The AP (8/30, Choi) reported that “when it comes to addressing the topic” of weight loss “with children, pediatricians and dietitians say there are best practices to consider.” According to experts, “the key is to approach the subject with kindness and caring, and avoid blaming any of the child’s behaviors.” In addition, youngsters should “understand that any changes would be intended to make them feel better, and not about how they look.” The AP added, “Any adjustments to meals and activities should involve the entire family, so children don’t feel singled out.” Parents should also frame changes “in a positive light.” Stephen Pont, an associate professor of pediatrics at the University of Texas Dell Medical School, said, “Guilt and blame are not good motivators for change.”

Related Links:

— “As with adults, no easy way to address weight with children, “Candice Choi, AP, August 30, 2019

Psychiatric News (8/30) reported, “The more seasons that NFL players spend playing in the league, the greater their risk of cognitive problems and depression,” researchers concluded after analyzing “responses of 3,506 former NFL players (average age 53 years) to a survey sent by mail or email.” The findings were published online Aug. 30 in the American Journal of Sports Medicine.

Related Links:

— “More Seasons of NFL Play May Be Associated With Increased Risk of Cognitive Problems, Depression, Psychiatric News, August 30, 2019

Reuters (8/29, Joseph) reports, “Suicidal thinking, severe depression and rates of self-injury among U.S. college students more than doubled over less than a decade,” research indicated. After examining “data from two large annual surveys of college undergraduates covering the years 2007-2018, researchers found a broad worsening of mental health indicators including depression overall, anxiety, low flourishing and suicidal planning and attempts, particularly in the second half of the study period.” The findings were published online July 3 in the Journal of Adolescent Health

Related Links:

— “Depression, anxiety rising among U.S. college students, “Saumya Joseph, Reuters, August 29, 2019

Psychiatric News (8/29) reports, “Roughly 30% of people who participate in studies of in-person psychosocial treatment programs for substance use disorders (SUDs) drop out,” researchers concluded in a 151-study meta-analysis that encompassed “a total of 26,243 participants.” The findings were published online Aug. 27 in the journal Addiction.

Related Links:

— “1 of 3 Study Participants Found to Drop Out of SUD Treatment Studies, , August 29, 2019

Healio (8/29, Demko) reports, “Individuals whose childhood” attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (AD/HD) “persists into adulthood appear to be at increased risk for motor vehicle crashes,” researchers concluded after examining “the risk for motor vehicle crashes…in 441 adults with” AD/HD and “239 controls without” the disorder. The findings were published online Aug. 22 in the Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry.

Related Links:

— “Adult ADHD persistence may increase car crash risk, “Savannah Demko, Healio, August 29, 2019

STAT (8/28, Robbins) reports the FDA “has been quietly pressuring a handful of companies to stop reporting results to patients about how their genes may interact with specific drugs.” The agency is concerned that “amid a boom in genetic testing that aims to predict a person’s response to medication,…unsupported claims about gene-drug links could be dangerous, if they spur patients to start, stop, or switch medications in ways that aren’t appropriate.” The article highlights several examples of companies that have fallen under the FDA’s new scrutiny of pharmacogenetic testing.

Related Links:

— “FDA warns testing companies: Don’t tell patients how their DNA influences response to specific drugs, “Rebecca Robbins, STAT, August 28, 2019

The Wall Street Journal (8/28, Petersen, Subscription Publication) reports physicians are increasingly concerned that patients taking antidepressants may be subjecting themselves to unnecessary side effects and risks over the long term. Research indicated that people taking such medications were at a 14 percent higher risk of strokes and heart attacks, and a 33 percent higher risk of death.

Related Links:

— “New Concerns Emerge About Long-Term Antidepressant Use, “Andrea Petersen, The Wall Street Journal, August 28, 2019

Reuters (8/28, Emery) reports, “The combined results of 61 studies conducted in 19 countries suggest that when a woman gives birth by cesarean section, autism in the child is 33% more likely and the odds of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder” (AD/HD) “increase by 17%.” The findings of the systematic review and meta-analysis were published online in JAMA Network Open.

According to Healio (8/28, Demko), even though investigators “reported similar estimates for some other neurodevelopmental and psychiatric outcomes – including intellectual disabilities, obsessive-compulsive disorders, tic disorders and eating disorders – the associations were not statistically significant, possibly due to the limited number of studies.

Related Links:

— “Possible link between C-section and autism, ADHD, “Gene Emery, Reuters, August 28, 2019

Psychiatric News (8/28) reports, “As the percentage of U.S. adults older than 65 years continues to grow, so too does the need for preventing mental illness among older adults as well as improving clinical services and outcomes for older patients with psychiatric disorders,” posited “psychiatrists Warren D. Taylor, M.D., M.H.Sc., of Vanderbilt University Medical Center and Charles F. Reynolds III, M.D., of the University of Pittsburgh in” a viewpoint published online Aug. 28 in JAMA Psychiatry.

Related Links:

— “Psychiatrists Offer Recommendations to Help Older Adults With Mental Disorders, Psychiatric News, August 28, 2019

Healio (8/27, Demko) reports, “Differences between individuals with autism and those without have lessened over time, which may be tied to changes in diagnostic practices,” researchers concluded in an 11-study meta-analysis that “included data on 27,723 individuals.” The findings were published online Aug. 21 in JAMA Psychiatry.

Related Links:

— “Effect sizes of studies comparing individuals with, without autism decrease over time, “Savannah Demko, Healio, August 27, 2019