Healio (3/12, Kellner ) reports a meta-analysis found that “greater e-cigarette accessibility and use appeared to be associated with lower rates of smoking among young people.” A systematic review “of 126 studies evaluating the relationship between e-cigarette use and smoking among people aged 29 years or younger” concluded that “most population-level studies demonstrated that e-cigarette availability led to lower rates of smoking.” In contrast, nearly “all individual-level studies revealed a link between current vaping and future smoking among young people, but the researchers noted it was unclear whether there was a causal relationship.” Overall, the researchers “noted that their conclusions were based on very low certainty evidence and future research could yield different results,” but said the “study findings suggest that vaping may not increase smoking across populations of young people.” Findings from the analysis were published in Addiction.

Related Links:

— “Analysis suggests e-cigarette use may be linked to lower rates of smoking,” Sara Kellner, Healio, March 12, 2025

The New York Times (3/12, Hoffman ) reports Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration staff “could be cut by 50 percent” by the end of the week, according to senior staff officials. The federal agency’s “broad mandate includes overseeing 988, the National Suicide and Crisis Lifeline,” as well as “regulating outpatient clinics that dispense opioid treatment drugs such as methadone” and “directing funds to drug courts.” It also “provides best-practice training and resources for hundreds of nonprofits and state agencies” and acts as a “federal watchdog that closely monitors the spending of taxpayer-funded grants for mental health and addiction.” Rates of US overdose fatalities remain high, but they “have been declining consistently since 2023. Many drug policy experts say SAMHSA is the federal agency most directly responsible.” In interviews, current and former SAMHSA staff warn “the threat posed by layoffs and policy shifts is beginning to be felt at sites everywhere, from the heart of troubled city neighborhoods to rural outposts.”

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— “The New York Times (requires login and subscription)

Healio (3/11, Herpen) reports data suggest that “an increase in depressive symptoms was observed among U.S. teenagers without, rather than with, behavioral risk factors, underscoring the need for greater screening in this population.” Results show that “depressive symptoms rose as much or more from 2007 to 2021 among students engaging in few or no risk behaviors as students who did engage in such behaviors, with the trend observed for both boys and girls.” Researchers found that “depressive symptoms increased in high school students from 28.4% in 2007 to 42.3% in 2021,” noting the “largest increases occurred among girls and non-Hispanic white students.” The data were published in The Lancet Regional Health Americas.

Related Links:

— “Depressive symptoms rising faster in US teens who do not engage in risk behaviors,” Robert Herpen, MA, Healio, March 11, 2025

Psychiatric News (3/11) reports a study found that “patients with private insurance who saw behavioral health professionals went out-of-network for their care more often than their peers who received care from medical or surgical health professionals.” Researchers observed that “across all settings, patients with substance use disorder (SUD) were most likely to go out-of-network for care, followed by those with a mental disorder and those who received medical or surgical care.” The study was published in Psychiatric Services.

Related Links:

— “Out-of-Network Care More Common in Substance Use, Mental Disorder Treatment,” Psychiatric News, March 11, 2025

Psychiatric News (3/10) reports a study found that “alexithymia – a condition associated with difficulty in identifying and describing one’s own emotions – may be a strong influence in how much sensory sensitivity people with autism spectrum disorder experience.” The researchers “conducted a series of modeling analyses to examine the interaction between the severity of alexithymia, sensory issues, and/or autism in” twin pairs in which at least one twin had autism. The analysis “found a strong correlation between autism and sensory symptoms; however, after controlling for alexithymia, the association between autism and sensory symptoms was no longer significant. In contrast, the correlation between alexithymia and sensory symptoms was significant, even after factoring in the influence of autism.” They concluded, “This suggests that alexithymia and sensory processing share genetic factors, independent of those that increase the likelihood of autism.” The study was published in Translational Psychiatry.

Related Links:

— “Sensory Sensitivity in People With Autism May Be Due to Emotional Blindness,” Psychiatric News, March10 , 2025

Healio (3/10, Jenkins ) reports early study results suggest that “people who engage in moderate to vigorous physical activity may be less likely to develop dementia, stroke, anxiety, depression and sleep disorders compared with those with more sedentary behavior.” Researchers found that “moderate to vigorous physical activity had a strong protective effect on neuropsychiatric diseases…whereas more sedentary time was a risk factor.” They stated, “Our findings reinforce a dose-response relationship between physical activity and health benefits, supporting public health guidelines and highlighting exercise as a cost-effective and accessible preventive strategy, particularly for high-risk populations.” Preliminary results from the study will be presented at the American Academy of Neurology’s Annual Meeting.

Related Links:

— “Exercise tied to reduced risk for some neuropsychiatric diseases,” Cassandra Jenkins, Healio, March 10, 2025 — Free registration required

Psychiatric News (3/7) reported a study found that “girls who experience childhood trauma are at a higher risk of developing internalizing symptoms like depression and anxiety by ages 12 to 14, an association that is partially explained by starting puberty ahead of their peers.” Researchers found that “early starters had significantly higher exposure to trauma at baseline compared with slow or typical developers, while slow developers had lower trauma exposure compared with typical developers. Slow developers also had significantly lower internalizing symptoms compared with early starters and typical developers.” The studywas published in The Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry.

Related Links:

— “Childhood Trauma, Early Puberty Associated With Internalizing Symptoms in Girls,” Psychiatric News, March 7, 2025

MedPage Today (3/7, Monaco ) reported that a large systematic review and meta-analysis found that “about 40% of adults with chronic pain had clinical symptoms of depression and anxiety.” Researchers found that “as for formal diagnoses, 36.7% of people with chronic pain met criteria for major depressive disorder (MDD), and 16.7% met criteria for generalized anxiety disorder (GAD).” They noted these rates were “markedly higher than population norms,” which are about “8% and 3%, respectively, for U.S. adult population prevalence.” In addition, “6.3% of chronic pain sufferers met diagnostic criteria for persistent depressive disorder, 7.5% for panic disorder, and 2.2% for social anxiety disorder.” The study was published in JAMA Network Open.

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— MedPage Today (requires login and subscription)

HealthDay (3/6, Thompson ) reports a study found that “chronic stress can increase young women’s risk of stroke.” Researchers asked participants aged 18 to 49 to complete “a 10-question survey about their stress levels, and stroke patients were asked to recall the stress they’d faced in the month prior to their stroke.” They found that “stroke patients were more likely to have at least moderate stress levels.” And “about 46% had moderate or high stress levels, compared to 33% of those who hadn’t suffered a stroke.” After researchers adjusted “for other factors that affect stroke risk,” they determined “that moderate stress was associated with a 78% increased risk of stroke in women. They did not find a link between stress and stroke in men, however.” The study was published in Neurology.

Related Links:

— “Chronic Stress Boosts Stroke Risk In Young Women,” Dennis Thompson, HealthDay, March 6, 2025

Healio (3/6, Mahoney ) reports a study found that “patients with glaucoma appeared to have poorer general health, mental health and quality of life, with more severe visual field impairment linked to worsening physical health outcomes.” Prior research had shown “that the progression of glaucoma, fear of blindness and limitations in performing daily activities lead to reduced quality of life (QoL) and mental health conditions such as anxiety and depression.” Researchers concluded, “Our findings underscore the importance of considering the psychological aspects of glaucoma management, particularly for patients with more advanced visual field loss.” The study was published in Cureus.

Related Links:

— “Glaucoma associated with poorer mental health, quality of life,” Moira Mahoney, Healio, March 6, 2025