Suicide and Marital Status in the United States, 1991-1996: is Widowhood a Risk Factor?

National suicide data for the United States were compiled for the years 1991-1996 & broken down by ethnic group, 5-year age groups, gender, & marital status. Data on suicide rates indicated an approximately 17-fold increase among young widowed White men (aged 20-34 years), a 9-fold increase among young widowed African American men, & lesser increases among young widowed White women compared with their married counterparts. Data suggest that as many as 1 in 400 White & African American widowed men, aged 20-35 years, will die by suicide in any given year compared with 1 in 9000 married men in the general population. (30 refs.)