Asians were nearly 2.5 times more likely to kill themselves than were blacks or Hispanics. There is a marked divergence by age as seen in the chart below. In the eastern portion of the world (primarily in Asian or Pacific-Island countries) the numbers of reported suicides is growing every year. 

Sexual orientation and suicide 

The likelihood of suicide attempts is increased in both gay males and lesbians, as well as bisexuals of both sexes when compared to their heterosexual counterparts. The trend of having a higher incident rate among females is no exception with lesbians or bisexual females and when compared with homosexual males, lesbians are more likely to attempt than gay or bisexual males. Studies vary with just how increased the risk is compared to heterosexuals with a low of 0.8-1.1 times more likely for females and 1.5-2.5 times more likely for males. The highs reach 4.6 more likely in females and 14.6 more likely in males. Lesbian and bisexual females have opposite effects with less attempts in youth when compared to heterosexual females. Through a lifetime the likelihood to attempt nearly triple the youth 1.1 ratio for Caucasian females, however for black females the rate is affected very little (less than 0.1 to 0.3 difference) with heterosexual black females having a slightly higher risk throughout most of the age-based study. Gay and lesbian youth who attempt suicide are disproportionately subject to anti-gay attitudes, and have weaker skills for coping with discrimination, isolation, and loneliness, and were more likely to experience family rejection than those who do not attempt suicide. Another study found that gay and bisexual youth who attempted suicide had more feminine gender roles, adopted an LGB identity at a young age and were more likely than peers to report sexual abuse, drug abuse, and arrests for misconduct. 

Social factors and suicide 

Epidemiological studies generally show a relationship between suicide or suicidal behaviors and socio-economic disadvantage, including limited educational achievement, homelessness, unemployment, economic dependence, and contact with the police or justice system. War is traditionally believed to be associated with a fall in suicide rates; however, this has been questioned in recent studies, showing a more complex picture than previously conceived. Higher levels of social and national cohesion reduce suicide rates. Suicide levels are highest among the retired, unemployed, impoverished, divorced, the childless, urbanites, empty nesters, and other people who live alone.

 

Health and suicide

Depression, either unipolar or as part of bipolar disorder, is an especially common cause. Substance abuse, severe physical disease or infirmity are also recognized causes. An unknown number of suicidal fatalities are falsely presumed to be the consequences of severe illnesses, infectious, malignant, mental et cetera. 

Seasonal suicide 
The idea that suicide is more common during the winter holidays (including Christmas in the northern hemisphere) is actually a myth, generally reinforced by media coverage associating suicide with the holiday season. The National Center for Health Statistics found that suicides drop during the winter months, and peak during spring and early summer. Considering that there is a correlation between the winter season and rates of depression, there are theories that this might be accounted for by capability to commit suicide and relative cheerfulness. Suicide has also been linked to other seasonal factors.The variation in suicides by day of week is actually greater than any seasonal variation

Suicide trends 
Certain time trends can be related to the type of death. In the United Kingdom, for example, the steady rise in suicides from 1945 to 1962-63 was probably to some extent curtailed following the removal of carbon monoxide from domestic gas supplies which occurred with the change from coal gas to natural gas during the sixties. Methods vary across cultures, and the easy availability of lethal agents and materials plays a role. 

Suicide and body mass index 

Risk of suicide may decrease with increased weight and is low in obese persons. The connection is not well understood, but it is hypothesized that elevated body weight results in higher circulating levels of tryptophan, serotonin, and leptin, which in turn reduces impulsivity. However, other studies indicate that suicide rates increase with extreme obesity, and it is difficult to control for conflating factors such as BMI-related differences in longevity, which have a significant bearing on suicide rates.