Number of suicides slightly increased last year

The number of registered suicides rose slightly last year, from 36 to 1,859. This involved 1,295 men and 564 women. That equates to an average of five suicides a day, the Central Bureau of Statistics announced.

Among men, the number of suicides increased by 5 percent in the past year, among women it decreased by the same percentage. Men between the ages of 20 and 30, in particular, were more likely to end their lives. The number of suicides in this group went from 124 in 2020 to 167 in 2021.

Most suicides are committed by men and women in their fifties. Last year, 304 men and 128 women aged 50 to 60 took their own lives. “This is almost a quarter of all suicides among both men and women,” according to the statistical office. The suicide rate among men in their fifties rose by 10 percent, while it remained stable among women of this age.

With 10.6 suicides per 100,000 inhabitants in 2021, the suicide rate has been constant since 2019. According to Statistics Netherlands, the suicide rate was highest in the early 1980s. In 1984 this was 14.7 per 100,000 people and in 2007 it was the lowest at 8.5 per 100,000 inhabitants.

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