According to the World Health Organization, over one in every 100 deaths worldwide is attributed to suicide, and they urged immediate action to address the rising mental health crisis, particularly among young people.

The WHO stated that although worldwide suicide rates had decreased slightly in recent years, advancements in addressing the problem were quite insufficient.

In 2021, the most recent year with available data, approximately 727,000 suicides occurred globally, according to the United Nations’ health organization.

“Worldwide, suicide represents over one in every 100 fatalities, and for each death, there are 20 attempted suicides,” stated Devora Kestel, the acting leader of the WHO’s non-communicable diseases and mental health division.

Those suicides “impacted innumerable additional lives and livelihoods, as friends, caregivers, and relatives had to confront unbearable challenges,” she informed the press.

The WHO’s World Mental Health Today report emphasized that suicide continues to be a major cause of death among youth in various regions and economic situations.

In 2021, it ranked as the second highest cause of death for females aged 15 to 29, and the third highest for males within the same age group, the report revealed.

Although there has been a 35-percent overall drop in the age-adjusted suicide rate from 2000 to 2021, global efforts are still insufficient: rather than the intended one-third reduction in suicide rates by 2030, the WHO indicates that merely a 12 percent decline is projected.

‘Standstill’

Declines were observed in all regions — except for the Americas, where the suicide rate rose by 17 percent during that time.

Almost three-fourths of all suicides occur in low-income nations, where the majority of the world’s population resides.

While wealthier nations show a higher suicide rate as a percentage of the population, comparing them is challenging because they usually have more reliable data than poorer countries, the WHO noted.

The agency warned that, although suicide rates have gradually decreased, the occurrence of mental disorders such as anxiety and depression has been increasing.

“The report stated that from 2011 to 2021, the population of individuals with mental disorders grew more rapidly than the global population.”

Recent studies indicate that over one billion individuals are affected by mental health conditions.

The WHO expressed specific worry regarding the increasing mental health issues among youth.

Although there may be numerous factors contributing to the rise, Mark van Ommeren, who leads the WHO mental health unit, stated, “the two primary theories are social media and the effects of the Covid pandemic.”

In this context, WHO expressed concern over a “stalemate” in global mental health funding, with median governmental expenditure on mental health holding steady at only two percent of overall health budgets — unchanged since 2017.

Worldwide, just nine percent of individuals with depression receive treatment, it discovered.

“Revamping mental health services ranks among the most urgent public health issues,” stated WHO leader Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.