By Karen Kaplan, Los Angeles Times

Victims of bullying were more than twice as likely as other kids to contemplate suicide and about 2.5 times as likely to try to kill themselves, according to a study that quantifies the emotional effects of being teased, harassed, beaten up or otherwise harmed by one’s peers.

Children and teens who were taunted by cyberbullies were especially vulnerable — they were about three times as likely than other kids to have suicidal thoughts, the study found.

The findings, published online Monday by the journal JAMA Pediatrics, puts the lie to the old adage about sticks and stones. Cases of kids like 12-year-old Rebecca Ann Sedwick (who jumped to her death in a cement plant after classmates taunted her and asked “Why are you still alive?”) and 15-year-old Jordan Lewis (who shot himself in the chest after being picked on at school) are not just flukes.

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