742 Deaths in Central Tokyo Over 3 Years
Recently, the Sankei Shimbun reported on the 22nd that the situation is becoming serious, with an increase in solitary deaths among young people in their teens to 30s in Japan.
Yonhap News, citing the Sankei Shimbun on the same day, reported that "based on data from the Tokyo Metropolitan Medical Examiner's Office, 742 people aged 10 to 30 died from solitary deaths within the 23 wards, which correspond to central Tokyo, between 2018 and 2020." Additionally, the number of solitary death cases per year showed an increasing trend, with 228 in 2018, 242 in 2019, and 272 in 2020.
When dividing the age groups into 15?19, 20?29, and 30?39, solitary death cases tended to increase with age even among the younger population. Furthermore, an analysis of the timing of discovery of solitary deaths revealed that 305 cases, accounting for 41%, were confirmed more than four days after the time of death.
Although there is no legal definition of solitary death in Japan, the Medical Examiner's Office considers "a person living alone who dies at home from unknown causes or by extreme means" as a solitary death, according to Sankei.
Until now, solitary death has mainly been regarded as an issue affecting the elderly. Sankei pointed out that "the reality that the risk of solitary death is spreading among young people has emerged," and noted that "self-neglect, where individuals lose their ability and motivation to live due to severed social ties, is cited as a background factor for the increase in solitary deaths among the young."
Earlier in May, the Asahi Shimbun reported that the Japanese government disclosed part of the results of a survey on solitary deaths, estimating that about 68,000 Japanese people will die solitary deaths within this year alone. While local governments and private organizations have conducted investigations related to solitary deaths in the past, this is reportedly the first time official statistics at the government level have been published.
The annual scale of solitary deaths in Japan is estimated to be about 20 times higher than in Korea. According to the results of a solitary death survey announced by the Korean government in 2022, there were a total of 3,378 solitary death cases in Korea in 2021. Korea began conducting statistical surveys every five years starting in April 2021 with the enforcement of the "Act on the Prevention and Management of Solitary Deaths."
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