A study by four researchers from Málaga detects 53.79 cases per 100,000 inhabitants in inland municipalities compared to 11.56 on the coast. In Jimera de Líbar, the rate reaches 251.26.
The municipalities in the inland province of Málaga register a suicide rate of 53.79 cases per 100,000 inhabitants, compared to 11.56 in coastal towns. The difference multiplies the incidence between both areas by 4.7, according to the study Epidemiology of Suicide in the Province of Málaga (2024): Retrospective Analysis Using Machine Learning Techniques, published by Diario Sur.
The research, published on 21 November 2025 in the Spanish Journal of Public Health, analyses the 197 suicides recorded in the province during 2024 using machine learning techniques. Its authors are four researchers from the 061 Emergency Health Centre of Andalucía, the Institute of Legal Medicine and Forensic Sciences of Málaga (IML), and the Clinical Management Unit of Mental Health at the Virgen de la Victoria University Hospital.
Of the total cases, 80.2% were men and 19.8% women. The most common method was hanging or strangulation (40.61%, predominant among men), followed by falls or jumps (26.9%) and substance ingestion (16.24%).
71.57% of the cases occurred on the Costa del Sol and 28.43% inland. However, when calculating the rate per 100,000 inhabitants, the researchers observed an inverse pattern: the values are significantly higher in the municipalities and regions inland.
In small towns, the rates soar. Jimera de Líbar reaches 251.26 cases per 100,000 inhabitants, Cútar hits 170.36, and Cañete la Real reaches 126.02. The authors warn that a single suicide has a significant impact on the count when the population is small.
The main identified group consists of middle-aged adults who take their lives in inland municipalities: they have an average age of 55.1 years and 89.5% are men. This profile predominantly features hanging and cases without a suicide note. The other three groups include young adults on the coast, individuals who opt for jumping, and older adults on the coast, with more women and a variety of methods.
The researchers attribute the high rates in the inland areas to a combination of factors: greater difficulties in accessing specialised mental health services, social isolation, socioeconomic conditions, and differences in the perception of stigma around seeking help. In small municipalities with extreme rates, they add the concentration of socioeconomic risk, the ageing population, and the migration of young people.
“Middle-aged adults in inland areas, characterised by the predominant use of hanging and the absence of a suicide note, suggest a pattern of rapidly intensifying suicidal behaviour that requires interventions in means restriction and strengthening early detection networks in rural contexts,” the study states.
The work calls for adapting prevention strategies to each territory and acting simultaneously on access to services, mental health policies, socioeconomic determinants, and cultural factors such as norms around masculinity or support networks. As a risk group, the authors urge intensifying efforts towards the male population with programmes that consider the cultural and psychological barriers that hinder seeking help, and urgently reinforcing preventive resources in rural areas.
You may also like
