Mental Health News and Research

Latest Mental Health News and Research

New obesity definition could delay treatment and widen health gaps

The Lancet obesity framework aims to improve risk assessment but risks delaying treatment and deepening health inequities, according to recent evaluations.

7 Apr 2026

Smoking shrinks key brain regions while cannabis shows weaker effects

The study highlights brain changes from tobacco use and calls for more research on cannabis, as its effects on brain structure remain inadequately understood.

7 Apr 2026

World Health Day 2026: WHO urges global collaboration and science for better health

The World Health Organization (WHO) today calls on people everywhere to renew their commitment to working together and supporting science as the twin engines driving better health, under the World Health Day 2026 theme: "Together for health. Stand with science."

6 Apr 2026

Study explores role of AI automation in psychotherapy practice

Psychotherapy has always been a deeply human endeavor: a patient talking, a therapist listening and responding, and healing happening through words. But with the rapid rise of conversational artificial intelligence, particularly large language models (LLMs), that paradigm is shifting fast.

6 Apr 2026

Prenatal smoking linked to broader mental health issues in children

Children exposed to maternal smoking before birth are more likely to experience behavioral and mental health challenges, according to a large study funded by the National Institutes of Health's Environmental influences on Child Health Outcomes (ECHO) Program.

6 Apr 2026

New guidelines aim to improve concussion care for first responders

Management of sports-related concussions has come a long way in the past 25 years: Once considered a minor problem involving minimal time out of the game, a severe knock to the head is now assessed as a potential traumatic brain injury and, if confirmed, requires a structured recovery and an average wait of 13 days before play resumes.

6 Apr 2026

Estonian study reveals varied stress responses during first pandemic year

Karel Kulbin, a well-being researcher at Tallinn University, focuses in his doctoral thesis on how perceived stress levels and depressive symptoms among Estonian residents changed during the first year of the pandemic and what role active leisure activities played in this.

6 Apr 2026

Study shows masculine depression is not just a male mental health pattern

Researchers found that depressed inpatients with high masculine depression scores had a substantially greater acute mental health burden across multiple symptom domains, even after accounting for overall depression severity. The paper also found this pattern was not specific to men, supporting “masculine depression” as a descriptive, sex-independent behavioral profile rather than a male-only condition.

6 Apr 2026

Immigrant seniors lose Medicare coverage despite paying for it

Rosa María Carranza leaned forward to hold a 3-year-old's back as the girl climbed a rock in the forested hills of northeast Oakland.

6 Apr 2026

Irregular bedtimes double heart risk for those getting below 8 hours

Irregular sleep timing significantly impacts heart health, with inconsistent bedtimes linked to a higher risk of major cardiovascular events over a decade.

6 Apr 2026

Identity cohesion linked to better mental health in marginalized groups

People of color who are also part of sexual and gender minority groups face unique challenges shaped by overlapping forms of discrimination. While much research has focused on the mental health risks they experience, far less has explored how people of these multiple identities build strength and resilience.

3 Apr 2026

Organ-on-chip model advances study of sexually transmitted infections

Sexually transmitted infections (STIs) not only impact an individual's health but also result in multibillion-dollar economic losses worldwide.

3 Apr 2026

Losing a parent hits harder with fewer siblings

Findings suggest that having siblings may buffer the mental health impact of parental loss, with fewer siblings associated with increased medication use.

3 Apr 2026

MirrorBot encourages social interaction and connection between strangers

Cornell University researchers are using technology, in the form of a mirror-equipped robot, to help bring people together.

2 Apr 2026

Smartphone app HabitWorks improves anxiety and depression symptoms

In an effort to increase access to evidence-based interventions to help manage anxiety and depression, Mass General Brigham investigators have developed and tested a novel digital intervention called HabitWorks.

2 Apr 2026

Finnish study reveals how parental immigration status impacts child mental health

A new nationwide Finnish register study shows that children with two immigrant parents are significantly less likely to receive mental health services for anxiety and depression than children of Finnish parents.

2 Apr 2026

State-run insurance plans for foster kids leave some of them without doctors

Ollie Super has moved in and out of cancer treatment since she was diagnosed with neuroblastoma as a toddler in foster care. Now 8, the second grader is dealing with it again. Her cancer came back late last year.

2 Apr 2026

New wearable detects fatigue accurately using AI and advanced sensors

Burnout and chronic fatigue carry a substantial economic cost and pose serious risks in professions where alertness is critical.

1 Apr 2026

New brain circuit discovery offers hope for chronic pain treatment

A new map of a brain circuit specific to chronic pain suggests a promising route to treatment for the roughly 60 million Americans living with persistent pain, according to a study published in Nature.

1 Apr 2026

Trial tests fast-acting brain stimulation for postpartum depression treatment

The Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai today announced the enrollment of its first patient in a U.S. Department of Defense-funded pivotal clinical trial to evaluate whether a fast-acting, drug-free brain stimulation therapy can safely and quickly relieve symptoms of postpartum depression.

1 Apr 2026