We all know that the phrase heartbroken is reflective of a social rejection. New research suggests the phrase may also have some physiological truth as researchers determine social rejection does affect the heart.
Dutch researchers have determined social rejection isn’t just emotionally upsetting; it also makes your heart rate drop for a moment.
The report is published in Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science.
Research has shown that the brain processes physical and social pain in some of the same regions. A team of Dutch researchers wanted to find out how social pain affects you physically.
For the study, volunteers were asked to send the researchers a photograph of themselves. They were told that for a study on first impressions, students at another university would look at the photo to decide whether they liked the volunteer.
This was just a cover story for the real experiment.
A few weeks later, each volunteer came to the laboratory, had wires placed on their chest for an electrocardiogram, and looked at a series of unfamiliar faces—actual students from another university.
For each face, the volunteer was asked to guess whether that student liked them. Then they were told whether the person actually “liked” them or not—although this was merely a computer-generated response.
Each participant’s heart rate fell in anticipation before they found out the person’s supposed opinion of them.
Heart rate was also affected after they were told the other person’s opinion—if they were told the other student didn’t like them, the heart dropped further, and was slower to get back up to the usual rate. The heart rate slowed more in people who expected that the other person would like them.
The results suggest that the autonomic nervous system, which controls such functions as digestion and circulation, gets involved when you’re socially rejected.
“Unexpected social rejection could literally feel ‘heartbreaking,’ as reflected by a transient slowing of heart rate,” the researchers write.
Source: Association for Psychological Science
Wednesday, September 29, 2010
Men Respond to Stress by Shutting Down
A new study finds that stressed men have diminished activity in brain regions responsible for understanding others’ feelings.
In the investigation, researchers had men look at angry faces. The results suggest the silent and stoic response to stress might be a “guy thing” after all.
“These are the first findings to indicate that sex differences in the effects of stress on social behavior extend to one of the most basic social transactions — processing someone else’s facial expression,” said Mara Mather, director of the Emotion and Cognition Lab at USC.
In an article appearing in the journal NeuroReport, Mather and her coauthors present a series of tests indicating that, under acute stress, men had less brain response to facial expressions, in particular, fear and anger.
Men under acute stress showed decreased activity not only in the fusiform face area but also decreased coordination among parts of the brain that help us interpret what emotions these faces are conveying.
In a marked sex difference, women under stress showed the opposite — women under stress had increased activity in the fusiform face area and increased coordination among the regions of the brain used in interpreting facial emotions compared to the control group.
“Under stress, men tend to withdraw socially while women seek emotional support,” Mather said.
Source: University of Southern California
In the investigation, researchers had men look at angry faces. The results suggest the silent and stoic response to stress might be a “guy thing” after all.
“These are the first findings to indicate that sex differences in the effects of stress on social behavior extend to one of the most basic social transactions — processing someone else’s facial expression,” said Mara Mather, director of the Emotion and Cognition Lab at USC.
In an article appearing in the journal NeuroReport, Mather and her coauthors present a series of tests indicating that, under acute stress, men had less brain response to facial expressions, in particular, fear and anger.
Men under acute stress showed decreased activity not only in the fusiform face area but also decreased coordination among parts of the brain that help us interpret what emotions these faces are conveying.
In a marked sex difference, women under stress showed the opposite — women under stress had increased activity in the fusiform face area and increased coordination among the regions of the brain used in interpreting facial emotions compared to the control group.
“Under stress, men tend to withdraw socially while women seek emotional support,” Mather said.
Source: University of Southern California
Monday, September 27, 2010
Violent Crime Less Frequent in Neighborhoods with Businesses
Neighborhoods that combine residential and business developments have lower levels of some types of violent crime, suggests a new study.
The findings were equally true in impoverished areas as they were in more affluent neighborhoods, possibly offering city planners and politicians a new option in improving crime-afflicted areas, according to the researchers.
“A residential neighborhood needs more than the addition of one or two businesses to see any positive impact on violent crime,” said Christopher Browning, professor of sociology at Ohio State University and lead author of the study.
“There needs to be a sufficient density of businesses and residences throughout the community to really see the benefits.”
The findings are significant as more cities across the country move toward mixed developments as a way to bolster downtowns and run-down neighborhoods, said Browning.
The findings were equally true in impoverished areas as they were in more affluent neighborhoods, possibly offering city planners and politicians a new option in improving crime-afflicted areas, according to the researchers.
“A residential neighborhood needs more than the addition of one or two businesses to see any positive impact on violent crime,” said Christopher Browning, professor of sociology at Ohio State University and lead author of the study.
“There needs to be a sufficient density of businesses and residences throughout the community to really see the benefits.”
The findings are significant as more cities across the country move toward mixed developments as a way to bolster downtowns and run-down neighborhoods, said Browning.
The study appears in the current issue of the Journal of Research in Crime and Delinquency and was supported by a grant from the National Science Foundation.
Source: Ohio State University
Monday, September 20, 2010
Physically Fit Kids Have Bigger Hippocampus
Children who are physically active actually boost their own brain development, according to a study by the University of Illinois.
The researchers observed 49 participants, aged nine to ten, and found that physically fit children tend to have a bigger hippocampus and also perform better on memory tests than kids who are less fit.
For the study, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) was used to measure the relative size of specific structures in the brains of the child participants.
“This is the first study I know of that has used MRI measures to look at differences in brain between kids who are fit and kids who aren’t fit. Beyond that, it relates those measures of brain structure to cognition,” said University of Illinois psychology professor Art Kramer, who led the study with Laura Chaddok, doctoral student.
The study’s main focus was the hippocampus, a structure set deep in the brain and known to play a major role in memory and learning. Previous studies in older adults and animals have shown that exercise can enlarge the hippocampus. A bigger hippocampus is linked to stronger spatial reasoning and other cognitive tasks.
This study appears in the journal Brain Research.
The researchers observed 49 participants, aged nine to ten, and found that physically fit children tend to have a bigger hippocampus and also perform better on memory tests than kids who are less fit.
For the study, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) was used to measure the relative size of specific structures in the brains of the child participants.
“This is the first study I know of that has used MRI measures to look at differences in brain between kids who are fit and kids who aren’t fit. Beyond that, it relates those measures of brain structure to cognition,” said University of Illinois psychology professor Art Kramer, who led the study with Laura Chaddok, doctoral student.
The study’s main focus was the hippocampus, a structure set deep in the brain and known to play a major role in memory and learning. Previous studies in older adults and animals have shown that exercise can enlarge the hippocampus. A bigger hippocampus is linked to stronger spatial reasoning and other cognitive tasks.
This study appears in the journal Brain Research.
Source: University of Illinois
Thursday, September 16, 2010
Ron Artest To Auction NBA Championship Ring For Mental Health
Remember Ron Artest? The Los Angeles Lakers player who, after his team won the 2010 NBA Championship, publicly thanked his psychologist – the woman who “really helped [him] relax a lot”?
Well, it seems Artest is taking his new-found appreciation for mental health professionals a step further.
According to NBA.com, not only did the small forward appear with Rep. Grace F. Napolitano, the co-chair of the Congressional Mental Health Caucus and author of the Mental Health in Schools Act, at a Los Angeles middle school a couple of Thursdays ago to “to call for passage of federal legislation and encourage students to reach out to a health-care worker if they need,” but he’s also “planning to sell the championship ring as a fundraiser to put more psychologists, psychiatrists and therapists in schools.”
Well, it seems Artest is taking his new-found appreciation for mental health professionals a step further.
According to NBA.com, not only did the small forward appear with Rep. Grace F. Napolitano, the co-chair of the Congressional Mental Health Caucus and author of the Mental Health in Schools Act, at a Los Angeles middle school a couple of Thursdays ago to “to call for passage of federal legislation and encourage students to reach out to a health-care worker if they need,” but he’s also “planning to sell the championship ring as a fundraiser to put more psychologists, psychiatrists and therapists in schools.”
In the meantime, you can keep up with Ron Artest at his official website, www.ronartest.com.
High Altitude Suicide Risk?
Provocative new research suggests high altitude is in some way related to suicide risk. The assertion is challenging as the mountainous West is renowned for the beauty of its towering mountains and high deserts.
Perry F. Renshaw, M.D., Ph.D., MBA, professor of psychiatry at the University of Utah School of Medicine and colleagues, report that the risk for suicide increases by nearly one third at an altitude of 2,000 meters, or approximately 6,500 feet above sea level.
The high suicide rates in the West prompted Renshaw, the study’s senior author and also an investigator with the Veterans Affairs Rocky Mountain (VISN 19) Mental Illness Research, Education, and Clinical Center (MIRECC), to undertake the research.
“We thought it was reasonable to ask if some aspect of high altitude is related to suicide,” he said.
“Altitude was the strongest factor we could find in our study. But we believe there’s also some other factor we can’t account for yet.”
After analyzing data from a U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) database with information on 3,108 counties in the lower 48 states and District of Columbia, Renshaw and his colleagues concluded that altitude is an independent risk factor for suicide, and that “this association may have arisen from the effects of metabolic stress associated with mild hypoxia (inadequate oxygen intake)” in people with mood disorders.
In other words, people with problems such as depression might be at greater risk for suicide if they live at higher altitudes.
Perry F. Renshaw, M.D., Ph.D., MBA, professor of psychiatry at the University of Utah School of Medicine and colleagues, report that the risk for suicide increases by nearly one third at an altitude of 2,000 meters, or approximately 6,500 feet above sea level.
The high suicide rates in the West prompted Renshaw, the study’s senior author and also an investigator with the Veterans Affairs Rocky Mountain (VISN 19) Mental Illness Research, Education, and Clinical Center (MIRECC), to undertake the research.
“We thought it was reasonable to ask if some aspect of high altitude is related to suicide,” he said.
“Altitude was the strongest factor we could find in our study. But we believe there’s also some other factor we can’t account for yet.”
After analyzing data from a U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) database with information on 3,108 counties in the lower 48 states and District of Columbia, Renshaw and his colleagues concluded that altitude is an independent risk factor for suicide, and that “this association may have arisen from the effects of metabolic stress associated with mild hypoxia (inadequate oxygen intake)” in people with mood disorders.
In other words, people with problems such as depression might be at greater risk for suicide if they live at higher altitudes.
Wednesday, September 15, 2010
Mental Illness Stigma Entrenched in American Culture; New Strategies Needed, Study Finds
A joint study by Indiana University and Columbia University researchers found no change in prejudice and discrimination toward people with serious mental illness or substance abuse problems despite a greater embrace by the public of neurobiological explanations for these illnesses.
The study, published online Sept. 15 in the American Journal of Psychiatry, raises vexing questions about the effectiveness of campaigns designed to improve health literacy. This "disease like any other" approach, supported by medicine and mental health advocates, had been seen as the primary way to reduce widespread stigma in the United States.
"Prejudice and discrimination in the U.S. aren't moving," said IU sociologist Bernice Pescosolido, a leading researcher in this area. "In fact, in some cases, it may be increasing. It's time to stand back and rethink our approach."
Stigma, the well-documented reluctance by many to socialize or work with people who have a mental or substance abuse disorder, is considered a major obstacle to effective treatment for many Americans who experience these devastating illnesses. It can produce discrimination in employment, housing, medical care and social relationships, and negatively impact the quality of life for these individuals, their families and friends.
The above story is reprinted (with editorial adaptations by Mental Health America of Montana staff) from materials provided by Indiana University.
The study, published online Sept. 15 in the American Journal of Psychiatry, raises vexing questions about the effectiveness of campaigns designed to improve health literacy. This "disease like any other" approach, supported by medicine and mental health advocates, had been seen as the primary way to reduce widespread stigma in the United States.
"Prejudice and discrimination in the U.S. aren't moving," said IU sociologist Bernice Pescosolido, a leading researcher in this area. "In fact, in some cases, it may be increasing. It's time to stand back and rethink our approach."
Stigma, the well-documented reluctance by many to socialize or work with people who have a mental or substance abuse disorder, is considered a major obstacle to effective treatment for many Americans who experience these devastating illnesses. It can produce discrimination in employment, housing, medical care and social relationships, and negatively impact the quality of life for these individuals, their families and friends.
The above story is reprinted (with editorial adaptations by Mental Health America of Montana staff) from materials provided by Indiana University.
False Memories from Simply Observing Others
Have you ever wondered if you really did something, or did you just remember the event because you watched someone else perform the action?
If so, don’t feel bad. Experts continue to gather evidence that memory is not always reliable.
Interestingly, the insight came as a team of psychologists were studying imagination, a recognized method by which false memories can be created.
In an experiment, psychologists found that people who had watched a video of someone else doing a simple action — shaking a bottle or shuffling a deck of cards, for example — often remembered doing the action themselves two weeks later.
“We were stunned,” says Gerald Echterhoff, of Jacobs University Bremen. As a result, Echterhoff and collegues changed the focus of the invesitgation to examine this phenomenon with a series of experiments.
In each experiment, participants performed several simple actions. Then they watched videos of someone else doing simple actions—some of which they had already performed, and some of which they had not.
Two weeks later, they were asked which actions they had done. They were much more likely to falsely remember doing an action if they had watched someone else do it. This happened even when participants were told about the effect and warned that it could happen to them.
If so, don’t feel bad. Experts continue to gather evidence that memory is not always reliable.
Interestingly, the insight came as a team of psychologists were studying imagination, a recognized method by which false memories can be created.
In an experiment, psychologists found that people who had watched a video of someone else doing a simple action — shaking a bottle or shuffling a deck of cards, for example — often remembered doing the action themselves two weeks later.
“We were stunned,” says Gerald Echterhoff, of Jacobs University Bremen. As a result, Echterhoff and collegues changed the focus of the invesitgation to examine this phenomenon with a series of experiments.
In each experiment, participants performed several simple actions. Then they watched videos of someone else doing simple actions—some of which they had already performed, and some of which they had not.
Two weeks later, they were asked which actions they had done. They were much more likely to falsely remember doing an action if they had watched someone else do it. This happened even when participants were told about the effect and warned that it could happen to them.
Perceptions of Life Threat Can Cause Long-Term Distress
Perceptions about one’s safety during a disaster—even from a distance—can leave emotional scarring and long-term issues with mental health.
These findings are part of a study that focused on 1,500 residents of Stockholm who had been in the disaster area during the 2004 tsunami that occurred in the Indian Ocean. Surprisingly, some of those displaying signs of long-term mental distress had not been affected directly by either self harm or harm to friends and family.
“A difficult experience can lead to an excess of feelings and impressions. This is normal and can be seen as a sign that the mind and body need time to work through what happened,” said Dr. Lars Wahlström of the Crisis and Disaster Psychology Unit at the Center for Family and Community Medicine (CeFAM) in Stockholm.
Part of the doctoral thesis “Disaster and Recovery,” conducted at the Karolinska Institute in Sweden, researchers had participants—all over 15 years of age—fill out a questionnaire regarding their experiences 14 months after the incident.
Results revealed that 30 percent of those interviewed were still experiencing symptoms that included post-traumatic reactions, mood disturbances or sleep issues. Of those still experiencing mental health issues, 20 percent had not been directly affected, but they had perceived their presence and experience in the region as life-threatening.
“It would seem that the very experience of threat to life leaves traces,” Wahlström said, adding that survivors of disasters could possibly be better evaluated for potential long-term effects by asking more pointed questions about their perceptions. “It might be enough for a nurse at the emergency ward to sit down for a moment and ask what the survivor has been through and how the experience felt. After survivors’ first reactions have subsided, at the latest within a month, those who felt a threat to life should be contacted again to find out how they are doing.”
Doctoral thesis: “Disaster and recovery,” Lars Wahlström, Karolinska Institute
These findings are part of a study that focused on 1,500 residents of Stockholm who had been in the disaster area during the 2004 tsunami that occurred in the Indian Ocean. Surprisingly, some of those displaying signs of long-term mental distress had not been affected directly by either self harm or harm to friends and family.
“A difficult experience can lead to an excess of feelings and impressions. This is normal and can be seen as a sign that the mind and body need time to work through what happened,” said Dr. Lars Wahlström of the Crisis and Disaster Psychology Unit at the Center for Family and Community Medicine (CeFAM) in Stockholm.
Part of the doctoral thesis “Disaster and Recovery,” conducted at the Karolinska Institute in Sweden, researchers had participants—all over 15 years of age—fill out a questionnaire regarding their experiences 14 months after the incident.
Results revealed that 30 percent of those interviewed were still experiencing symptoms that included post-traumatic reactions, mood disturbances or sleep issues. Of those still experiencing mental health issues, 20 percent had not been directly affected, but they had perceived their presence and experience in the region as life-threatening.
“It would seem that the very experience of threat to life leaves traces,” Wahlström said, adding that survivors of disasters could possibly be better evaluated for potential long-term effects by asking more pointed questions about their perceptions. “It might be enough for a nurse at the emergency ward to sit down for a moment and ask what the survivor has been through and how the experience felt. After survivors’ first reactions have subsided, at the latest within a month, those who felt a threat to life should be contacted again to find out how they are doing.”
Doctoral thesis: “Disaster and recovery,” Lars Wahlström, Karolinska Institute
Tuesday, September 14, 2010
More children in the United States are receiving diagnoses of bipolar disorder
Mental health professionals say that more and more children are receiving diagnoses of and treatment for bipolar disorder, and at younger ages. This is a serious brain disorder in which a person goes through extreme mood episodes of mania and depression, going from intense excitement and lack of focus to sadness and even suicidal behavior.
A 2007 study in the Archives of General Psychiatry found that the number of office visits resulting in a diagnosis of bipolar disorder for those under 19 was 1,003 per 100,000 people in 2002-03 in the United States. This was a dramatic uptick from 25 per 100,000 people in 1994-95.
Bipolar Disorder 101
"The prevalence of bipolar disorder in children in genuinely growing, but I think it's also because we are also becoming more aware that children who have very wild and very problematic mood swings may have bipolar disorder," said Dr. Rakesh Jain, a psychiatrist in Lake Jackson, Texas.
But another reality that's not popular among parents is that sometimes, components of the child's environment contribute to these behavioral disturbances, said Dr. Charles Raison, psychiatrist at Emory University.
There are, of course, children who genuinely have bipolar disorder, but he cautions that ideally, as a first line of defense, family support and therapy would be given to the child and problematic environments -- be it home or school -- would be improved, and then medication would be given as needed.
The story is featured inCNN.
A 2007 study in the Archives of General Psychiatry found that the number of office visits resulting in a diagnosis of bipolar disorder for those under 19 was 1,003 per 100,000 people in 2002-03 in the United States. This was a dramatic uptick from 25 per 100,000 people in 1994-95.
Bipolar Disorder 101
"The prevalence of bipolar disorder in children in genuinely growing, but I think it's also because we are also becoming more aware that children who have very wild and very problematic mood swings may have bipolar disorder," said Dr. Rakesh Jain, a psychiatrist in Lake Jackson, Texas.
But another reality that's not popular among parents is that sometimes, components of the child's environment contribute to these behavioral disturbances, said Dr. Charles Raison, psychiatrist at Emory University.
There are, of course, children who genuinely have bipolar disorder, but he cautions that ideally, as a first line of defense, family support and therapy would be given to the child and problematic environments -- be it home or school -- would be improved, and then medication would be given as needed.
The story is featured inCNN.
New Study Reconciles Conflicting Data On Mental Aging
A new look at tests of mental aging reveals a good news-bad news situation. The bad news is all mental abilities appear to decline with age, to varying degrees. The good news is the drops are not as steep as some research showed, according to a study published by the American Psychological Association.
"There is now convincing evidence that even vocabulary knowledge and what's called crystallized intelligence decline at older ages," said study author Timothy Salthouse, PhD.
Longitudinal test scores look good in part because repeat test-takers grow familiar with tests or testing strategies, said the University of Virginia psychologist. Factoring out these "practice effects" showed a truer picture of actual mental aging, according to Salthouse.
Still, the declines, although pervasive, are smaller than thought, according to the report in the July issue of Neuropsychology. That finding contradicts data gathered by the other major research approach to aging, cross-sectional studies, which compare the performance of different age groups at the same time.
Source:
"There is now convincing evidence that even vocabulary knowledge and what's called crystallized intelligence decline at older ages," said study author Timothy Salthouse, PhD.
Longitudinal test scores look good in part because repeat test-takers grow familiar with tests or testing strategies, said the University of Virginia psychologist. Factoring out these "practice effects" showed a truer picture of actual mental aging, according to Salthouse.
Still, the declines, although pervasive, are smaller than thought, according to the report in the July issue of Neuropsychology. That finding contradicts data gathered by the other major research approach to aging, cross-sectional studies, which compare the performance of different age groups at the same time.
Source:
Monday, September 13, 2010
Brain Scans May Track Childhood Psychological Disorders
Physicians are encouraged to look at brain scan data in a new way. According to a study at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, doctors should be able to analyze the development of a child’s brain and also keep track of any possible psychological or developmental disorders after a typical five-minute scan.
“Pediatricians regularly plot where their patients are in terms of height, weight and other measures, and then match these up to standardized curves that track typical developmental pathways,” says senior author Bradley Schlaggar, MD, PhD, a Washington University pediatric neurologist and the A. Ernest and Jane G. Stein Associate Professor of Neurology.
“When the patient deviates too strongly from the standardized ranges or veers suddenly from one developmental path to another, the physician knows there’s a need to start asking why.”
Schlaggar and his colleagues propose a new way of looking at brain scanning data that moves beyond observing the brain from only a structural point of view. This would be especially helpful in the monitoring and treating of patients with psychiatric and developmental disorders.
According to Schlaggar, he has sent children with obvious, profound psychiatric conditions for MRI scans and received results marked “no abnormalities noted.”
“That’s typically looking at the data from a structural point of view—what’s different about the shapes of various brain regions,” he adds. “But MRI also offers ways to analyze how different parts of the brain work together functionally.”
The study is featured this week in Science.
“Pediatricians regularly plot where their patients are in terms of height, weight and other measures, and then match these up to standardized curves that track typical developmental pathways,” says senior author Bradley Schlaggar, MD, PhD, a Washington University pediatric neurologist and the A. Ernest and Jane G. Stein Associate Professor of Neurology.
“When the patient deviates too strongly from the standardized ranges or veers suddenly from one developmental path to another, the physician knows there’s a need to start asking why.”
Schlaggar and his colleagues propose a new way of looking at brain scanning data that moves beyond observing the brain from only a structural point of view. This would be especially helpful in the monitoring and treating of patients with psychiatric and developmental disorders.
According to Schlaggar, he has sent children with obvious, profound psychiatric conditions for MRI scans and received results marked “no abnormalities noted.”
“That’s typically looking at the data from a structural point of view—what’s different about the shapes of various brain regions,” he adds. “But MRI also offers ways to analyze how different parts of the brain work together functionally.”
The study is featured this week in Science.
Double the Costs for Worksite Mental Illness
A new Canadian study reveals that mental illness is associated with more lost work days than any other chronic condition.
When researchers calculated the actual cost of mental health leave, they found that on average, it’s double the cost of a leave for a physical illness.
The study, published in the Journal of Occupational & Environmental Medicine, looked at data tracking the short-term disability leave of 33,913 full-time employees in Ontario.
Results showed that the cost to a company for a single employee on a short-term disability leave due to mental health concerns totals nearly $18,000.
When researchers calculated the actual cost of mental health leave, they found that on average, it’s double the cost of a leave for a physical illness.
The study, published in the Journal of Occupational & Environmental Medicine, looked at data tracking the short-term disability leave of 33,913 full-time employees in Ontario.
Results showed that the cost to a company for a single employee on a short-term disability leave due to mental health concerns totals nearly $18,000.
Friday, September 10, 2010
The Take 5 to Save Lives campaign asks supporters to take 5 steps
The Take 5 to Save Lives campaign asks supporters to take 5 steps:
- Learn the signs
- Join the movement
- Spread the word
- Support a friend
- Reach out if you need help
Visit the campaign website to learn more about these 5 steps and how you or your organization can help spread the word.
For more information: http://www.take5tosavelives.com
High Schools Pilot Suicide Prevention Program
A new model for suicide prevention seeks to use the power of peer influence to change high school suicide rates for the better.
Undertaken by researchers at the University of Rochester Medical Center (URMC), the Sources of Strength program will be the subject of a long-term study at high schools across New York and North Dakota.
Developed in the late 1990s by Mark LoMurray alongside other tribal and rural suicide prevention workers in North Dakota, the Sources of Strength program identifies a culturally diverse group of youth leaders to change behaviors through targeted messaging activities.
According to research team leader Peter Wyman, Ph.D., associate professor of psychiatry at URMC, the program’s objective is to “strengthen how teens handle depression, stress and other problems by training influential teen ‘peer leaders’ who work to change coping practices in their friendship networks.”
Identified youth leaders may include a mix of low-risk and at-risk teens who are trained to influence others to adopt positive coping mechanisms in connection with emotional crisis. The leaders work under the monitoring of adult mentors.
Current statistics reveal that suicide accounts for more deaths in youth and young adults aged 10 to 24 than all other natural causes combined. As many as eight percent of adolescents attempt suicide each year, with up to one third requiring medical attention.
Undertaken by researchers at the University of Rochester Medical Center (URMC), the Sources of Strength program will be the subject of a long-term study at high schools across New York and North Dakota.
Developed in the late 1990s by Mark LoMurray alongside other tribal and rural suicide prevention workers in North Dakota, the Sources of Strength program identifies a culturally diverse group of youth leaders to change behaviors through targeted messaging activities.
According to research team leader Peter Wyman, Ph.D., associate professor of psychiatry at URMC, the program’s objective is to “strengthen how teens handle depression, stress and other problems by training influential teen ‘peer leaders’ who work to change coping practices in their friendship networks.”
Identified youth leaders may include a mix of low-risk and at-risk teens who are trained to influence others to adopt positive coping mechanisms in connection with emotional crisis. The leaders work under the monitoring of adult mentors.
Current statistics reveal that suicide accounts for more deaths in youth and young adults aged 10 to 24 than all other natural causes combined. As many as eight percent of adolescents attempt suicide each year, with up to one third requiring medical attention.
“Sources of Strength is an innovative and promising program,” Wyman said.
Thursday, September 9, 2010
Can Psychological Trauma Be Inherited?
An emerging topic of investigation looks to determine if post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) can be passed to subsequent generations.
Scientists are studying groups with high rates of PTSD, such as the survivors of the Nazi death camps. Adjustment problems of the children of the survivors — the so-called “second generation” — is topic of study for researchers.
Studies suggested that some symptoms or personality traits associated with PTSD may be more common in the second generation than the general population.
It has been assumed that these transgenerational effects reflected the impact of PTSD upon the parent-child relationship rather than a trait passed biologically from parent to child.
However, Dr. Isabelle Mansuy and colleagues provide new evidence in the current issue of Biological Psychiatry that some aspects of the impact of trauma cross generations and are associated with epigenetic changes, i.e., the regulation of the pattern of gene expression, without changing the DNA sequence.
They found that early-life stress induced depressive-like behaviors and altered behavioral responses to aversive environments in mice.
Scientists are studying groups with high rates of PTSD, such as the survivors of the Nazi death camps. Adjustment problems of the children of the survivors — the so-called “second generation” — is topic of study for researchers.
Studies suggested that some symptoms or personality traits associated with PTSD may be more common in the second generation than the general population.
It has been assumed that these transgenerational effects reflected the impact of PTSD upon the parent-child relationship rather than a trait passed biologically from parent to child.
However, Dr. Isabelle Mansuy and colleagues provide new evidence in the current issue of Biological Psychiatry that some aspects of the impact of trauma cross generations and are associated with epigenetic changes, i.e., the regulation of the pattern of gene expression, without changing the DNA sequence.
They found that early-life stress induced depressive-like behaviors and altered behavioral responses to aversive environments in mice.
Source: Elsevier
Ultrasound Technology Helpful in Treating Self-Harm Patients
According to a new study, radiologists, while using ultrasound technology and a minimally-invasive procedure, are able to successfully diagnose and treat patients who engage in a troubling self-harming behavior known as self-embedding.
Self-harm (or self-injury) is the general name used to describe a variety of disturbing behaviors in which a person intentionally causes harm to his or her body with no suicidal intent. It is a troubling trend among teenagers, and surprisingly, more common in girls.
The most common forms of self-injury include cutting oneself, bruising, burning, breaking bones, hair pulling, and the swallowing of toxic substances. Self-embedding–the focus of this study– takes the behavior of cutting a step further as the person will puncture the skin in order to insert a foreign object.
Sometimes these objects are left under the skin for years, and many of them have escaped detection during typical X-ray examinations. Ultrasound technology, however, is offering new hope for diagnosing and treating patients who self-embed.
Self-harm (or self-injury) is the general name used to describe a variety of disturbing behaviors in which a person intentionally causes harm to his or her body with no suicidal intent. It is a troubling trend among teenagers, and surprisingly, more common in girls.
The most common forms of self-injury include cutting oneself, bruising, burning, breaking bones, hair pulling, and the swallowing of toxic substances. Self-embedding–the focus of this study– takes the behavior of cutting a step further as the person will puncture the skin in order to insert a foreign object.
Sometimes these objects are left under the skin for years, and many of them have escaped detection during typical X-ray examinations. Ultrasound technology, however, is offering new hope for diagnosing and treating patients who self-embed.
Wednesday, September 8, 2010
Psychological Abuse During Pregnancy Linked to Postnatal Depression
Postnatal depression is strongly linked to psychological abuse by an intimate partner during pregnancy, independent of any physical or sexual violence, according to the research of Dr. Ana Bernarda Ludermir of the Universidade Federal de Pernambuco in Recife, Brazil and colleagues at the School of Social and Community Medicine at the University of Bristol.
These findings are significant as most social policies currently focus on prevention and treatment of physical violence only.
A total of 1,045 women between the ages of 18 and 49 years were included in the study and interviewed during pregnancy and after delivery. The women, who were receiving care at primary health care clinics during their third trimesters, were given a questionnaire that assessed partner violence.
The findings showed that 270 (26 percent) of these women suffered from postnatal depression, and the most common form of abuse was psychological (28 percent).
These findings are significant as most social policies currently focus on prevention and treatment of physical violence only.
A total of 1,045 women between the ages of 18 and 49 years were included in the study and interviewed during pregnancy and after delivery. The women, who were receiving care at primary health care clinics during their third trimesters, were given a questionnaire that assessed partner violence.
The findings showed that 270 (26 percent) of these women suffered from postnatal depression, and the most common form of abuse was psychological (28 percent).
Source: University of Bristol
Bipolar Does Not Increase Risk of Violent Crime
By Rick Nauert PhD Senior News Editor
A new Swedish study suggests that a person with bipolar disorder is not at increased risk of aggression. However, substance abuse associated with bipolar does increase the chance of violent crime.
The public debate on violent crime usually assumes that violence in the mentally ill is a direct result of the perpetrator’s illness.
Twenty-one percent of patients with bipolar disorder and a concurrent diagnosis of severe substance abuse (alcohol or illegal drugs) were convicted of violent crimes, compared to five percent of those with bipolar disorder but without substance abuse, and three percent among general public control individuals.
The differences remained when accounting for age, gender, immigrant background, socioeconomic status, and whether the most recent presentation of the bipolar disorder was manic or depressed.
“Interestingly, this concurs with our group’s previous findings in schizophrenia, another serious psychiatric disorder, which found that individuals with schizophrenia are not more violent than members of the general public, provided there is no substance abuse,” says professor Niklas Långström, head of the Centre for Violence Prevention at Karolinska Institutet.
According to the researchers, the findings support the need for initiatives to prevent, identify and treat substance abuse when fighting violent crime. Additionally, Långström hopes that the results will help challenge overly simplistic explanations of the causes of violent crime.
“Unwarranted fear and stigmatization of mental illness increases the alienation of people with psychiatric disorder and makes them less inclined to seek the care they need,” Långström comments.
A new Swedish study suggests that a person with bipolar disorder is not at increased risk of aggression. However, substance abuse associated with bipolar does increase the chance of violent crime.
The public debate on violent crime usually assumes that violence in the mentally ill is a direct result of the perpetrator’s illness.
Twenty-one percent of patients with bipolar disorder and a concurrent diagnosis of severe substance abuse (alcohol or illegal drugs) were convicted of violent crimes, compared to five percent of those with bipolar disorder but without substance abuse, and three percent among general public control individuals.
The differences remained when accounting for age, gender, immigrant background, socioeconomic status, and whether the most recent presentation of the bipolar disorder was manic or depressed.
“Interestingly, this concurs with our group’s previous findings in schizophrenia, another serious psychiatric disorder, which found that individuals with schizophrenia are not more violent than members of the general public, provided there is no substance abuse,” says professor Niklas Långström, head of the Centre for Violence Prevention at Karolinska Institutet.
According to the researchers, the findings support the need for initiatives to prevent, identify and treat substance abuse when fighting violent crime. Additionally, Långström hopes that the results will help challenge overly simplistic explanations of the causes of violent crime.
“Unwarranted fear and stigmatization of mental illness increases the alienation of people with psychiatric disorder and makes them less inclined to seek the care they need,” Långström comments.
Source: Karolinska Institutet
Tuesday, September 7, 2010
TNS Electrical Stimulation Helps Depression
By Traci Pedersen
Reviewed by John M. Grohol, Psy.D. on September 4, 2010
A new therapy that electrically stimulates a major nerve in the brain shows promising results for relief of major depression. The treatment — trigeminal nerve stimulation (TNS) — reduced depression symptoms by an average of 70 percent during an eight-week study conducted at UCLA.
Major depression is a disabling brain condition resulting in depressed mood, negative effects on sleep, energy, decision-making and memory, and possible thoughts of death or suicide. The disorder affects 15 million adults in the U.S., and according to the World Health Organization, by 2020 it will be the second-largest contributor to disability in the world.
Although antidepressants have helped many people recover from major depression and resume their lives, there is only a 30 percent success rate for patients taking their first medication. If the first drug doesn’t work, patients typically continue trying a series of other antidepressants. Most of these medications have significant side effects, including obesity, sexual dysfunction, drowsiness, nausea and fatigue.
Dr. Ian A. Cook, the Miller Professor of Psychiatry at the Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior at UCLA and the study’s head investigator, presented the results at a recent National Institutes of Health conference on depression and other psychiatric disorders. There he noted that 80 percent of the subjects achieved remission with electrical stimulation, a significant statistic in this pilot study.
TNS Electrical Stimulation Helps Depression
Reviewed by John M. Grohol, Psy.D. on September 4, 2010
A new therapy that electrically stimulates a major nerve in the brain shows promising results for relief of major depression. The treatment — trigeminal nerve stimulation (TNS) — reduced depression symptoms by an average of 70 percent during an eight-week study conducted at UCLA.
Major depression is a disabling brain condition resulting in depressed mood, negative effects on sleep, energy, decision-making and memory, and possible thoughts of death or suicide. The disorder affects 15 million adults in the U.S., and according to the World Health Organization, by 2020 it will be the second-largest contributor to disability in the world.
Although antidepressants have helped many people recover from major depression and resume their lives, there is only a 30 percent success rate for patients taking their first medication. If the first drug doesn’t work, patients typically continue trying a series of other antidepressants. Most of these medications have significant side effects, including obesity, sexual dysfunction, drowsiness, nausea and fatigue.
Dr. Ian A. Cook, the Miller Professor of Psychiatry at the Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior at UCLA and the study’s head investigator, presented the results at a recent National Institutes of Health conference on depression and other psychiatric disorders. There he noted that 80 percent of the subjects achieved remission with electrical stimulation, a significant statistic in this pilot study.
TNS Electrical Stimulation Helps Depression
Memory problems more common in men?
ScienceDaily (Sep. 6, 2010) — A new study shows that mild cognitive impairment (MCI) may affect more men than women. The research is published in the September 7, 2010, print issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.Memory problems more common in men?
Friday, September 3, 2010
Meditation Improves Attitude of Teenage Boys
Researchers have discovered a particular form of meditation known as mindfulness meditation appears to improve the outlook of male teenagers.
The technique, based on the processes of learning to become more aware of our ongoing experiences, was found to increase well-being in adolescent boys.
Researchers from the University of Cambridge analyzed 155 boys from two independent UK schools, Tonbridge and Hampton, before and after a four-week crash course in mindfulness.
After the trial period, the 14- and 15-year-old boys were found to have increased wellbeing, defined as the combination of feeling good (including positive emotions such as happiness, contentment, interest and affection) and functioning well.
Source: University of Cambridge
The technique, based on the processes of learning to become more aware of our ongoing experiences, was found to increase well-being in adolescent boys.
Researchers from the University of Cambridge analyzed 155 boys from two independent UK schools, Tonbridge and Hampton, before and after a four-week crash course in mindfulness.
After the trial period, the 14- and 15-year-old boys were found to have increased wellbeing, defined as the combination of feeling good (including positive emotions such as happiness, contentment, interest and affection) and functioning well.
Source: University of Cambridge
Thursday, September 2, 2010
Brain Imaging Shows Brain Changes in Depression
Traditionally, depression is suspected when symptoms that suggest impaired psychosocial functioning are present for more than two weeks. Symptoms of depression include an overwhelming feeling of sadness, difficulty to experience pleasure, sleep problems, and difficulties with engaging in everyday life.
Emerging research addresses the neural bases of depression as well as how treatment can induce changes in the brain. Modern brain imaging techniques such as functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) are often used to view brain modulations.
This line of research expands the commonly accepted premise that depression is associated with dysfunction of specific brain regions involved in cognitive control and emotional response.
Source: European College of Neuropsychopharmacology
Emerging research addresses the neural bases of depression as well as how treatment can induce changes in the brain. Modern brain imaging techniques such as functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) are often used to view brain modulations.
This line of research expands the commonly accepted premise that depression is associated with dysfunction of specific brain regions involved in cognitive control and emotional response.
Source: European College of Neuropsychopharmacology
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