Scott Rasmussen's Number of the Day for January 28, 2020
The Number of the Day columns published on Ballotpedia reflect the views of the author.
January 28, 2020: A total of 47,173 Americans committed suicide during 2017.[1] Both the number of people and the percentage of the population taking their own life is the highest since the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention began keeping records in 1950.[2]
Harvard Professor Arthur Brooks put the number in chilling perspective: “Today, there are two suicides for every homicide death, and 17 percent more suicide deaths per year than deaths from motor-vehicle incidents.”[3]
While suicide affects all demographic groups, three are particularly noteworthy: 1) Women and girls between 15 and 24, 2) Men between 45 and 64 3) Men over 75.[3]
The rate of young women committing suicide has nearly doubled since 2000. The percentage of men approaching retirement has increased nearly 45% since 1999.[3]
As for the older men, they are nearly three times as likely as the population at large to commit suicide.[3]
Brooks cites experts who say the increase in suicides among young women may be related to time spent online. However, it is less clear what is driving the increase among middle-aged and older men.[3]
Each weekday, Scott Rasmussen’s Number of the Day explores interesting and newsworthy topics at the intersection of culture, politics, and technology.
- January 27, 2020 –11 states will hold gubernatorial elections this year
- January 24, 2020 –85 years ago today the first canned beer was sold
- January 23, 2020 –78,604 homeless Americans in New York City
- January 22, 2020 –3 tech companies valued at over a trillion dollars
- January 21, 2020 –334 more Americans died from alcohol than drug overdose
- To see other recent numbers, check out the archive.
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Columns published on Ballotpedia reflect the views of the author.
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See also
Footnotes
- ↑ Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, "Suicide and Self-Inflicted Injury," accessed January 27, 2020
- ↑ Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, "Table 5. Age-adjusted death rates for selected causes of death, by sex, race, and Hispanic origin: United States, selected years 1950–2017," accessed January 27, 2020
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 The Washington Post, "We need to pay more attention to the epidemic of suicide," January 24, 2020
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