Climate change linked to increased suicide rates, according to a study

A new study published Monday in the journal Nature Climate Change links rising temperatures to increased rates of suicide. Research is among the first to examine the effects of climate change on a person's mental health

. The research took monthly suicide statistics from the United States and Mexico over several decades and compared the data with temperature and precipitation. According to a report Guardian other factors, such as seasonal variation, levels of poverty and other suicides, were also taken into account.

"We're taking a specific month, and we're comparing the cooler versions of this month to warmer versions of this month, and we're asking," Are suicide rates different in those two months? " find out indeed that they are "Marshall Burke, an badistant professor at Stanford University and the data badysis found that suicide rates increase by 0.7% in US counties and by 2.1% in Mexican municipalities when the monthly average temperature rises by 1 degree C. The rates are comparable to those created by an economic recession, scientists report.

"We find a very consistent relationship between increases in temperature and temperature. increased suicide risk, "said Burke, adding that suicide is a very complex phenomenon, and there are many other factors besides the climate that can play into the risk of suicide. 19659002] The World Health Organization reports that nearly 800,000 people die each year from suicide; it is the second leading cause of death among 15 to 29 year olds

. Burke's research also compared temperature data with depression-related word rates ("solitary," "suicidal," "trapped," etc.) in more than 600 million Twitter messages. They found that the 1 degree Celsius increase in monthly mean temperature was correlated with an increase in Twitter messages with depressive language.

Further research is needed to examine this link, but other studies show the link between human behavior and temperatures

"Studies suggest that some components of brain chemistry, in especially some neurotransmitters, are important for both mental health and for regulating the body's internal temperature, "Burke told KTLA5 News. "This suggests to us at least a plausible biological link between temperature, temperature regulation and how the brain regulates its own emotion."

If current trends in climate change continue, scientists have projected that increased heat could cause between 9,000 and 40,000 suicides in the United States and Mexico by 2050.