Being an Atheist Is Bad For Your Health

by Space Madness 71 Replies latest jw friends

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  Bart Belteshassur

  If we take the mean figures for the two sets of counties you list:

  for suicide- high atheist = 21.7ppp100,00, against high religion = 2.44ppp100,000.

  Whilst these figures agree with you op comments, if you take the mean figures for homicide rates the result are somewhat shocking:

  for homicide- high atheist = 0.98ppp100,000 against high religion = 14.9ppp100,000.

  This shows that were we have free will to determine ending own lives the suicide rate increases by 8.89 , and in countries where taboos exist the rate of homicide increases 15.2 times.

  Would this lead us to conclude that in high religious counties there is a lower requirement to take ones own life because someone else is nearly twice as likely to do it for you? I think not but if you follow the reasoning expressed in the op this would be the conclusion.

  As Durkheim comments during periods of war the suicide rates fell considerablely and I would suggest that higher rates are more affected by the lowering or raising of the level of peace and stability within a country than religious adherence.

  BB
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  jgnat

  BB, following that hypothesis, might there be an element of the population determined to a high-risk, shorter life-span? In our peacful countries we now have extreme sporting where these practitioners seem bent on living on the edge.

  I've wondered where all the people with Fetal Alcohol syndrome were before we found the diagnosis? My girlfriend suggested they got killed off at war.

  If so, peaceful countries lose a higher percentage of their population through suicide, as there is no-one with an inclination to help them end their life.

  Space Madness, no doubt community and belonging is important. Might there be an association or club at your university? I know when I checked out our large local university, the need for such a group was emphasized. The professor described the very low odds that a student would share even two classes with the same person.
• 

  LisaRose

  I don't think, based on these few statistics here, that you can say that Athiesm causes suicide. As many here have pointed out, correlation does not prove causation. It's even less significant when it comes to the impact of Atheism on a particular person.

  There could be some risk factor that tilts a person both towards Atheims and depression. If you look at the map, you can see that suicide seems more common in areas further from the equator. Studies show that people have more depression in the winter, when the days are shorter. Possibly it is the lack of sunlight that causes people to be depressed, and that depression causes them to question the existence of God, and make them also more likely to commit suicide.

  Most religions forbid suicide, so it could also be that some people depressed and unhappy, but avoid suicide because they fear eternal damnation

  There also could be a genetic component. People in Africa and South America could have some genetic characteristics that pushes them more towards accepting the religion they grew up with and, at the same time makes them more likely to be happy and less prone to suicide. If you look at the US, it does not have as much depression as the northern European countries, which you might expect, since the US has a lot of people who descended from Northern European countries, but also from all over the world.

  It's hard to say, these are just guesses, but really, all of this is irrelevant when it comes to one person, and that one person's chance for happiness. You can't just believe in God because it might make you a happier person, either you believe or don't believe, based on the facts. I would rather live in reality rather than delusion, even if that delusion might make me happier. As a JW, you might have enjoyed some parts of the experience, being part of a group and the social support that came with that, thinking you were doing important work, looking forward to a happy future. Now that you don't believe that you cannot just go back and pretend you believe, or at least I couldn't. Ignorance may be bliss, but I can't go back to ignorance.

  My suggestion is to figure out what part of being a believer (other than thinking an invisible person exists) made you happy, and seek that in your new life. Find a cause you believe in and contribute towards that. Find a network of supportive friends. Work towards some goal, like an education, or a new skill. Those things will bring you happiness whether you believe in God or not.
• 

  Stealth

  Designs: In the cases of terminal illness- how does religious belife or lack of affect end of life choices. Anecdotally I hear Christians clinging to life at the end stage (Heaven can wait). As an atheist now I would opt for not prolonging the inevitable.

  When I was a so called christain (JW) I would never considered suicide for fear I may not get to pet my lion in the new world order. Now that I am an athiest and accepted mortality, I would consider doing so purely for practical reasons as pointed out by designs if I had a terminal illiness.

  I never understood why many christains want to go to heaven but they don't want to die to get there.

  Space Madness, there are many causes of depression, just don't assume it's because you became an athiest. Depression is treatable, see a Dr. Hope things get better for you.
• 

  jgnat

  I never understood why many christains want to go to heaven but they don't want to die to get there - Stealth

  It comes from the sanctity and reverence for life. God breathed it; we have no right to rush it. I personally prefer this reverential aspect towards life than the deferral of happiness to their "true home". I am happier grounded to earth, my home right here.

  The same goes for sanctity of marriage. It is held to such an ideal that some will stick it out no matter how vile it becomes.

  Once the concept of sanctity goes, many more shades of grey become do-able.

  I try and convince people that once the reverential aspect of marriage is gone, once there is abuse for instance, there is no obligation to stay. To stay under such circumstances makes the concept of a reverential, eternal bond of love a farce.

  Similarly, once an innocent creature or a loved-one has a terminal illness, heroic efforts to extend their frail lives becomes ever more horrific. This is not sanctified, reverential, to their living. I once met a woman taking her beloved cat to the vet to be put to sleep. This cat was suffering from end-stage cancer and had rallied for a full year. The little thing was so thin, it was a miracle she was still breathing. The owner in my opinion, had mis-applied her capacity to love by extending her pet's suffering. This was not a kindness at all.
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  MissyM

  I've never believed in god so have lost nothing by labelling myself an atheist. I don't think worshipping a magic man in the sky would do any good for my mental health if I am honest.
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  DJS

  It seems to me that your recent movement away from theism is skewing your viewpoints about atheists. I've been an atheist for a long time and have never enjoyed life more. Give it a while, please. Will you have to learn how to re-think? Of course. You can't get your feel good hormones going by believing in a fairy tale provider or some never-land paradise that isn't coming. You wil have to rely on yourself, get stronger, smarter and more malleable. All great things and necessary to help the human population evolve. Good luck.
• 

  Space Madness

  for homicide- high atheist = 0.98ppp100,000 against high religion = 14.9ppp100,000.

  This shows that were we have free will to determine ending own lives the suicide rate increases by 8.89 , and in countries where taboos exist the rate of homicide increases 15.2 times.

  Would this lead us to conclude that in high religious counties there is a lower requirement to take ones own life because someone else is nearly twice as likely to do it for you?

  Keep in my I intentionally chose countries that were poor. Religious countries that aren't poor such as Oman, United Arab Emerites, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and Tunisia(somewhat poor) all have homicides rate at 1.0 per 100,000 or below.
• 

  never a jw

  You sound like the kind of guy who needs religion to cope. Reality is not good for you.

  As many others have mentioned, it seems that your data is not reliable. It seems that you are using correlation, not causation, as a way to infer that atheists are more depressed, angry and suicidal than religious people. Maybe, maybe not. Your data definitely provides no help to get a clear answer. I would question the sources of the study and their methods.

  Overall, non-religious people are making greater contributions to advance our knowledge of science so we can overcome the challenges facing human kind (population, limited resources, contamination, diseases, etc). In this regard religious people, especially those fundamentalists and cultic groups, are just a drag.
• 

  Space Madness

  "As many others have mentioned, it seems that your data is not reliable."

  Not sure what data you are reffering to but the suicide rates come from the World Health Organization who gets their numbers from each country's offical records. It sounds like you haven't read the entire thread.