Changes in Elderly Suicides in the USA and the Developed World 1974-87: Comparison With Current Homicide

Between 1974 & 1987 there were overall increases in American male suicide rates, with the greatest increases among elderly men. Overall rates decreased among females, except among the elderly. Compared with the rest of the western world, suicide rates for elderly Americans were among the worst. Suicide was far more prevalent than homicide, but this is not reflected in the media, where homicide is given a high profile but where there is relative silence surrounding suicide among elderly people.