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Youth suicide is increasingly being recognized as a major social problem in South Korea. In this study, we aimed to explore the effects of parental support on the relationship between life stress and suicidal ideation among middle-school students.
This study analyzed data from a cross-sectional study on mental health conducted by the South Korea National Youth Policy Institute between May and July of 2013. Questionnaire responses from 3,007 middle-school students regarding stress factors, thoughts of suicide during the past year, and parental support were analyzed in terms of 3 subscale elements: emotional, academic, and financial support.
Among the participants, 234 male students (7.8%) and 476 female students (15.8%) reported experiencing suicidal ideation in the past year. Life stress significantly influenced suicidal ideation (P<0.001), and parental support and all of the subscale elements had a significant influence on decreasing suicidal ideation. As shown in model 1, life stress increased suicidal ideation (adjusted odds ratio [aOR], 1.318; P<0.001), and, in model 2, the effect of life stress on suicidal ideation decreased with parental support (aOR, 1.238; P<0.001).
Parental support was independently related to a decrease in suicidal ideation, and life stress was independently related to an increase in suicidal ideation. Parental support buffered the relationship between life stress and suicidal ideation.
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Research suggests that mental health is affected not only by smoking, but also by secondhand smoking. But the most researches have been conducted in North America and/or Europe. We examined whether this relationship remains evident within the South Korean population. Specifically, we investigated the effect of secondhand smoking on depressive symptoms and suicidal ideation.
We analyzed data from 6,043 non-smoking adults who participated in the 2010–2012 Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. We compared the presence of depressive symptoms and suicidal ideation in 3,006 participants who were exposed to secondhand smoking in the office or at home with 3,037 non-exposed participants.
In unadjusted logistic regression analysis, secondhand smoking exposure group had more suicidal ideations than no secondhand smoking exposure (16.1% vs. 12.2%; odds ratio [OR], 1.50; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.241–1.804), but risk of depressive symptoms was not significantly different between two groups (15.2% vs. 12.2%; OR, 1.21; 95% CI, 0.997–1.460). In multivariate logistic regression analysis, Among those exposed to secondhand smoking, the OR for depressive symptoms was 1.02 (95% CI, 0.866–1.299) and 1.43 (95% CI, 1.139–1.802) for suicidal ideation. Overall, secondhand smoking at home was significantly related to depressive symptoms and suicidal ideation. Among females, secondhand smoking exposure at home only (not in the office) was related to depressive symptoms and suicidal ideation.
Exposure to secondhand smoking, especially at home, may be associated with an increase in especially in female depressive symptoms and suicidal ideation among adults in South Korea.
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Being underweight has been related to health risks. However, little is known about the relationship between suicidal ideation and attempting to lose weight. This study was conducted to examine if there is an association between suicidal ideation and attempting to lose weight among underweight adults.
A cross-sectional study of 1,122 underweight adults (range, 19 to 69 years) was conducted based on the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, 2007-2012. We examined suicidal ideation, doctor-diagnosed depression, depressive mood, stress, physical activity, health-related behavior, comorbidity, and socioeconomic status by weight loss attempts. Logistic regression analysis was performed to examine the association between suicidal ideation and weight loss attempts. The following covariates were controlled for: age, sex, physical activity, alcohol problem, marital status, education, income, occupation, self-perception of body image, chronic disease, and body mass index.
There were 101 subjects in the weight loss attempt group and 1,021 in the non-attempt group. The attempt group had a higher risk of suicidal ideation (odds ratio [OR], 2.47; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.35 to 4.53) and depressive symptoms (OR, 2.17; 95% CI, 1.19 to 3.98). After depressive symptoms were added to the covariates, the risk of suicidal ideation was also significant (OR 2.11, 95% CI: 1.03 to 4.35). The two groups did not significantly differ in doctor-diagnosed depression and stress.
Weight loss attempts were associated with suicidal ideation in underweight Korean adults.
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This study was performed to evaluate the relationship between smoking status and suicidal ideations or suicide attempts in Korean adults.
The study used data from the 4th Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, and involved 17,065 participants. We used multiple logistic regression analysis to evaluate the relationship between smoking status and suicidal behavior. The results were adjusted for covariates including depression and physical disease.
After adjusting for covariates, current smokers (odds ratio [OR], 1.66; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.34 to 2.05) and former smokers (OR, 1.39; 95% CI, 1.13 to 1.72) proved more likely to have suicidal ideations than non-smokers. Among women, current smokers (OR, 2.00; 95% CI, 1.47 to 2.72) and former smokers (OR, 1.48; 95% CI, 1.11 to 1.99) were more likely to have suicidal ideations than non-smokers. However, among the men there was no significant relationship between smoking status and suicidal ideations. Among all the participants who had had suicidal ideations, there was a significant relationship between current smoking and suicide attempts (OR, 1.80; 95% CI, 1.05 to 3.07). There was also a relationship between current smoking and suicide attempts among women (OR, 2.40; 95% CI, 1.31 to 4.37), but no significant relationship among men.
There is a relationship between smoking status and suicidal ideations and suicide attempts in the general population of Korea. This relationship is particularly clear in women, and is independent of comorbid chronic disease and depression. Current smokers and former smokers are more likely to have suicidal ideations than non-smokers; current smokers are also more likely to have attempted suicide.
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