Suicide rate for Buddhists higher than for other faiths

SUICIDE rates are highest among Buddhists out of all mainstream faiths, government data show.

Office for National Statistics (ONS) figures on the socio-demographic inequalities in suicides in England and Wales show that people who reported belonging to a religious group generally had lower rates of suicide compared with those who reported no religion.

The data show that when assessing religion, the lowest rates of suicide were in the Muslim group, with 5.14 men per 100,000 people taking their own life and 2.15 women per 100,000 people taking their own life.

The rates of suicide were highest in the Buddhist group – with 26.58 men per 100,000 people and 8.88 women – and religions classified as “other”, with figures of 33.19 and 13.66 for men and women respectively.

Responding to the data, Dr Desmond Biddulph CBE, president of the Buddhist Society, said many Buddhists in Britain are diaspora from countries in the Far East, adding: “One would have to look very carefully at the actual figures. [Some Buddhists in Britain] come from war-torn countries, and they’re often dispossessed.”

The ONS said the analysis “will have important implications for understanding the groups who are most at risk of suicide in England and Wales”.

For anyone who needs help, Samaritans can be contacted for free on 116 123 or emailed at jo@samaritans.org. Visit www.samaritans.org to find your nearest branch.