Mental Health News and Research

Latest Mental Health News and Research

Illinois study outlines gaps in emergency pediatric mental healthcare

When a child is experiencing a mental health crisis, families increasingly turn to the emergency department for help.

8 Jul 2026

Trial shows potential benefit of ketogenic diet for treating psychotic disorders

Published today in Schizophrenia Bulletin, a first-of-its-kind randomized controlled trial (RCT) from researchers at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF), and funded in part by the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), adds to growing literature on the potential benefit of a ketogenic diet for treating psychotic disorders.

8 Jul 2026

Sleep apnea and erectile dysfunction share a stronger link than expected

A systematic review and meta-analysis of 8 observational studies found that greater obstructive sleep apnea severity was associated with poorer erectile function, with higher AHI linked to lower IIEF scores and higher minimum oxygen saturation linked to higher IIEF scores. The authors caution that the evidence remains observational, heterogeneous, and low certainty, so the findings support targeted screening rather than proving causality.

8 Jul 2026

Researchers identify brain circuits responsible for triggering OCD symptoms

Most of the time, the origin of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is unknown, but in some rare cases, it starts after a brain injury, such as a stroke or a tumor.

7 Jul 2026

Study reveals long-term, intergenerational impacts of severe preconception trauma

Can the trauma of a parent rewrite the mental health of a child born decades later? A new compelling study reveals that children born decades after the Holocaust to parents who were older than age five at the time of the initial Nazi persecutions faced elevated schizophrenia risk.

7 Jul 2026

Single cocaine exposure causes lasting brain cell changes in mice

Researchers studying the impact of cocaine in mice have found that just one exposure to the drug can create changes in brain cells that persist for at least two weeks.

6 Jul 2026

Study finds specialized gambling addiction services underused in Quebec

A new study finds public specialized gambling addiction treatment services are underused in Quebec, pointing to a need to better reach people with gambling disorder.

6 Jul 2026

Psychiatry may be moving closer to precision medicine

For decades, treating depression has largely involved a difficult form of medical guesswork: prescribing one antidepressant after another in hopes that one will eventually help.

6 Jul 2026

Lifelong violence against women linked to significantly earlier menopause

The research, published in the journal Maturitas, links trauma experienced to the onset of the menopause up to 20 months earlier and an increase in hot flushes, depression and cardiometabolic health problems.

6 Jul 2026

Swiping-based dating apps show strongest ties to compulsive use and body dissatisfaction

A meta-analysis of 27 studies involving 21,263 adults linked swiping-based dating app use to small-to-moderate adverse mental health correlates, especially compulsive use, body image concerns, and appearance-related anxiety. General well-being was not significantly associated with app use in the primary analysis, and the authors stressed that mostly cross-sectional evidence cannot prove causality.

5 Jul 2026

New international certification program launched to improve stroke rehabilitation

A UTHealth Houston neurologist was among a group of two dozen healthcare professionals from across the globe who developed an international certification program designed to improve rehabilitation care among stroke survivors.

3 Jul 2026

Scent-enhanced virtual reality eased negative emotions after use

Integrating scents into virtual reality may reduce negative emotions in isolated environments, but more research is needed for sustained psychological benefits.

3 Jul 2026

Reduced sunshine linked to higher demand for mental health care

The study highlights the relationship between weather and mental health care use, suggesting routine weather patterns could forecast service demand effectively.

3 Jul 2026

Study maps domestic violence perpetrator interventions across the Indo-Pacific

Domestic and family violence (DFV) rates in the Indo-Pacific are among the highest globally, but there is a lack of focus, both in research and policy, on the issue across the region.

2 Jul 2026

European project explores how gut microbiome, dietary and lifestyle factors interact with mental health

Mental health conditions such as anxiety and depression affect millions of people across Europe and are increasingly recognised as closely linked to diet, nutrition, social inequalities and broader lifestyle factors.

2 Jul 2026

Broad neurodevelopmental spectrum better predicts children's educational outcomes

A paper published in the leading journal Molecular Psychiatry on Friday 3 July at 1am British Summer time led by researchers from Queen Mary University of London and Royal Holloway, University of London challenges the way we think about neurodevelopmental conditions.

2 Jul 2026

Wearable devices reveal changing sleep patterns throughout college years

Sleep is a fundamental aspect of human health that plays a crucial role in cognitive function, academic performance, and social interactions.

1 Jul 2026

Compulsive smartphone use linked to higher depression risk in older adults

Compulsive smartphone habits in older adults can be linked to a higher risk of depression, according to a study led by a Rutgers researcher.

1 Jul 2026

Scientists urge caution over psychedelics as ADHD treatment

In recent years, there has been growing interest among adults with ADHD in the practice of microdosing classic psychedelics such as psilocybin and LSD.

1 Jul 2026

Study finds early-onset Parkinson’s burden has more than doubled worldwide

A GBD 2021 analysis of 204 countries and territories found that early-onset Parkinson’s disease burden among people aged 20 to 49 more than doubled from 1990 to 2021. Age-standardized incidence, prevalence, and disability rates rose globally, with higher estimated burden among males, rapid growth in middle and high-middle SDI regions, and moderate ecological correlations with pesticide use.

1 Jul 2026