Suicide is one of the most horrific potential perils of youth, with about one out of every nine children attempting to take their own lives before they graduate from high school, according to new research. Even more tragic: Nearly half of these suicidal teens first tried to kill themselves when they were in elementary or middle school. According to the study (conducted by researchers at the University of Washington and published in the Journal of Adolescent Health), suicide attempts among youth ramped up sharply at age 12 before peaking a couple of years later. Of the nearly 900 teens involved in the study, the earliest suicide attempt took place when the subject was 9 years old. “All high schools are supposed to have suicide prevention programs, but this suggests to us that assessing kids’ mental health in younger years is advisable,” says Jim Mazza, a professor at Washington and the lead author of the study. (Time)