TIME (2/20, Park) reports Swedish researchers found that “mentally stimulating activities and physical exercise can independently lower people’s chances of developing many types of dementia, as well as Alzheimer’s disease.”

MedPage Today (2/20, George) reports, “Women who frequently engaged in cognitive activities – including artistic endeavors, reading, needlework, or social clubs – when they were ages 38 to 54 years were 46% less likely to develop Alzheimer’s disease in late life and 34% less likely to develop dementia,” researchers concluded in a “longitudinal study that spanned 44 years.” MedPage Today adds, “At multiple points in the study, psychiatrists or psychiatric research nurses performed neuropsychiatric examinations, using criteria from the” American Psychiatric Association’s “Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Third Edition Revised (DSM-III-R).”

HealthDay (2/20, Thompson) reports in the 800-woman study, researchers also found that “higher levels of physical activity reduced the risk of more vascular forms of dementia, regardless of how mentally active the women were,” whereas greater “levels of mental activity in midlife reduced the risk of Alzheimer’s disease, regardless of how physically active the women were.” The findings were published online Feb. 20 in Neurology. Also covering the study are Newsweek (2/20, Gander) and Healio (2/20, Tedesco).

Related Links:

— “Doing Physical and Mental Exercise When You’re Younger May Help Ward Off Dementia, “Alice Park, TIME, February 20, 2019

The AP (2/14, Neergaard) reports that researchers in a study “used a new technique to scan the brains of living people – and discovered that patients with depression had a lower density of synapses than healthy people the same age.” The AP adds, “The lower the density, the more severe the depression symptoms, particularly problems with attention and loss of interest in previously pleasurable activities, Yale neuroscientist Irina Esterlis said…at a meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science.” The article does not disclose the number of study participants.

Related Links:

— “Researchers find clues that depression may speed brain aging, “Lauran Neergaard , AP, February 14, 2019

The AP (2/14, Alonso-Zaldivar) reports that on Thursday, HHS officials said “Medicare wants to change how it pays for emergency ambulance services to give seniors more options besides going to a hospital emergency department.” Alternatives “could include going to an urgent care center, a doctor’s office, or even treatment at home under supervision of a doctor via telehealth links.” The article says this is only “a pilot project for now, but if adopted nationwide, the idea could save Medicare more than $500 million a year.”

Modern Healthcare (2/14, King, Subscription Publication) reports that the pilot would only “apply to Medicare fee-for-service beneficiaries.” The piece adds that HHS expects to request “applications to participate in the model by summer 2019.”

Related Links:

— “Medicare ambulance rides may no longer end up at ER, “Ricardo Alonso-Zaldivar, AP, February 14, 2019

The New York Times (2/13, Reynolds) reports, “Jogging for 15 minutes a day, or walking or gardening for somewhat longer, could help protect people against developing depression,” researchers concluded in a study published online Jan. 23 in JAMA Psychiatry. For the study, investigators turned “to the UK Biobank, an enormous database of genetic and health information for almost 400,000 men and women.” Next, the study team “identified people who carried at least one of several gene variants believed to increase the likelihood someone will be active. Most of those people were active, and few of them had experienced depression.” Using “Mendelian randomization,” the study authors found that, “statistically, the ideal amount of exercise to prevent depression started at about 15 minutes a day of running or other strenuous exercise,” while “less-taxing activities like fast walking, housework and so on also afforded protection against depression, but it took about an hour a day to have an effect.”

Related Links:

— “Exercise May Help to Fend Off Depression, ” Gretchen Reynolds, The New York Times, February 13, 2019

Reuters (2/13, Kate, Kelland) reports researchers found in a medical literature review that “teenagers who use cannabis have a higher risk of developing depression and suicidal thoughts as young adults and should be made aware of those risks by parents and” physicians. The findings were published online Feb. 13 in JAMA Psychiatry.

The Philadelphia Inquirer (2/13, Pattani) reports researchers “reviewed data from nearly a dozen studies that included more than 23,000 people,” and “found that marijuana use in adolescence is linked with an increased risk of depression, as well as suicidal thoughts and attempts, before age 32.” The article adds that “the researchers concluded that about 400,000 cases of adolescent depression in the U.S. are potentially attributable to marijuana.”

Healio (2/13, Demko) reports Gabriella Gobbi, MD, PhD, of McGill University’s department of psychiatry, one of the study’s authors, said, “Little attention has been specifically paid in the public health discourse as to the impact of adolescent cannabis use on the risk of developing depressive symptoms and mood disorders, even though researchers have published on this topic since the 1970s. The adolescent brain is indeed still under development and psychotropic drugs used at this time may thus alter the physiological neurodevelopment, especially of the frontal cortex and limbic system.”

Also covering the study are HealthDay (2/13, Gordon), Newsweek (2/13, Gander), U.S. News & World Report (2/13, Lardieri), BBC News Online (UK) (2/13), The Guardian (UK) (2/13, Davis), and the Telegraph (UK) (2/13, Donnelly).

Related Links:

— “Teen cannabis use linked to higher risk of adolescent depression, “Kate, Kelland, Reuters, February 13, 2019

The Wall Street Journal (2/12, Subscription Publication) reports that if veterans do not have honorable discharges, they have to wait around four years before even signing up for benefits or healthcare because they have to wait for the VA to determine whether or not they are still considered veterans. Such veterans often exhibited characteristic behaviors attributed to PTSD, and due to these actions, their ability to receive VA healthcare and other benefits is put into peril.

Related Links:

— “He Has a Purple Heart, but the VA Wouldn’t Call Him a Veteran, “Rose Carmen Goldberg, The Wall Street Journal, February 12, 2019

The New York Times (2/12, Belluck) reports the United States Preventive Services Task Force issued a recommendation for cognitive behavioral and interpersonal therapy as preventive measures against perinatal depression. More serious than postpartum depression, perinatal depression impacts between 180,000 and 800,000 US women annually during pregnancy or after, and has health implications for both mother and child. The USPSTF “recommended counseling for women with one or more of a broad range of risk factors, including a personal or family history of depression; recent stresses like divorce or economic strain; traumatic experiences like domestic violence; or depressive symptoms that don’t constitute a full-blown diagnosis.” The recommendation was published in JAMA.

The Wall Street Journal (2/12, Abbott, Subscription Publication) reports most insurance plans must follow guidelines issued by the USPSTF, and therefore per the recommendation, preventive therapy for at-risk pregnant women or new mothers should be covered without a copay. Moreover, previous recommendations have focused attention on women already experiencing signs of depression, while the new recommendation targets at-risk women for preventive interventions.

The AP (2/12) reports perinatal depression impacts as many as one in seven women. Meanwhile, “an accompanying editorial cautions that most women won’t have easy access to specialists and may need options such as counseling via smartphone.”

The New York Times (2/12, Belluck) separately posts a guide to using the recommendations and how and where to get help for potential perinatal depression.

Related Links:

— “Depression During and After Pregnancy Can Be Prevented, National Panel Says. Here’s How, “Pam Belluck, The New York Times, February 12, 2019

The Washington Post (2/11, McGinley) reports the Food and Drug Administration announced that it plans to increase oversight of the dietary supplements industry due to increased risks to customers, including “unlisted drug ingredients, and false and misleading claims about health benefits.” The FDA “underscored the need for greater oversight by announcing it had sent 12 warning letters and five advisory letters earlier this month to companies the FDA said are selling dozens of products that contain unapproved drugs or make illegal claims for treating Alzheimer’s and other serious diseases.”

The New York Times (2/11, B6, Kaplan) reports FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb “suggested that Congress strengthen the F.D.A.’s authority over” the supplements “industry, which sells as many as 80,000 kinds of powders and pills with little federal scrutiny.” During an interview, Gottlieb said, “People haven’t wanted to touch this framework or address this space in, really, decades and I think it’s time we do it.” Gottlieb said he was especially concerned about supplements that claim to cure diseases, which may prevent or delay people from seeking medical treatment, saying, “We know there are effective therapies that can help patients with Alzheimer’s. But unproven supplements that claim to treat the disease but offer no benefits can prevent patients from seeking otherwise effective care.”

Related Links:

— “FDA launches tougher oversight of supplements, ” Laurie McGinley, The Washington Post, February 11, 2019

Reuters (2/11, Rapaport) reports, “Roughly in six U.S. kids have at least one mental [illness], and only about half of them receive treatment from a mental health professional,” researchers found.

HealthDay (2/11, Gordon) reports investigators arrived at this conclusion after examining survey data “from a nationally representative group of more than 50,000 children under 18 years of age.” The findingswere published online Feb. 11 in a research letter in JAMA Pediatrics.

Related Links:

— “One in six U.S. kids have mental health disorders, “Lisa Rapaport, Reuters, February 11, 2019

Reuters (2/8, Banerjee) reports a new study suggests that “youth suicides happen more often in U.S. states with high rates of household gun ownership.” Specifically, data show that “in the 10 states with the highest youth suicide rates, 53 percent of households owned guns.” In contrast, results show that “in the 10 states with the lowest youth suicide rates, only 20 percent of households owned guns.” The findings were published in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine.

Related Links:

— “More youth suicides seen in states with high gun ownership rates, “Ankur Banerjee, Reuters, February 8, 2019