Russia has topped Europe in terms of teenage suicides, the Federal Consumer Protection Service said Monday.
"In recent years, the number of suicides and attempted suicides among children has climbed 35-37 percent. Between 1990 and 2010, the number of registered teen suicides in Russia amounted to 800,000," the agency's site said.
Official records show that 1,379 males and 369 females aged 15-19 committed suicide in 2009. The total number of teen suicides committed that year, 260, increased 20 percent the next year, the agency reported.
The consumer rights watchdog puts the number of suicides among teenagers in Russia at 19-20 per 100,000 teenagers — three times higher than the global average.
The statement also emphasized the growing role of the Internet and communication technologies in spreading suicidal tendencies among teenagers, citing a growing number of group suicides.
"The scale and the above-mentioned statistics for suicides, primarily among children, due to information distributed on the Internet, raises the issue of threats to Russia's growing generation and the need to take preventative measures," the statement says.
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