The study, published by University of Utah researchers in The American Journal of Epidemiology, suggests air pollution should be added to the list of factors that boost suicide risk — including depression, anxiety, and stress.
 

The findings are based on an analysis of the medical records of 1,546 people in Salt Lake County who committed suicide between 2000 and 2010, Medical News Today reports. The researchers concluded individuals who were exposed to increased levels of nitrogen dioxide were 20 percent more likely to commit suicide in the following three days, while those exposed to higher concentrations of particulate matter pollutants were 5 percent more likely to take their own lives.
 

Men and younger individuals (36-64) were found to have an even higher risk of suicide following air pollution exposure.
 

"As suicide risk was found to differ by age and gender, this suggests that vulnerability to suicide following air pollution exposure is not uniform across Salt Lake County residents and that some Salt Lake County residents are more vulnerable than others,” said Amanda Bakian, an assistant professor of psychiatry.
 

“Our next step is to determine in more detail exactly what elements — such as genetic and socio-demographic factors — are responsible for increasing one's vulnerability to suicide following air pollution exposure."
 

This Utah research echoes a 2010 study published in The American Journal of Psychiatry that found people in South Korea were 9 percent more likely to commit suicide within two days of a rise in air pollution.