London, July 8 - Market crashes are likely to fuel more homicides and suicides, unless governments invest in labour market protections, according to a new study.

Researchers at London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine (LSHTM) and Oxford University estimated that soaring stress brought on by job losses could prompt a 2.4 rise in suicide rates in people under 64 years of age.

Similarly, they estimated a 2.7 percent rise in heart attack deaths in men between 30 and 44 years, and a 2.4 percent rise in homicide rates, corresponding to thousands of deaths in European Union countries.

Martin McKee, professor at the LSHTM and study co-author, noted that 'suicides are just the tip of the iceberg - rising suicide rates are a sign of many failed suicide attempts and high levels of mental distress among workers and families'.

Government spending to keep people in employment and quickly get them back to work when they lose jobs could prevent these rises in deaths from occurring, the study says.

When spending on such 'active labour market programmes' is above $190 per person, a financial crisis would not be a major killer.