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Suicide and drought in New South Wales, Australia, 1970-2007.

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Title: Suicide and drought in New South Wales, Australia, 1970-2007.
Authors: Hanigan, Ivan C.1,2 ivan.hanigan@anu.edu.au, Butler, Colin D.1, Kokic, Philip N.3, Hutchinson, Michael F.4
Source: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America. 8/28/2012, Vol. 109 Issue 35, p13950-13955. 6p.
Subjects: Droughts, Suicide, Rural population, Farmers, Self-mutilation, Climate change, Mental depression, Rainfall, Psychology
Geographic Terms: New South Wales, Australia
Abstract: There is concern in Australia that droughts substantially increase the incidence of suicide in rural populations, particularly among male farmers and their families. We investigated this possibility for the state of New South Wales (NSW), Australia between 1970 and 2007, analyzing data on suicides with a previously established climatic drought index. Using a generalized additive model that controlled for season, region, and long-term suicide trends, we found an increased relative risk of suicide of 15% (95% confidence interval, 8%-22%) for rural males aged 30-49 y when the drought index rose from the first quartile to the third quartile. In contrast, the risk of suicide for rural females aged >30 y declined with increased values of the drought index. We also observed an increased risk of suicide in spring and early summer. In addition there was a smaller association during unusually warm months at any time of year. The spring suicide increase is well documented in nontropical locations, although its cause is unknown. The possible increased risk of suicide during drought in rural Australia warrants public health focus and concern, as does the annual, predictable increase seen each spring and early summer. Suicide is a complex phenomenon with many interacting social, environmental, and biological causal factors. The relationship between drought and suicide is best understood using a holistic framework. Climate change projections suggest increased frequency and severity of droughts in NSW, accompanied and exacerbated by rising temperatures. Elucidating the relationships between drought and mental health will help facilitate adaptation to climate change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
Copyright of Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America is the property of National Academy of Sciences and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)
Database: Engineering Source
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DbLabel: Engineering Source
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PubType: Academic Journal
PubTypeId: academicJournal
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  Data: Suicide and drought in New South Wales, Australia, 1970-2007.
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Hanigan%2C+Ivan+C%2E%22">Hanigan, Ivan C.</searchLink><relatesTo>1,2</relatesTo><i> ivan.hanigan@anu.edu.au</i><br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Butler%2C+Colin+D%2E%22">Butler, Colin D.</searchLink><relatesTo>1</relatesTo><br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Kokic%2C+Philip+N%2E%22">Kokic, Philip N.</searchLink><relatesTo>3</relatesTo><br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Hutchinson%2C+Michael+F%2E%22">Hutchinson, Michael F.</searchLink><relatesTo>4</relatesTo>
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  Data: There is concern in Australia that droughts substantially increase the incidence of suicide in rural populations, particularly among male farmers and their families. We investigated this possibility for the state of New South Wales (NSW), Australia between 1970 and 2007, analyzing data on suicides with a previously established climatic drought index. Using a generalized additive model that controlled for season, region, and long-term suicide trends, we found an increased relative risk of suicide of 15% (95% confidence interval, 8%-22%) for rural males aged 30-49 y when the drought index rose from the first quartile to the third quartile. In contrast, the risk of suicide for rural females aged >30 y declined with increased values of the drought index. We also observed an increased risk of suicide in spring and early summer. In addition there was a smaller association during unusually warm months at any time of year. The spring suicide increase is well documented in nontropical locations, although its cause is unknown. The possible increased risk of suicide during drought in rural Australia warrants public health focus and concern, as does the annual, predictable increase seen each spring and early summer. Suicide is a complex phenomenon with many interacting social, environmental, and biological causal factors. The relationship between drought and suicide is best understood using a holistic framework. Climate change projections suggest increased frequency and severity of droughts in NSW, accompanied and exacerbated by rising temperatures. Elucidating the relationships between drought and mental health will help facilitate adaptation to climate change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
– Name: AbstractSuppliedCopyright
  Label:
  Group: Ab
  Data: <i>Copyright of Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America is the property of National Academy of Sciences and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract.</i> (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)
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RecordInfo BibRecord:
  BibEntity:
    Identifiers:
      – Type: doi
        Value: 10.1073/pnas.1112965109
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      – Code: eng
        Text: English
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      Pagination:
        PageCount: 6
        StartPage: 13950
    Subjects:
      – SubjectFull: Droughts
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Suicide
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Rural population
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Farmers
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Self-mutilation
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Climate change
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Mental depression
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Rainfall
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Psychology
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: New South Wales
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Australia
        Type: general
    Titles:
      – TitleFull: Suicide and drought in New South Wales, Australia, 1970-2007.
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            NameFull: Butler, Colin D.
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            NameFull: Kokic, Philip N.
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              M: 08
              Text: 8/28/2012
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              Y: 2012
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              Value: 109
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              Value: 35
          Titles:
            – TitleFull: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America
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