Ireland has a worryingly high suicide level among young people, a new report has shown.

According to the Suicide in Ireland 2003-2008 research, the country has the fourth highest rate in Europe, with the number of young males and females taking their own lives rising to more than 25 in every 100,000 - markedly higher than the ten in every 100,000 recorded in 1990.

It was shown that current rates mean one person under the age of 18 is dying by suicide in Ireland once every 18 days.

Carried out by Professor Kevin Malone of University College Dublin's School of Medicine & Medical Science, the study also revealed almost half of all suicides committed by under 18s may be performed as part of a cluster.

Professor Malone described a young suicide death as a "powerful and destabilising social force", adding: "It can reverberate intensely in smaller closed communities such that the whole community is at an increased risk for at least a year."

Written by Donal Walsh

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