Psychologists urge therapy before antidepressants
(CBS News) About 1 out of 10 Americans report having depression, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. While prescription medication is one way to treat the symptoms, the American Psychological Association (APA) is urging people in new videos to consider an alternative form of treatment first, psychotherapy.
"By arming people with information, APA is encouraging those with symptoms of depression or anxiety to ask their primary-care practitioners about psychotherapy as a first course of treatment," Dr. Katherine Nordal, executive director for professional practice at the American Psychological Association, told CBSNews.com by email. "We want Americans to know that when it comes to treating depression and anxiety, they have choices about treatment, and psychotherapy is one of them."
The National Institutes of Health calls depression one of the top 10 chronic health problems in the United States, affecting more than 14 million people. The National Healthcare Quality Report reported that mental health problems accounted for 156 million visits to the doctors' offices, clinics and hospital outpatient departments in 2005.
Continue »Mom's depression may affect kid's height
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A study found that kids of mothers who had postpartum depression were more likely to be shorter than their classmates.
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"Mothers with higher levels of depressive symptoms in the first year postpartum were more likely to have children who were shorter in stature in preschool and kindergarten age," study author Dr. Pamela Surkan, assistant professor at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, in Baltimore, said to HealthDay. "This study points to another reason why it's really important for mothers to get help for depression during the postpartum period."
Jesse Jackson Jr's diagnosis sheds light on "bipolar II"
In this March 20, 2012 file photo, U.S. Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr., D-Ill., thanks supporters at his primary election night party in Chicago. His family received a statement through the Mayo Clinic on Monday, August 13, 2012, announcing the congressman was being treated for bipolar II depression.
/ AP Photo/M. Spencer Green"Following extensive evaluation, Congressman Jesse Jackson, Jr. is undergoing treatment for Bipolar II depression," the statement read. "Congressman Jackson is responding well to the treatment and regaining his strength."
The congressman had asked the Mayo Clinic to distribute his diagnostic information on his behalf. He's been out of the public eye since a June 10 leave of absence; earlier this month the congressman's office announced he was being treated for depression at the Mayo Clinic.
Bipolar disorder is a mental health condition in which people fluctuate between periods of clinical depression and periods of very good or irritable mood, referred to as mania. These "mood swings" between depression and mania can be very quick.
There are three types of the disorder according to the National Institutes of Health. When people think of the popularized emotional extremes of the disorder, they may be thinking of what used to be called "manic depression" and is now known as bipolar disorder type I. Bipolar type I occurs when a person experiences at least one manic episode and periods of depression.
Bipolar disorder type II on the other hand is in people who never experienced full mania - instead they alternate between depression and periods of high energy and or impulsiveness that are not as extreme as mania, called "hypomania."
Symptoms of hypomanic episodes include flying suddenly from one idea to the next, rapid, pressured loud speech, increased energy with a decreased need for sleep and generally seeming like the "life of the party," WebMD reports. Other signs include making jokes or taking an intense interest in other people and displaying an infectious positive attitude. That however may lead to engaging in impulsive behaviors that may risk a person's health.
A third kind of bipolar disorder is milder and exhibits less severe mood swings, and is called cyclothymia. People who suffer from either bipolar II disorder or cyclothymia may be wrongly diagnosed as having depression, according to the NIH.
In the statement, the Mayo Clinic said bipolar II affects parts of the brain that control for emotion, thought and drive and "is most likely caused by a complex set of genetic and environmental factors."
Having blood relatives with bipolar disorder, being in your early 20's, experiencing periods of high stress, abusing drugs or alcohol and going through a major life change like the death of a loved one may raise risk for developing bipolar disorder, according to the Mayo Clinic's bipolar disorder website.
According to the Clinic, people with bipolar II may have some changes in their functioning but typically can carry on with their normal daily routine. The clinic also said people with bipolar II have periods of depression that typically last longer than periods of hypomania.
Hypomania may not cause unhealthy behavior and as such may go unnoticed or untreated, according to WebMD, whereas mania indicative of bipolar disorder type I may require hospitalization or medications.
Treatment varies by individual, but mood stabilizers such as Lithium, Depakote and Lamictal may be prescribed to prevent consequences of a hypomanic episode, in addition to antipsychotic drugs like Abilify and Risperdal, and benzodiazepines like Xanax, Ativan and Valium.
Antidepressants Seroquel and Seroquel XR are FDA-approved to treat bipolar disorder type II depression, reports WebMD, but other common antidepressants like Prozac, Zoloft and Paxil are sometimes prescribed. Therapy sessions may also be beneficial for people with the disorder.
The clinic's statement also noted that Jackson had previously underwent gastric bypass surgery in 2004, which it said can change how the body absorbs food, liquids, vitamins, nutrients and medications.
The statement was later revised Monday afternoon to say the congressman specifically underwent a duodenal switch, which could lead to those changes in absorption.
In that procedure, a larger portion of the stomach is left intact as would be left from a gastric bypass, including the pyloric valve that regulates draining of contents from the stomach into the small intestine. The duodenum is divided near this valve, and the small intestine is also divided. The lower portion of small intestine is attached to the newly shortened duodenal segment while the remaining duodenal segment is connected to the pancreas and gallbladder, restricting food intake and calorie and nutrient absorption by the small intestine.
Dr. Jaime Ponce, president of the American Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery, told The Associated Press there is no evidence that a duodenal switch can cause bipolar disorder. She said a deficiency of the nutrient thiamine can cause a brain condition that may mimic bipolar disorder, but "bipolar disorder is totally different."
Study: Hair-loss drug linked to sucidal thoughts
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"The potential life-threatening side-effects associated with finasteride should prompt clinicians to have serious discussions with their patients," Dr. Michael S. Irwig, an assistant professor of medicine in the division of endocrinology at the George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences, said in the press release.
Finasteride is used to treat male pattern hair loss - the thinning of the hair on the scalp leading to a receding hairline or balding on the top of the head - according to the National Institutes of Health. It can also be used to treat benign prostatic hypertrophy or enlargement of the prostate gland - under the brand name Proscar -which can cause problems such as frequent and difficult urination and the sudden inability to urinate. The type looked at in the study was finasteride as found in Propecia. Both Propecia and Proscar are manufactured by Merck.
Continue »Brain scans of hoarders show abnormal patterns
This image is from the Witch Wells, Az. home of a hoarder who was found with approximately 200 dogs, 50 cats and several chickens, ducks and pigs.
/ Kathy Milani/The HSUSAbout 5 percent of the world's population are clinical hoarders, according to the International OCD Foundation, saving objects ranging from food wrappers, old newspapers to animals because they simply can't let go of them.
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New research examines the brains of people with compulsive hoarding to find out what leads them to this behavior which can often lead to unsanitary and dangerous living conditions.
Continue »Mild psychological distress may lead to an early death
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The study, published July 31 online in the British Medical Journal (BMJ), looked at death risk in 68,000 adults over 35 who were involved in previous studies from 1994 to 2004. Reviewing mental health surveys given to the study participants along with mortality data, the researchers and found those with mental health issues were more likely to die than their stress-free counterparts.
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The greater the level of psychological distress, the more likely a person was to die of heart disease, cancer or even external causes of death like accidents and injuries.
Continue »Psychological abuse as harmful as physical for kids
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Spanking, physical punishment may raise risk for mental health woes in adult years
A clinical report from child abuse experts, published July 30 in Pediatrics, says that psychological abuse can be as damaging to a young child's physical, mental and emotional health as some forms of physical abuse. What's more, such abuse is often under-reported and hard to detect since there are no visible abrasions or bruises, the researchers said, making it potentially the most prevalent form of child abuse and neglect.
Continue »Study: Suicide rates among army soldiers up
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(CBS News) - A report published in Injury Prevention shows that suicide rates among U.S. Army personnel increased 80 percent between 2004 and 2008. Out of the 255 soldiers who had committed suicide between 2007 to 2008, 17 percent of the soldiers had previously been diagnosed with a mental health problem. Fifty percent had visited a health professional for a mental issue.
Continue »Combat vets' kids more prone to violence: Study
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(CBS/AP) When parents ship off to war, their kids back home become more violent - girls as well as boys. That's the apparent message of new research showing that children of parents in the military are more than twice as likely to carry a weapon, join a gang, or be involved in fights.
"This study raises serious concerns about an under-recognized consequence of war," said Sarah Reed, who led the research of military families in Washington state.
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Eating disorders may be common among women over 50
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(CBS News) Eating disorders are becoming a big problem for older women, according to new research.
A study from the Eating Disorders Program at the University of North Carolina School of Medicine found more than 60 percent of women over 50 said their body weight or shape negatively affected their lives. For some of the women, the problem went beyond unhappiness and resulted in signs of eating disorders such as bulimia.
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"There's this stereotype that eating disorders affect mainly adolescent and young adult women, but that's not what I've been hearing on the street and that's not what we've been seeing in the clinic," study author Dr. Cynthia Bulik, director of UNC's Eating Disorders Program, told CBS This Morning.
Continue »Loneliness may lead to a shorter lifespan
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(CBS News) Loneliness may lead to a shorter lifespan, two new studies suggest.
The studies, published in the June 18 issue of the Archives of Internal Medicine, found that living alone or feeling alone can be especially debilitating to aging adults and may lead to serious health problems, even death.
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American women may be more stressed than men
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(CBS News) What's the recipe for a stress-filled life? According to new research, being young, a woman, having a low education level and/or having low income represent the most stressed individuals in the United States.
A new study, published in the Journal of Applied Psychology in the June 2012 issue, marks the first time scientists have been able to track the level of stress across the U.S. over time. Self-reported stress levels increased between 10 and 30 percent over all demographic categories between 1983 and 2009.
"We know that stress contributes to poorer health practices, increased risk for disease, accelerated disease progression and increased mortality," study author Dr. Sheldon Cohen, the Robert E. Doherty Professor of Psychology at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, Pa., said in the press release. "Differences in stress between demographics may be important markers of populations under increased risk for physical and psychological disorders."
Continue »Omega-3 may provide no cognitive benefit
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Looking at research from three large studies of over 3,500 people, scientists discovered that individuals who took omega-3 for up to 3.5 years didn't see an increase in memory, mental skills or verbal skills. The research was published in The Cochrane Library on June 13.
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"From these studies, there doesn't appear to be any benefit for cognitive health for older people of taking omega-3 supplements," Dr. Alan Dangour, a nutritionist at LSHTM and co-author of the report, said in the press release. "However, these were relatively short-term studies, so we saw very little deterioration in cognitive function in either the intervention groups or the control groups. It may take much longer to see any effect of these supplements."
Continue »Anxiety causes women's brains to work harder
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The National Institute of Mental Health reports that women are 60 percent more likely than men to experience an anxiety disorder over their lifetime. Overall, about 22.8 percent of all people with anxiety disorders in the U.S. are classified as severe. The average age of onset of the symptoms starts as young as 11 years old.
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About 40 million Americans suffer from an anxiety disorder, according to the Anxiety and Depression Association of America. Women are also more likely to have multiple psychiatric disorders at once, and depression often occurs in individuals who have anxiety.
Continue »Phone therapy sessions might help depressed people
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(CBS News) Depressed individuals who have a hard time going to therapy session might still benefit from talking to a therapist on the phone.
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While psychotherapy might be an effective way to treat depression and a preferred method over taking medication for many, sometimes it can be hard to continually attend the in-person sessions because of logistic, personal and emotional problems.
Now, a study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association on June 6 shows that talking to a therapist on the phone might be as effective as showing up at their office - and could possibly be better since people were more likely to continue therapy if they just had to make a call.
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