Maryland: Data from the National Institute of Mental Health show that the suicide rate among American children ages 8 to 12 has risen steadily over the past decade and a half.
The findings, published in the journal JAMA Network Open, highlight the widespread mental health issues that affect American children every day, researchers said.
The study’s authors did not blame any one cause for the increase, but experts involved in the study say the problem is multifaceted, with technology, social media and guns as the main culprits.
Between 2001 and 2022, 2,241 children aged 8 to 12 died by suicide. Although the suicide rate was declining until 2007, it increased by about 8 percent each year from 2008 to 2022.
From 2001 to 2007, 482 children between the ages of 8 and 12 died by suicide. From 2008 to 2022, the number of suicides in this group increased to 1,759, a rate of 5.71 per 1 million.
