Suicide, the fifth leading cause of death among children and adolescents in the country / According to some research; 250 children committed suicide in ten years
There are no official and clear statistics on the exact number of child suicides in the country, and the only official statistics available are from the registry, which says that suicide is the fifth leading cause of death among adolescents and young people in the country. Poverty, educational problems, conflict with family, emotional relationships, rape, and forced marriage have been the main factors behind child suicides in the country. Research by the non-governmental organization, the Children's Rights Defense Organization, based on reports published in the media, indicates that more than 250 children committed suicide between 1990 and 2009. 45 percent of suicides were between the ages of 9 and 14, and the other 55 percent were between the ages of 15 and 18.
According to HRANA news agency, quoting Didarnews, in May of last year, the Tehran Province Medical Examiner announced that deaths from consuming rice pills had increased in the country.
According to this organization, in 2019, 220 deaths due to rice pill poisoning were referred to forensic centers in Tehran province, a 19 percent increase compared to the same period in 2018.
Also, the Deputy Director of Medical and Laboratory Affairs of the Forensic Medicine Organization of the country previously announced the suicide rate in 2019 at 5,143 people. According to Masoud Qadipasha, this figure has increased by about 0.8 percent compared to 2018.
According to research by the "Association for the Defense of Children's Rights," there are no official and clear statistics on the number of child suicides in the country, but studies by this NGO indicate that more than 250 children committed suicide between 1990 and 2009. This is despite the fact that this figure is only the number of suicides that have been reported in the media, and the real number is higher.
The only official statistics available are from the Civil Registry, which states that suicide is the fifth leading cause of death among adolescents and young adults in the country. In fact, 3.89 percent of deaths in this age group are due to suicide.
According to the same study, 48% of the suicides reported in the media over the past 10 years involved boys and 52% involved girls.
45 percent of suicides were between the ages of 9 and 14, and another 55 percent were between the ages of 15 and 18. The causes of these suicides are also significant. Poverty is 8 percent, educational problems are 26 percent, family conflicts are 28 percent, emotional relationships are 5 percent, rape is 8 percent, being influenced by movies and videos is 5 percent, and 20 percent of suicides are due to forced marriage. Also, the cities of Tehran, Isfahan, and Hamedan have the highest suicide rates.
The simultaneous suicide of four girls in Babol city, the suicide of an 18-year-old boy after hearing the results of his entrance exam, the suicide of 11-year-old Mohammad in a village in Hormozgan province, where his brother's body was also found in the water two months later, the suicide of a 15-year-old girl in Ramhormoz, the suicide of a 12-year-old boy in Saadatabad, Tehran, the suicide of a 15-year-old girl in Mashhad, and... These are just some of the most prominent news stories that were reported in the media in 2019 about the suicides of children and adolescents across Iran, and then the country's organizations officially confirmed the news.
The Forensic Medicine Organization has stated that the share of Iranian teenagers in annual suicides is more than 7%.
Source: HRANA
