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.

Fewer daylight hours during late pregnancy may increase risk of postpartum depression

Women in late pregnancy during darker months of the year may have a greater risk of developing postpartum depression once their babies are born.

27 Sep 2018

Digital CBT can improve insomnia symptoms, daytime functioning and overall health

Treating insomnia with digital programs can improve insomnia symptoms, daytime functioning and overall health, a new study from the University of Oxford and Northwestern Medicine has found.

26 Sep 2018

WVU researcher works to improve treatment access for rural depressed patients

Rates of depression tend to be higher in rural areas than in urban ones, yet rural residents may have a harder time accessing mental health care. Driving to see a psychiatrist or counselor may take hours, and wait times for an appointment may take months.

6 Sep 2018

Vivid image on cigarette-warning labels packs an emotional punch for smokers

If you want smokers to remember cigarette-warning labels, include a graphic image of the results of long-term smoking, a new study suggests.

5 Sep 2018

Study explores how social networks affect smoking outcomes in people with serious mental illness

People with serious mental illness have a reduced life expectancy of up to 25 years compared to the general population

24 Aug 2018

Married people who fight nastily more likely to suffer from leaky guts, study suggests

Married people who fight nastily are more likely to suffer from leaky guts - a problem that unleashes bacteria into the blood and can drive up disease-causing inflammation, new research suggests.

15 Aug 2018

Study reveals how immune cells in the brain influence sexual behavior

Researchers have found a surprising new explanation of how young brains are shaped for sexual behavior later in life.

14 Aug 2018

Research: Divorce is linked to poor health outcomes, greater risk for early death

A growing body of research links divorce to a wide range of poor health outcomes, including greater risk for early death. However, the reason for the connection is not well understood.

30 May 2018

Fights with spouse may worsen symptoms for people with chronic conditions

A fight with a spouse may end in hurt feelings, but for those with chronic conditions like arthritis or diabetes, those arguments may have physical repercussions as well, according to researchers.

15 May 2018

Study provides first ever recording of changing serotonin levels in human brains

Scientists at the Virginia Tech Carilion Research Institute have begun to unravel how serotonin acts, based on data collected in a first-of-its-kind experiment that utilized electrochemical probes implanted into the brain of awake human beings.

3 May 2018

Home-based treatment program offers robust and sustained relief for IBS patients

In the largest federally funded non-drug clinical trial for irritable bowel syndrome, patients with the most severe and persistent symptoms achieved robust and sustained relief by learning to control symptoms with minimal clinician contact. Led by University at Buffalo researchers in collaboration with colleagues at New York University and Northwestern University, the study was published online before print in Gastroenterology.

23 Apr 2018

Exercise and diet can help fight side effects of hormone therapy in prostate cancer patients

Men on hormone therapy for prostate cancer may benefit significantly from hitting the gym with fellow patients and choosing more veggies and fewer cheeseburgers, a new study suggests.

3 Apr 2018

Medicaid is rural America’s financial midwife

Brianna Foster, 23, lives minutes away from Genesis Hospital, the main source of health care and the only hospital with maternity services in southeastern Ohio's rural Muskingum County.

12 Mar 2018

Symptoms of alcoholism affect prescription drug adherence to treat disease

Symptoms of alcoholism make it more difficult for some people to regularly take the prescription drug naltrexone, which could help treat their disease, a researcher at Oregon State University has found.

8 Feb 2018

Tele-IPT can help treat depression in people living with HIV

Interpersonal psychotherapy is a common, in-person treatment for depression, but new research from the University of Georgia found that this type of one-on-one therapy can be successfully delivered over the telephone.

1 Feb 2018

Fentanyl may put users at risk of amnesia, WVU report reveals

A case report by a West Virginia University neuropsychologist suggests a new reason fentanyl- alone, or in combination with stimulants- may put substance users at risk, whether they take it knowingly or not. It may cause amnesia.

31 Jan 2018

Deportation fears linked to cardiovascular health risk factors in Latinas

A recent study conducted by researchers at UC San Francisco and UC Berkeley's Center for Environmental Research and Children's Health found that worry about deportations was associated with multiple cardiovascular health risk factors in Latinas from California's Salinas Valley, an area with a large immigrant community.

9 Jan 2018

Study examines whether patients understand prescription drug risks associated with driving

Prescription medications, including antidepressants and pain medications, can have various side effects and risks, and a West Virginia University researcher is examining whether patients understand the risks associated with driving.

1 Nov 2017

Lack of sleep and arguments with your spouse can cause stress-related inflammation, study reveals

A new study published in the journal Psychoneuroendocrinology, conducted by the researchers from the Ohio State University Institute for Behavioral Medicine Research indicates that the lack of sleep doesn't just make a person cranky and looking for a fight, it also results in the risk of stress-related inflammation.

26 Sep 2017

Researchers track how flu shot during pregnancy affects expectant mothers and babies

Pregnant women and young babies are among those most at risk for complications, hospitalization, and death from the flu.

1 Aug 2017