GENEVA, Sept. 10 (Xinhua) -- More people kill themselves each year, than the numbers who die from wars and murders combined, but most of these suicides can be prevented, Swiss Radio International reported on Sunday, the day marking the third World Suicide Prevention Day.

    About 20 million to 60 million people try to kill themselves each year, but only around 1 million of them succeed, said Dr. Jose Manoel Bertolote, a mental health official at the World Health Organization (WHO)

    Suicide rates could be reduced if countries limit access to pesticides, guns and medication and do a better job of treating people with depression, alcoholism and schizophrenia, said Brian Mishara, president of the International Association for Suicide Prevention (IASP).

    According to Bertolote, about a third of those who commit suicide around the world, use pesticides to do it.

    Dentists, veterinarians and doctors are particularly at the risk of committing suicide, not because of their high-stress professions but more because they have access to lethal chemicals and know how to handle them, Bertolote said.

    Those who lose a job abruptly are more likely to kill themselves than people living in poor social conditions for long periods of time, he added.

    Also, people living in countries where suicide is illegal such as Singapore, Lebanon and India are less likely to seek help if they have suicidal thoughts, for fear that the government may punish them, Mishara said.

    "Those laws do not appear to have a dissuasive effect, but rather make it more difficult for people to come forth and get help," Mishara said.

    Each year, the IASP and the WHO use World Suicide Prevention Day to call attention to suicide as a leading cause of premature and preventable death.

    This year's theme is "With understanding, new hope," and the focus is on translating current scientific knowledge and research about suicidal behavior into practical programs and activities that can reduce suicidal behavior and save lives.

    In the last 45 years, suicide rates have increased by 60 percent worldwide. Suicide is now one of the three leading causes of death among those aged between 15-44 years.

    Although traditionally suicide rates have been highest among the male elderly, rates among young people have increased to such an extent that they are now the group at the highest risk in a third of the countries worldwide, said the WHO. Enditem