Globally, Suicide Risk Increased on Certain Days of the Week, Holidays

MONDAY, Oct. 28, 2024 (HealthDay News) — Suicide risk is highest on Mondays and increases on New Year”s Day in most countries, according to a study published online Oct. 23 in The BMJ.

Whanhee Lee, Ph.D., from Pusan National University in Yangsan, South Korea, and colleagues assessed short-term temporal variations in suicide risk by the day of the week and national holidays in multiple countries. The analysis included data from 740 locations in 26 countries and territories (between 1971 and 2019), collected from the Multi-city Multi-country Collaborative Research Network database.

The researchers found that Mondays had peak suicide risk during weekdays across all countries. In many countries in North America, Asia, and Europe, suicide risks were lowest on Saturdays or Sundays. However, in South and Central American countries, Finland, and South Africa, the risk increased over weekends. There were strong increases seen in suicide risk on New Year”s Day in most countries, but the evidence for increased risk on Christmas Day was weak. There was a weak decrease for suicide risk on other national holidays, except for Central and South American countries, where the risk generally increased one or two days after these holidays.

“The results of this study can help to better understand the short-term variations in suicide risks and define suicide prevention action plans and awareness campaigns,” the authors write.

Abstract/Full Text