Higher temperatures increase suicide rates in the United States and Mexico

Linkages between climate and mental health are often theorized but remain poorly quantified. In particular, it is unknown whether the rate of suicide, a leading cause of death globally, is systematically affected by climatic conditions. Using comprehensive data from multiple decades for both the Uni...

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Published in:Nature climate change Vol. 8; no. 8; pp. 723 - 729
Main Authors: Burke, Marshall, González, Felipe, Baylis, Patrick, Heft-Neal, Sam, Baysan, Ceren, Basu, Sanjay, Solomon Hsiang
Format: Journal Article
Language:English
Published: London Nature Publishing Group 01.08.2018
Subjects:
Adaptation
Climate
Climate change
Climatic conditions
Confidence intervals
Digital media
High temperature
Impact analysis
Mental disorders
Mental health
Municipalities
Social media
Suicide
Suicides & suicide attempts
United States > US
Mexico
ISSN:1758-678X, 1758-6798
Online Access:Get full text
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Summary:Linkages between climate and mental health are often theorized but remain poorly quantified. In particular, it is unknown whether the rate of suicide, a leading cause of death globally, is systematically affected by climatic conditions. Using comprehensive data from multiple decades for both the United States and Mexico, we find that suicide rates rise 0.7% in US counties and 2.1% in Mexican municipalities for a 1 °C increase in monthly average temperature. This effect is similar in hotter versus cooler regions and has not diminished over time, indicating limited historical adaptation. Analysis of depressive language in >600 million social media updates further suggests that mental well-being deteriorates during warmer periods. We project that unmitigated climate change (RCP8.5) could result in a combined 9–40 thousand additional suicides (95% confidence interval) across the United States and Mexico by 2050, representing a change in suicide rates comparable to the estimated impact of economic recessions, suicide prevention programmes or gun restriction laws.
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ISSN:1758-678X
1758-6798
DOI:10.1038/s41558-018-0222-x