From the Virginia Tech shooting to the Columbine massacre, some of the worst shootings in the history of the United States, unfortunately, occurred at a school. Majority of those who got injured or lost their lives in these tragedies were young adults.
A new study that was conducted in Washington DC showed that stricter gun laws saved the lives of young Americans. The states that make it more difficult to bear arms have a lower death rate among young adults.
The study was conducted by Dr. Monika Goyal, the director of research in the division of emergency medicine and trauma services at Children's National Health System in Washington, D.C. Goyal states gun-related injuries are America's third-leading cause of pediatric deaths.
Gun Control
The study showed that more than 4,500 people under the age of 21 died from gun-related injuries in 2015. About 87 percent of those who died were male, and 44 percent were black. The average age was 18 years-old. Pertaining to deaths from gun injuries in states, the numbers ranged from zero per 100,000 youths to 18 per 100,000 youths.
The researchers found that the median mortality rate for the 12 states which require a background check for obtaining a gun resulted in 3.8 deaths per 100,000 children, whereas the ones that did not require a background check had 5.7 deaths per 100,000 children.
For obtaining ammo, the five states that require a background check had a lower median death rate than the ones that did not, the study stated.
Saving Young Americans
The study's findings are yet to be published and still need more investigation. Goyal, however, stated that mass shootings, which have occurred recently, are only a small reason of why these deaths keep occurring.
Accidental shootings, suicides, and homicides committed by young adults account for the majority of gun-related deaths.
"Newtown. Orlando. Las Vegas. Parkland. Those are among the mass shootings that have occurred across the nation in recent years. While these tragedies often are covered heavily by the news media, they represent a subset of overall pediatric injuries and deaths due to firearms," Goyal stated.
Goyal continued that pediatric gun-related injuries are a "critical" public health issue across the United States. The study will be presented during the Pediatric Academic Societies (PAS) 2018 annual meeting.
