Mental Health News and Research

Latest Mental Health News and Research

New study investigates rate of HIV testing in patients with mental illnesses

People with mental illness are more likely to have been tested for HIV than those without mental illness, according to a new study from a team of researchers at Penn Medicine and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention published online this week in AIDS Patient Care and STDs.

5 Dec 2014

Going to bed late evenings linked to repetitive negative thoughts

When you go to bed, and how long you sleep at a time, might actually make it difficult for you to stop worrying. So say Jacob Nota and Meredith Coles of Binghamton University in the US, who found that people who sleep for shorter periods of time and go to bed very late at night are often overwhelmed with more negative thoughts than those who keep more regular sleeping hours.

5 Dec 2014

People with first-episode psychosis may benefit from medication treatment changes, study finds

Many patients with first-episode psychosis receive medications that do not comply with recommended guidelines for first-episode treatment, researchers have found. Current guidelines emphasize low doses of antipsychotic drugs and strategies for minimizing the side effects that might contribute to patients stopping their medication.

5 Dec 2014

Disease-associated malnutrition imposes economic burden on society

Even in food-abundant industrialized countries like the U.S., an alarming number of people, particularly seniors, are in a state of diseased-associated malnutrition. Because of the impact on patient health, disease-associated malnutrition imposes a significant economic burden on society of $157 billion per year, according to new research published in a supplemental issue of the Journal of Parenteral and Enteral Nutrition and supported by Abbott.

4 Dec 2014

Endocrinologist examines benefits and harms of testosterone therapy

An article in the latest edition of Australian Prescriber looks at the prescribing of testosterone, often used for ‘male menopause’ symptoms such as reduced energy, poor concentration and increased body fat. Over the past decade there has been a steep rise in the amount of testosterone dispensed in Australia and globally.

4 Dec 2014

SPSP 2015 to feature symposia on social and personality psychology

The 16th Annual Convention of the Society for Personality and Social Psychology (SPSP) will bring together 3,500 scientists to share their latest research in 84 symposia and 2,256 posters.

4 Dec 2014

Medical doctors' behaviors may lead to health care disparities

Patient reported differences in the way medical doctors assess, treat and refer racial and ethnic minorities for mental health services may contribute to disparities in their use, according to a new study in Health Services Research.

4 Dec 2014

Researchers identify retrieval practice as useful strategy for improving memory among youth with TBI

Brain injury researchers in New Jersey have identified retrieval practice as a useful strategy for improving memory among children and adolescents with traumatic brain injury (TBI).

4 Dec 2014

Advanced prebiotic Bimuno has ability to reduce anxiety

Clasado Biosciences Limited, the producers and suppliers of the second generation prebiotic Bimuno (B-GOS), a unique trans-galactooligosaccharide, and the Department of Psychiatry, University of Oxford, today announce the results of clinical research demonstrating for the first time that an advanced prebiotic (Bimuno) has the ability to reduce anxiety.

4 Dec 2014

IQ linked to schizophrenia risk

The risk for developing schizophrenia is significantly affected by an individual’s IQ, show results of a study of over 1 million Swedish men.

3 Dec 2014

Depressive episodes hard to treat in continuous cycling bipolar disorder

Patients with bipolar disorder who switch directly between mania and depression without a period of euthymia have a poor response to short-term antidepressant treatment, study findings indicate.

3 Dec 2014

Prodromal symptoms precede PD by up to a decade

Many prodromal symptoms of Parkinson’s disease appear long before a clinical diagnosis is made, shows a large study of patients in primary care.

3 Dec 2014

New MHA report calls on the country to address mental health issues

Our country is failing those in need of mental health services, according to a new report released by Mental Health America, the nation's leading community-based mental health advocacy organization. MHA for the first time has provided overall rankings for all 50 states and the District of Columbia on mental health status and access, and calls on the country to address mental health before Stage 4.

3 Dec 2014

Ten facts about Alzheimer's disease

Dr. Daniel Thomas will be conducting a ground-breaking study to determine if cognitive decline due to memory-destroying Alzheimer's disease can begin to be reversed in 90 days by combating the root causes using an innovative combination of diet, exercise, vitamin supplements, hormone therapy, and intravenous nutrition.

3 Dec 2014

SAFit-ligands provide foundation for novel treatment of stress-related psychiatric disorders

The FK506-binding protein 51 (FKBP51) is an established risk factor for stress-related psychiatric disorders such as major depression. Drug discovery for FKBP51 has been hampered by the inability to pharmacologically differentiate against the very similar functional counterplayer FKBP52.

3 Dec 2014

Elevated anxious temperament associated with neuropeptide Y receptors

Persistent anxiety is one of the most common and distressing symptoms compromising mental health. Most of the research on the neurobiology of anxiety has focused on the generation of increased anxiety, i.e., the processes that "turn on" anxiety.

3 Dec 2014

Researchers find link between vitamin D deficiency and seasonal affective disorder

Vitamin D deficiency is not just harmful to physical health--it also might impact mental health, according to a team of researchers that has found a link between seasonal affective disorder, or SAD, and a lack of sunlight.

3 Dec 2014

Young adults who skip college are at higher risk for nonmedical prescription opioid use

A study just released by Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health compared the use of prescription opioids and stimulants among high school graduates, non-graduates, and their college-attending peers, and found that young adults who do not attend college are at particularly high risk for nonmedical prescription opioid use and disorder.

2 Dec 2014

Otsuka Pharmaceutical to acquire Avanir Pharmaceuticals for $3.5B

Avanir Pharmaceuticals, Inc. today announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement with Otsuka Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. pursuant to which Otsuka will acquire Avanir for $17.00 per share in cash.

2 Dec 2014

New approach can prevent chronic marijuana use, relieve mood, anxiety disorders

Replenishing the supply of a molecule that normally activates cannabinoid receptors in the brain could relieve mood and anxiety disorders and enable some people to quit using marijuana, a Vanderbilt University study suggests.

2 Dec 2014