In 2022, the most significant cause of death among men in the United States was heart disease, which contributed to 22.5 percent of deaths. COVID-19 was the third leading cause of death among U.S. men in both 2020 and 2021, and the fourth leading cause in 2022. This statistic shows the distribution of the 10 leading causes of death among men in the United States from 2020 to 2022.

As of 2022, the third leading cause of death among teenagers aged 15 to 19 years in the United States was intentional self-harm or suicide, contributing around 17 percent of deaths among age group. The leading cause of death at that time was unintentional injuries, contributing to around 37.4 percent of deaths, while 21.8 percent of all deaths in this age group were due to assault or homicide. Cancer and heart disease, the overall leading causes of death in the United States, are also among the leading causes of death among U.S. teenagers. Adolescent suicide in the United States In 2021, around 22 percent of students in grades 9 to 12 reported that they had seriously considered attempting suicide in the past year. Female students were around twice as likely to report seriously considering suicide compared to male students. In 2022, Montana had the highest rate of suicides among U.S. teenagers with around 39 deaths per 100,000 teenagers, followed by South Dakota with a rate of 33 per 100,000. The states with the lowest death rates among adolescents are New York and New Jersey. Mental health treatment Suicidal thoughts are a clear symptom of mental health issues. Mental health issues are not rare among children and adolescents, and treatment for such issues has become increasingly accepted and accessible. In 2021, around 15 percent of boys and girls aged 5 to 17 years had received some form of mental health treatment in the past year. At that time, around 35 percent of youths aged 12 to 17 years in the United States who were receiving specialty mental health services were doing so because they had thought about killing themselves or had already tried to kill themselves.

In 2022, the leading causes of death among children and adolescents in the United States aged 10 to 14 were unintentional injuries, intentional self-harm (suicide), and cancer. That year, unintentional injuries accounted for around 25 percent of all deaths among this age group. Leading causes of death among older teens Like those aged 10 to 14 years, the leading cause of death among older teenagers in the U.S. aged 15 to 19 years is unintentional injuries. In 2022, unintentional injuries accounted for around 37 percent of all deaths among older teens. However, unlike those aged 10 to 14, the second leading cause of death among teens aged 15 to 19 is assault or homicide. Sadly, the third leading cause of death among this age group is suicide, making suicide among the leading three causes of death for both age groups. Teen suicide Suicide remains a major problem among teenagers in the United States, as reflected in the leading causes of death among this age group. It was estimated that in 2021, around 22 percent of high school students in the U.S. considered attempting suicide in the past year, with this rate twice as high for girls than for boys. The states with the highest death rates due to suicide among adolescents aged 15 to 19 years are Montana, South Dakota, and New Mexico. In 2022, the death rate from suicide among this age group in Montana was 39 per 100,000 population. In comparison, New York, the state with the lowest rate, had just five suicide deaths among those aged 15 to 19 years per 100,000 population.

Rank, number of deaths, percentage of deaths, and age-specific mortality rates for the leading causes of death, by age group and sex, 2000 to most recent year.

Teenage and total suicide deaths at either the state or county level.

Suicide is the second leading cause of death for young people in the US. Understanding how suicide affects your community can help to address the many factors that contribute to this preventable public health problem.

In 2022, the leading causes of death among veterans in the United States were heart disease, cancer, and unintentional injuries. Heart disease and cancer account for the majority of deaths among U.S. veterans, which is also true for people in the United States in general. The leading causes of death among veterans vs the U.S. as a whole Although the leading causes of death for U.S. veterans are similar to the overall leading causes of death in the United States, there are some differences. For example, even though heart disease and cancer are the leading causes of death for the entire United States and veterans specifically, death rates for both heart disease and cancer are much higher among veterans. In 2022, the death rate for heart disease among veterans was around 239 per 100,000 population, compared to an overall rate of 167 per 100,000 population for the United States. Another clear difference is that while suicide was the seventh leading cause of death among veterans in 2022, it was not among the leading ten causes of death for the United States as a whole. Suicide among veterans Given the stressful and often dangerous work of U.S. military personnel, the mental health of U.S. veterans remains a prevalent issue. In 2022, it was estimated that around 7.6 percent of U.S. veterans aged 18 to 49 years had serious thoughts of suicide in the past year, while 1.4 percent made suicide plans, and .4 percent attempted suicide. That year there were around 6,407 suicide deaths among veterans in the United States. Veterans suffering from substance use disorders or mental health conditions are much more likely to die from suicide than veterans who do not have such disorders.

The leading causes of death among children aged 5 to 9 years in the United States in 2022 were unintentional injuries, cancer, and congenital malformations, deformations and chromosomal abnormalities. At that time, unintentional injuries accounted for around 28 percent of all deaths among this age group. Child abuse in the U.S. Sadly, assault or homicide, was the fourth leading cause of death among those aged 5 to 9 years in the United States in 2022, accounting for around 9.4 percent of all deaths. That year, there were around 113,259 cases of child abuse in the U.S. among children aged 6 to 9 years and 129,846 cases among children aged 2 to 5 years. In 2022, there were around 5.36 child deaths per day in the United States due to abuse and neglect. Suicide among children Assault or homicide was also among the top five leading causes of death among children aged 10 to 14 years, but perhaps even more troubling is that suicide is the second leading cause of death among this age group. As with younger children, unintentional injuries are the leading cause of death among those aged 10 to 14 years, however, suicide accounts for around 13 percent of all deaths among this age group. Comparatively, suicide is not among the ten-leading causes of death among children from the age 1 to 9 years.

In 2022, the leading causes of death for children aged one to four years in the United States were unintentional injuries and congenital malformations, deformations, and chromosomal abnormalities. At that time, around 31 percent of all deaths among these children were caused by unintentional injuries. Differences in causes of death among children by age Just as unintentional injuries are the leading cause of death among children aged one to four, it is also the leading cause of death for the age groups five to nine and 10 to 14. However, congenital malformations, deformations, and chromosomal abnormalities account for fewer deaths as children become older, while the share of deaths caused by cancer is higher among those aged five to nine and 10 to 14. In fact, cancer is the second leading cause of death among five to nine-year-olds, accounting for around 15 percent of all deaths. Sadly, the second leading cause of death among children aged 10 to 14 is intentional self-harm, with 13 percent of all deaths among those in this age group caused by suicide. Leading causes of death in the United States The leading causes of death in the United States are heart disease and malignant neoplasms. Together, these two diseases accounted for around 40 percent of all deaths in the United States in 2022. That year, COVID-19 was the fourth leading cause of death, with about six percent of all deaths caused by COVID-19. In 2022, the lifetime odds that the average person in the United States would die from heart disease was one in six, while the odds for cancer were one in seven and for COVID-19 one in 23.

Linkages between climate and mental health are often theorized but remain poorly quantified. In particular, it is unknown whether suicide, a leading cause of death globally, is systematically affected by climatic conditions. Using multiple decades of comprehensive data from both the US and Mexico, we find that suicide rates rise 0.7% in US counties and 2.1% in Mexican municipalities for a 1C increase in monthly average temperature. This effect is similar in hotter versus cooler regions and has not diminished over time, indicating limited historical adaptation. Analysis of depressive language in >600 million social media updates further suggests that mental wellbeing deteriorates during warmer periods. We project that unmitigated climate change (RCP8.5) could result in a combined 9-40 thousand additional suicides (95% CI) across the US and Mexico by 2050, representing an change in suicide rates comparable to the estimated impact of economic recessions, suicide prevention programs, or gun restriction laws.

According to the latest available data, there were around 14.2 suicide deaths per 100,000 population in the United States in 2022. Suicide remains one of the leading causes of death in the U.S. highlighting the need for awareness and prevention. The suicide rate in the U.S. has risen for both men and women in recent years but remains over three times higher for men. Hospitalizations In 2021, there were around 517,000 adults hospitalized in the U.S. after a suicide attempt. Although the suicide rate among men is significantly higher than among women, there are more hospitalizations after suicide attempts for women than for men. In 2019, there were 288,000 such hospitalizations among women and 238,000 hospitalizations among men. Public opinionSuicide can be a divisive topic that involves religious and political views. Recent data shows that 72 percent of the U.S. population believes suicide is morally wrong, while 22 percent believe it to be morally acceptable. However, only 32 percent of adults believe it is “very important” to invest public dollars in the prevention of suicide.

Age-adjustment mortality rates are rates of deaths that are computed using a statistical method to create a metric based on the true death rate so that it can be compared over time for a single population (i.e. comparing 2006-2008 to 2010-2012), as well as enable comparisons across different populations with possibly different age distributions in their populations (i.e. comparing Hispanic residents to Asian residents).
Age adjustment methods applied to Montgomery County rates are consistent with US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) as well as Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene’s Vital Statistics Administration (DHMH VSA). PHS Planning and Epidemiology receives an annual data file of Montgomery County resident deaths registered with Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene’s Vital Statistics Administration (DHMH VSA).
Using SAS analytic software, MCDHHS standardizes, aggregates, and calculates age-adjusted rates for each of the leading causes of death category consistent with state and national methods and by subgroups based on age, gender, race, and ethnicity combinations. Data are released in compliance with Data Use Agreements between DHMH VSA and MCDHHS. This dataset will be updated Annually.

The countries with the highest suicide mortality rate worldwide in 2019 included Lesotho, Guyana, and Eswatini. Suicide rates of men are much higher than among women in many countries. Lithuania has one of the highest suicide rates for men as of 2019, while South Korea reports the highest suicide rate for women.

In the United States

Although the United States is not among the countries with the highest suicide mortality rate, suicide is still one of the leading causes of death in the U.S. As with other countries, the suicide rate among males in the U.S. is much higher than among females. The age group with the highest rate of suicide is those aged 45 to 64 years, followed by 25 to 44-year-olds. The states with the highest suicide rates are Wyoming, Alaska, and Montana.

Risk factors and help

Major risk factors for suicide include mental health issues and substance abuse problems; however, it can be difficult to predict who is at risk. Warning signs such as talking about wanting to die, expressing feelings of depression, suicidal ideation, and abusing drugs or alcohol should be taken seriously and help should be sought as soon as possible. Suicide hotlines exist in many countries around the world and one should not hesitate to discuss such issues and feelings with a health care provider.

The Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System (YRBSS) is a set of surveys that monitor priority health risk behaviors and experiences that contribute markedly to the leading causes of death, disability, and social problems among youth of grade 9 -12 in the United States. The surveys are administered every other year and it is maintained by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). A total of 107 questionnaire are asked. Some of the health-related behaviors and experiences monitored are: * Student demographics: sex, sexual identity, race and ethnicity, and grade * Youth health behaviors and conditions: sexual, injury and violence, bullying, diet and physical activity, obesity, and mental health, suicide attempt * Substance use behaviors: electronic vapor product and tobacco product use, alcohol use, and other drug use * Student experiences: parental monitoring, school connectedness, unstable housing, and exposure to community violence The dataset is used by a group of graduate students from Texas State University for 2025 TXST Open Datathon. The main YRBSS dataset includes data of multiple years, various states, district. For analyzing demographic variations associated with suicide, the 1991–2023 combined district dataset (https://www.cdc.gov/yrbs/files/sadc_2023/HS/sadc_2023_district.dat) is used, which offers a broad historical perspective on trends across different groups. To examine the preventive measures and develop a predictive model for suicide risk, the 2023 dataset (https://www.cdc.gov/yrbs/files/2023/XXH2023_YRBS_Data.zip) was used, ensuring the inclusion of the most recent behavioral and attributes. Please review the 2023 YRBS Data User's Guide by CDC for further information.

As of 2022, the U.S. states with the highest death rates from suicide were Montana, Alaska, and Wyoming. In Wyoming and Montana, there were around 29 and 28 suicide deaths per 100,000 population, respectively. In comparison, in New Jersey, the state with the lowest suicide death rate, there were only around eight suicide deaths per 100,000 population. Differences in suicide rates by gender In the United States, there is a vast difference in suicide rates between men and women, with rates over 3.5 times higher among men. However, rates of suicide for both men and women have increased over the past couple of decades. Among men, those aged 75 years and older have the highest suicide rates, with around 42 deaths per 100,000 population in 2021. Among women, those aged 45 to 64 years have the highest rates of suicide death with 8.2 deaths per 100,000 population. What is the most common method of suicide? In the United States, the most common method of suicide is with firearms, followed by suffocation and then poisoning. In 2022, there were around 27,032 suicide deaths from firearms in the United States, compared to 12,247 deaths from suffocation and 4,894 from drug poisoning. In 2021, firearms accounted for around 60 percent of suicide deaths among men. In comparison, around 35 percent of deaths from suicide among women were due to firearms, while suffocation and poisoning each accounted for 28 percent of such deaths.

Since the 1950s, the suicide rate in the United States has been significantly higher among men than women. In 2022, the suicide rate among men was almost four times higher than that of women. However, the rate of suicide for both men and women has increased gradually over the past couple of decades. Facts on suicide in the United States In 2022, the rate of suicide death in the United States was around 14 per 100,000 population. The suicide rate in the U.S. has generally increased since the year 2000, with the highest rates ever recorded in the years 2018 and 2022. In the United States, death rates from suicide are highest among those aged 45 to 64 years and lowest among younger adults aged 15 to 24. The states with the highest rates of suicide are Montana, Alaska, and Wyoming, while New Jersey and Massachusetts have the lowest rates. Suicide among men In 2023, around 4.5 percent of men in the United States reported having serious thoughts of suicide in the past year. Although this rate is lower than that of women, men still have a higher rate of suicide death than women. One reason for this may have to do with the method of suicide. Although firearms account for the largest share of suicide deaths among both men and women, firearms account for almost 60 percent of all suicides among men and just 35 percent among women. Suffocation and poisoning are the other most common methods of suicide among women, with the chances of surviving a suicide attempt from these methods being much higher than surviving an attempt by firearm. The age group with the highest rate of suicide death among men is by far those aged 75 years and over.

Suicide was the leading cause of death for local jail inmates in the United States in 2019, accounting for 355 deaths in that year. Heart disease killed a further 294 inmates in that same year, making it the second leading cause of death.

In the U.S., the top five causes of death amongst 35-39-year-old millennials in 2017 were accidents, malignant neoplasms, diseases of the heart, suicides and homicides. The most common cause was accidents, accounting for 33.5 percent of total deaths that year. This statistic shows the leading causes of death, as a percentage of total deaths, for 35 to 39-year-old millennials in the U.S. in 2017.

In 2021, firearms were the most common method of suicide among women aged 55 to 84 years, followed closely by poisoning. That year, there were 2.8 deaths from suicide by firearm among U.S. women aged 55 to 64 years per 100,000 population. This statistic shows the suicide rate among women age 55 and older in the United States in 2021, by age and mechanism of death.

Find data on deaths of Massachusetts residents. Information is obtained from death certificates received by the Registry of Vital Records and Statistics.

The leading causes of death among the white population of the United States are cardiovascular diseases and cancer. Cardiovascular diseases and cancer accounted for a combined 40.9 percent of all deaths among this population in 2022. In 2020 and 2021, COVID-19 was the third leading cause of death among white people. Disparities in causes of death In the United States, there exist disparities in the leading causes of death based on race and ethnicity. For example, chronic liver disease and cirrhosis is the tenth leading cause of death among the white population and the eighth among the Hispanic population, but is not among the ten leading causes for Black people. On the other hand, homicide is the seventh leading cause of death among the Black population, but is not among the 10 leading causes for whites or Hispanics. However, cardiovascular diseases and cancer by far account for the highest share of deaths for every race and ethnicity. Diseases of despair The American Indian and Alaska Native population in the United States has the highest rates of death from suicide, drug overdose, and alcohol. Together, these three behavior-related conditions are often referred to as diseases of despair. Asians have by far the lowest rates of death due to drug overdose and alcohol, as well as slightly lower rates of suicide.