More Chinese women than men commit suicide: media

BEIJING (Reuters) - China is the only country in the world where suicides among women outnumber those of men, with rural suicides more common than those in the city, state media said on Tuesday.

Village women committing suicide commonly drank pesticide, the China Daily said, quoting the Beijing Suicide Research and Prevention Centre.

Stress and depression caused up to 80 percent of suicide attempts in the city, with many choosing to jump off buildings, the China Daily said, quoting the centre.

"China is the only country where suicides among women outnumber men," Yang Fude, vice-president of Beijing Hui Long Guan Hospital, was quoted by the China Daily as saying.

According to government figures, more than 287,000 people end their own lives every year in China.

A recent report by researchers at Peking University found more than 20 percent of 140,000 high school students interviewed said they had considered committing suicide.

And last week, the central government ordered health records be kept for all first-year students amid rising concern over campus suicides.