The number of suicide deaths reached the highest recorded rate in 2022, according to provisional CDC data published Nov. 28.
A total of 49,449 suicide deaths were recorded in 2022, 3% higher than in 2021, the CDC reported. The age-adjusted number of suicides in 2022 was 14.3 deaths per 100,000, the highest rate recorded since 1941.
Suicide rates increased by 4% among women and by 2% among men in 2022, though the total number of suicides among men was nearly four times higher than among women.
Suicide rates generally declined among younger populations but rose among older adults in 2022, according to the CDC. Rates decreased for men 34 and younger and increased for those 35 and older. For women, rates declined for those 24 and younger and increased for those 25 and older.
The number of suicide deaths increased for nearly all race groups in 2022, the CDC said, though only a 3% increase among white, non-Hispanic women was statistically significant.
The data in the report is provisional and subject to change, though final data will likely be consistent with the report, CDC researchers wrote.