Sharp increase in suicide attempts among young French people

According to a new survey by Public Health Franceyoung French people are having more and more suicidal ideas and are taking action more often.

Suicide attempts among young people in France: survey methodology

“France has one of the highest suicide rates among European countries. As abroad, the health crisis caused by the Covid-19 epidemic has had a significant impact on the mental health of the population,” explain the authors of the report at the start of their report. “The objective of this work is to present the results concerning the prevalence of suicidal thoughts and suicide attempts in France in 2021, to identify the populations most concerned and to observe the developments that have occurred since the 2000s,” they add.

In 2021, Public Health France interviewed 24,514 people aged 18 to 85 living in mainland France and 6,519 living in the overseas departments and regions (DROM). “The variables of interest in our study are suicidal thoughts and suicide attempts in the past 12 months, as well as lifetime suicide attempts,” specify the experts. The developments were established using the 2000, 2005, 2010, 2014, 2017, 2020 and 2021 health barometers, the methodology of which was comparable.

Suicide attempts among young people in France: “a significant increase”

Results: in 2021, 4.2% of 18-85 year olds have thought about committing suicide in the last 12 months. In total, 6.8% reported a suicide attempt in their lifetime and 0.5% in the past year. “Among 18-75 year olds, the prevalence of suicidal thoughts and suicide attempts reported during the year has fallen slightly sinces 2014, while that of suicide attempts over a lifetime has stabilized at around 7%. note Public Health France.

“The main result of this survey is a significant increase in suicidal thoughts and suicide attempts over the course of life among 18-24 year olds observed over the past ten years,” also underlines the Health agency. Among the latter, the prevalence of suicidal thoughts over the year appeared stable between 2010 and 2014 then experienced an increase of almost 4 points between 2014 and 2021 (going from 3.3% to 7.2%), with a acceleration between 2017 and 2020 (from 4.6% to 7.4%). The prevalence of suicidal thoughts occurring during the year increased threefold among young women aged 18-24 between 2014 and 2021 (from 3.3% to 9.4%). Among young men, it also increased significantly between 2017 and 2020 (from 3.6% to 7.1%).

“This study confirms the deterioration in the mental health of young adults observed elsewhere based on emergency room and hospitalization data,” summarize the authors of the survey. “In parallel with the implementation of the national suicide prevention strategy and the strengthening of support systems, a better understanding of the mechanisms which affect the mental health of the youngest since the Covid-19 pandemic is necessary with a view to strengthening prevention policies”, they conclude.