The Ultimate Security and Storage Device | 125,000+ RACs sold.

American Journal of Preventive Medicine (AJPM) | "For each 10 percentage-point increase in household gun ownership, the youth suicide rate increased by 26.9% ."

Amazing Security Group, Inc.

Posted on April 03 2021

American Journal of Preventive Medicine (AJPM)   |   "For each 10 percentage-point increase in household gun ownership, the youth suicide rate increased by 26.9% ."
.

 

Introduction

Determining whether the prevalence of gun ownership is associated with youth suicide is critical to inform policy to address this problem. The objective of this study is to investigate the relationship between the prevalence of household gun ownership in a state and that state's rate of youth suicide.

Methods

This study, conducted in 2018, involved a secondary analysis of state-level data for the U.S. using multivariable linear regression. The relationship between the prevalence of household gun ownership and youth (aged 10–19 years) suicide rates was examined in a time-lagged analysis of state-level household gun ownership in 2004 and youth suicide rates in the subsequent decade (2005–2015), while controlling for the prevalence of youth suicide attempts and other risk factors.

Results

Household gun ownership was positively associated with the overall youth suicide rate. For each 10 percentage-point increase in household gun ownership, the youth suicide rate increased by 26.9% (95% CI=14.0%, 39.8%).

Conclusions

Because states with high levels of household gun ownership are likely to experience higher youth suicide rates, these states should be especially concerned about implementing programs and policies to ameliorate this risk.

REFERENCES

  1. CDC. Web-based injury statistics query and reporting systems: fatal injury reports. www.cdc.gov/injury/wisqars/fatal_injury_reports.html. Accessed March 20, 2018.

    • Johnson R
    • Barber C
    • Azrael D
    • Clark D
    • Hemenway D
    Who are the owners of firearms used in adolescent suicides?.
    Suicide Life Threat Behav. 2010; 40: 609-611
    • Houtsma C
    • Butterworth S
    • Anestis M
    Firearm suicide: pathways to risk and methods of prevention.
    Curr Opin Psychol. 2018; 22: 7-11
    • Anestis MD
    • Selby EA
    • Butterworth SE
    Rising longitudinal trajectories in suicide rates: the role of firearm suicide rates and firearm legislation.
    Prev Med. 2017; 100: 159-166
    • Hemenway D.
    Commentary: easy home gun access and adolescent depression.
    Soc Sci Med. 2018; 203: 60-63
    • Shenassa ED
    • Catlin SN
    • Buka SL
    Lethality of firearms relative to other suicide methods: a population based study.
    J Epidemiol Commun Health. 2003; 57: 120-124
    • Elnour AA
    • Harrison J.
    Lethality of suicide methods.
    Inj Prev. 2008; 14: 39-45
    • Choi N
    • DiNitto D
    • Marti N
    Youth firearm suicide: precipitating/risk factors and gun access.
    Child Youth Serv Rev. 2017; 83: 9-16
    • May A
    • Victor S.
    From ideation to action: recent advances in understanding suicide capability.
    Curr Opin Psychol. 2018; 22: 1-6
    • Anestis M
    • Khazem L
    • Anestis J
    Differentiating suicide decedents who died using firearms from those who died using other methods.
    Psychiatry Res. 2017; 252: 23-28
    • Miller M
    • Hemenway D.
    The relationship between firearms and suicide: a review of the literature.
    Aggress Violent Behav. 1999; 4: 59-75
    • Miller M
    • Lippmann SJ
    • Azrael D
    • Hemenway D
    Household firearm ownership and rates of suicide across the 50 United States.
    J Trauma. 2007; 62: 1029-1034
    • Miller M
    • Azrael D
    • Hepburn L
    • Hemenway D
    • Lippmann SJ
    The association between changes in household firearm ownership and rates of suicide in the United States, 1981–2002.
    Inj Prev. 2006; 12: 178-182
    • Miller M
    • Hemenway D
    • Azrael D
    Firearms and suicide in the northeast.
    J Trauma. 2004; 57: 626-632
    • Miller M
    • Azrael D
    • Hemenway D
    Household firearm ownership and suicide rates in the United States.
    Epidemiology. 2002; 13: 517-524
    • Duggan M
    Guns and suicide.
    in: Ludwig J Cook P Evaluating Gun Policy: Effects on Crime and Violence. Brookings Institution Press, Washington, DC2003: 41-67
    • Webster D
    • Vernick J
    • Zeoli A
    Association between youth-focused firearm laws and youth suicides.
    JAMA. 2004; 292: 594-601
    • Birckmayer J
    • Hemenway D.
    Suicide and firearm prevalence: are youth disproportionately affected?.
    Suicide Life Threat Behav. 2001; 31: 303-310
    • Miller M
    • Barber C
    • White R
    • Azrael D
    Firearms and suicide in the United States: is risk independent of underlying suicidal behavior?.
    Am J Epidemiol. 2013; 178: 946-955
    • Briggs JT
    • Tabarrok A.
    Firearms and suicides in U.S. states.
    Int Rev Law Econ. 2014; 37: 180-188
    • Hemenway D
    • Miller M.
    Association of rates of household handgun ownership, lifetime major depression, and serious suicidal thoughts with rates of suicide across U.S. Census regions.
    Inj Prev. 2002; 8: 313-316
    • Kaplan MS
    • Geling O.
    Firearm suicides and homicides in the United States: regional variations and patterns of gun ownership.
    Soc Sci Med. 1998; 46: 1227-1233
    • Lester D
    Gun ownership and suicide in the United States.
    Psychol Med. 1989; 19: 519-521
  2. Ludwig J Cook PJ Evaluating Gun Policy: Effects on Crime and Violence. Brookings Institution Press, Washington, DC2003
    • Markush RE
    • Bartolucci AA
    Firearms and suicide in the United States.
    Am J Public Health. 1984; 74: 123-127
    • Mathur VK
    • Freeman DG
    A theoretical model of adolescent suicide and some evidence from U.S. data.
    Health Econ. 2002; 11: 695-708
    • Miller M
    • Azrael D
    • Hemenway D
    Firearm availability and unintentional firearm deaths, suicide, and homicide among 5–14 year olds.
    J Trauma. 2002; 52: 267-274
    • Miller M
    • Azrael D
    • Hemenway D
    Firearm availability and suicide, homicide, and unintentional firearm deaths among women.
    J Urban Health. 2002; 79: 26-38
    • Price J
    • Thompson A
    • Dake J
    Factors associated with state variations in homicide, suicide, and unintentional firearm deaths.
    J Community Health. 2004; 29: 271-283
    • Gius M
    The effects of gun ownership rates and gun control laws on suicide rates.
    New York Economic Review. 2011; 42: 35-46
    • Siegel M
    • Rothman E
    Firearm ownership and suicide rates among U.S. men and women, 1981–2013.
    Am J Public Health. 2016; 107: 1316-1322
    • Anestis MD
    • Houtsma C.
    The association between gun ownership and statewide overall suicide rates.
    Suicide Life Threat Behav. 2018; 48: 204-217
    • Kleck G
    • Patterson EB
    The impact of gun control and gun ownership levels on violence rates.
    J Quant Criminol. 1993; 9: 249-287
    • Lester D
    Firearm availability and the incidence of suicide and homicide.
    Acta Psychiatr Belg. 1987; 88: 387-393
    • Lester D
    Gun control, gun ownership, and suicide prevention.
    Suicide Life Threat Behav. 1988; 18: 176-180
    • Clarke RV
    • Jones PR
    Suicide and increased availability of handguns in the United States.
    Soc Sci Med. 1989; 28: 805-809
    • Kleck G.
    Point Blank: Guns and Violence in America.
    Transaction Publishers, New Brunswick, NJ2005
    • Sloan JH
    • Rivara FP
    • Reay DT
    • Ferris JA
    • Kellermann AL
    Firearm regulations and rates of suicide: a comparison of two metropolitan areas.
    N Engl J Med. 1990; 322: 369-373
  3. CDC. Youth Risk Behavior Survey data. www.cdc.gov/yrbs. Accessed March 20, 2018.

    • Wichstrøm L
    Predictors of adolescent suicide attempts: a nationally representative longitudinal study of Norwegian adolescents.
    J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry. 2000; 39: 603-610
    • Qin P
    • Agerbo E
    • Mortensen PB
    Suicide risk in relation to socioeconomic, demographic, psychiatric, and familial factors: a national register–based study of all suicides in Denmark, 1981–1997.
    Am J Psychiatry. 2003; 160: 765-772
    • Lang M
    The impact of mental health insurance laws on state suicide rates.
    Health Econ. 2013; 22: 73-88
    • Cash SJ
    • Bridge JA
    Epidemiology of youth suicide and suicidal behavior.
    Curr Opin Pediatr. 2009; 21: 613-619
  4. CDC. Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System Survey Data, 2004. www.cdc.gov/brfss. Accessed March 20, 2018.

    • Silins E
    • Horwood J
    • Patton GC
    Young adult sequelae of adolescent cannabis use: an integrative analysis.
    Lancet. 2014; 1: 286-293
    • Darke S
    • Ross J.
    Suicide among heroin users: rates, risk factors and methods.
    Addiction. 2002; 97: 1383-1394
  5. 2015 Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System Data User's Guide. www.cdc.gov/healthyyouth/data/yrbs/pdf/2015/2015_yrbs-data-users-guide.pdf. Accessed March 20, 2018.

  6. U.S. Census Bureau. American Fact Finder. https://factfinder.census.gov/faces/nav/jsf/pages/searchresults.xhtml?refresh=t#none. Accessed March 20, 2018.

  7. Haughwout S, Slater M. Apparent per capita alcohol consumption: national, state, and regional trends, 1977–2015. https://pubs.niaaa.nih.gov/publications/surveillance108/CONS15.htm. Accessed March 20, 2018.

    • Grossman DC
    • Mueller BA
    • Riedy C
    • et al.
    Gun storage practices and risk of youth suicide and unintentional firearm injuries.
    JAMA. 2005; 293: 707-714

More Posts