Low HDL Cholesterol Is Associated With Suicide Attempt Among Young Healthy Women: The Third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey

Background: Serum cholesterol is reported to be associated with suicidality, but studies conducted among general healthy population are rare. We examined the association between serum cholesterol and suicidality in a national sample of the general population of US.

Methods: We used the data of 3237 adults aged 17 to 39 years, who completed a mental disorder diagnostic interview and had blood specimens collected after a 12-h fast, as a part of the Third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, 1988–1994. The serum concentrations of total cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C), and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) were dichotomized according to the recommended levels of the National Cholesterol Education Program. A polytomous logistic regression was employed to control for covariates.

Results: Independent of socio-demographic variables, health risks and nutrition status, and a history of medical and psychiatric illness (including depression), a significant association between low HDL-C (≤ 40 mg/dl) and increased prevalence of suicide attempts was observed in women (OR = 2.93, 95% CI = 1.07–8.00). No significant evidence was found to support an association between cholesterol and suicide ideation in women. Serum cholesterol was unrelated with either suicide ideation or attempts in men.

Limitation: The inherent limitation of cross-sectional design prevented the authors from investigating causality.

Conclusions: Low HDL-C is significantly associated with suicide attempts in women. Further studies are necessary to explore the clinical application of serum cholesterol as an indicator for suicide attempts among high risk population.