Mental Health News and Research

Latest Mental Health News and Research

Tips to avoid heat stroke

The first sign of dangerous heat stroke can be just that – no sweat. As the temperature rises, your body’s natural cooling mechanism, sweat (or more kindly, perspiration), evaporates and helps to cool your body. But on those hot, humid cut-the-air-with-a knife days, evaporation is slowed and your body may not be able to keep itself cool.

5 Aug 2009

Depression may make patients become 'couch potatoes'

Feelings of depression could be one reason patients fail to follow their doctors’ orders on exercising and eventually become less physically active, a new research review finds.

4 Aug 2009

World Trade Center attack linked to new health problems years later

Large number of individuals, such as recovery and rescue workers, nearby residents and office workers, who experienced intense or prolonged exposure to the World Trade Center attack have reported new diagnoses of asthma or posttraumatic stress 5-6 years after the attack, according to a study in the August 5 issue of JAMA, a theme issue on violence and human rights.

4 Aug 2009

Depression and inflammation linked to rheumatoid arthritis pain

Researchers at Nagoya City University and Nagoya University Graduate Schools of Medicine in Japan studied the interrelationship between levels of depression symptoms, C-reactive protein (CRP) level, and pain, confirming a significant positive association between depressive symptoms and CRP level in RA.

4 Aug 2009

White House: 'No middle class tax hike'

"The White House tried Monday to douse speculation that it might raise taxes on the middle class in violation of President Obama's campaign promise, just a day after two of his top economic advisers left the door open to such a move to rein in spiraling deficits," The New York Times reports. "Mr. Obama told his economic team in a meeting at the White House that he intended to stand by his promise not to increase taxes on families making less than $250,000, aides said."

4 Aug 2009

Universal intimate partner violence (IPV) screening may provide only modest benefits

New research suggests that universal intimate partner violence (IPV) screening in health care settings does not result in significant changes in subsequent reports of IPV or quality of life, according to a study in the August 5 issue of JAMA, a theme issue on violence and human rights.

4 Aug 2009

Workplace meditation and yoga lowers stress

Twenty minutes per day of guided workplace meditation and yoga combined with six weekly group sessions can lower feelings of stress by more than 10 percent and improve sleep quality in sedentary office employees, a pilot study suggests.

4 Aug 2009

High levels of glutamate in brain linked to depression, low cognitive function

Researchers at the Joslin Diabetes Center and several other institutions have for the first time linked high levels of glutamate – a neurotransmitter in the brain produced from glucose – in people with type 1 diabetes to symptoms of depression and lower levels of cognitive performance. The findings may lead to a better understanding of the underlying mechanisms of these conditions in people with diabetes.

4 Aug 2009

Antidepressant use becoming more common in the United States

A marked and broad expansion in antidepressant treatment occurred among Americans older than 6 years between 1996 and 2005, although treatment rates remain low among racial and ethnic minorities, according to a report in the August issue of Archives of General Psychiatry.

4 Aug 2009

Depression among preschoolers - may continue into childhood

Depression among preschoolers appears to be a continuous, chronic condition rather than a transient developmental stage, according to a report in the August issue of Archives of General Psychiatry, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.

4 Aug 2009

Links between major depression and coronary artery disease studied

Major depression and coronary artery disease are only modestly related throughout an individual’s lifetime, but studying how the two interact over time and in twin pairs paints a more complex picture of the associations between the conditions, according to a report in the August issue of Archives of General Psychiatry. For example, the association between coronary artery disease onset and major depression risk is much stronger over time than vice versa.

4 Aug 2009

Regular yoga practice associated with mindful eating

Regular yoga practice is associated with mindful eating, and people who eat mindfully are less likely to be obese, according to a study led by researchers at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center.

3 Aug 2009

Exercise offers many benefits during pregnancy

Physicians should recommend low to moderate levels of exercise to their pregnant patients, even if they have not exercised prior to pregnancy, states a report published in the August 2009 issue of the Journal of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (JAAOS).

3 Aug 2009

FDA approves Invega Sustenna for schizophrenia

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today approved Invega Sustenna (paliperidone palmitate) extended-release injectable suspension for the acute and maintenance treatment of schizophrenia in adults.

2 Aug 2009

Americans spent $33.9 billion out-of-pocket on complementary and alternative medicine

Americans spent $33.9 billion out-of-pocket on complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) over the previous 12 months, according to a 2007 government survey.

30 Jul 2009

Depression missed and misidentified

A meta-analysis of more than 50,000 patients has shown that general practitioners (GPs) have great difficulty separating those with and without depression, with substantial numbers of missed and misidentified.

30 Jul 2009

Maternal exposure to nanoparticles related to neurological dysfunction in the mouse

Maternal exposure to nanoparticles of titanium dioxide (TiO2) affects the expression of genes related to the central nervous system in developing mice. Researchers writing in BioMed Central's open access journal Particle and Fibre Toxicology found that mice whose mothers were injected with the nanoparticles while pregnant showed alteration in gene expression related to neurological dysfunction.

28 Jul 2009

Enjoyable leisure activities tied to psychological and physical well-being

Taking time for leisure activities apart from the demands of work and other responsibilities helps people function better physically and mentally. In fact, the more time spent doing different types of enjoyable activities, the better a person's health tends to be, according to a new study.

28 Jul 2009

New links between dreams and psychosis could revive dream therapy in psychiatry

Similarities in brain activity during lucid dreaming and psychosis suggest that dream therapy may be useful in psychiatric treatment, a European Science Foundation (ESF) workshop has found. This is strengthened by the potential evolutionary relationship between dreams and psychosis.

28 Jul 2009

Psychologists report on link between post-trauma narrative content, emotional distress

A new study by psychologists at the University at Buffalo and the F. W. Olin College of Engineering finds that in the aftermath of national trauma, the ability to make sense out of what happened has implications for individual well-being and that the kinds of stories people tell about the incident predict very different psychological outcomes for them.

28 Jul 2009