Adverse childhood experiences play a role in suicide deaths

January 13, 2025

A better understanding of the role of adverse childhood experiences in suicide deaths comes from an analysis of data relating to nearly 550,000 youth. In this study, researchers followed all individuals born in Sweden between 1987 and 1991 from birth to age 24, assessing eight adverse experiences between birth and age 14. While all eight forms of adversity increased the likelihood of dying by suicide, risk was doubled or more for young people when they had experienced these adversities:

  • a family member had died by suicide
  • a parent had a criminal history, or
  • a parent had a mental disorder.

Other adversities that significantly increased the risk for suicide death by between 40% and 90% included:

  • having a parent with problematic substance use
  • experiencing a death in the family
  • receiving public assistance
  • experiencing residential instability, and
  • living in a single-parent household.

Notably, suicide risk increased as the number of adversities increased — increasing 90% with two and 160% with three or more. For more information, see Vol. 17, No. 1 of the Children’s Mental Health Research Quarterly.