Publications on Mental Health Topics

Landmark report by Surgeon General calls drug crisis ‘a moral test for America’, by Lenny Bernstein, The Washington Post, Nov 17 2016.

“A landmark report released Thursday by U.S. Surgeon General Vivek H. Murthy places drug and alcohol addiction alongside smoking, AIDS and other public health crises of the past ­half-century, calling the current epidemic “a moral test for America.” 'The reason I’m issuing this report is I want to call our country to action around what has become a pressing public health issue,” Murthy said in an interview. “I want our country to understand the magnitude of this crisis. I’m not sure everyone does.' ”

This might be why depression is rising among teen girls, by Jacqueline Howard, CNN, Nov 14 2016.

“There has been a significant climb in the prevalence of major depression among adolescents and young adults in recent years -- and the troubling trend may be strongest in teenage girls, according to a new study...'Although a recent federal task force recommended screening for depression in young people 12 to 18 years of age, screening is far from universal,' said Dr. Mark Olfson, a professor of psychiatry at Columbia University Medical Center and a co-author of the study. 'The new study highlights that most adolescents with depression do not receive treatment for their symptoms and underscores the need for increased attention to this condition.' ”

2016 deadliest year on record for U.S. transgender people, campaigners say, by Sebastien Malo, Reuters, Nov 10 2016.

“Murders of transgender people hit an all-time high in the United States this year, campaigners said on Thursday, amid fears of a backlash against the transgender community following the election of Donald Trump as the next U.S. president.  GLAAD, a U.S. advocacy group that tracks transgender murders said 24 transgender people were murdered, exceeding last year's tally of 22. Most of this year's victims were women of colour, GLAAD said. ”

PTSD can persist for years in kids, but parents may not see it, by Kathryn Doyle, Reuters, Nov 8 2016.

“After a car crash, children can experience post-traumatic stress disorder for months or years afterward although parents may have trouble recognizing it, according to a new U.K. study. 'What these results stress I think is that we need to take the reactions of young children to these sorts of events seriously – their reactions can persist for years in some cases,' lead author Dr. Richard Meiser-Stedman of the University of East Anglia’s Norwich Medical School told Reuters Health by email.  Among children aged 8 years and over, roughly 10 to 30 percent of those in motor vehicle collisions experience PTSD, he said. ”

Changing the clocks makes people depressed, study finds, by Megan Scudellari, Boston Globe, Nov 4 2016.

“When you wake up this Sunday, it will probably be a bit brighter than usual, and the day will plunge into darkness much earlier in the afternoon — at 4:31 pm. Welcome to the return of standard time. The extra hour of sleep gained during the switch from daylight saving time to standard time feels great. But the time change overall may negatively affect the mental health of some people, according to a new study in the journal Epidemiology. Researchers in Denmark have documented an 8 percent increase in the number of people diagnosed with depression in the month following the time change. ”

Young Adolescents as Likely to Die From Suicide as From Traffic Accidents, by Sabrina Tavernise, The New York Times, Nov 3 2016.

“That grim fact was published on Thursday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. They found that in 2014, the most recent year for which data is available, the suicide rate for children ages 10 to 14 had caught up to their death rate for traffic accidents. ”

More Children Are Being Poisoned By Prescription Opioids, by Shefali Luthra , NPR, Oct 31 2016.

“Young children and teenagers are increasingly likely to be poisoned by opioid painkillers that are often prescribed for other family members, a study finds. The rate of children hospitalized for opioid poisoning increased 165 percent from 1997 to 2012, from about 1.40 per 100,000 kids to 3.71 per 100,000. 'Opioids are ubiquitous now,' says Julie Gaither, a postdoctoral fellow at Yale School of Public Health and the study's lead author. 'Enough opioids are prescribed every year to put a bottle of painkillers in every household. They're everywhere, and kids are getting into them.' ”

Veterans may face higher risk of suicide during first year home, by Lisa Rapaport, Reuters, Oct 27 2016.

“Veterans may be more likely to commit suicide during the first year after they leave the military than after more time passes, a U.S. study suggests.  Compared with people still on active duty in the military, veterans out of the service for up to three months were 2.5 times more likely to commit suicide, the study found. Veterans who had left the service from three to 12 months earlier had almost triple the suicide odds of current members of the military. ”

Childhood Trauma Affects Development, Physical Health, by Janice Wood, Psych Central, Oct 23 2016.

“While it’s well-known that adverse childhood experiences carry over into adult life, a new study focuses on the effects of these experiences during the childhood years... The researchers found that household dysfunction affects children’s weight early in childhood, and abuse and neglect affect children’s weight later in childhood. Children exposed to early adversity also have increased risk for asthma, infection, somatic complaints, and sleep disruption, according to the study’s findings. ”

Can Mental Illness Be Prevented In The Womb?, by Bret Stetka , NPR, Oct 22 2016.

“Questions about whether ADHD might arise a few years down the road or whether schizophrenia could crop up in young adulthood tend to be overshadowed by more immediate parental anxieties. As a friend with a newborn daughter recently fretted over lunch, "I'm just trying not to drop her!"  Yet much as pediatricians administer childhood vaccines to guard against future infections, some psychiatrists now are thinking about how to shift their treatment-centric discipline toward one that also deals in early prevention. ”

Violence, Drugs, Mental Illness May Account for Half of Maternal Deaths, by Janice Wood, Psych Central, Oct 16 2016.

“Intimate partner violence, substance use and mental illness may be as threatening to health and survival during pregnancy as medical issues, according to a new study...Although substance use, serious mental illness and intimate partner violence may also be exacerbated by pregnancy and are known to worsen perinatal outcomes, deaths specifically due to these causes are not included in current definitions of U.S. maternal mortality, the researchers noted. ”

Childhood Adversity Linked to Bipolar Disorder, by Rick Nauert PhD, Psych Central, Oct 13 2016.

“A new U.K. review of more than 30 years of research on bipolar disorder found that people with the condition are more than twice as likely to have suffered emotional, physical, or sexual abuse as children than the general population...Professionals say better understanding of risk factors that can be used to improve detection and treatment of the disorder, is essential. ”

Study links antidepressants in pregnancy with language disorders, by Susan Scutti, CNN, Oct 12 2016.

“Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, known as SSRIs, are the most common type of antidepressants prescribed to pregnant women. Yet a new study indicates that when taken during pregnancy, the drugs are associated with a higher risk of language disorders, including dyslexia, in offspring. The children of women who took SSRIs while pregnant have a 37% greater risk of speech or language disorders compared with the children of depressed but unmedicated mothers, the researchers say. ”

Refugees Struggle with Mental Health Problems Caused by War and Upheaval, by Alison Abbott, Scientific American, Oct 11 2016.

“This is an informative research-supported article which explores the mental health conditions of a growing amount of refugees who are seeking asylum in various countries of Europe.  The article explores the challenges relating to making a new life, the stress of their upheaval and finding peace of mind.  ”

Children with Disabilities may not get enough exercise in school, by Madeline Kennedy, Reuters, Oct 6 2016.

“Exercise is important for all children but children with disabilities rarely get the recommended 60 minutes per day.  Children with severe disabilities get the least amout of exercise.   ”