Higher Risk of Suicide on Milestone Birthdays: Evidence from Japan
Higher Risk of Suicide on Milestone Birthdays: Evidence from Japan
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里程碑生日的自杀风险较高：来自日本的证据
DOI：
10.1038/s41598-019-53203-4
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发表时间：
2019
影响因子：
4.6
通讯作者：
Ueda Michiko
中科院分区：
文献类型：
--
作者：
Matsubayashi Tetsuya;Lee Myoung-jae;Ueda Michiko
最近的研究表明，在生日期间和生日前后自杀的风险更高。所谓的“生日忧郁症”在里程碑年龄的生日可能会更强（例如，20，30，40），因为这些象征性的年龄可能代表存在的评估，可能会突出失败和生活中的成就不足的场合。此外，在一些国家（包括日本），某些象征性的生日伴随着与家人和朋友庆祝的期望，因此，如果没有人与之庆祝，这种特殊的生日可能会加剧生日忧郁。本研究使用1974年至2014年期间日本约100万人的死亡记录，考察了在里程碑生日自杀人数多于其他生日或生日以外的日子的可能性。图形分析和泊松回归分析表明，自杀更频繁地发生在人们20岁，30岁，40岁和60岁的里程碑生日。这一模式主要见于男性。我们的研究结果表明，随着生日的临近，卫生专业人员和家庭成员密切关注弱势群体至关重要。特别是，当生日与具有社会意义的时刻重合时，包括成年年龄（20岁）和退休年龄（60岁），个人面临的风险更高。
Recent studies suggest that the risk of suicide is higher during and around birthdays. The so-called “birthday blues” might be stronger on birthdays at milestone ages (e.g., 20, 30, 40), as these symbolic ages might represent occasions for existential stock-taking that may highlight failures and underachievement in life. Moreover, in some countries (including Japan), certain symbolic birthdays come with the expectation of celebration with family and friends, and thus such special birthdays may elevate the birthday blues if there is nobody to celebrate the occasion with. This study examines the possibility that there are more suicides on milestone birthdays than on other birthdays or days other than birthdays, using approximately one million individual death records between 1974 and 2014 in Japan. Graphical analysis and Poisson regression analysis showed that suicides occurred more frequently on milestone birthdays when people turn 20, 30, 40, and 60. This pattern was predominately observed in men. Our findings suggest that it is crucial for health professionals and family members to pay close attention to vulnerable individuals as their birthdays approach. In particular, individuals are at a higher risk when birthdays coincide with occasions of social significance, including the ages of adulthood (age 20) and retirement (age 60).