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Somebody dies by taking their own life every 40 seconds, according to a significant report by the World Health Organization (WHO), the BBC reports.

It said suicide was a "major public health problem" that was too often shrouded in taboo.

The WHO wants to reduce the rate of suicide by 10% by 2020, but warned just that 28 countries have a national suicide prevention strategy.

Campaigners said there needed to be more education in schools.

The WHO analysed 10 years of research and data on suicide from around the world.

It concluded:

Around 800,000 people kill themselves every year
It was the second leading cause of death in young people, aged 15 to 29
Those over 70 were the most likely to take their own lives
Three-quarters of these deaths were in low and middle income countries
In richer countries, three times as many men as women die by suicide

It said limiting access to firearms and toxic chemicals was shown to reduce rates of suicide.

And that introducing a national strategy for reducing suicides was effective, yet had been developed in only a minority of countries.