Wildfire Smoke Exposure and Suicide Deaths in US Counties 2007-2019

This dataset supports a study on the relationship between wildfire smoke exposure and suicide risk across U.S. counties from 2007 to 2019. It contains cleaned, publicly-available data and code for replicating the analysis, which uses satellite-based measures of smoke and PM2.5 and county-level monthly suicide death counts. The study found significant effects in rural counties, particularly among men, working-age adults, non-Hispanic Whites, and adults with no college education.

Use Cases

• Analyze the relationship between satellite-based wildfire smoke exposure and county-level monthly suicide death rates.
• Compare the effects of smoke-derived PM2.5 concentrations on suicide risk across rural and urban demographic groups.
• Investigate how fluctuations in monthly smoke exposure correlate with fluctuations in suicide rates over a 13-year period.
• Examine the differential impact of air pollution on suicide risk for groups with high baseline risk, such as non-Hispanic Whites and adults with no college education.

Strengths

• Data covers all suicide deaths in the United States over a 13-year period from 2007 to 2019.
• Analysis leverages satellite-based measures of wildfire smoke and ambient fine particulate matter (PM2.5) concentrations.
• Study design identifies causal effects by relating year-over-year fluctuations in county-level monthly smoke exposure to suicide rates.

Limitations

• The core mortality data (Detailed Mortality Files) is restricted-access and not included in the repository, requiring a separate application to NCHS for full replication.
• The dataset primarily contains cleaned, aggregated data and code, not the raw individual-level records used in the original study.
• Findings of significant effects are concentrated in rural counties, with no evidence found for urban demographic groups, indicating geographic specificity.

Provenance

Source

National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) Detailed Mortality Files (restricted), satellite-based air pollution data.

Collection Method

Data compiled and cleaned for replication of a published academic study on air pollution and mental health.

Time Range

2007 to 2019

Freshness

Data covers up to 2019; last repository update was 2026-02-23.

Geography

United States, at the county level.