SPOTLIGHT: Rise in midlife suicides puzzles researchers

Of late, society has paid a great deal more attention to the growth of suicides among adolescents and young adults, but less attention has been paid to suicidal tendencies among middle-aged Americans. Recently, however, the Center for Disease Control released new data suggesting that the suicide rate among 45- to 54-year-old adults increased almost 20 percent from 1999 to 2004, a larger rise than among any other age group. Researchers now are struggling to figure out why this is happening. Article