Drugs and falling in older people

Researchers at the University of British Columbia have been looking into which drugs are linked to an increased number of falls in older people. They reviewed 22 studies on falls in people over 60 covering a total of 79,000 participants. They found that antidepressants had the strongest statistical link with falling but antipsychotics and benzodiazepines such as valium were also associated with an increased risk. Painkillers were found not to be linked to an increased risk of falling which is the fifth leading cause of death in the developed world.

You can find out more about this research at

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/11/091123171410.htm?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+sciencedaily+%28ScienceDaily%3A+Latest+Science+News%29&utm_content=Google+Reader

Covert copers and heart problems

Not everyone copes with conflicts at work head on. Some people let things pass without saying anything, others walk away from conflict, some develop physical symptoms such as headaches and stomachaches while others get into a bad temper at home. Collectively these responses are known as 'covert coping' and new research suggests that they may significantly increase people's risk of a heart attack. Researchers from the Stress Research Unit at Stockholm University studied 2,700 people from 1992-2003. They asked them how they coped with conflict. By the end of the study 47 men had had a heart attack or died from heart disease. Men who tackled conflict in an open way by talking to people or getting angry had no increased risk of a heart attack but covert copers had double the risk. Those who sometimes or often walked away from conflict had three times the risk of heart problems.

You can find out more about this research at

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/health/healthnews/6636046/Failure-to-complain-at-unfair-treatment-at-work-doubles-heart-attack-risk.html

The borderline personality paradox - perception and performance in relationships

People with borderline personality disorder (BPD) can often have very unstable personal relationships. They have a great fear of abandonment and often perceive people in very black and white terms as either wholly good or wholly bad. However, past research has found that people with BPD can be very perceptive about working out other people's emotions. Researchers from Columbia University in New York, New York University and the City University of New York studied 55 people, 30 of them with BPD comparing their abilities on the Reading the Mind in the Eyes Test which asks people to judge emotions based solely on pictures of people's eyes. The group with BPD performed significantly better. The researchers thought that people with BPD go into situations expecting to be hurt, abandoned and rejected by others and that their extra sensitivity to emotions makes them pick up on signs that confirm these thoughts which other people might miss out on completely.

Fertuck, E. A. ... [et al] - Enhanced 'Reading the Mind in the Eyes' in borderline personality disorder compared to healthy controls Psychological Medicine December 2009, 39(12), 1979-1988

Brief interventions for drink drivers

Drink driving is involved in more than a third of all road deaths. Many people who persistently drink drive do not take part in rehabilitation programmes or carry on drink-driving once they get their licences back. Researchers from McGill University in Canada studied the effectiveness of two intervention programmes in treating 184 drink drivers. Half of the participants went through a Brief Motivational Interviewing treatment where they were encouraged to look at reasons to change their behaviour while the other half received information about the hazards of excessive drinking. The Brief Motivational Interviewing treatment was more effective in reducing the number of drinking days than the other treatment.

You can find out more about this research at

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/11/091119193628.htm?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+sciencedaily+%28ScienceDaily%3A+Latest+Science+News%29&utm_content=Google+Reader

Autism: parent training helps improve behaviour and reduce drugs

Children with autism often have behaviour problems such as tantrums, aggression and self-injury as well. An antipsychotic drug called risperidone is sometimes used to reduce this behaviour but the problems return once the medication is stopped and the drug can cause children to put on weight leading to health problems and obesity. Researchers from the National Institute of Mental Health in the U.S. have been studying the effectiveness of adding a training programme to help parents manage their children's disruptive behaviour on top of the drug therapy (combination therapy). They split 124 children aged between 4 and 13 into two groups. Over the 24 weeks of the study one group received just risperidone while the other group received risperidone and, for their parents, the training programme. Both groups improved but the combination therapy group improved more showing less irritability, tantrums and impulsiveness. They also took less risperidone although they still put on as much weight as the drugs-only group.

You can find out more about this research at

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/11/091121093234.htm?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+sciencedaily+%28ScienceDaily%3A+Latest+Science+News%29&utm_content=Google+Reader

Drinking in pregnancy and children's problems

In the U.K. the National Health Service advises pregnant women to not drink at all, or, if they do, to drink very little and this approach seems to be vindicated by research from Australia which studied the links between drinking in pregnancy and children's mental and physical health later. The research - carried out by the Telethon Institute for Child Health Research - surveyed 2,000 women and children asking mothers about their drinking habits during pregnancy and their children's health at two, five and eight. The study found that moderate drinking in the first third of pregnancy doubled the chance of a child becoming anxious or depressed while drinking more than a bottle of wine a week trebled the risk. Drinking later in pregnancy was more likely to make a child aggressive and to increase the risk of children suffering from 'general aches and pains'.

You can find out more about this research at

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/health/healthnews/6630115/Moderate-drinking-while-pregnant-doubles-risk-of-child-becoming-depressed.html

Reducing violence on the wards

Healthcare professionals often suffer from violence and one study of nurses in Minnesota found that 13.2% had been assaulted over the last 12 months. Psychiatric nurses are even more at risk and one study found that 20% were assaulted over the course of a working week. There are several approaches to reducing violence on inpatient wards: identifying and helping the most violent patients, helping staff to anticipate risks and calm situations down before they get violent, and changing the culture of organizations by adopting zero-tolerance policies for violence. Researchers from Massachusetts looked at an intervention in the third category, the Violence Prevention Community Meeting. The meetings included both staff and patients and aimed to change the culture of expectations and attitudes towards violence in order to reduce patients' aggression. Over the 20-week study the meetings were found to lead to significant decreases in violence which fell by 89% when the meetings were being held and by 57% in the four weeks after they had finished.

Lanza, Marilyn L. ... [et al] - Reducing violence against nurses: the Violence Prevention Community Meeting Issues in Mental Health Nursing December 2009, 30(12), 745-750

Stress and schizophrenia

Schizophrenia affects about 1% of the world's population. Its symptoms - delusions and hallucinations, apathy, social withdrawal and cognitive impairment - can affect relationships, make life difficult and lead to problems holding down or getting a job. Schizophrenia usually develops between the ages of 16 and 30. Early-onset schizophrenia is thought to be more severe as it can disrupt brain development leading to problems with attention, memory and decision making. Stress is known to make schizophrenia worse. People with schizophrenia find it hard to cope with stress and stress can lead to relapses and stop people getting better. However, little research has been done into how stress affects adolescents with schizophrenia. Researchers from the universities of Pittsburgh and Washington studied 40 teenagers with schizophrenia. They found that symptoms were significantly linked to stress over the course of the 54-week study.

Lee, Heeyoung and Schepp, Karen - The relationship between symptoms and stress in adolescents with schizophrenia Issues in Mental Health Nursing December 2009, 30(12), 736-744

Type D personalities and heart problems

Research into the links between health and personality has tended to concentrate on Type A personalities - competitive go-getters who are thought to be more at risk of a heart attack - and the more laid-back Type B personalities who are thought to be at a lower risk. Recently, however, there has been more research into the Type D personality - people who experience a lot of negative emotions but do not express them for fear of rejection. In people who have had heart failure this personality type is associated with anxiety, depression and a reduced state of health. Dutch researcher Aline Pelle has been looking into this and found that people with Type D personalities were much less likely to see a doctor or nurse if they experienced heart-failure symptoms. Type D patients with a non type D partner reported a lower quality of marriage than type D personalities. Although the type D personalities were less healthy they were no more likely to die than other people.

You can find out more about this research at

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/11/091118120314.htm?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+sciencedaily+%28ScienceDaily%3A+Latest+Science+News%29&utm_content=Google+Reader

Depression and opioids

People with depression are more likely to be prescribed powerful opioids at higher doses and for a longer time. Researchers from the University of Washington in Seattle looked at medical records from two large healthcare plans between 1997 and 2005. They found that depressed people were four times more likely to be prescribed opioids for non-cancer pain. 25% of patients with depression had a long-term opioid prescription compared to only 9% of non-depressed patients. People with depression were more likely to be prescribed higher doses of the drugs, longer-acting drugs and sleeping pills and Valium. Depressed patients might be more likely to ask for opioids, seem in more distress and actually be feeling higher levels of pain but the researchers called for better monitoring to prevent the risks of addiction and overdose.

You can find out more about this research at

http://uk.reuters.com/article/idUKTRE5AH4IW20091118?feedType=RSS&feedName=healthNews&pageNumber=2&virtualBrandChannel=10174

More evidence for meditation

Researchers at the Maharishi University of Management in Iowa have found more evidence for the beneficial effects of meditation. They studied 298 students who either trained to do transcendental meditation or were placed on a waiting list. After three months those students who had trained in meditation had lower blood pressure, more stable moods, a reduction in anxiety, depression, anger and hostility and better coping skills.

You can find out more about this research at

http://uk.reuters.com/article/idUKTRE5AH5CU20091118?feedType=RSS&feedName=healthNews&pageNumber=1&virtualBrandChannel=0

The art of subconscious decision-making

People who do crosswords often find that when they go and do something else the answer to a clue they have been wrestling with pops into their head spontaneously. Dutch researcher Ap Dijksterhuis looked into the issue of subconscious decision-making in a study of 352 undergraduates. Half of them knew a lot about football while the other half weren't interested in it. The students were asked to predict the results of four matches; some straight away, others after a couple of minutes thought and others after being distracted for a couple of minutes by a mental-arithmetic task. The students who didn't know much about football had the same amount of success however long they took with their predictions but the 'expert' students were more accurate after being distracted than when they made an instant decision or had spent time thinking about it. Dr Dijksterhuis thought that this might be because while the students were being distracted their subconscious brain was working on the problem free from the biases of their conscious mind.

You can find out more about this research at

http://bps-research-digest.blogspot.com/2009/11/want-to-predict-footie-result-dont-even.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+BpsResearchDigest+%28BPS+Research+Digest%29&utm_content=Google+Reader

Mental-health problems and heart disease

Researchers from the VA Ann Arbor Health System in Michigan have been looking into the links between mental-health problems and heart disease. They studied 150,000 veterans who completed a survey in 1999 and were followed for eight years. By the end of the study 8% of the participants had died of heart disease with people with psychosis being more than twice as likely to die. People with depression and bipolar disorder were also more likely to die of heart disease but this increased risk disappeared once unhealthy lifestyles had been taken into account. However, even after allowing for things such as smoking and weight problems people with schizophrenia were 17% more likely to die of heart disease and people with psychosis were 30% more likely. The researchers thought that this could be due to the debilitating and isolating effects of psychosis and schizophrenia and the problems people with these conditions might have in getting adequate treatment.

You can find out more about this research at

http://uk.reuters.com/article/idUKTRE5AG5N820091117?feedType=RSS&feedName=healthNews&pageNumber=1&virtualBrandChannel=0

Mixed halls mean more binge drinking

Binge drinking is a big problem on college campuses in the U.K. and the U.S. A study of more than 500 college students by researchers at Brigham Young University in Utah has found that students in mixed-sex accommodation are more likely to binge drink. 42% of the students in mixed accommodation said that they had drinking binges weekly compared to only 8% in single-sex accommodation. The influence of type of accommodation remained even when age, gender, religious beliefs, personality and relationship status were taken into account. The students in mixed-sex accommodation were also more likely to have multiple sexual partners and to use pornography.

You can find out more about this research at

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/11/091117094833.htm?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+sciencedaily+%28ScienceDaily%3A+Latest+Science+News%29&utm_content=Google+Reader

Telephone counselling helps depressed heart patients

People who have had a coronary artery bypass often develop depression; something which can have a negative impact on their health. Researchers at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine studied 302 people who had had a coronary-artery bypass. 150 of the participants received eight months of collaborative care by telephone while the rest made up a control group. The people who received the telephone counselling had improvements in their mental health, physical functioning, moods and levels of depression compared to the other group, with depressed men benefiting more than depressed women; however, a significant minority of patients did not benefit from the intervention.

You can find out more about this research at

http://www.mentalhelp.net/poc/view_doc.php?type=news&id=123747&cn=5

Scotland's drug problem takes heavy toll

Statistics from Scotland paint a grim picture of the country's drug problem, particularly among older drug users. It is thought that there are around 55,000 'chaotic' drug users in Scotland of whom 15,000 are thought to be over 35. There were 574 drugs-related deaths in Scotland last year, 174 (30%) among 35-44 year-olds and 97 (17%) among people 45 and over. So, despite making up only 25% of the drug-using population people over 35 make up 47% of drug-related deaths. Over time older users are becoming a bigger percentage of drug abusers and can often be overwhelmed by a combination of past experiences and current problems.

You can find out more about this issue at

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/8365129.stm

Monitoring and marijuana

More than 42% of high-school students in the U.S. admit to taking cannabis. Apart from the risk of a criminal record cannabis use has also been linked to depression, cognitive impairment, cardiovascular disease and cancer. Parental monitoring - parents knowing where their children are, who they are with and what they are doing - has been associated with a reduced risk of gambling, sexual activity and drug use but the strength of the relationship between monitoring and cannabis use is unclear. Researchers from Claremont Graduate University in California reviewed 17 studies into this issue which covered a total of 35,000 participants. The review found that there was a 'strong, reliable' link between parental monitoring and decreased cannabis use and that this link was especially strong for girls.

You can find out more about this research at

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/11/091116143623.htm?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+sciencedaily+%28ScienceDaily%3A+Latest+Science+News%29&utm_content=Google+Reader

Fearless toddlers and reckless criminals

Toddlers who show less fear at the age of three may be more likely to become criminals later in life. Researchers from the University of Pennsylvania studied nearly 1,9000 children born in 1969 and 1970 on the Indian Ocean island of Mauritius. The children were tested on their response to unpleasant noises when they were three and, 20 years later, the researchers looked to see whether they had a criminal record. 137 of the sample did so and compared to the other participants they had a much smaller response to the unpleasant noises at three years old. It could be the case that the children who did not associate unpleasant experiences with fear felt less fear of punishment if they committed a crime. The researchers took into account factors such as parents' education, single parents, socioeconomic status and family size.

You can find out more about this research at

http://uk.reuters.com/article/idUKTRE5AF4OM20091116?feedType=RSS&feedName=healthNews&pageNumber=1&virtualBrandChannel=10174

Self-harm and car accidents

A study of newly-licensed drivers by researchers at the George Institute in Australia has found that those who had engaged in self-harm were more likely to be involved in car accidents. The researchers studied 18,871 newly-licensed Australian drivers aged between 17 and 24. 4.6% of the sample had engaged in self-harm - defined as: cutting and burning, poisoning, self-battering, road-related harm, risk-taking and attempted suicide - of whom 58.7% were women. Of those who had reported self-harm 10.1% had been involved in a crash and 84% of those who had had a crash were involved in multi-car pile-ups. The risks associated with self harm were significant even after age, sex, average driving hourse per week, psychological distress and amount of sleep had been taken into account.

You can find out more about this research at

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/11/091116131708.htm?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+sciencedaily+%28ScienceDaily%3A+Latest+Science+News%29&utm_content=Google+Reader

New research points to the importance of oxytocin

Oxytocin is a hormone secreted by the pituitary gland. It plays an important part in labour and breastfeeding and is also associated with social recognition, pair bonding, dampening negative emotional responses, trust and love. Researchers at Oregon State University have been investigating how a genetic variation that influences how the body processes oxytocin could be linked to the way people deal with stress and feel empathy for others. 200 college students were subjected to blasts of white noise after a countdown presented on screeen; their heart rates were measured to see how they responded to stress. The students also took another test trying to work out people's emotions from pictures of their eyes; this test was designed to measure empathy. The students with one particular variation of the gene felt less stress after the white noise and performed much better on the empathy task. Previous research using a nasal spray to deliver oxytocin to people with autism found that it increased their scores on tests of empathy.

You can find out more about this research at

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/11/091116163212.htm?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+sciencedaily+%28ScienceDaily%3A+Latest+Science+News%29&utm_content=Google+Reader