LONDON, Sept.3 (Xinhua) -- The number of young women in Britain killing themselves has reached the highest level on record, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said in a report Tuesday.
ONS said in 2018 there were 6,507 suicides registered in Britain, with the rate of people ending their own lives significantly higher than that in 2017, representing the first increase since 2013.
Suicide rates among the under 25s have increased in recent years, particularly 10 to 24-year-old females where the rate has increased significantly since 2012 to its highest level with 3.3 deaths per 100,000 females in 2018, added ONS.
Nick Stripe, head of Health Analysis and Life Events at ONS, said: "We saw a significant increase in the rate of deaths registered as suicide last year which has changed a trend of continuous decline since 2013.
"While the exact reasons for this are unknown, the latest data show that this was largely driven by an increase among men who have continued to be most at risk of dying by suicide. In recent years, there have also been increases in the rate among young adults, with females under 25 reaching the highest rate on record for their age group."
Stripe said looking at the overall trend since the early 80s, Britain is still witnessing a gradual decline in the rate of suicide for the population as a whole.
The figures show that overall 75 percent of registered suicide deaths in 2018 were among men (4,903 deaths), which has been the case since the mid-1990s.
Scotland had the highest suicide rate in Britain with 16.1 deaths per 100,000 persons (784 deaths), followed by Wales with a rate of 12.8 per 100,000 (349 deaths) and England the lowest with 10.3 deaths per 100,000 (5,021 deaths).
The 45 to 49 years age group had the highest age-specific suicide rate for both men and women, the results revealed.
ONS added that as seen in previous years, the most common method of suicide in the Britain was hanging, accounting for almost 60 percent of all suicides among males and 45 percent of all suicides among females.
ONS said: "Since 1981, suicide rates for both males and females have generally been on a downward trend. The latest suicide rate for males is like that observed in 2013, when it previously peaked, but it still remains significantly lower than in 1988 when it was at its highest. Among females, suicide rates have generally been consistent over the past decade, however, the latest rate is significantly higher than that observed in 2007, when it was at its lowest."
Across Britain North East England registered the highest suicide rate among men, while London had the lowest rate. London also had the lowest rate of female suicides, with the Yorkshire/Humber and South West regions of England recording the highest levels of female deaths from suicide.
