Giving Compass' Take:

• In this Mashable story, Rebecca Ruiz highlights a recent study which suggests that the release of 13 Reasons Why was correlated with a spike in teen suicides.

• How should teen mental health advocates address the relationship between media and suicide?

• To learn more about raising awareness to break the stigma surrounding suicide, click here.

When the Netflix series 13 Reasons Why debuted in 2017, suicide prevention experts worried that the show's graphic depiction of suicide might make some vulnerable viewers more prone to increased suicidal thinking and behavior.

A new study of the suicide rate following the show's debut suggests those concerns were more than justified. Researchers found that, among adolescents and teens, 195 additional suicides occurred in the nine months after Netflix released the first season of 13 Reasons Why.

The study's analysis looked at the existing and anticipated trends for the suicide rate and found an unexpected spike after the show launched. The finding was limited to only 10- to 17-year-olds; there was no significant association for those 18 and older. A separate study published in 2017 found an association between 13 Reasons Why and a spike in internet searches about suicide and suicide methods.

In addition to the increased suicide rate amongst adolescents and teens, the study also found that boys were most affected. That may seem counter-intuitive given that the show's protagonist is a teenage girl, but suicide attempts made by boys and men are more frequently fatal than those made by girls and women. Though females are more likely to try to take their own lives, researchers did not have data on suicide attempt rates amongst girls during the study's time period.

Bridge said future research could look into those patterns, in addition to better understanding the effect of binge-watching content like 13 Reasons Why on the developing adolescent and teenage brain. It's possible that older viewers weren't similarly affected by the show's depiction of suicide because they possess more mature reasoning or coping skills.

Read the full article about adolescent and teen suicide by Rebecca Ruiz at Mashable