Mental Health News and Research

Latest Mental Health News and Research

Long-term stress can impair short-term memory

Researchers believe that this occurs because constant stress affects an area of the brain necessary for learning and memory, and the underlying mechanisms for this may also be to blame in more serious ailments, such as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and severe depression.

15 Dec 2005

Poor diet and little exercise makes Scottish kids fatties

Health experts say that Scottish children are among the most overweight in the world.

14 Dec 2005

Epilepsy surgery improves depression

According to a new multicenter study patients with epilepsy which does not respond to drug therapy, and who also have depression or anxiety, surgery used to treat the epilepsy often results in improvements in the psychiatric symptoms.

14 Dec 2005

Diets bad for your mental health

British psychologists say that skinny people are more likely to be unhappy and commit suicide than those who are overweight.

14 Dec 2005

Novel approach to treatment of depression and anxiety

A group of investigators of the University of Bologna (Giovanni Fava, Chiara Ruini and Chiara Rafanelli) have published an article on a novel approach to treatment of depression and anxiety in the November issue of the Journal of Clinical Psychiatry.

7 Dec 2005

Study reveals treatment and screening inequalities for patients with mental health problems

Patients with mental health problems may not be receiving the appropriate screening or treatments for illnesses including heart disease and stroke, a report from The University of Nottingham has shown.

7 Dec 2005

New insights into pain mechanisms

Long treated as a side effect, pain is now widely recognized as an integral part of patient care.

7 Dec 2005

People in relationships are generally happier

...than other people, a new Cornell University study finds. And spouses have the highest sense of well-being, whether they are happily married or not.

7 Dec 2005

Contradiction surrounds face transplant patient

Controversy continues to grow around the world's first face transplant in France.

6 Dec 2005

Its true - marriage can be bad for your health!

U.S. researchers have yet more proof that an unhappy marriage is bad for your health.

6 Dec 2005

Mum's the Word: Exploring Early Motherhood

Mums are the focus of a new study being undertaken by RMIT University researcher Leanne Sheeran.

5 Dec 2005

Genetics play a part in the inability to stop caffeine use

A study led by Johns Hopkins investigators has shown that women with a serious caffeine habit and a family history of alcohol abuse are more likely to ignore advice to stop using caffeine during pregnancy.

5 Dec 2005

Men are from Mars, women are from Venus - when it comes to brains!

The comedians are right. The science proves it. A man's brain and a woman's brain really do work differently.

5 Dec 2005

Disruption of normal gene interaction linked to schizophrenia

Disruption of the normal interaction between the genes PRODH and COMT contributes directly to major symptoms of schizophrenia by upsetting the balance of the brain chemicals glutamate and dopamine, according to a group of investigators that includes a scientist now at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital.

2 Dec 2005

Depressed heart patients skip medications

Recent studies conducted at the San Francisco VA Medical Center suggest two possible mechanisms for the widely recognized link between depression and adverse outcomes in patients with coronary heart disease: lack of adherence to medication regimens and increased levels of norepinephrine, a stress hormone.

2 Dec 2005

Schizotypy, creativity and mating success in humans

The more creative a person is, the more sexual partners they are likely to have, according to a pioneering study which could explain the behaviour of notorious womanisers such as poets Lord Byron and Dylan Thomas.

2 Dec 2005

Marijuana damages teenage brains

Researchers say that teenagers who regularly smoke marijuana risk damaging a key brain pathway associated with language development and some predisposed to schizophrenia may contract the illness early.

2 Dec 2005

Elderly as much at risk with old mental health drugs as new ones

Researchers at the Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston are saying that many of the older drugs designed to treat mental problems such as delirium, agitation and psychosis may be even more hazardous to the elderly than newer medicines that now carry U.S. government warnings.

2 Dec 2005

Hard to quit smoking even after cancer is diagnosed

According to a new study many people with cancer continue to smoke after their diagnosis, even though they are told that smoking can significantly compromise the outcome of any treatment.

29 Nov 2005

Amygdala activation to interpersonal threat can be specifically linked to the severity of social anxiety symptoms

People suffering generalised social phobia experience increased brain activity when confronted with threatening faces or frightening social situations, new research shows.

28 Nov 2005