The recorded rate of suicide in the Republic reached its highest level in 1998, with 504 people taking their lives, figures from the Central Statistics Office revealed yesterday. More people died this way than in road accidents.
The figures also showed an increase in the marriage and birth rates and a notable increase in the number of births outside marriage.
The increase of about 15 per cent in the suicide rate over 1997 was greeted with alarm by suicide prevention groups last night.
One group, Aware, called for the establishment of a national forum to deal with the problem and said it was seeking an urgent response from the Department of Health and Children.
Of the 504 suicides, some 421 (84 per cent) involved males, with 83 females committing suicide. Suicide was now the biggest cause of death for those between the ages of 15 and 24.
The rate of suicide has steadily increased since the late 1970s when it started to exceed 150 deaths a year. Ten years ago the rate was 266, with male suicide consistently higher.
The CSO figures indicate that the problem is overwhelmingly concentrated among younger people. For example, of the 504 suicides, 138 involved people between the ages of 15 and 24, while 118 involved people between 25 and 34 years. In the older age groups, the numbers fell, although there were still 168 suicides among people between 35 and 54.
In comparison with the suicide rate, the number of deaths resulting from homicide was small. In 1998, 39 people were murdered, 28 males and 11 females.
A total of 429 people lost their lives in motor and traffic accidents, with 327 males and 102 females killed.
The chairman of Aware, Dr Patrick McKeon, said: "Until we, as a society, radically review both our treatment and attitude towards depression, we will not make inroads into the area of prevention."
He said the "disproportionate number of suicides occurring in the male category" reflected the level of stress and pressure young men were experiencing today.
Another group, Men's Aid, called for the immediate implementation of a second-level school information programme on "coping with suicidal feelings".
The CSO's Vital Statistics Fourth Quarter and Yearly Summary also included details on the State's birth and marriage rates.
The number of births increased from 52,300 to 53,600, the fourth year in succession in which the figure increased.
While births have increased by 12 per cent since 1994, there were 28 per cent fewer births last year than the peak year of 1980, when there were 74,388 births.
Of the 53,600 births, some 15,100 (28.3 per cent) were outside marriage, the highest figure since modern records began.
The rate of births outside marriage began to increase in the early 1980s when the figure crept past 4 per cent. Ten years ago, some 10 per cent of births were outside marriage, while five years ago the figure was just below 20 per cent.
The CSO figures revealed that of the 15,100 births outside marriage, some 3,000 were to teenage mothers, an increase of 300 on the figure in 1997.
The death rate decreased slightly from 31,600 to 31,400, with cancer causing 24 per cent of deaths. Over 70 per cent of cancer deaths occurred in the 65 and over age group. Heart disease was the second-biggest killer at 23 per cent.
In 1998, the number of marriages increased from 15,600 to 16,800.