A social enterprise providing education and information to protect and enhance the mental health of young people
RESEARCH is needed to determine whether significant numbers of Australian students are trying to improve their academic performance by taking diverted prescription stimulants, according to academics from three Australian universities and a Canadian research institute. Dr Jayne Lucke, principal research fellow at the University of Queensland’s Centre for Clinical Research, said there were anecdotal reports [...]
Teenagers who whittle away their time listening to music are far more likely to suffer from depression than those who spend more time consuming other media, including books, say the authors of a new study from the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine. The researchers called 106 adolescents - 46 of whom had been diagnosed [...]
Australian scientists say they have proved that persistent heavy marijuana use damages the brain's memory and learning capacity. Their study showed for the first time the earlier people developed a cannabis habit, the worse the damage. Scientists from Melbourne's Murdoch Childrens Research Institute (MCRI), Melbourne University and Wollongong University used Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) to [...]
Can you pick an eating disorder by a persons dietary preference? At first glance it seems that you can. A cross-sectional study has found that individuals with a history of eating disorders are considerably more likely to have been vegetarian in the past, vegetarian now and primarily motivated by weight. Furthermore, 68 per cent of [...]
Oxytocin and vasopressin, two hormones that inspire feelings of love and generosity when they flood our brains, bind to neurons by attaching to molecules called receptors, which can come in different forms. The new research, led by psychologist Michel Poulin of the University of Buffalo, suggests that if you have the genes that give [...]
In a series of studies, Luthar found that adolescents reared in suburban homes with an average family income of $120,000 report higher rates of depression, anxiety and substance abuse than any other socioeconomic group of young Americans today. via The price of affluence: New research shows that privileged teens may be more self-centered--and depressed--than ever [...]
Graphic images that depict violence or eroticism blind us for a split second, according to new research on how the brain processes visual information. The finding could explain why people have a hard time concentrating after seeing a particularly sexy photo, or after witnessing a car crash while driving. Such images emotionally jolt us to [...]
People's physical and mental health is significantly greater in those who have links with their neighbours than those without. "In a typical Australian suburb, people who have links with their neighbours have better health than those who do not," said Professor Bush. "The links are often fairly simple - not only knowing your neighbours but [...]
A recent study has found that exposure to sexual content in movies increases the chances of children adopting risky behavior later in life. "Adolescents who are exposed to more sexual content in movies start having sex at younger ages, have more sexual partners, and are less likely to use condoms with casual sexual partners," said [...]
Hardly a week passes without some sensational news about brain scans unleashing yet another secret of our cognitive faculties. Very recently I stumbled upon the news that according to recent research neuroscientists can tell, depending on your brain responses, whether you and your significant one will still be together in a few years: “You might hide [...]
