Psychiatry News | Sci.News

Problematic online usage and Internet addiction lack a refined classification. Using 796 questionnaires, Stangl et al. are the first to reveal a continuum ranging from casual users (i.e. older users) to addicts (i.e. digital natives) acknowledging five different severity levels of problematic online usage to Internet addiction. Image credit: Gerd Altmann.

Scientists Introduce New Internet Addiction Spectrum

Oct 2, 2023 by News Staff

Researchers from the University of Surrey and elsewhere have found that young people (24 years and youger) spend an average of six hours a day online;...

University of Bath Ph.D. student Alexz Farrall with a PAWS ‘breathing’ ball. Image credit: University of Bath.

Shape-Changing Biofeedback-Based Ball May Help Improve Mental Health

Aug 31, 2023 by News Staff

University of Bath Ph.D. student Alexz Farrall has invented a soft ball that ‘personifies’ breath, expanding and contracting as a person breathes in...

Moncrieff et al. suggest that depression is not likely caused by a chemical imbalance, and call into question what antidepressants do. Image credit: Chenspec.

Serotonin Theory of Depression Debunked

Jul 21, 2022 by News Staff

In a systematic umbrella review of previous relevant studies, a team of scientists from the United Kingdom, Switzerland and Italy synthesized and evaluated...

Young males with a poor diet saw a significant improvement in their symptoms of depression when they switched to a healthy Mediterranean diet. Image credit: Barbara Jackson.

Study: Mediterranean Diet Improves Depressive Symptoms in Young Men with Clinical Depression

May 9, 2022 by Enrico de Lazaro

New research highlights the important role of nutrition for the treatment of depression and should inform advice given by clinicians to young men. Young...

Hirai et al. demonstrated that a high-sucrose diet during adolescence induces psychosis-related behavioral endophenotypes, including hyperactivity, poor working memory, impaired sensory gating, and disrupted interneuron function in mice deficient for GLO1, an enzyme involved in detoxification of sucrose metabolites. Image credit: Tokyo Metropolitan Institute of Medical Science.

High-Sucrose Diet during Adolescence May Contribute to Pathogenesis of Psychiatric Disorders

Dec 28, 2021 by Enrico de Lazaro

Using a mouse model, a team of researchers at the Tokyo Metropolitan Institute of Medical Science demonstrated that high-dietary sucrose consumption during...

C-reactive protein, a marker for inflammation in the body, was found in higher levels in depressed people compared to non-depressed people. Image credit: Jawahar Swaminathan & MSD staff, European Bioinformatics Institute.

People with Depression Have Higher Levels of Inflammation, Study Says

May 20, 2021 by News Staff

A team of scientists at King’s College London investigated the pathways — genetic, environmental, lifestyle, medical — leading to inflammation...

Coronal section of the human brain; amygdala is colored in purple; from Anatomy of the Human Body by Henry Gray.

Depression in Association with Anxiety Makes Amygdala Bigger

Aug 10, 2020 by News Staff

According to a new review of previous studies, published July 29 in the Journal of Psychiatry and Neuroscience, depression is linked to areas of the brain...

Cui et al examined the longitudinal effect of dog ownership and dog walking on mental health. Image credit: Susanne906.

Dog Ownership Has Positive Effect on Mental Health

Nov 7, 2019 by News Staff

A study led by the University of Western Australia has found a positive correlation between mental health benefits and dog ownership. Cui et al examined...

In a population-based study, young children with severe (at ages 5 and 16 years) and externalizing (at ages 5 and 10 years) behavioral problems were associated with elevated risk of reporting insomnia symptoms in middle adulthood. Image credit: B.A.

Study Reveals Link between Childhood Behavioral Problems and Insomnia Later in Life

Sep 9, 2019 by News Staff

A new study has demonstrated an association of early-life behavioral problems, particularly early- and middle-childhood externalizing problems (restlessness,...

In this study, air pollution exposure was associated with increased odds of psychotic experiences in adolescence, which partly explained the association between urban residency and adolescent psychotic experiences. Image credit: Johannes Plenio.

Study Finds Link between Air Pollution and Adolescent Psychotic Experiences

Mar 29, 2019 by News Staff

A new study, published in the journal JAMA Psychiatry, provides a potential explanation for why growing up in urban settings is a risk factor for psychosis. In...

The new study by Burke Quinla et al suggests that the experience of chronic peer victimization during adolescence might induce psychopathology-relevant deviations from normative brain development. Early peer victimization interventions could prevent such pathological changes. Image credit: Alexas Fotos.

Study: Bullying Affects Structure of Adolescent Brain

Dec 17, 2018 by News Staff

Chronic peer victimization during adolescence impacts mental health via structural brain changes, according to new research published in the journal Molecular...

Adhering to a healthy diet, in particular a traditional Mediterranean diet, or avoiding a pro-inflammatory diet appears to confer some protection against depression in observational studies. Image credit: Rita E.

Eating Healthier, Plant-Rich Diet May Help Prevent Depression

Oct 1, 2018 by News Staff

According to a comprehensive, systematic review of previous studies, a diet of vegetables, fruits, nuts, plant-based food and fish — typical of a...

In people with bipolar disorder, the left side of the amygdala is less active and less connected with other parts of the brain than in people with depression. Image credit: Westmead Institute for Medical Research.

Amygdala Neurons Could Hold Key to Accurately Diagnosing Unipolar Depression, Bipolar Disorder

Sep 6, 2018 by News Staff

A team of scientists, led by Dr. Mayuresh Korgaonkar of the Westmead Institute for Medical Research and the University of Sydney, used MRI scanning to...

Drivers of brain aging. Image credit: Daniel G. Amen.

Scientists Identify Drivers of Brain Aging

Aug 30, 2018 by News Staff

In a large brain imaging study published in the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease, a team of neuroscientists and psychiatrists evaluated over 60,000 brain...

Toxoplasma gondii has a unique cytoskeletal apparatus that is probably used for invading host cells and for parasite replication. Shown here are images of Toxoplasma gondii constructing daughter scaffolds within the mother cell. Image credit: Ke Hu & John M. Murray / CC BY 4.0.

Toxoplasmosis May Increase Person’s Likelihood of Pursuing Entrepreneurial Activities

Jul 30, 2018 by News Staff

Toxoplasmosis, caused by the globally prevalent parasite Toxoplasma gondii, is one of the most common parasitic infections of man and other warm-blooded...

The hormone ghrelin affects alcohol-seeking behavior. Image credit: Michal Jarmoluk.

Study: Hunger Hormone Ghrelin Influences Alcohol Consumption

Jun 4, 2018 by News Staff

Ghrelin, a hormone synthesized by endocrine cells of the stomach, may be a new promising target developing novel medications for alcohol use disorder,...

Grip strength is significantly associated with cognitive functioning in the general population and individuals with schizophrenia, particularly for working memory and processing speed. Image credit: Sergej Kistner.

Study: Stronger People Have Sharper Brains

Apr 24, 2018 by News Staff

New research, published in the Schizophrenia Bulletin, has revealed that muscular strength, measured by handgrip, is an indication of how healthy our brains...

Empathy is the ability to recognize and respond to the emotional states of other individuals. Image credit: John Hain.

Our Genes Play Role in Empathy: Study

Mar 21, 2018 by News Staff

How empathic we are is partly a result of our genes, according to the results of the largest genome-wide association study of its kind. Empathy is the...

Gerstner et al found that a mutation in the gene FABP7 is associated with fragmented sleep in humans. Image credit: Wok & Apix.

Lack of Sleep May Cause Anxiety, Depression, Experts Warn

Jan 5, 2018 by News Staff

According to a duo of researchers from State University of New York and Binghamton University, sleeping less than 8 hours a night is associated with repetitive...