Experts - we know next to nothing about Alzheimer's

Over the years - and indeed on this blog - there have been quite a few stories linking different foods, habits and lifestyles to an increased or decreased risk of Alzheimer's disease. However, a panel of experts set up by the National Institutes of Health in the U.S. has reviewed all the evidence and found that we still know next to nothing about what (beyond getting older) causes it and how we can prevent it. There is a strong association with a gene called ApoE4 but it is a long way from being aware of the link to deriving any practically-useful information from it. There was no evidence of even moderate scientific quality linking dietary supplements, drugs, healthy eating, exercise and a good social life to a reduced risk of Alzheimer's and in studies that did show an association there was no evidence that it wasn't being mentally alert that allowed people to maintain a healthy lifestyle rather than vice versa. There was evidence that diabetes, depression and smoking were associated with an increased risk of Alzheimer's but nothing to suggest that they were connected.

You can find out more about this report at

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/04/100428173342.htm?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+sciencedaily+%28ScienceDaily%3A+Latest+Science+News%29&utm_content=Google+Reader

and read the whole thing at

http://consensus.nih.gov/

Has the bubble burst for Omega-3s?

Following on from research showing that omega-3s might not improve cognition in older people

http://mentalhealthupdate.blogspot.com/2010/04/omega-3s-not-miracle-solution-for-older.html

a new study shows that they may not have much of an effect in children either. Researchers from the University of Wales studied 450 children between the ages of eight and ten in Newport, South Wales. Half of them were given omega-3 supplements while the rest were given a placebo. The children were given psychological assessments and teachers and parents reported on any changes they saw in their behaviour. Reading, spelling and coordination were largely unaffected by the omega-3 although it did produce an improvement in children's attention in class.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbysector/retailandconsumer/7649219/Fish-oil-capsules-dont-boost-brain-power-in-children.html

Antidepressants and self-poisoning risk - which are the riskiest?

Self-poisoning is a common way of killing oneself, especially among women. Because suicide is linked to depression, and antidepressants are often easily available, antidepressants are involved in around 25% of all poisoning suicides in the U.K. and 20-30% of non-fatal overdoses. It is therefore important to know if certain kinds of antidepressants are riskier than others. A team of researchers led by Keith Hawton from Oxford University compared numbers of prescriptions to numbers of deaths in cases of deaths by self-poisoning. They used data from six general hospitals in Oxford, Manchester and Derby between 2000 and 2006. The study found that older, tricyclic antidepressants were much riskier than the SNRI (Serotonin-Norepinephrine Reuptake Inhibitor) drug venlafaxine and the NaSSA (Noradrenergic and Specific Serotonin Antidepressant) drug mirtazapine. In turn these drugs were riskier than SSRIs (Serotonin Specific Reuptake Inhibitors). Among the tricyclic antidepressants dosulepin and doxepin were both riskier than amitriptyline while within the SSRIs citalopram was riskier than the other drugs.

Hawton, Keith ... [et al] - Toxicity of antidepressants: rates of suicide relative to prescribing and non-fatal overdose British Journal of Psychiatry May 2010, 196(5), 354-358

Bupropion helps people with schizophrenia stub it out

People with schizophrenia are three times more likely to smoke than the rest of the population and find it harder to give up. A drug called bupropion blocks the effects of nicotine and has been used to help people without schizophrenia quit. A team of researchers led by Daniel Tai-yin Tsoi from the University of Sheffield reviewed 21 studies into the effectiveness of bupropion in helping people with schizophrenia quit smoking. They found that it was nearly three times as effective at helping people stop smoking than a placebo and had no effect on people's mental state.

Tsoi, Daniel Tai-Yin, Porwal, Mamta and Webster, Claire - Efficacy and safety of bupropion for smoking cessation and reduction in schizophrenia: systematic review and meta-analysis British Journal of Psychiatry May 2010, 196(5), 346-353

Psychosis - hearing the service users' stories

There has been lots of research into psychosis but relatively little of it has looked at the thoughts, feelings and life histories of the people who suffer from the condition. John Rhodes from the Willesden Mental Health Resources Centre in London and Simon Jakes from Campbelltown Hospital in New South Wales looked at 28 people's accounts of their illness. They were particularly interested in the ways in which the condition developed and whether this was related to any interpersonal difficulties the participants had been experiencing at the time. After studying the participants' accounts they came up with three patterns of onset: an eruptive, sudden transformation of oneself or one's world; a slow progressive onset characterised by interconnected changes in meaning and experience and an onset beginning in people's childhood experiences. Social difficulties were mentioned spontaneously by 17 of the participants and another 9 discussed them when asked. People who had developed psychosis gradually, or in their childhood, had felt negative emotion about, and been preoccupied with, a difficult interpersonal issue over a long time. The participants' stories suggested that certain ideas and images can take hold of a person, become interwoven into their thinking and start to influence the way they see the world and/or themselves. The authors conclude by suggesting that it is important for people trying to help those with delusions to get them to talk about how their condition started.

Rhodes, John and Jakes, Simon - Perspectives on the onset of delusions Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy March-April 2010, 17(2), 136-146

Picking up the pieces in Kosovo

Millions of people all over the world suffer from the psychological consequences of warfare and a large number of studies have reported high levels of psychological distress among civilian survivors of war. Researchers from the University of Amsterdam, the University of Connecticut and the Kosova Rehabilitation Centre for Torture Victims studied 67 people seeking treatment for war-related stress almost a decade after the conflict in Kosovo finished. The study found that the participants had been involved in 'multiple war-related traumatic events' and had high levels of mental-health problems. After treatment the participants reported no changes in post-traumatic stress symptoms or psychological wellbeing although they did show reduced levels of depression and 'overall psychiatric distress' and an improved quality of life. Those participants who improved after treatment were the ones who had been in less distress at the start of the study.

Morina, Nexhmedin ... [et al] - Psychopathology and well-being in civilian survivors of war seeking treatment: a follow-up study Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy March-April 2010, 17(2), 79-86

Mariposa by Sarah Coggrave

Sarah Coggrave has written a book about her experiences of suffering, and recovering from, an eating disorder.

Mariposa is a vivid, colourful and comprehensive account of Sarah Coggrave’s recovery from an eating disorder. Her art and writing paint an eclectic picture of a complex individual trying desperately to wrestle free from the evil voices inside her head. The book follows Sarah’s journey through hospital and then a specialist clinic as she totally transforms and rebuilds her life. Throughout she reflects with startling insight on the root of her problems and confesses her innermost thoughts and feelings. We hear the eating disorder speak...it is deafening in the beginning. However eventually it fades to little more than an inaudible whisper as Sarah finds her own voice.

You can find out more about the book at

http://chipmunkapublishing.co.uk/shop/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=1528

and, if you are on Facebook
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=288162502508&ref=mf

30 ways of dealing with stress

Christine Seivers has compiled a useful list of hints and tips for dealing with stress. You can find her top tips at

http://www.ekgtechniciantraining.org/blog/2010/30-best-stress-relievers/

Dreams, memory and learning

Dreams have been linked to prophesies and the unconscious welling up to the surface or dismissed as the brain's equivalent of a PC's screensaver but new research by scientists at the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston suggests that they may play an important part in learning and memory. The researchers studied 99 people who spent an hour training on a virtual maze. After their initial training the participants either had a nap or took part in quiet activities but stayed awake. When they attempted the maze again the participants who had stayed awake or who had had a nap but had not dreamt about the maze showed very little signs of improvement. However, those people who had dreamt about the maze showed 10 times the level of improvement of the other participants. The participants who dreamt about the maze were the ones who had done particularly poorly in their initial training.

http://psychcentral.com/news/2010/04/26/dreams-are-key-to-memory/13157.html

Premature babies, psychiatric problems

Advances in medical technology mean that many more premature babies now survive but such children have an increased risk of cognitive, neuromotor and sensory problems later in life. A study by British researchers, led by Samantha Johnson who works at University College London and the University of Nottingham, studied 219 children who were born extremely prematurely and followed them to see how they were getting on 11 years later. At the age of 11 almost a quarter of the children had a psychiatric disorder. The most frequent conditions were Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) (12%), emotional disorders (9%) and autism-spectrum disorders (8%).

http://psychcentral.com/news/2010/04/26/extreme-premies-at-risk-for-psych-disorder/13160.html

Sleep, drugs and social networks

Previous research has pointed to a link between poor sleep in children and an increased risk of drug use. Now new research from the University of California, San Diego has confirmed this and also suggests that bad sleep can spread throughout social networks. The study covered 8,349 children between year 7 and year 12 and found that children who slept less than seven hours a night were 19% more likely to take drugs. By mapping the social networks of the children the researchers found that the friends of children who slept badly were 29% more likely to sleep badly themselves. This influence carried on through up to four degrees of separation although it diminished as the connections between people got more remote. Lack of sleep is also linked to behavioural, cognitive and emotional problems and the study recommended that children got an average of between 8 1/2 and 9 1/4 hours sleep a night.

You can find out more about this research at

http://psychcentral.com/news/2010/04/26/sleep-deprivation-makes-teenagers-and-their-friends-more-likely-to-do-drugs/13177.html

Chocolate - not such a 'feelgood food'?

It is often thought that chocolate cheers people up but new research from the University of California, San Diego shows that people who regularly eat chocolate are more prone to depression. The researchers studied nearly 1,000 adults comparing their chocolate consumption and their levels of depression. Those who ate the most chocolate - more than six 28g bars a month - had the highest depression scores. It is not known whether depressed people eat chocolate to cheer themselves up or whether there is something in chocolate that makes people depressed.

You can find out more about this research at

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/8644016.stm

Personality, ageing and brain structure

Researchers from Washington University in St Louis have been looking into the links between people's personality and how their brain changes as they age. They gave MRI scans to 79 people between the ages of 44 and 88 who also took personality tests. Neuroticism - a tendency to see events in a negative or fearful light - was associated with lower volumes of grey matter in the frontal and medial temporal brain regions, whereas conscientiousness was associated with higher volumes. The same effects held true for a part of the brain called the orbitofrontal cortex which is involved in social and emotional processing. There was no clear link between levels of extroversion and changes in brain volume. It was unclear whether people's personalities affected how their brains changed with age or whether it was the changes to people's brains that affected their temperament.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/04/100426092809.htm?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+sciencedaily+%28ScienceDaily%3A+Latest+Science+News%29&utm_content=Google+Reader

CBT and IBS

A significant minority of people with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) respond rapidly to cognitive behaviour therapy and these benefits seem to be long-lasting. Researchers from the University at Buffalo, in New York, studied 71 people with IBS who received smaller or larger 'doses' of cognitive behaviour therapy (CBT). 30% of the sample could be classified as 'rapid responders' of whom 90-95% were still better after three months. Although the rapid responders had more symptoms at the start of the study they achieved a more substantial and sustained symptom reduction than non-rapid responders. Both 'doses' of CBT had comparable rates of rapid responders.

You can find out more about this research at

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/04/100427070846.htm?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+sciencedaily+%28ScienceDaily%3A+Latest+Science+News%29&utm_content=Google+Reader

Family depression and interpreting emotions

Children whose mothers are depressed are known to be more at risk of depression themselves. The way people react to the world around them is thought to be important in whether they develop depression or not and interpreting people's facial expressions is thought to be one of the most important factors in this. This American study of 85 girls between the ages of 9 and 14 compared 50 girls whose mothers had no depression with 35 girls whose mothers had had depression. None of the girls had had depression themselves. The girls were asked to judge emotions based on a subtly-changing computer image. The better the girls were at judging emotion the quicker they could work out what the expression was as it moved from neutral to happy, sad or angry. The daughters of the depressed mothers needed a bigger change before they could tell what the expression was and made more errors identifying angry expressions suggesting that this cognitive bias is one way in which depression can be 'transmitted' from mothers to children.

Joormann, Jutta, Gilbert, Kirsten and Gotlib, Ian H. - Emotion identification in girls at high risk for depression Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry May 2010, 51(5), 575-582

Parenting programmes - are they a long-term solution?

Parenting programmes like The Incredible Years have been proven to have good short-term effects but little research has been done into their long-term effectiveness or into what makes them effective, or not, in children diagnosed with 'conduct disorder' and 'oppositional defiant disorder.' Researchers from the Norwegian University of Science and Technology studied 54 children who had taken part in The Incredible Years programme following them up five or six years afterwards to see how they were getting on. 5-6 years later two-thirds of the children no longer had a diagnosis of 'conduct disorder' or 'oppositional defiant disorder.' The strongest predictors of whether children still had a diagnosis were if they lived only with their mother or if they were a girl.

Drugli, May Britt ... [et al] - Five-to six-year outcome and its prediction for children with ODD/CD treated with parent training Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry May 2010, 51(5), 559-566

What makes for a happy (very) old age?

Most developed countries have an aging population but what makes for a happy old age? People in Georgia, in the former Soviet Union, are known to live to a ripe old age and researchers from Iowa State University have been studying 158 centenarians there to see what makes them happy, or not. They found that past satisfaction with life was the key to happiness in old age. In a linked study of 78 octogenarians the researchers found that a diminished ability to solve everyday problems was a significant predictor of depression symptoms in the octogenarians although it was a loss of abilities rather than overall cognitive functioning that led to depression. For the centenarians living in a nursing home and having neurotic tendencies increased depression. Both groups worried about the direction the country was heading in and what kind of world they would leave for their grandchildren and great-grandchildren.

http://psychcentral.com/news/2010/04/12/happiness-and-depression-in-seniors/12781.html

Research shows true cost of caring

Researchers from Pennsylvania State University and the Benjamin Rose Institute in Cleveland, Ohio have been looking into the toll taken on people looking after someone with dementia, and their findings do not make cheerful reading. The study of 67 caregivers found that they frequently experienced overwhelming stress that could lead to breakdown and depression. Behaviour issues were a common source of stress as well as the feeling of losing a relationship with a family member and conflict with siblings or relatives. Around 4 million people in the U.S. care for someone with dementia and some people end up doing so for 15 or 20 years.

You can find out more about this research at

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/04/100422112641.htm?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+sciencedaily+%28ScienceDaily%3A+Latest+Science+News%29&utm_content=Google+Reader

Long road back to normality for borderline sufferers

Building a good social life and holding down a job can be tough for people with borderline personality disorder (BPD) even when their symptoms have disappeared. Mary Zanarini from McLean Hospital in Massachusetts followed 290 people with BPD over a decade to see how their condition changed; the participants in the study had all been inpatients at the hospital. 93% of the patients had had at least one 2-year break from BPD symptoms over the course of the study and 86% had had a four-year period without symptoms. However, only about half of the participants achieved 'full recovery' which was defined as a reprieve from symptoms lasting at least two years plus good social and vocational functioning. Of those who did recover about a third later redeveloped symptoms or once again struggled socially, or with their job.

http://uk.reuters.com/article/idUKTRE63L4RW20100422?feedType=RSS&feedName=healthNews

Losing parents and children's mental health

Children who lose a parent to suicide are more likely to commit suicide themselves and are also at a greater risk of other mental-health problems. Researchers from the Johns Hopkins Children's Center in Baltimore looked at suicides, psychiatric hospitalisations and violent-crime convictions over a period of 30 years in more than 500,000 Swedish children, teenagers and young adults who had lost a parent to suicide, illness or an accident and four million who hadn't. They found that those children who lost a parent to suicide as children or teenagers were three times more likely to kill themselves than children with living parents although there was no increase in risk for children who were eighteen or over when their parent committed suicide. Children whose parents had died in an accident were twice as likely to kill themselves as unaffected children but again the differences disappeared when children were older when they were bereaved. Children who lost a parent to illness did not have an increased risk of suicide. Children who lost parents to suicide were nearly twice as likely to be hospitalised for depression whereas those who lost their parents to accidents or illness had a 30-40% greater risk. Losing a parent for whatever reason increased a child's risk of committing a violent crime.

You can find out more about this research at

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/04/100421160013.htm?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+sciencedaily+%28ScienceDaily%3A+Latest+Science+News%29&utm_content=Google+Reader