# Suicide rates **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [May 9, 2000, 1:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/suicide-rates/18979 "2000-05-09T01:58:57Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 6\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Catfood\_Purrito](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/c6cbf5/32.png) [@Catfood\_Purrito](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Catfood_Purrito)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2000, 1:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/suicide-rates/18979/1 "2000-05-09T01:58:57Z")
A friend of mine just told me that dentists have the highest rate of suicide than any other profession. He logged off before I could get a source for that. Would anyone know if this is true? I work in a dental office, with probably 20 or so dentists, and they all seem pretty well-adjusted to me, and I don’t get what would be so depressing about teeth. Anyway, I always heard it was psychiatrists, which makes more sense to me. Thoughts? Comments? Flog the newbie? ---
**Author:** ![Osip](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/4491bb/32.png) [@Osip](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Osip)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2000, 2:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/suicide-rates/18979/2 "2000-05-09T02:38:25Z")
flog the newbie? _perk_ that got my attention. I have heard this same thing. I think it is a line from a movie actually. I have no facts to back that up. Hell, I can’t remember last week at times. I am sure the masses here will find you an answer. ---
**Author:** ![Boris\_B](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/fbc32d/32.png) [@Boris\_B](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boris_B)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2000, 2:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/suicide-rates/18979/3 "2000-05-09T02:38:43Z")
Just go over to the Pit and ask them what’s the other word that ends in -g-r-y. I think this column might help: [http://www.straightdope.com/mailbag/msuicide.html](http://www.straightdope.com/mailbag/msuicide.html) ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2000, 4:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/suicide-rates/18979/4 "2000-05-09T04:04:22Z")
Prison guards supposedly have a high suicide rate (according to the mailbag question)? That’s one I haven’t heard before. Having worked with several thousand prison guards, I’ve only heard of three who committed suicide (and one may have been murdered, the circumstances were somewhat ambiguous). ---
**Author:** ![samclem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a9a28c/32.png) [@samclem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/samclem)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2000, 4:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/suicide-rates/18979/5 "2000-05-09T04:23:32Z")
“They’re always looking down in the mouth” I read that in a joke book in, oh…, 1955. ---
**Author:** ![C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b2d939/32.png) [@C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/C_K_Dexter_Haven)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2000, 12:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/suicide-rates/18979/6 "2000-05-10T12:07:49Z")
Nemo, I guess one question is what your work with prison guards IS, and do you see a truly random sample? However, please note that the Mailbag Answer cites about 139 suicides per million amongst guards… That’s a very small percentage. If you’ve worked with 10,000 guards, and their suicide rates were in line with the statistics quoted in the article, that’d be only 1 or 2 expected suicides. So if you’ve worked with fewer than 10,000 guards and have seen two (or three) suicides, that’s probably a pretty high rate.