- The Washington Times - Monday, July 23, 2018

Climate change greatly affects our moods, as researchers have linked an increasingly warming planet with higher rates of suicides, according to a new study.

Researchers at Stanford University found that a temperature increase of one degree Celsius corresponds to a 0.7 percent increase of suicides in the U.S. and 2.1 percent increase in Mexico.

With a warming climate and temperatures continually breaking records as the hottest days, the researchers estimate that between 9,000 and 40,000 additional suicides will take place in the U.S. and Mexico by 2050.

The researchers also observed an uptick in depressive language during warmer months in greater than 600 million social media updates.

The study was published Monday in the journal Nature Climate Change and led by Marshall Burke, assistant professor in the Department of Earth System Science at Stanford University.

• Laura Kelly can be reached at lkelly@washingtontimes.com.

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