United States – Jurors of a new study revealed that the worst time of the day for someone who is contemplating on committing suicide or homicide is at the wee hours of the morning.
The risks of committing suicide are also five times high, and homicide risks are eight times higher between 2 a.m. and 3 a.m. if someone is awake during the Night, the study shows.
Disrupted Sleep Linked to Impulsive Behavior
“Disrupted sleep may acutely impair rational thought, which can drive impulsive behaviors in vulnerable individuals,” said lead study author Andrew Tubbs, a researcher in the University of Arizona’s Sleep and Health Research Program, as reported by HealthDay.
Investigators pointed out in their background notes that they found out that 18. 7% of suicides and 35. 6% of homicides occur at Night.
In the new study, they reviewed data from 15 years of the U. S. reporting year of at least 78,000 suicides and 50,000 homicides.
Youth at Higher Risk
Youth and young adults were able to commit suicide thrice as often as other times in the still of the Night, researchers disclosed on May 29 in the Journal of Clinical Psychiatry.
There is also an increase in risk in the dead of the Night for those who have been drinking and couples who have had an altercation.
But more night awakenings do not appear to raise suicide risk among people with past suicidal intent or those who have attempted suicide in the past, according to the findings.
The risk for homicide, therefore, did not increase or decrease with age, but young adults comprised more than half of all homicides that occurred at Night.
The researchers asserted that waking in the middle of the Night hinders the cognitive decision-making processes of the brain. It undermines the respondent’s rationality exactly when the respondent is most negative and less positive, as reported by HealthDay.
Resources for Support
“Few studies have examined time-of-day trends in violent crime,” Tubbs said in a university news release. “Future studies could clarify what exactly is happening in the brain to predispose people to these sorts of risks and whether evidence-based strategies to improve sleep and reduce nighttime wakefulness can help reduce the risks and prevent these tragic outcomes.”
If you or someone you care about has thoughts or feelings of suicide, it is possible to call the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline number.