Guns and suicide

Got a link to this information through the NAME listserv and I thought I’d post it here:

A study by the Harvard School of Public Health of all 50 U.S. states reveals a powerful link between rates of firearm ownership and suicides.
… states where guns were prevalent—as in Wyoming, where 63 percent of households reported owning guns—rates of suicide were higher. The inverse was also true: where gun ownership was less common, suicide rates were also lower.
… Says HSPH Professor of Health Policy David Hemenway, the ICRC’s director: “Studies show that most attempters act on impulse, in moments of panic or despair. Once the acute feelings ease, 90 percent do not go on to die by suicide.”

Just as I mentioned before these impulse suicides need to be a real target of prevention measures, including telling folks that if they own guns keep them locked up or out of the house at the very least.