Tokyo: Health problems accounted for more than 60 per cent of causes of suicides committed in Japan in 2007,a government report showed today.

The 2008 white paper on measures to prevent suicides cited the need for enhancing people s mental health by improving medical services for treating depression and other mental diseases, and boosting mental health care in the workplace.

The white paper, the second of its kind, called for the government to do its utmost in reducing the number of suicides per 100,000 people by 20 per cent between 2005 and 2016 based on Japan's first comprehensive anti-suicide guidelines compiled last year.

The paper expressed a sense of urgency over the fact that the number of suicides exceeded 30,000 in Japan in 2007 for the 10th consecutive year. Of the 33,093 people who killed themselves last year, the government categorized 23,209 people whose suicide causes were determined.

Health problems led the list, occupying 63.3 per cent of the total, followed by economic and livelihood difficulties at 31.5 per cent, family problems at 16.2 per cent, work-related problems at 9.5 per cent and problems related to love affairs at 4.1 per cent.

Men represented 70 per cent of those in their 30s to 60s who committed suicide, the white paper said. If the target is realized, the number of suicides should decrease to 19.4 per 100,000 people in 2016 from 24.2 in 2005,it said.

Source : PTI