Archives for January 2010

The study used data from Australia's only longitudinal lifespan study, PATH Through Life, which tracks the health and welfare of more than 7,000 people in the ACT and Queanbeyan region. of depression and found the factors varied across different groups. Reseacher Phillip Batterham says, like cardiovascular diagnosis, people can be placed in different categories of risk in regards to depression.

"For those with low symptoms it broke it up by smoking status or a number of life events," he said."For those with a high number of symptoms, it broke it up by whether they are under financial pressure or whether they were in the labour force.

Read the complete story

However, lead researcher Dr. Xiao Ou Shu, at Vanderbilt University Medical Centre, in Nashville, Tennessee has warned against overdose. During the study, research team examined depression-related factors in 1,399 Chinese women who were 54 years old on average and treated for breast cancer in Shanghai, China between April 2002 and December 2006. They noted that nearly 62pct of the women reported distinct benefits after some sort of exercise, reports China Daily. The exercisers were about 20 percent less likely to be either mildly or clinically depressed. Moreover, the likelihood of depression was 28 percent lower among women who exercised more than 2 hours a week and 42 percent lower among those who increased their post-diagnosis exercise time. Green tea also showed promise in reducing depression. Of 183 women who drank green tea, 36 percent had lower depression risk. The study appears in the Journal of Clinical Oncology.

Many women experience depression during and after pregnancy and could benefit from screening and treatment, although there is not enough evidence to support a recommendation for universal screening, according to a committee opinion published in the February issue of Obstetrics & Gynecology.

The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists' Committee on Obstetric Practice notes that depression is very common in women of reproductive age and during pregnancy and the postpartum period. Depression is the leading cause of disability in women, and infants of depressed mothers have delayed mental and physical development.

The committee points out that multiple depression screening tools are available that can usually be completed in less than 10 minutes. Most have a specificity of 77 to 100 percent. The report also notes the importance of correctly coding services linked to mental health diagnoses; otherwise, the claim may be denied.

Read the complete story

During the gloomy months of winter after the holidays, it is easy to feel depressed.

Depression can take many forms and can be spurred by different situations. Although a difficult subject to discuss, suicide can stem from depression and also has a strong presence among Latinos.

Latino/a suicide youth expert and Doctor of Psychology Theresa Rosner-Salazar shares her input with La Voz on signs of depression and suicide and why Latino/a youth are susceptible to such behaviors.

Read the complete story

Suzie (not her real name) was a hard-working 38-year-old in a satisfying marriage with three teenage children. Last fall, Suzie began to feel unmotivated, exercising less, preferring to come home after work and lie on the couch for hours. Even early snowfall in December did not lure her outside, and she had dearly loved skiing since she was a little girl.

Sleepless nights spent tossing and turning eventually led to to her calling in sick to work when she just couldn't bring herself to get out of bed. Her marriage suffered, her children began to avoid her, and Suzie felt like a miserable failure. Suzie began to brood over her lack of motivation and perceived failures, further isolating herself from family and friends. She entertained thoughts that the world would be better off without her. Suzie knew something was terribly wrong in her life.

Suzie's brother was increasingly concerned about the symptoms of depression his sister appeared to be experiencing. The fact their father had experienced severe depression several years ago increased his concern. He suggested Suzie make an appointment with her doctor or a counselor to talk about her symptoms.

Read the complete story

Burgers, stuffed chicken rolls and French fries may taste good, but high consumption of processed junk food not only makes you obese, it could contribute to depression, says a new research.

A team of British and French epidemiologists, whoanalysed food and mood data from 3,486 men and women, claimed they've uncovered a true cause-and-effect relationship.

"Our finding shows a strong association between diet and depressive symptoms after controlling for a large range of socio-demographic factors.

Read the complete story

Women who suffer from depression and anxiety may want to take a look at their diet and cut out processed foods, according to an Australian study. Researchers from the University of Melbourne found that mood disorders were more common among women aged 20 to 93 who, over 10 years, ate primarily processed, refined, high-fat foods.

“There’s no magic diet,” Dr Felice Jacka said in an email to Reuters Health but said eating a diet mainly of vegetables, fruit, whole grain foods, low fat dairy products, and lean meat, and reserving processed and sweet treats to “sometimes foods,” will aid physical health and may also support mental well-being.
Jacka’s team assessed diet and psychiatric evaluations gathered over 10 years from 1,046 women.
A total of 925 women were free of mood disorders, whereas 121 had depressive and/or anxiety disorders, the researchers reported in the American Journal of Psychiatry.

Read the complete story

If findings of the study are anything to go by, the two apparently isolated problems may have the same genetic connection.

"Migraine and depression co-occur far more frequently within subjects than to be expected by chance," said lead researcher Dr. Gisela M. Terwindt, an assistant professor of neurology at Leiden University Medical Center.

"This relationship is bidirectional; migraine patients have an increased risk to develop depression and, vice versa, depressed subjects have an increased risk of getting migraine attacks," she said.

Read the complete story

Earlier bedtimes make for happier teens, a new study in the journal Sleep suggests.

Adolescents whose parents enforced bedtimes of 10 p.m. or earlier were significantly less likely to be depressed and to have suicidal thoughts.

Than their peers whose parents allowed them to go to bed at midnight or later, Dr. James E. Gangwisch of Columbia University Medical Center in New York City and his colleagues found.

Read the complete story

Researchers said for Americans living with depression, the U.S. mental health system is broken.
A new report finds that most Americans with major depression go untreated or under-treated. Having health insurance boosted the odds of care, but not care based on guidelines from the American Psychiatric Association. Mexican Americans and African Americans are the least likely to receive depression treatment, regardless of insurance coverage.