Suicide Causes More Death Than Car Accidents.

In June, the NY Times published an article stating that "the suicide rate among the nation’s active-duty military personnel has spiked this year, eclipsing the number of troops dying in battle and on pace to set a record annual high since the start of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan more than a decade ago." . Well, it appears the suicide epidemic is not confined to the military.

A new study published in the American Journal of Public Health found that suicide causes more death than car crashes.  That's right, while the rate of car crashes continues to decline, the rate of suicide has increased dramatically making it the leading cause of injury deaths in America. 

I guess it should come as no surprise as statistics show that suicide rates increase in times of economic trouble, and despite what the media tells you, the only recovery going on is the banks and corporations recovering more and more of our money.

Deaths from car accidents decreased 25%  while deaths from poisoning rose 125%, deaths from falls rose 71% , and deaths from suicides rose 15%. Moreover, the author of the study, Ian R. H. Rockett, PhD, MPH, believes suicides are "terribly undercounted" and that the official data on suicide may be off by as much as  20%.

"Suicides are terribly undercounted; I think the problem is much worse than official data would lead us to believe. There may be 20 percent or more unrecognized suicides. Many of the poisoning deaths may actually be intended. A lot of these deaths are due from overdoses of prescription drugs." --Ian R. H. Rockett

The last decade has seen not only the national rate increased, but the global rate as well.

"Conclusions. Mortality rates for suicide, poisoning, and falls rose substantially over the past decade. Suicide has surpassed motor vehicle traffic crashes as the leading cause of injury mortality. Comprehensive traffic safety measures have successfully reduced the national motor vehicle traffic crash mortality rate. Similar efforts will be required to diminish the burden of other injury. (Am J Public Health. Published online ahead of print September 20, 2012: e1-e9. doi:10.2105/AJPH.2012.300960)