With the latest data to November 2022 in the US, we can predict with high confidence that the rates during the pandemic did not increase, but actually decreased.
I need help understanding this. Based on CDC data, I wrote this recently, "The CDC’s 2021 National Vital Statistics System (NVSS) showed a massive increase in male suicide among teens and young men. From 2020 to 2021, suicide rates for males rose significantly, according to the CDC, with the largest increase among males ages 15 to 24. Among this group, the suicide rate was up 8 percent in 2021 over 2020." Does that miss something, or is the bigger point that 2022 numbers (which aren't available yet?) are down?
nope but its a great suicidology teaching point! if you "group up" 15-24, even though you are representing ten years, you are not representing those ten years evenly. In fact, in 2021, this breakdown would look like so:
15: 5%
16: 6%
17: 7%
18: 8%
19: 10%
20: 11%
21: 14%
22: 14%
23: 13%
24: 13%
So the group <18 which I'm representing has 30% of the ages (15, 16, 17 out of ten age categories) but only 18% of the suicides. The increase in 2021 was seen in the 18-24 group, not the <18 group.
Fortunately, in 2022, the rate for 18-24 males has come right back down (from 28.7 per 100k in 2021 to 26.3 per 100k, a drop of 8.4% :)
I need help understanding this. Based on CDC data, I wrote this recently, "The CDC’s 2021 National Vital Statistics System (NVSS) showed a massive increase in male suicide among teens and young men. From 2020 to 2021, suicide rates for males rose significantly, according to the CDC, with the largest increase among males ages 15 to 24. Among this group, the suicide rate was up 8 percent in 2021 over 2020." Does that miss something, or is the bigger point that 2022 numbers (which aren't available yet?) are down?
nope but its a great suicidology teaching point! if you "group up" 15-24, even though you are representing ten years, you are not representing those ten years evenly. In fact, in 2021, this breakdown would look like so:
15: 5%
16: 6%
17: 7%
18: 8%
19: 10%
20: 11%
21: 14%
22: 14%
23: 13%
24: 13%
So the group <18 which I'm representing has 30% of the ages (15, 16, 17 out of ten age categories) but only 18% of the suicides. The increase in 2021 was seen in the 18-24 group, not the <18 group.
Fortunately, in 2022, the rate for 18-24 males has come right back down (from 28.7 per 100k in 2021 to 26.3 per 100k, a drop of 8.4% :)