Psychiatric News (12/27) reports, “A volunteer program that engages lonely older adults in delivering psychosocial interventions to other lonely older adults benefited the volunteers themselves by reducing their loneliness, stress, and depressive symptoms and increasing their social engagement, according to study.” Researchers found that “volunteers reported medium-sized reductions in their loneliness on the UCLA and De Long Gierveld scales compared with the control group.”

Additionally, “the volunteer group reported increased engagement with their social network (small effect), decreased perceived stress (medium effect), and depressive symptoms after six months (small effect).” The findings were published in the American Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry.

Related Links:

— “Older Volunteers Delivering Loneliness Interventions Found to Be Less Lonely Themselves,” APA Psychiatric News Alert, December 27, 2023

The New York Times (12/28, Caron, G. Smith) reports, “Since the height of the pandemic, there has been a cultural shift in the way we talk about mental health.” And “now that we’re paying more attention to our inner lives, it’s also essential that we take action.

Fortunately, there are a number of things that everyone can do to nourish their mental health and find moments of joy.” The Times outlines several “tips from the past year” to do so “as we prepare to enter 2024.” For example, while “it’s normal to feel anxious from time to time,” having “some anxiety can actually be useful.”

When asked “how much anxiety is too much,” American Psychiatric Association President Petros Levounis, MD, MA, said, “If you start to notice that worry and fear are there constantly, that is a signal that you need some help.”

Related Links:

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

HealthDay (12/27, Thompson) reports, “A rising tide of cannabis-related mental health problems is resulting from the widespread legalization of recreational weed in the United States, warns a new evidence review.” Researchers found that “nearly one in five Americans aged 12 and older used marijuana in 2021, and more than 16 million meet the criteria for a diagnosis of cannabis use disorder.” Additionally, “nearly half of those with cannabis use disorder have another psychiatric condition like anxiety, major depression or post-traumatic stress disorder, said review author Dr. David Gorelick.” The findings were published in the New England Journal of Medicine.

Related Links:

— “Marijuana Use Increasingly Linked to Addiction, Psychosis,” Dennis Thompson, HealthDay, December 27, 2023

MedPage Today (12/26, George) reports, “Four new risk factors for young-onset dementia were identified in the prospective U.K. Biobank study.” According to the findings, “orthostatic hypotension, vitamin D deficiency, high C-reactive protein levels, and social isolation emerged as new risk factors for dementia before age 65.” The results were published in JAMA Neurology.

Related Links:

— MedPage Today (requires login and subscription)

mHealth Intelligence (12/26, Vaidya) reports, “Psychiatrists were the top users of telehealth in 2022, with 83 percent saying they had conducted a video visit the week prior in an American Medical Association survey.” Notably, “54.1 percent of psychiatrists conducted more than 20 percent of their visits through videoconferencing, and 27.2 percent conducted more than 60 percent of their visits through this method in 2022.”

Related Links:

— “Psychiatrists’ Telehealth Use ‘Well Above’ Other Specialists,” Anuja Vaidya, mHealth Intelligence, December 26, 2023

HealthDay (12/26, Mundell) reports, “Even after they’ve experienced episodes of psychosis, many young people who use marijuana are unsure they want to quit the drug, new research shows.” The findings were published in Early Intervention in Psychiatry.

Related Links:

— “Many Young People at Risk for Psychosis Are Torn About Using Marijuana,” Ernie Mundell, HealthDay, December 26, 2023

HCPlive (12/22, Derman) reported, “Parents with psychiatric disorders have a higher likelihood of passing down psychiatric disorders to their children, according to a new study.” The findings were published in JAMA Network Open.

Related Links:

— “Parents Pass Down Psychiatric Conditions Due to a General Psychopathology Factor,” Chelsie Derman, HCPLive, December 22, 2023

HealthDay (12/26, Thompson) reports, “Three-quarters of Americans plan to start the New Year with a resolution to be more healthy, including 28% who want to focus on improving their mental health, a new survey has found.” According to results of the American Psychiatric Association’s Healthy Minds monthly poll, “these folks plan to exercise more (67%), meditate (49%), keep a diary (26%), or see a therapist (35%) or psychiatrist (21%).”

APA President Dr. Petros Levounis stressed the importance of mental health maintenance. “Preserve your healthy routines, maintain your relationships with loved ones and take good care of yourself, as well as the people around you,” he said in a news release. APA CEO and Medical Director Dr. Saul Levin added, “Taking care of your mental health doesn’t need to be tied to a holiday – any of us can take any of these steps any time.”

Related Links:

— “Many Americans Are Resolving to Boost Their Mental Health in 2024,” Dennis Thompson, HeathDay, December 26, 2023

HealthDay (12/21, Thompson) reports, “Head injuries related to football might be tied to markers of dementia like brain shrinkage and decreased blood flow to the brain, a…study of former pro and college players” found. Investigators “compared brain scans of 120 former pro football players and 60 former college players against 60 men who never played football and had no history of concussion.”

The researchers “found that the relationship between white matter hyperintensities and stroke risk was more than 11 times stronger in former football players than in those who never played.” The investigators also “found that these signs of brain damage were 2.5 times more strongly related to elevated p-tau proteins in football players than in non-players.” The findings were published in Neurology.

Related Links:

— “Former Pro Football Players Show Troubling Brain Changes,” Dennis Thompson, HealthDay, December 21, 2023

USA Today (12/21, Garzella) reports, “Amid a nationwide ADHD drug shortage, patients are paying significantly more for medication to help them direct their focus at school, work and home.” This “shortage has placed financial pressure on families, forcing them to search for alternatives,” which are often “expensive brand-name drugs.”

This “upward trend can” also “be seen in the prices retail community pharmacies pay for several popular ADHD drugs, which a USA TODAY analysis found have outpaced inflation – and in some cases doubled or tripled in price – since Adderall fell into short supply starting in October 2022.”

Related Links:

— “ADHD drug prices rise as Adderall shortage leaves patients scrimping to fill prescriptions,” Cecila Garzella, USA Today, December 21, 2023