More than a third of Americans own a firearm, and there are an estimated 31 thousand gun related deaths in the US every year. According to a review of 15 different studies by researchers at the University of California in San Francisco, having a gun in the house increases the risk of suicide and homicide by a significant margin.
More than a third of Americans own a firearm, and there are an estimated 31 thousand gun related deaths in the US every year.
According to a review of 15 different studies by researchers at the University of California in San Francisco, having a gun in the house increases the risk of suicide and homicide by a significant margin.
14 of the studies found that the risk of suicide increased by anywhere from 1 point 5 to 10 times among people who had access to a gun.
Data from the study also shows that people who have access to guns are two to three times more likely to be killed.
David Hemenway of the Harvard School of Public Health commented on the review saying: “Why having a gun in the home would substantially increase the risk for being murdered by a person who is not a family member is uncertain. Obtaining a firearm not only endangers those living in the home but also imposes substantial costs on the community.”
More than half of suicides and homicides in the US are gun related.
