Behavioral Medicine News and Research

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Behavioral medicine (BM) is a newly developing field of study which integrates behavioral, psychosocial, and biomedical concepts and practices to prevent, diagnose, and treat patients with psychosomatic disorders. The practice of BM targets the relation between how both thought and behavior can affect mental and physical health.

Beta-blocker drugs may improve survival time for melanoma patients

Beta-blocker drugs, commonly used to treat high blood pressure, may also play a major role in slowing the progression of certain serious cancers, based on a new study.

21 Sep 2011

Psychological stress of racial discrimination may contribute to health disparities

The consequences of psychological stress, resulting from racial discrimination, may contribute to racial health disparities in conditions such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes and other age-associated diseases.

15 Sep 2011

HJF selects three promising USU doctoral students to receive 2011-12 fellowships

The Henry M. Jackson Foundation for the Advancement of Military Medicine, Inc. has selected three promising Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences (USU) doctoral students to receive fellowships for the 2011-12 academic year.

9 Sep 2011

Three approaches for HIV testing among African American MSM

The odds for effectively detecting HIV in African-American men vary by method, researchers have found. The study, which appears in the Annals of Behavioral Medicine, suggests that HIV-prevention efforts must be multi-faceted, taking into account differences in within this demographic.

12 Aug 2011

Older men, women have different opinions on body function and appearance

When it comes to satisfaction with body function and body appearance, older men and women have different opinions, although physical activity does improve satisfaction in both sexes, according to new study by a Baylor University researcher.

4 Aug 2011

Study evaluates humor and laughter in patients with COPD

Having a sense of humor is associated with improved emotional functioning and an enhanced quality of life among patients with a chronic lung illness, but the actual act of laughing out loud can reduce lung function, at least in the short term, research suggests.

3 Aug 2011

Married men with heart attack seek help sooner: Study

A new study implies that married men tend to live longer than their unwed counterparts, they're more likely to see their doctor regularly, and they even have a lower risk of dying from a heart attack or stroke. The study shows that men who experience chest pains while having a heart attack tend to get to a hospital sooner if they're married or in a common-law relationship. A woman's marital status, by contrast, was not associated with how quickly she sought treatment after experiencing heart-attack-related chest pains, according to the study, which was published in the Canadian Medical Association Journal.

19 Jul 2011

Fish oil consumption helps reduce inflammation, anxiety in healthy young people

A new study gauging the impact of consuming more fish oil showed a marked reduction both in inflammation and, surprisingly, in anxiety among a cohort of healthy young people.

14 Jul 2011

Salt intake study causes confusion

A new review of studies refutes earlier knowledge and says salt may not be as bad for the heart as commonly believed. Researchers from the Universities of Exeter and Plymouth in Exeter, U.K. reviewed data for the Cochrane Library from seven studies with nearly 6,500 participants who reduced their salt intake and found that while eating less salt did lower blood pressure, it did not reduce the risk of dying or of having heart disease.

7 Jul 2011

Prolonged exposure to air pollution can have visible, negative effects on brain

Long-term exposure to air pollution can lead to physical changes in the brain, as well as learning and memory problems and even depression, new research in mice suggests.

5 Jul 2011

Study links sleep duration with pressure to maintain thin body among adolescent girls

Sleep duration has a significant association with feelings of external pressure to obtain or maintain a thin body among adolescent girls, especially those who are white, suggests a research abstract that will be presented Tuesday, June 14, in Minneapolis, Minn., at SLEEP 2011, the 25th Anniversary Meeting of the Associated Professional Sleep Societies LLC.

14 Jun 2011

Springer to publish new journal of Society of Behavioral Medicine

Starting in 2011, Springer will publish Translational Behavioral Medicine: Practice, Policy, Research (TBM), a journal of the Society of Behavioral Medicine. The journal will debut with a special section, "Information Technology and Evidence Implementation."

20 Apr 2011

Study explores relationship between how parents and children respond to pain

Could adult children's strategies for coping with pain come from watching their parents react to and deal with pain? According to Suzyen Kraljevic, from the University Hospital Split in Croatia, and colleagues, a family may have a specific cognitive style of coping with pain.

12 Apr 2011

Stress wreaks havoc on bacteria in digestive system

Stress not only sends the human immune system into overdrive - it can also wreak havoc on the trillions of bacteria that work and thrive inside our digestive system.

12 Apr 2011

Persistent fatigue in breast cancer survivors may be caused by autonomic nervous system running in overdrive

The persistent fatigue that plagues one out of every three breast cancer survivors may be caused by one part of the autonomic nervous system running in overdrive, while the other part fails to slow it down.

7 Apr 2011

Experimental drug may help preserve neurological function in survivors of sudden cardiac arrest

An experimental drug that targets a brain system that controls inflammation might help preserve neurological function in people who survive sudden cardiac arrest, new research suggests.

2 Mar 2011

Daytime sleep can have cardiovascular benefits: New research

A daytime sleep could have cardiovascular benefits according to new research by Ryan Brindle and Sarah Conklin, PhD, from Allegheny College in Pennsylvania in the US.

28 Feb 2011

Study: Poor park planning linked with young children spending more time in computers, e-games

What does it take to keep children active when they get home from school? It seems that what your neighborhood offers in terms of parks and playgrounds has a lot to do with it.

22 Feb 2011

Long-term phase 3 trial confirms safety of lubiprostone in Japanese patients with chronic idiopathic constipation

Sucampo Pharmaceuticals, Inc. and Abbott today announced positive top-line data from a 48-week phase 3 long-term safety and efficacy clinical trial of lubiprostone in Japanese patients with chronic idiopathic constipation (CIC). The trial demonstrated that lubiprostone was safe and well-tolerated.

30 Nov 2010

Dim light at night linked to depression

Exposure to even dim light at night is enough to cause physical changes in the brains of hamsters that may be associated with depression, a new study shows.

18 Nov 2010