A new survey finds that suicide remains the leading cause of death among young Chinese.
The survey, released by the state center for disease control and the Beijing Huilongguan Hospital, showed that suicide was the fifth leading cause of death in China – but the first among the teenage and young adult group aged between 15 and 34 ….
Experts said the main reason for teenagers and young adults to commit suicide was because they suffered a great deal of pressure in their lives, leading to mental problems.
Teenagers’ pressure stemmed from study burdens, troubled relationships and job-hunting woes, while young adults faced problems like work pressure, financial burdens and securing proper child education, the study found.
The survey’s finding of 250,000 suicides per year is equivalent to around 18.5 per hundred thousand people. (For international comparison see, cautiously, Wikipedia) China Daily reported almost identical figures in 2007: 250,000 suicides per year, and two million attempts (based on 2003 data from the health ministry), with suicide the leading cause of death among the young. The China Daily article notes the phenomenon of relatively widespread suicide among un- or underemployed young graduates, which has attracted particular attention: see also a Telegraph report from 2009.
Source: Suicide ‘the leading cause of death’ for young Chinese – Shanghai Daily
