Mental Health News and Research

Latest Mental Health News and Research

USC researchers receive $4 million to test psychedelic therapy and mindfulness for depression

A team of USC researchers has received an up to $4 million award from the Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health (ARPA-H) to conduct a clinical trial of psychedelic therapy and mindfulness training for depression.

6 Oct 2026

Women entering menopause early report increased anxiety and depression

A study by the University of Oulu has found that women who entered menopause earlier than usual reported more symptoms of anxiety and depression than women of the same age who had not yet entered menopause.

6 Oct 2026

Mental health stigma may deter treatment seeking in Japan

A UC Riverside-led study of mental health stigma in Japan has found a striking gap between the need for treatment and people's willingness to seek it, with high levels of social distancing toward people with mental illness serving as a potential barrier.

6 Oct 2026

Ultraprocessed meals produce distinct metabolic and brain responses

Most nutrition science suggests that meals with the same basic nutritional profile will have the same impact on a person's blood sugar.

5 Oct 2026

Health evidence favors permanent standard time, Canadian analysis finds

Several Canadian jurisdictions are moving toward ending the twice-yearly clock change, but a new analysis published in CMAJ (Canadian Medical Association Journal) https://www.cmaj.ca/lookup/doi/10.1503/cmaj.261089 argues that eliminating the clock change is only half the decision: governments must also decide whether to adopt permanent standard time or permanent daylight saving time.

5 Oct 2026

Global experts call for coordinated action on digital health risks

The way digital technologies are currently built and governed creates real risks to health worldwide, alongside genuine benefits, according to a new three paper Series authored by 13 global experts, published in The Lancet.

5 Oct 2026

Eating walnuts daily may boost mood and shift serotonin-related metabolism

Daily walnuts improve mood and alter serotonin-related metabolites in young adults.

2 Oct 2026

Ultrasensitive AMH testing offers new insights into midlife ovarian reserve

In women's lifelong health management, the years from 35 to 55 form a critical transition period. During this period, many women face a triple challenge: declining fertility, bothersome perimenopausal symptoms, and delayed or delays in recognizing or confirming menopause.

1 Oct 2026

NIH-funded trials will test pregnenolone for addiction and depression

Center for BrainHealth investigator Francesca Filbey, PhD, and UTSW investigator Sherwood Brown, MD, PhD, have secured two awards from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to fund two major collaborative studies investigating whether the naturally occurring neurosteroid pregnenolone can help treat substance use disorders and co-occurring depression.

1 Oct 2026

Higher daily step counts linked to better teenage mental health

Every extra walk to school, kickabout in the park or trip to the shops could be doing more for teenage mental health than first thought, according to new research tracking thousands of adolescents in the US.

1 Oct 2026

New framework maps depression symptoms to unique brain circuits

A research team from the Sant Pau Research Institute (IR Sant Pau) has published a scientific review proposing a paradigm shift in the way depression is understood and studied.

1 Oct 2026

New trial tests if diet can reduce bipolar depression symptoms

A clinical trial is set to test whether diet could help reduce depressive symptoms in people with bipolar disorder, comparing a high fat, low carbohydrate diet with standard NHS healthy eating advice.

1 Oct 2026

Real-world data reveals higher reported GLP-1 side effects in female patients

The second of a Series of papers presented at the Annual Meeting of The European Association for the Study of Diabetes (EASD) in Milan, Italy (Sept 28 – Oct 2) and published in The Lancet Obstetrics, Gynaecology & Women's Health discusses the wide-ranging issues relating to use of GLP-1 RA drug use in women.

1 Oct 2026

Study connects food insecurity to mental health in young mothers

A new review of research from across sub-Saharan Africa found that inadequate access to food is linked to depression, suicide attempts, HIV vulnerabilities, and poorer sexual and reproductive health outcomes among adolescent mothers.

30 Sep 2026

Young adults using AI for health questions may screen positive for anxiety and depression

Young adults who use generative artificial intelligence to ask health-related questions are more likely to screen positive for clinically significant anxiety and depression than those not using the AI tool for health issues, according to a new study led by University of Florida researcher Yusen Zhai.

30 Sep 2026

Owning a smartphone at 12 linked to eating disorder symptoms

Early smartphone use is linked to a rise in eating disorder symptoms among adolescents, indicating potential mental health implications that require attention.

30 Sep 2026

Maternal depression linked to neurodevelopmental disorders in children

Children of mothers with depression had higher rates of certain neurodevelopmental disorders regardless of whether they were exposed to antidepressants in the womb, reports a new study led by Saraid McIlvride of the University of Glasgow, UK, published September 29th in the open access journal PLOS Medicine.

29 Sep 2026