1.9 M youths tried suicide at least once

It is said that Filipino youths are happy-go-lucky, carefree and able to make jokes about their miseries.

But a recent study conducted by the University of the Philippines Population Institute (UPPI) showed that 12 percent of the 16.5 million Filipino youths have attempted suicide at least once in their lives.

The study, titled "Young Adolescence and Fertility Survey for 2002," revealed that 1.9 million Filipinos aged 15 to 24 have tried to take their own lives for various reasons.

Girls, the study also disclosed, are more prone to kill themselves, comprising 17 percent of total suicide attempts. Boys, on the other hand, accounted for only seven percent.

"Adolescents attempt to take their lives for different reasons. The many challenges that they meet are exacerbated by their proclivity to take risks in facing the challenges," said UP demography professor Corazon Raymundo.

The UPPI interviewed close to 20,000 youths for the study in April to June last year.

The survey, Raymundo said, "is the first information (gathered on a) nationwide (scale) about suicide involving young people."

When asked about the leading causes of suicide, Raymundo said there is no exact catalyst for the act, but rather it is the depression or the hopelessness that drive adolescents to attempt suicide.

"If you ask me what’s their reason for committing suicide or the role of their problem in sex or relationship, I don’t know the exact answer," Raymundo said. "But I can trace in the study... the proportion of people who are depressed or hopeless about their future."

The UPPI study also delved on the issues of premarital sex, smoking, alcohol drinking and drug use among Filipino youths.

It showed that five million out of the 16.5 million youths have engaged in premarital sex, while a significant number are into cigarettes, alcohol and drugs.

The survey found out that premarital sex among adolescents usually happen after their first date. Only three percent of first dates lead to premarital sex, Raymundo added.

In terms of smoking, Raymundo said, while more young men are into the habit, girls tend to pick up the practice faster than males.