During the first corona year, there is great concern about the mental well-being of the Belgian. After all, the measures to contain the corona virus were very restrictive. During the lockdown, in March and April 2020, freedom of movement was severely restricted. And restrictions on social gatherings also applied throughout the rest of the year.
This weighed heavily on mental well-being, as the health surveys of Sciensano showed earlier. Young people, who have the most social contacts in normal times, suffered the most from social restrictions.
This led, especially in the first corona year, to ominous predictions about the number of suicides due to the corona measures. In the fall of 2020, an Instagram post by a DJ from Ghent went viral, who said he had 31 acquaintances and friends who took their own lives.
Same number of suicides as in 2019
But the analysis of the death certificates of the people who died in our country in 2020 does not show that there were more suicides in the first corona year. According to Statbel’s figures, 1,732 Belgians died as a result of suicide in 2020. That figure is almost identical to 2019, when 1,728 deaths due to suicide were recorded.
‘Based on these data, the pandemic does not seem to have had an impact on the number of suicides’, says Statbel, although the statistical office advises caution. “Suicide is a complex phenomenon, and several factors can lead to underreporting.”
Earlier figures also indicated that no more people died of suicide in Flanders in 2020. Although there were more suicides in March and November, when the covid epidemic hit hard.
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Statbel’s figures show that more than 22,000 people died of covid-19 in 2020. That is considerably more than what appeared from the official figures from Sciensano. Nearly 20,000 died from or with Covid-19 that year, according to the health institute.
Cancer leading cause of death
The figures also show that cancer was the leading cause of death in 2020, followed by cardiovascular disease and covid-19. In the Brussels Region, Covid-19 was the leading cause of death in 2020.
The death statistics by age make it clear that cancer affects many more young people. Nearly half of those who die from cancer are under the age of 75. In the deaths from cardiovascular disease, 21 percent were younger than 75. With covid-19, only 18 percent.
If you have questions about suicide, you can contact the Suicide Line via the free number 1813 or at www.zelfmoord1813.be.