Mental Illness

Why Reducing Advice To A BMI Number Is Hurting Our Health

Flickr Images "You're overweight, borderline obese." This was what Christopher was told when he attended his corporate health check. The person conducting the check went on to suggest that he take a look at his diet and perhaps think about healthy options. While they didn't come out and say "you need to lose [...]

How Exercise Might Keep Depression At Bay

Flickr Images Exercise may be an effective treatment for depression and might even help prevent us from becoming depressed in the first place, according to three timely new studies. The studies pool outcomes from past research involving more than one million men and women and, taken together, strongly suggest that regular exercise alters our [...]

This Might Be Why Depression Is Rising Among Teen Girls

Flickr Images 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. After analyzing the data, researchers discovered that the prevalence of major depressive episodes over a [...]

Study Reveals Role Of Spleen In Prolonged Anxiety After Stress

Scientists are uncovering clues to what might be unfolding in the relationship between the brain and immune system in those who suffer from long-term repercussions of stress. New research details those connections, specifically that an abundance of white blood cells in the spleen could be sending messages to the brain that result in behavioral changes [...]

How ‘Psychobiotics’ Use Gut Bacteria To Treat Mental Illness

Getty Images Researchers have long known that the bacteria living in your gut can “talk” to your brain. Gut microbes, which collectively make up what’s called the gut microbiome, can have a significant impact on mood and cognition ― leading experts to deem the microbiome a new frontier in neuroscience. Now, the challenge for [...]

Stress ‘Changes Brains Of Boys And Girls Differently’

Thinkstock Images Very stressful events affect the brains of girls and boys in different ways, a Stanford University study suggests. A part of the brain linked to emotions and empathy, called the insula, was found to be particularly small in girls who had suffered trauma. But in traumatised boys, the insula was larger [...]

After A Suicide Attempt, The Risk Of Another Try

Pixabay Images A common yet highly inaccurate belief is that people who survive a suicide attempt are unlikely to try again. In fact, just the opposite is true. Within the first three months to a year following a suicide attempt, people are at highest risk of a second attempt — and this time [...]

Abused Children More Likely To Be Seriously Ill As Adults

Flickr Images Children who suffer abuse, violence or other trauma at home are more likely to become seriously ill as adults, a report has concluded. The report, the first nationwide study of its kind produced by a public health body in the UK, argues that the reasons are not simply cyclical – that [...]

Interactive: A Picture Of Mental Health

Flickr Images Following a damning National Mental Health Commission report in 2014, public consultation started Monday on a new plan to coordinate efforts tackling mental illness across state and federal bodies. It’s the first step in fixing a system the report described as having "fundamental structural shortcomings”. The situation is urgent, as the [...]

The Sun Matters More For Mental Health Than We Think

iStock Images More and more, researchers are understanding the affect of the sun on our physical, emotional and mental health. It's the best and most natural form of vitamin D and, if we get too little of it, we are at risk of seasonal affective disorder (SAD). But, a new study reveals that [...]

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