Youth Suicide in 2022

Provisional CDC data show a decrease of suicide deaths among youth despite a slight increase of suicides among adults.

Three days ago the CDC issued a press release (Provisional Suicide Deaths in the United States, 2022) discussing provisional suicide counts, an act indicating that its data is unlikely to change substantially in the future.

The results shows that suicide deaths increased by 2.6% overall yet declined by 8.4% among the 15-24 age group.

The CDC Suicide Data and Statistics summary sheet does not address youth suicide beyond this single factoid, but we can query the Provisional Mortality Statistics tool to find out more.

Youth Suicide in 2022

Suicide deaths declined from 598 in 2021 to 493 in 2022 (-18%) in the 10-14 age group and also declined, from 2343 to 2162 (-8%), in the 15-19 age group.

Furthermore, in the 15-19 age group:

• Male suicides decreased 8%

• Female suicides also decreased 8%

• Similar declines in all 4 geographical census regions (NE, MW, S, W)

• No substantial increase among any major racial or ethnic group

• No substantial increase in any urbanization level category

• Similar declines in suicide deaths by firearms and suffocation

• Slight increase in suicide deaths by poisoning (201 => 212)

Great caution should be exercised when interpreting small changes (or the lack of a change) in groups with death counts in double or low triple digits (such as poisoning suicides).

Suicide Rates

The CDC press release, and consequently most news coverage, included no mention of the fact that suicide counts may rise while suicide rates decline (due to increasing population).

The CDC has not yet released 2022 population estimates and so suicide rates displayed by its Provisional Mortality Statistics tool use 2021 populations for computing suicide rates.

Between 2020 and 2021, the population in age group 15-19 increased by nearly 3%, so if this trend continued in 2022, teen suicide rates decreased by roughly 10%.

Conclusion

In 2022 youth suicide rates likely declined substantially (by about 10%) among children, adolescents, and young adults, both male and female — even though adult suicide deaths increased slightly.