Parental Suicide Attempts Raise Risk of Their Children Doing the Same

According to the findings of a new study, when a parent has a history of attempting suicide, the odds that their child will attempt suicide increase five-fold when compared with the children of individuals who have not attempted suicide. Dr. Jeffrey Borenstein, the president and CEO of the Brain & Behavior Research Foundation adds, “For parents who have a history of depression, bipolar disorder, and/or suicide attempts, they should be aware of the potential risk for their children and be proactive in having an evaluation if the child is experiencing depression or other psychiatric symptoms.”
JAMA Psychiatry, December 2014