Living at a higher altitude may be a risk factor for suicide, a recent study in the journal High Altitude Medicine & Biology has found.
Researchers looked at suicide data in all 2,584 U.S. counties from 1979 to 1998. In that time there were 596,704 suicide deaths in 42,868,100 total deaths. Although they discovered a lower general death rate at higher altitudes, the same was not true for suicide.
An association was found between living at higher altitudes and higher county rates of suicide. The average altitude in 50 counties with the highest suicide rates was 4,684 feet, and the average altitude in 50 counties with the lowest suicide rates was 582 feet. When researchers controlled for variables such as being male, being white, and lower household income, the link between altitude and suicide was still evident.
Full story: People living at higher altitudes may be at greater risk for suicide, says a new study