Mental Health News and Research

Latest Mental Health News and Research

Early outdoor play reduces future mental health risks in children

Children who spend more time playing outdoors between the ages of two and four may be less likely to develop emotional and behavioural difficulties later in childhood.

8 Jun 2026

Weight loss drugs linked to lower risk of alcohol, opioid, nicotine and cocaine use disorders

A new study led by researchers at The University of Texas at El Paso found that use of weight loss drugs like Ozempic and other GLP-1s is associated with a lower risk of developing alcohol, opioid, nicotine and cocaine use disorders.

8 Jun 2026

Living in a rural area may worsen epilepsy outcomes

A study reveals rural Americans with epilepsy face higher mortality and diagnostic gaps, emphasizing the need for improved healthcare access and resources.

8 Jun 2026

Improved non-invasive brain stimulation targets deep-seated neurological disorders

Brain stimulation techniques can correct abnormal activity in the neural circuits involved in conditions such as Parkinson's disease and depression. However, current transcranial stimulation methods delivered through the scalp reach only the brain's surface, limiting their effectiveness.

8 Jun 2026

Nature exposure shapes nasal microbiomes and mental well-being

Plenty of studies have linked exposure to nature to a wide variety of health benefits, from improved cognitive function to lower blood pressure to better mental health.

7 Jun 2026

Researchers identify hidden self-harm histories using machine learning

Important mental health history is often present in medical records but hard to find, especially when it is missing from the diagnosis codes that clinicians, researchers and health systems use to search and count conditions.

5 Jun 2026

Integrated care reduces hospital visits for adults with disabilities

University of Cincinnati and Ohio State University researchers have found that adults with developmental disabilities who have integrated care were less likely to go to the emergency room or be hospitalized than others who were not.

5 Jun 2026

Can Pilates improve heart and metabolic health in a month?

Pilates enhances cardiovascular and metabolic health in previously sedentary women, with notable improvements in heart rate and blood pressure after 4 weeks.

5 Jun 2026

Tobacco giants helped push ultra-processed foods into global markets

New research reveals how major tobacco companies used cigarette-era business tactics to expand packaged food empires, raising fresh questions about the global spread of ultra-processed and hyper-palatable foods.

4 Jun 2026

Fathers' health may shape children's future obesity ris

As obesity rates rise across the U.S., new research from Joe C. Wen School of Population & Public Health at the University of California, Irvine scientists draws attention to an often-overlooked factor in children's long-term health: fathers.

4 Jun 2026

Prioritizing maternal sleep reduces risk of postpartum anxiety disorders

Postpartum and perinatal depression are known challenges for those going through pregnancy, but there has been less focus on the more prevalent disorder of anxiety.

4 Jun 2026

Study links remote work to increased isolation and depression

The rise in remote work caused by the COVID-19 pandemic has substantially increased time spent alone and worsened workers' mental health, according to a new study based on survey data from more than 500,000 Americans.

4 Jun 2026

Collective trauma reminders trigger immediate cravings for tobacco and cannabis

When national tragedy strikes, the urge to light up isn't just a habit, it is a psychological defense mechanism.

4 Jun 2026

Constipation may be tied to more than discomfort

Constipation was associated with approximately twofold higher odds of depression in a meta-analysis of 18 observational studies involving 730,263 participants. The findings support integrated gastrointestinal and mental health assessment, especially for adolescents and young adults, while emphasizing that causality cannot yet be established.

3 Jun 2026

New PET imaging approach quantifies synaptic pathology in multiple sclerosis

A new PET imaging approach that measures synaptic density in the spinal cord provides a quantitative way to assess the brain's functional wiring in patients with multiple sclerosis.

2 Jun 2026

Scalable solutions can help address anxiety and mood disorders in women

Women make up half the world's population yet are the focus of relatively little research, leading to deficits in their mental health care.

2 Jun 2026

Falling fentanyl deaths drive historic drop in American drug overdoses

Researchers from the University of California San Diego have found that U.S. overdose death rates declined dramatically between 2023 and 2024, marking the first recorded drop in all four waves of the nation's overdose crisis.

2 Jun 2026

Cannabis and tobacco co-use lowers cognitive performance in at-risk youth

New research shows that among people at clinical high risk for psychosis, cannabis and tobacco co-use was associated with lower cognitive performance compared to healthy controls.

2 Jun 2026

New reference models track lifespan changes in brain wiring

Researchers at the USC Mark and Mary Stevens Neuroimaging and Informatics Institute (Stevens INI) at the Keck School of Medicine of USC have created one of the largest reference models ever developed for the human brain, using diffusion MRI scans from more than 54,000 people to chart how the brain's communication pathways develop, mature, and decline across the lifespan.

2 Jun 2026

Late sleepers experience higher anxiety driven by severe nocturnal loneliness

A new study to be presented at the SLEEP 2026 annual meeting found that individuals with an evening chronotype, who prefer to go to sleep and wake up at later times, report poorer mental health, higher general loneliness, and higher nocturnal loneliness.

2 Jun 2026