Mental Health News and Research

Latest Mental Health News and Research

Large-scale genetic study sheds light on origins of depression

Hundreds of genes have been newly linked to depression, shedding light on the origins of the condition and highlighting personality types that could be at risk.

5 Feb 2019

Yoga practice decreases severity of rheumatoid arthritis symptoms

According a study published in Restorative Neurology and Neuroscience, eight weeks of intensive yoga practice significantly decreases the severity of physical and psychological symptoms in patients with active rheumatoid arthritis, a debilitating chronic auto-immune inflammatory disease.

5 Feb 2019

Community activities could help tackle depression in the developing world

Getting people involved in community activities like playing games and social events could be a low-cost way to tackle depression in the developing world, according to a study in the Journal of Affective Disorders.

5 Feb 2019

Large genetic analysis of impulsiveness reveals links with psychiatric disorders

Impulsiveness and substance use share a genetic basis, according to genome-wide association studies published in JNeurosci by academic and industry researchers.

From Society for Neuroscience 5 Feb 2019

Are Electronic Cigarettes Facilitating Illicit Drug Use?

In this interview, Dr. Michelle Peace provides an introduction to her research into the use of e-cigarettes for the inhalation of illicit drugs.

From Pittcon 5 Feb 2019

Healthy diet can reduce depression symptoms

An analysis of data from almost 46,000 people has found that weight loss, nutrient boosting and fat reduction diets can all reduce the symptoms of depression.

5 Feb 2019

Gut microbes could be linked to depression

The human gut contains trillions of bacteria that form the gut microbiome or microbiota. A new research has linked the composition of this gut microbiome and depressive disorder.

4 Feb 2019

Researchers identify treatable mechanism in patients with schizophrenia

For reasons that are unclear, schizophrenia patients have fewer connections between the neurons in the brain. Researchers at Karolinska Institutet, Sweden, and Massachusetts General Hospital, USA, have now succeeded in creating human cell models that show that there is an excessive degradation of connections in the brain of these patients, and they have been able to link this to a genetic risk variant for the disease.

4 Feb 2019

U.S. adolescents spend little time in physical activity, sleep and too long on screens

Only 1 in 20 U.S. adolescents is meeting national recommendations for sleeping, physical activity, and screen time, according to new research by The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston.

4 Feb 2019

Lawsuit details how the Sackler family allegedly built an Oxycontin fortune

The first nine months of 2013 started off as a banner year for the Sackler family, owners of the pharmaceutical company that produces OxyContin, the addictive opioid pain medication. Purdue Pharma paid the family $400 million from its profits during that time, claims a lawsuit filed by the Massachusetts attorney general.

4 Feb 2019

UC study reveals most effective medication for treating pediatric anxiety

Researchers from the University of Cincinnati (UC) examined common medications prescribed for children and adolescents with anxiety disorders, to determine which are the most effective and best-tolerated.

1 Feb 2019

Salk researchers pin down why some patients don't respond to common antidepressants

The most commonly prescribed antidepressants, selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, lift the fog of depression for many people. But for around a third of people with major depressive disorder, SSRIs don't make much of a difference.

1 Feb 2019

Serotonin may help the brain execute instantaneous behaviors in emergency situations

Known for its role in relieving depression, the neurochemical serotonin may also help the brain execute instantaneous, appropriate behaviors in emergency situations, according to a new Cornell study published Feb. 1 in Science.

1 Feb 2019

New understanding could help improve prediction and prevention of depression

In a new study, researchers from the Danish iPSYCH project demonstrate that people with the highest genetic propensity are over two and a half times as likely to be treated in a psychiatric hospital for depression compared to people with the lowest propensity.

31 Jan 2019

New link found between psychiatric disorders and events during the prenatal stage

Particular genetic variants in the human genome that are important for the development of the brain early in the life of the fetus are frequently found in psychiatric disorders. This is shown by a study carried out by iPSYCH.

31 Jan 2019

Medical cannabis relieves ASD symptoms in children

In a new study of patients with autism who are 18 years old and under, researchers from Ben-Gurion University of the Negev and Soroka University Medical Center report that cannabis as a treatment for autism spectrum disorders appears to be a well-tolerated, safe and effective option to relieve symptoms including seizures, tics, depression, restlessness, and rage attacks.

31 Jan 2019