London, August 16 (RHC)-- A severe economic recession, rising unemployment and biting austerity measures may have already driven more than 1,000 people in Britain to commit suicide, according to a scientific study published on Wednesday.

The study, a so-called time-trend analysis which compared the actual number of suicides with those expected if pre-recession trends had continued, reflects findings elsewhere in Europe where suicides are also on the rise.

David Stuckler, a sociologist at Cambridge University who co-led the study, published in the British Medical Journal (BMJ), said that the findings are "a grim reminder after the euphoria of the Olympics of the challenges we face and those that lie ahead."

The analysis found that between 2008 and 2010, there were 846 more suicides among men in England than would have been expected if previous trends continued, and 155 more among women.  The study found that between 2000 and 2010, each annual 10 percent increase in the number of unemployed people was associated with a 1.4 percent increase in the number of male suicides.

The analysis used data from the National Clinical and Health Outcomes Database and the Office of National Statistics.  The study also showed a small reduction in the number of suicides in 2010 which coincided with a slight recovery in male employment.

A study published last July, also by Stuckler, found that across Europe, suicide rates rose sharply from 2007 to 2009 as the financial crisis drove unemployment up and squeezed incomes.  The countries worst hit by severe economic downturns, such as Greece and Ireland, saw the most dramatic increases in suicides.

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