Addiction-risk behaviours and suicide attempts in adolescents

Data on single and multiple addiction-risk behaviours and suicidal behaviour were obtained from a large sample of Dutch secondary school students aged 16 to 19 years. Although the prevalence of hard drugs was the lowest of all addiction-risk behaviours, there was a markedly high report of suicidal behaviours in youngsters who used these drugs: one out of each five boys and one out of each three girls. The most "suicidal" combination of two addiction-risk behaviours reported by girls was that of sedatives and hard drugs: more than half of the girls who reported both these behaviours also reported a suicide attempt. In boys, 27% of those who reported sedatives and cigarettes also reported a suicide attempt. The number of addiction-risk behaviours reported by the adolescents showed an almost linear increasing relation with the percentage of suicide attempters. The results suggest that suicidal behaviour and addiction-risk behaviours both should be regarded as part of a complex interaction of multiple behavioural problems. Prevention programmes and intervention strategies should focus on multiple rather than single targets, and screening procedures to detect adolescents at-risk for suicidal behaviour should focus on patterns of multiple risk factors rather than on single behaviours.