Suicide rates rise sharply with economic recession, UK study says

New research has shown suicide rates are up sharply since the beginning of the 2008 economic crisis.

A new study by researchers in the UK found that males make up the bulk of suicide deaths.

CALM (the Campaign Against Living Miserably) reported that males between the ages of 30 and 44 were the most at risk, said the Guardian.

They also reported that men between aged 45 to 59 have seen a significant jump in suicide deaths between 2007 and 2011.

The research found that males in the UK under 35 were more likely to commit suicide than die in a road accident, from murder or from HIV/AIDS.

Men over 60 were three times as likely as women to kill themselves, the study said.

Other UK research has come to similar conclusions.

The Telegraph reported last week that the UK statistics office reported an eight percent jump in suicides between 2010 and 2011.

The study also found that men in their early 40s were the most at risk, with older men's suicide rates rising sharper than at any time in recent history.

The Guardian said that the explosion in male suicide is likely due to cultural norms that dictate that males should not speak about their feelings.

Men also tend to confuse depression with anger issues, said the newspaper.

The trend is similar on the other side of the Atlantic.

Reuters reported on a study analyzing data by the CDC that said suicide rates in the US quadrupled between 2008 and 2010.

Medscape said this works out to be about 1580 more suicides per year in the United States.

GlobalPost has previously wrote of rising suicide rates in economically battered Greece, with 677 suicide attempts in 2009, 830 in 2010 and 927 in 2011.