Mental Health News and Research

Latest Mental Health News and Research

Understanding the natural history of SCN8A-related epilepsy disorders

Researchers from the Epilepsy Neurogenetics Initiative (ENGIN) at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) have completed a comprehensive natural history study of SCN8A-related disorders, which represent a spectrum of neurological symptoms.

15 Apr 2025

Study reveals a novel link between body fat and anxiety

In a groundbreaking study, researchers at McMaster University have revealed a novel link between body fat (adipose tissue) and anxiety, shedding light on the intricate relationship between metabolism and mental health.

15 Apr 2025

Congenital heart surgery in children remained safe during the COVID-19 pandemic

Major reallocation of healthcare services during the COVID-19 pandemic meant that elective surgery in children with congenital heart disease (CHD) was significantly reduced, so that those needing urgent, lifesaving and emergency surgery could be treated.

15 Apr 2025

Cannabis use linked to increased dementia risk after emergency care

Individuals with an emergency department (ED) visit or hospitalization due to cannabis were at 23% and 72% greater risk of a new dementia diagnosis within five years compared to individuals with an ED visit or hospitalization for any other reason or the general population, according to a new study published in JAMA Neurology.

15 Apr 2025

Deportation fears add to mental health problems confronting Colorado resort town workers

When Adolfo Román García-Ramírez walks home in the evening from his shift at a grocery store in this central Colorado mountain town, sometimes he thinks back on his childhood in Nicaragua.

15 Apr 2025

Lithium shifts circadian rhythms early in bipolar disorder and may offer clues to treatment response

A randomized controlled trial shows that lithium treatment in bipolar disorder patients reduces daytime activity, advances its onset time, and increases volatility in circadian rest-activity patterns. These changes appear early and independently of mood, offering promise as early biomarkers of treatment response.

14 Apr 2025

Scientists trace social challenges in autism to specific brain circuit

UNIGE scientists identified a brain circuit where lies the origin the social difficulties experienced by people with autism spectrum disorders.

14 Apr 2025

Multidimensional sleep health linked to better cardiometabolic outcomes

Healthy sleep includes multiple components, such as number of hours of sleep per night, how long it takes to fall asleep, daytime functioning and self-reported sleep satisfaction, and addressing these different dimensions of sleep may help to reduce cardiometabolic health and related risk factors, according to a new American Heart Association scientific statement published today in Circulation: Cardiovascular Quality and Outcomes.

14 Apr 2025

New guideline takes a patient-centered approach to managing obesity in children

A new guideline to help health care providers manage obesity in children and adolescents takes a patient-centred approach, emphasizing behavioral and psychological supports that focus on outcomes valued by patients and their families.

14 Apr 2025

Adolescent obesity in England rises by 50% over 15 years

New research to be presented at this year's European Congress on Obesity (ECO 2025, Malaga, Spain, 11-14 May) shows that the proportion of adolescents living with overweight or obesity in England has increased by 50% from 2008-2010 (22%) to 2021-2023 (33%).

12 Apr 2025

HPV vaccine uptake rises with help from AI chatbot

The first trial of an AI (Artificial Intelligence)-powered chatbot designed to inform parents about the HPV vaccine has shown that it increases vaccine uptake and engagement with health professionals.

11 Apr 2025

Study highlights link between childhood maltreatment and parental empathy

Childhood maltreatment (CM) is a complex issue that is often passed on through generations. Studies have shown that parents who were abused as children may perpetuate a similar pattern of mistreating their children, creating a vicious cycle of abuse.

11 Apr 2025

WHO leads global action on maternal and newborn health for World Health Day

On the occasion of the World Health Day 2025 dedicated to the theme of Healthier beginnings, hopeful futures, over 100 global offices of the World Health Organization (WHO) have organized wide-ranging public advocacy actions in collaboration with Member States, communities, health workers, partner and donor agencies and civil society organizations.

11 Apr 2025

More psych hospital beds are needed for kids, but neighbors say not here

In January, a teenager in suburban St. Louis informed his high school counselor that a classmate said he planned to kill himself later that day.

11 Apr 2025

Probiotics improve emotional state in healthy adults, study finds

A randomized controlled trial in 88 healthy adults found that probiotics reduced negative mood when assessed using daily self-reports, though traditional questionnaires failed to detect significant changes. These findings suggest that daily mood tracking may offer a more sensitive way to capture subtle emotional effects of probiotics in non-clinical populations.

10 Apr 2025

England faces persistent rise in alcohol deaths

The persistent higher rate of alcohol deaths in England since the pandemic in 2020 is an "acute crisis" requiring urgent action from government, according to a new study led by researchers at UCL and the University of Sheffield.

10 Apr 2025

Mindfulness and cognitive behavioral therapies offer lasting relief for chronic low back pain

Researchers compare the long-term effectiveness of mindfulness and CBT among adults with opioid-treated chronic low back pain.

10 Apr 2025

AI-powered digital twin of mouse visual cortex

Much as a pilot might practice maneuvers in a flight simulator, scientists might soon be able to perform experiments on a realistic simulation of the mouse brain. In a new study, Stanford Medicine researchers and collaborators used an artificial intelligence model to build a "digital twin" of the part of the mouse brain that processes visual information.

10 Apr 2025

Mental health disorders more prevalent in people with criminal legal histories

A new national epidemiological survey provides a demographic and diagnostic picture of people living with mental ill health in prison, those with criminal legal involvement in the last year, and those with no criminal legal history in the last year-finding significantly higher rates of five mental health conditions in incarcerated individuals and individuals with recent criminal legal history.

9 Apr 2025

Cannabis users have elevated dopamine levels associated with psychosis

A McGill University-led study found that people with cannabis use disorder (CUD) had elevated dopamine levels in a brain region associated with psychosis.

9 Apr 2025