Hydrogen sulfide is the new method these days for many Japanese wishing to end their own lives. A rash of deaths attributed to the gas has been reported over the past few weeks across Japan, and it seems like the problems have only just begun. For a more in-depth analysis of suicide in Japan, click here.
Hydrogen sulfide is normally a naturally occurring gas whose presence is commonly associated with the smell of rotten eggs. Exposure to the gas can cause minor health irritations when inhaled at low doses. Eye and throat irritation, and nausea are common symptoms. At higher levels of exposure humans lose their sense of smell and the strength of the odor disappears. It is believed that exposure to air with hydrogen sulfide concentrations above 800 ppm will be fatal for most people after five to ten minutes of breathing the gas. Anything above 1,000 ppm will cause a human being to lose respiratory functioning after only a single breath.

Hydrogen sulfide is a scary new trend in the dark world of suicide for at least two reasons: it’s cheap and easy to make the gas at home using merely commercially-available detergents and body soaps; and people in the vicinity of the person who has created the gas (often in the bathroom of an apartment) are at risk of exposure to dangerous concentrations of the toxic gas. The former is not especially remarkable when one considers the many inexpensive ways there are to commit suicide, but the latter is a major problem when collateral damage is taken into account.

Recently, suicides due to hydrogen sulfide inhalation have skyrocketed, and it appears there is little the authorities can do to curb its spread. Banning household detergents is not an option, and even a quadrupling of the nation’s modest counseling resources would have little short-term effect. However, as evidenced by the 80 neighbors sickened after a 14-year-old girl gassed herself in Kochi prefecture, suicide has recently become an urgent public health issue in Japan and decisive action is required.

The National Police Agency reported last June that 2006 was the 9th year in a row that suicides in Japan exceeded 30,000. That’s about 90 people per day. Whereas lighting up a portable stove in a sealed off vehicle was the method of choice for several years, it looks as though hydrogen gassing could take over as a less troublesome and more immediate alternative.

While many of the suicides thus far have occurred within the confines of private residences, it is possible that even those staying at hotels could be in danger of lodging just down the hall from a hydrogen sulfide suicide. Recent publicized instances have hinted at attempts to protect innocents from exposure to hydrogen sulfide through such tactics as creating the gas within the confines of a plastic bag secured around the individual’s head or placing warning signs on barriers to the suicide site (“beware of hydrogen sulfide”, for example). However, it has been repeatedly advised that those encountering the pungent odor of hydrogen sulfide exit the area as quickly as possible and call emergency services for help.