Study: States Allowing Same-Sex Marriage Had Drop In Teen Suicide Attempts

Published: Friday, February 24, 2017 - 3:02pm
Updated: Friday, February 24, 2017 - 3:03pm
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Is there a relationship between whether a state allows same-sex marriage and whether gay, lesbian and bisexual adolescents in those states attempt suicide? New research suggests the answer is yes.

Ellen Moscoe, a doctoral candidate in Harvard’s School of Public Health, worked on that study.

The study found same-sex marriage policies were associated with a 7 percent reduction in the proportion of all high-school students reporting a suicide attempt over the past year, and a 14 percent drop among LGB students. That’s equivalent to about 134,000 fewer adolescents attempting suicide every year.

The study was published in the journal JAMA Pediatrics.

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