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?

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

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

Attention, Couch Potatoes! Walking Boosts Brain Connectivity, Function

ScienceDaily (Aug. 27, 2010) — A group of "professional couch potatoes," as one researcher described them, has proven that even moderate exercise -- in this case walking at one's own pace for 40 minutes three times a week -- can enhance the connectivity of important brain circuits, combat declines in brain function associated with aging and increase performance on cognitive tasks.

The study, in Frontiers in Aging Neuroscience, followed 65 adults, aged 59 to 80, who joined a walking group or stretching and toning group for a year. All of the participants were sedentary before the study, reporting less than two episodes of physical activity lasting 30 minutes or more in the previous six months. The researchers also measured brain activity in 32 younger (18- to 35-year-old) adults.

Rather than focusing on specific brain structures, the study looked at activity in brain regions that function together as networks.

"Almost nothing in the brain gets done by one area -- it's more of a circuit," said University of Illinois psychology professor and Beckman Institute Director Art Kramer, who led the study with kinesiology and community health professor Edward McAuley and doctoral student Michelle Voss. "These networks can become more or less connected. In general, as we get older, they become less connected, so we were interested in the effects of fitness on connectivity of brain networks that show the most dysfunction with age."


See the entire story at: Science Daily

Suicide Stereotypes Exposed as Myths

By Jeanna Bryner, LiveScience Managing Editor

No single cookie-cutter model for suicide can explain an individual's desire to take his or her life. And that's good news, said one psychologist who studies suicidal behaviors across cultures.

To the surprise of many people, suicide is more common than homicide. Many suicide stereotypes would suggest men and women differ in their suicidal behaviors in predictable ways that hold true regardless of culture. For instance, experts have thought that women are more likely to engage in suicidal behavior than men, yet they ultimately die of suicide at a lower rate because their suicide attempts tend less often to be fatal.

That gender paradox holds up for some women in the United States but may not in other countries, according to Silvia S. Canetto of Colorado State University. Canetto’s research suggests culture is key in shaping suicide tendencies as well as how we view suicide. If suicide isn't a one-size-fits-all behavior that holds across the board, there's hope for change, she contends.

"All of a sudden you realize it's not an inevitable general, universal pattern that men are more likely to die of suicide than women," Canetto told LiveScience. "Then you can see the behavior is not fixed. It's a modifiable characteristic." And if it's modifiable, an understanding of the particulars of suicide for a particular group could help experts work to reduce suicide.

Source: LiveScience

Internet Counseling Aids Mental Health

By Rick Nauert PhD Senior News Editor
Reviewed by John M. Grohol, Psy.D. on August 9, 2010

A new study has found that psychiatrists can accurately assess a patient’s mental health by viewing web-based or e-mail files.

Specifically, University of California at Davis investigators found psychiatrists could diagnose and counsel individuals after viewing videotaped interviews that are sent via telecommunications lines.

The approach, called asynchronous telepsychiatry, uses store-and-forward technology, in which medical information is retrieved, stored and transmitted for later review using e-mail or Web applications.

Source: UC Davis

The healing effects of forests

ScienceDaily (2010-07-26) -- Forests -- and other natural, green settings -- can reduce stress, improve moods, reduce anger and aggressiveness and increase overall happiness. Forest visits may also strengthen our immune system by increasing the activity and number of natural killer cells that destroy cancer cells.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/07/100723161221.htm#