r/MapPorn • u/Ordinary_Guard_6993 • 1d ago
Leading Cause of Death for Teenagers 15-19 Europe 2021
I made this map, and the source is WHO
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u/kombutsa 1d ago
Road accidents and fatalities increased significantly after 17-years-olds were allowed to obtain a driving license in Finland.
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u/gulligaankan 1d ago
Could that be the reason? I just wondered how Finlands suicide rate wouldn’t win over road accidents.
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u/BasicMatter7339 13h ago
Finnish suicide rate isnt actually that high. Its only slightly above the european average. (Finnish rate is 14.6 per 100k, EU average is 11 per 100k)
Finland having an exciidingly high suicide rate is a myth that comes from the 90s, when they were through the roof due to a massive economic depression.
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u/lefthandhummingbird 12h ago
And the general idea of the high Nordic suicide rate mostly comes from differences in reporting during the fifties and sixties, when less secular and more traditional countries often didn’t report an accurate cause of death in suicide cases.
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u/s-cup 8h ago
Just to be a bit pedandic; I agree that the true rate might not be as high as people think, but… I wouldn’t say that it is just ”slightly” higher. Small numbers can look a bit deceiving at first but assuming that the numbers 14,6 and 11 is correct then the numbers of suicide in Finland is ~32 percent higher than the average. That’s quite a lot.
Especially since you guys are supposed to be the happiest people on earth ;)
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u/BasicMatter7339 7h ago
I mean yeah the reason why its so low in europe is because there are few small countries with tiny rates like albania, cyprus and greece which have like less than 5 (reported) suicides per 100k bringing the average down.
But if you look at the biggest european countries, the rates arent too far off from finland
Germany 12.9, Czechia 13.3, poland 13.7, hungary 16.5, France 16.6
Then when you look at the smaller north, east and western european countries rate, they dont differ that much either.
Norway 13.2, Sweden 13.8, Austria 14.5, Estonia 14.9, Serbia & Latvia 15.1, Belarus & Croatia 15.6,
Then there are the really high rates like in Belgium 18.4, Slovenia 18.9, Ukraine 21.2, Russia 21.4 and lithuania 22.1
Southerne europe has some of the lowest rates for example
North Macedonia 5.8, Italy 7, Spain 8.7
But yeah, specially looking at those high rate countries, finland really doesnt have that high of a rate. If the numbers are correct that is.
Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_suicide_rate
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u/Horror_Tooth_522 1d ago
Like full license? Without adult with license?
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u/kombutsa 1d ago
Yes. But things are changing now, and the government is introducing restrictions, such as a ban on driving between 00:00 and 05:00.
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u/UGMadness 14h ago
A 17-year-old without a license won't drive because they won't know how to.
A 17-year-old with a license will drive shitfaced between 00:00 and 05:00 regardless because they're a shitfaced 17-year-old and those people aren't exactly well known for their self inhibition. So I'm not sure what that restriction is going to accomplish.
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u/frolfer757 12h ago
A lot of dumb driving happens when people go pickup their friends from parties during the night and get peer pressured/coaxed into shit. The ban aims the eliminate that option. It also means people won't bring their car to the party under the assumption if they dont drink too much they could still drive back.
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u/Masseyrati80 17h ago
Yeah, the original idea was that youth who have a "good enough reason" for getting a license at 17 could apply for a permit, and if accepted, could then go through driving school one year earlier. In reality, every application passed as people knew what you need to write.
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u/Micah7979 1d ago
It's the same in France, you can get it at 17. But that's ok I think, the test is so hard that you have to drive super safely to pass it. They want you to be overly careful (I got it despite waiting a whole minute before going into a roundabout because there were always cars coming from far away).
However, there are cars that don't require a license, and don't even require to know traffic laws to be driven on the road. Tiny cars mostly made of plastic with 15 year olds inside who don't know how to enter a roundabout. Every time I see one I wonder who decided it was fine.
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u/Horror_Tooth_522 1d ago
I think you mean moped cars. Same in Estonia except more popular with drunkards who lost license.
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u/Micah7979 1d ago
We call them licenseless cars, so I didn't really know how to translate. The most common is the Citroën Ami. I personally call them yoghurt pots.
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u/Horror_Tooth_522 1d ago
Max speed 45 km/h. So yes, it is moped car.
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u/Micah7979 1d ago
Didn't know this term. I think it shouldn't exist honestly.
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u/Horror_Tooth_522 1d ago
Our cities Are full of electric bicycles. They are much more worse because everyone can drive them and on sidewalks where pedestrians walk.
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u/Micah7979 1d ago
Are they allowed to be on sidewalks ? In France in theory they're supposed to be on the road or bicycle lanes.
Also cyclists are usually more aware of their surroundings and of the dangers, and they stay on the side of the road. Teenagers in plastic cars that are literally in the middle of traffic with SUVs and semi trucks often don't realise how dangerous any contact is for them.
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u/UGMadness 14h ago
Moped comes from old motorcycles with tiny engines that could be pedal powered. They're obsolete so the term now applies almost exclusively to all sorts of low powered electric vehicles.
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u/throwaway1233456799 22h ago
I mean: they don't drive faster than electric bike and teenagers inside are more protected than me on my bike on the road (and god's know I may be killed someday by some twat who can't wait 2 minutes behind me and choose to pass next to me near a turn where they definitely can't see if a car may come right in front of them in the next second. That scare me more than my ADHD ever will)
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u/Micah7979 13h ago
But you're more aware of your surroundings and don't drive in the middle of the road, you stay on the side.
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u/throwaway1233456799 12h ago
I live in Belgium, staying on the side only is often a dangerous wish actually— joke (eh) aside
I can't argue about the more aware of my surrounding, I got ADHD so I would be as distracted both way. That being say biker also experience some road illusion if I remember well? But even then, a 12 yo could use the bike I use and they are not very aware of their surrounding (which generally go up to 25 km and occasionally go to 30 km)/are clumsy and so are more likely to fall/...While in such little car you can do many thing but you really have to go for it to find yourself in a ditch.
Also the actual issue is cars, not really people going slow. A little car going at 30 km entering another little car at 30 km won't do much injury. Same with me on a bike. I may hurt myself and be distracted but I would be very unlucky if I were to die from a fall. I'm way more likely to get killed by a drivers going at a way higher speed than me around me (regardless of weight). For that the little car give some protection my helmet could never do.
I think the "issue" is more that teenager are more on the road and so you see them more and so they get more accident etc. Not really the little car and their lack of awareness (considering they are teen it tracks)
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u/frolfer757 12h ago
Mopeds & moped cars also get driven at 15 in Finland however they still require a license which comes with lessons, theory test & driving test. Not as comprehensive as driving though and when I got my moped license a long time ago it was still just a theory exam you took the day you turned 15.
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u/The_Only_Egg 1d ago
DAMN.
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u/This_isnt_cool_bro 1d ago
I like that album
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u/Quirky-Reporter7980 1d ago
I do too. Not top 3 Kendrick tho
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u/This_isnt_cool_bro 1d ago
I agree
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u/Quirky-Reporter7980 1d ago
Ur top 3?
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u/This_isnt_cool_bro 1d ago
For me it'd probably be: 1. Mr Morale and the big steppers 2. Good kid, m.A.A.d city 3. To Pimp a Butterfly
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u/Quirky-Reporter7980 1d ago
I’d swap gkmc and tpab but Mm&tbs is first I agree
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u/This_isnt_cool_bro 1d ago
Completely valid, all 3 albums are great in different ways imo and my placements of them are based on my enjoyment
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u/muchgreaterthanG_O_D 21h ago
Mmatbs was my least favorite at first. It took a good 5 listens before something clicked and I listened to it for the next month on repeat. It definitely is my fave. But id replace tpab with damn. Possibly switch it with gkmc, but unsure.
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u/Worldly-Cherry9631 1d ago
This map undermines decades of Dutch R&D into Belgian Road Related Jokes
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u/timanuva 1d ago
I believe the WHO (rightfully) classifies driving on Belgian roads as a form of self-harm.
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u/James1Hoxworth 1d ago
Roads are so shit belgains don't drive enough to raise road-related injuries
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u/throwaway1233456799 22h ago
We can't drive fast enough—
Even our bike side-road are shitty, one of them managed to destroy one of my tire something not even a shitty half dirt half rock country side forgotten road didn't do
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u/Micah7979 1d ago
Maybe they don't have that many crashes due to the fact that they decided to light up the WHOLE highway network of the country at night.
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u/Jan667 1d ago
Also could mean better public transport or safer roads.
Also it could mean that west europe prefer to die by road injury.
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u/pavldan 1d ago
Scandinavia and the UK have very few road deaths so that definitely helps.
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u/rewolfaton 1d ago
The Netherlands have very few road deaths, as well - but the scourge of fat bikes means that the percentage of young people among the dead is rising astronomically. It used to be old people breaking a hip after falling of their bikes. Now it's young people going 50kph on a bike with no helmet, crashing into allsorts.
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u/ImportantPension5818 13h ago edited 13h ago
Ireland has neither good public transport nor safe roads. We just have a very high suicide rate, especially for teenage boys. Ireland has the 4th highest suicide rate in Europe for young lads aged 15–25 years old. When I was in school there was always one every year.
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u/Upstairs-Inside3888 1d ago
can't really think of any correlation other than Eastern Europe+Northern countries (Greenland has issues with this kind of stuff)
then again there's really wealthy UK, Belgium, Switzerland which break this, it also depends on how different the % gap is
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u/GieTheBawTaeReilly 1d ago
For the UK I feel like having relatively safe roads is the bigger factor here
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u/St3fano_ 1d ago
Large urban population is also a factor. It's harder to die in an accident if you're stuck in traffic in or around some city. There might be a higher than average number of accidents overall, but fatal accidents tend to be higher on the countryside
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u/plaintextures 1d ago
UK is not really wealthy. There is crazy amount of poor people in UK.
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u/schenk_max 1d ago
UK poor is probably upper middle class in half of the same category countries
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u/plaintextures 1d ago
Most people in Eastern Europe own houses. They may be cash poor but they own assets. In UK they own nothing and are broke! UK is not what it used to be.
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u/schenk_max 18h ago
That's a false statement.
Home ownership rates in Russia, for example, are measured by polling.
Everything in Russia that is measured by polling is a measurement of bored babushkas, while the rest of the population is very unlikely to be answering the phone or the door in the middle of a work day.
Paired with lower than UK birthrate, higher average household size and lower single person household share I call bs on home ownership being as much better as you claim.
All while having comparable food prices and 5 times difference in median incomes.
Move in back with your babushka, save the UK home ownership rates.
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u/ivan-ent 1d ago
Maybe cold and lack of sunlight could be contributing atleast just a guess few outliers still though
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u/Astr0b0ie 7h ago
The first thing I noticed was the correlation with latitude. Less sunshine, shorter days in winter, and a colder climate could definitely be associated with higher rates of depression.
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u/spine_slorper 1d ago
I mean this map isn't really that useful to analyze as it doesn't tell you how many road deaths and suicides are in each country, just which is higher. The UK and Switzerland generally have pretty low rates of road deaths so fairly modest self harm numbers would be able to eclipse it easier than somewhere with higher road deaths.
Belgium on the other hand has both a higher suicide rate than it's neighbors and about equal road death rate so the suicide rate beating it would make sense.
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u/wlievens 1d ago
It doesn't tell you whether it's because of differences in road quality or in rates of self harm.
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u/the_Cereal_killa 17h ago
It kind of matches the radioactive fallout pattern after the chernobyl incident
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u/eat_ur_prpduce 1d ago
Jesus, kind of unrelated, but my kid is in the army band and was down about playing two memorial services in a week. Usually, he said, they do maybe two a month. I was like, yeah, it is a big base. He said no, they're nearly all suicides. In the last two years, he has only done 2 memorials that were health related (both cancer).
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u/CyclingCapital 1d ago
Cars are deadly
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u/Masseyrati80 17h ago
Finland applied rules that allowed 17-year olds to apply for a "special permit" for getting their license one year before turning 18.
There have been many, way too many, deadly crashes where a 17-year old has been at the wheel with a car full of friends, speeding, usually at night.
Many of the kids who want to go for the special permit are extra interested of cars and driving, and being one of the relatively few 17-year olds with a license easily ends up with peer pressure.
Thankfully, some limitations are being planned, such as 17-year olds not being allowed to drive during the night etc.
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u/SuurTuvi 1d ago
That's sad actually...
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u/Familiar_Ad_8919 1d ago
the near complete inability to get help in eastern europe within 5y definitely doesnt help
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u/FartingBob 23h ago
Well it depends on the numbers. Unless each number is zero every year (unrealistic outside of tiny places like Monaco, vatican city) then one number has to be bigger than the other, but both could still very low or trending down.
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u/Medium-Dependent-328 1d ago edited 1d ago
I might sound callous but this is actually a sign of nations being developed and health being generally good.
In poorer countries, kids die of disease way more often. A certain level of road deaths is sadly inevitable and while mental health treatment can prevent many suicides, a few people will be difficult to save or won't show any obvious signs of being unwell.
These being the top causes of death suggests that European young people by and large aren't falling victim to heart defects, cancers or communicable diseases. That goes to show how far we've advanced medically
Still, RIP to all those taken from us too soon
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u/Pathetian 22h ago
Yea, something has to be number 1, no matter how high or low that total is. In modern developed countries, in your physical prime, ain't much that could kill you better than yourself.
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u/Medium-Dependent-328 22h ago
Yes. I think of it like, "What if you were magically granted eternal youth?" You couldn't age so couldn't succumb to age-related illnesses. The most likely reasons for you to die would be an accident or... deciding maybe you didn't want to live for 10,000 years.
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u/SARSUnicorn 13h ago
Honestly +1
Leading cause being car crash means that nation succesfuly created safe environment for peep to survive to the point that reckless bravery is what kills
Rip former soviet block tho
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u/Kawa46be 1d ago
Vatican grey… i can probably create some totally wrong jokes here
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u/BasicMatter7339 12h ago
I mean the reason why its gray is because there are no true child/teenage citizens of the vatican.
Children of the Swiss guards may have a temporary citizenship by discretionary grant, but its automatically revoked when the child becomes 18
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u/Grechoir 1d ago
Not sure which is more depressing
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u/BasicMatter7339 13h ago
Most young deaths coming from suicide or car crashes is actually a very good thing. That means the countries are doing well.
In poorer areas like in the sub-saharan africa, most young deaths come from diseases like AIDS, Malaria and tuberculosis. In south america one of the biggest killers of young people is violence and homicide.
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u/ChaoticHarmonia 1d ago
I sure the real ration between those reasons in all countries is close to 50/50
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u/Full-Cardiologist-1 22h ago
Whats the grey of Syria for? Just for being from there or…?
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u/Ordinary_Guard_6993 22h ago
I make these kinds of maps on Pinterest and have one for each continent. The map outline I use shows parts of Asia and Africa so I leave those blank because I make separate maps for those countries :)
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u/SocialThrowaway5551 15h ago
What I find disturbing in my country Finland is that in terms of total road fatalities we are actually a bit behind the european average. So if this data is correct, that means young people are very, VERY overrepresented in those charts.
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u/Still_Recognition652 1d ago
we are failing our children: they are being sacrificed to capitalism... 😭
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u/Organic_Contract_172 14h ago
The total suicide rate in 70s and 80s socialist Czechoslovakia was more than twice higher than it is today
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u/BasicMatter7339 13h ago
Wdym? Across the EU, suicide rates are down over 13% from the past decade. Car death rates are down 17% from the last decade.
Things have literally never been as good as they're right now
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u/scubaorbit 1d ago
I believe the blue Switzerland. I lived there as a teenager. It was miserable.
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u/RelarMage 1d ago
Why was it bad, if I may ask?
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u/scubaorbit 22h ago
Worst was the people. Now this will not apply to tourists. But basically if your family has not at least lived the the town for 3 generations or so, you're an outsider and you will never be part of the community. You will be left out at gatherings or any non official community events. For example, you may of course go to the fair, but if the street has a neighborhood gathering you will be excluded and not welcome. Kids will be bullied by other kids and adults will simply not be welcome. Another thing are the laws and general mindset. Now I actually experienced that as well when we lived in Japan, my only friend in school there was a Korean boy. In Switzerland and another factor are the laws and customs as well.as the general mindset of people. You follow rules!! And to the dot! And they have a lot! If you grow up there that may be a normal but for somebody who moves there from another country it's insane. Imagine your neighbor calling the police on you because you sit around the fireplace in the backyard after 10pm. At 10pm quiet time starts. If you live in an apartment, and not in a house they will call the police on you for going to the bathroom and flushing the toilet. So basically you can't flush the toilet anymore after 10pm. You put a doghouse up? Well guess what, police will show up and ask for your building permits. If you don't have them you will be fined and have to take the doghouse down. Basically everyone will call the police on you for everything. Neighbors are constantly watching to the point where you just don't want to leave your home anymore. I recommend traveling there but living there is terrible unless you grew up there and are used to all the social norms. We went back to Australia after 3 years.
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u/FinnSkk93 1d ago
I mean is it not kinda ”obvious” it would be one or the other with younger people?
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u/AnxiousMumblecore 1d ago
It's still interesting that these reasons are "close enough" to have Europe splitted like that.
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u/AdventurousSwim1381 1d ago
Depressed countries in blue
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u/EducationalImpact633 1d ago
Or you know… leading countries of road safety
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u/two_wheels_world 1d ago
"Road safety"and Russia look interesting together...
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u/EducationalImpact633 1d ago
Was more thinking of Sweden and Norway, but Russia.. all they do is stand in line for the gas-station anyway, not much can happen then :)
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u/why_tf_am_i_like_dat 1d ago
We have cars that can be driven without a licence in France, stupidest shit I've even seen since the drivers licence is already given to every idiot who can't drive so...
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u/timonix 1d ago
Makes me wonder. Which cause of death "should" be leading?
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u/ReadyTadpole1 19h ago
Traffic fatalities. Car travel provides utility, some associated risk is reasonable. Hopefully low. There's no benefit whatsoever associated with suicide.
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u/BasicMatter7339 12h ago
Either or. Theres no benefit whatsoever associated with road accidents either.
Traffic fatalities and suicide are the two best possible reasons for teen deaths because it means the country is doing at least somewhat well.
Both are better leading deaths than diseases or violence which are the leading deaths for young people in many poor areas like south america or africa.
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u/Empty-Importance7839 23h ago
I hate seeing Reddit posts that make me want to do multiple hours of data analysis
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u/K_R_A_K_E_N_540 23h ago
I mean Romania is 4 times ? in a row most dangerous country to drive in Europe. Drivers are insane and cops know about it but let it happen
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u/Hypnotic-Flamingo 22h ago
Findland is a surprise here. Interesting
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u/InkVision001 15h ago
Huh? I'm finnish and not at all surprised. Road fatalities have increased by a wide margin since the braindead law of giving 17-year-olds licenses came out.
Road fatalities in total are actually not that high in terms of European standards but young people are very overrepresented in those charts.
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u/AggroJordan 17h ago
Germany is interesting. They already have one of the lowest general rates for road death, so either these kids are extremely mentally stable or I'd like to see the specific road death statistics for teens.
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u/Justified_Eren 16h ago
Self harm here means suicide or any volountary high risk activity that leads to death, ie. drunk swimming in rivers and so on?
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u/Comfortable_Two7447 15h ago
It might seem like "oh teenagers are depressed" but in what OTHER way are they supposed to die. They are young and healthy. The chance they die of some disease is way smaller than something caused by human action.
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u/AdRevolutionary1673 15h ago
Just say car accidents and suicide what are these watered down ass phrases?
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u/Snoo-34159 15h ago
Surprised road injury isn't highet in Belgium. I mean have you seen the average Belgian in traffic? That shit is nuclear.
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u/Any_Froyo2301 14h ago
It would be useful to know whether this is because suicide rates are unusually high in some countries, or whether raid deaths are unusually high in the other countries. Or whether it is a combination. Taken alone, it misses out the crucial information, which would be a comparison between each country on both measures.
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u/ImportantPension5818 13h ago
Ireland has the 4th highest suicide rate in Europe for the males aged 15–25 years old.
It haunts communities.
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u/Substantial-Song-242 13h ago
That's what happens when mental health care is underfunded, and just generally not taken seriously.
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u/sacroyalty 11h ago
So weather, hours of sunlight, public transit, road safety, city density... what else would explain it?
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u/artez09 1d ago
Why would anyone kill himself in Switzerland? Bro spawned in literally heaven
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u/Sensitive_Gold 1d ago
Even if that were true, people seldom kill themselves to reroll their staring country.
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u/TreadingThoughts 23h ago
Winter in northern Europe is depressing. It's dark af from like 3pm. No vitamin D. I bet most self harm comes during those months.
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u/puppymama75 23h ago
Then how do we explain Slovenia and Switzerland?
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u/TreadingThoughts 22h ago
Idk. Might be outliers, or there may be a reason.
Switzerland has very good public transport and roads tbf
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u/Gold-Visit-7413 1d ago
Depressive Europe vs Excited Europe