Suicides hit 13-year high / KBS 2025.09.25.

Описание: [Anchor]

The seriousness of the suicide problem in our country is being revealed through statistics.

Last year, the number of people who took their own lives was the highest since 2011.

For those in their teens to 40s, suicide is the leading cause of death, and notably, in the 40s age group, suicides outnumbered cancer for the first time.

This is a report by reporter Choi In-young.

[Report]

[2024 Suicide Prevention Public Service Announcement: "Are you thinking about suicide right now? Please call 109 to save your heart."]

Despite the increase in suicide prevention policies, suicides have also risen.

Last year, there were 14,872 suicide deaths, averaging 40.6 per day.

This is 4.3 times the number of people who die in traffic accidents in a year.

[Park Hyun-jung/Director of Population Trends, Statistics Korea: "The number of suicides and the suicide rate ranked 4th highest ever. After peaking in 2011, there was a slight decline, but it has increased for the last two consecutive years."]

Among all causes of death, it ranks 5th after cancer, heart disease, pneumonia, and cerebrovascular disease.

However, it is the number one cause of death among the younger population.

For those in their teens to 30s, it has been the leading cause of death for at least the past 10 years.

In the 40s age group, it swapped places with cancer for the first time last year.

The government has identified economic poverty as a reason for the increase in suicides among those in their 40s.

Just as the suicide rate rose with a 3-4 year lag after the IMF financial crisis, it is possible that the effects of COVID-19 are now emerging with a delay.

[Park Jung-woo/Director of Suicide Prevention Policy, Ministry of Health and Welfare: "We can see that the economic downturn due to the COVID pandemic and the rise in unemployment rates have had an impact."]

Among OECD member countries, South Korea has the highest suicide rate and the lowest birth rate, reflecting the current state of Korean society.

The government has increased the suicide prevention budget by about 20% for next year.

This is KBS News, Choi In-young.

If you have difficulties such as depression that are hard to talk about, or if you know family or friends who are experiencing such difficulties, you can receive 24-hour expert counseling through the suicide prevention hotline ☎109 or SNS counseling Madlan (www.129.go.kr/etc/madlan).

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