About 63% of global deaths from self harm occur in the Asia Pacific region. Most of these deaths occur in rural areas, where easy access to highly toxic pesticides turns many impulsive acts of self poisoning into suicide. The authors argue that the World Health Organization’s recent recommendations to focus suicide prevention strategies on the identification & treatment of people with mental disorders may not be the most effective approach for rural Asia, since impulsive self poisoning is often not associated with mental illness. (18 refs)