The Huffington Post (2/5, Holmes) reports that although “the economy may be improving…finances are still a stressful burden on Americans – especially among young adults and parents, according to the American Psychological Association’s new Stress in America survey.”

Related Links:

— “Americans Are More Stressed About Money Than Anything Else — And It’s Taking A Toll On Their Health,” Lindsay Holmes, Huffington Post, February 4, 2015.

TIME (2/5, Stout) reports that a “survey conducted in 34” European and North American countries found that “socioeconomic differences across multiple areas of adolescent mental and physical health increased between 2002 and 2010.” The findings were published Feb. 3 in The Lancet.

HealthDay (2/5, Preidt) reports that “the analysis showed that poorer kids living in countries with greater income inequality were more likely to be in worse health, get less exercise, have more body fat, have lower life satisfaction, and report more physical and mental health symptoms, such as irritability and headache.” An accompanying commentary observed, “To improve health and reduce health disparities across the lifespan, a focus should be on social factors that affect the health and well-being of young people.”

Related Links:

— “There’s a Growing Health Gap Between Rich and Poor Teens,” David Stout, Time, February 4, 2015.

In an opinion piece in USA Today (2/5), former US Surgeon General David Satcher, MD, PhD, director of the Satcher Health Leadership Institute at the Morehouse School of Medicine, and former US Rep. Patrick J. Kennedy (D-RI), founder of the Kennedy Forum, announce “a partnership between the Kennedy Forum and Morehouse School of Medicine that will fulfill President Kennedy’s vision of ensuring the best possible mental well-being for every American.” First, Satcher and Kennedy call for complete implementation of the Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act. Second, they call for increased “focus on greater innovation to expand research and further our knowledge of the brain.” Third, they seek improved access to “high quality” mental healthcare not only by increasing the number of mental healthcare professionals, but also by asking primary care physicians to “make mental health part of their charge.” Fourth, Kennedy and Satcher call for “better integration to bring mental health into the mainstream” of US medicine.

Related Links:

— “Satcher-Kennedy: How to fix mental health system,” David Satcher and Patrick J. Kennedy, USA Today, February 4, 2015.

The New York Times (2/5, A17, Schwarz, Subscription Publication) reports that a “survey of more than 150,000” US college students, called “The American Freshman: National Norms Fall 2014” and conducted by the Cooperative Institutional Research Program at the University of California-Los Angeles Higher Education Research Institute, reveals that “9.5 percent of respondents had frequently ‘felt depressed’ during the past year, a significant rise over the 6.1 percent reported five years ago.” During that same time, “those who ‘felt overwhelmed’ by schoolwork and other commitments rose to 34.6 percent from 27.1 percent.”

Related Links:

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The Wall Street Journal (2/2, Ward, Subscription Publication) reports that a study published in the Journal of Economic Psychology suggests that making a charitable donation may result in an improvement in the emotional and physical well-being of the donor. The study was conducted by Baris K. Yörük, an associate professor of economics at the University at Albany-SUNY, and colleagues.

Related Links:

— “Does Charitable Giving Lead to Better Health?,” Lisa Ward, Wall Street Journal, February 1, 2015.

In continuing coverage, Modern Healthcare (1/31, Johnson, Subscription Publication) reported that “behavioral health stakeholders are…uniting behind a bill first introduced in 2013 by Rep. Tim Murphy (R-Pa.), a psychologist who spent more than a year holding hearings on mental illness after the Sandy Hook shootings.” But, even though “many professional and patient-advocacy groups back the measure, others fear the proposal will shift the focus away from relying on community-based mental healthcare” professionals “and undermine the years put into deinstitutionalizing” Americans with mental illnesses. HR 3717 would also “earmark $40 million for the National Institutes of Health’s Brain Research through Advancing Innovative Neurotechnologies initiative, which seeks to identify the molecular pathways of mental illness and dementia.”

Related Links:

— “Mental healthcare legislation gives boost to inpatient care,” Steven Ross Johnson, Modern Healthcare, January 31, 2015.

In continuing coverage, the Wall Street Journal (1/31, Kesling, Subscription Publication) detailed the veterans’ suicide-prevention bill named for former Marine Sgt. Clay Hunt. The measure would help veterans with mental health problems get help sooner, would enable them to have access to support following separation from military service, and provide the VA with the ability to hire more mental healthcare professionals. Also included in the measure is up to $30,000 annually in student loan forgiveness for psychiatrists who decide to work for the VA.

The AP (2/2, Daly) reports today, the US Senate “is expected to take up” the measure, which is “aimed at reducing a wave of suicides that claims the lives of 22 veterans every day.” If the Senate passes the bill as expected, it goes to President Obama for his signature.

Related Links:

— “Congress Moves to Bolster VA’s Mental-Health Services,” , Wall Street Journal, January 31, 2015. [Subscription/Login Required]

On its front page, the New York Times (1/29, A1, Belson, Subscription Publication) reports that a study published online Jan. 28 in the journal Neurology suggests that “NFL retirees who began playing tackle football before they turned 12 were at increased risk of developing memory and thinking problems compared with players who began when they were 12 or older.” While “both groups scored below average on many memory and cognitive tests…there was a roughly 20 percent difference between the two groups on several measures.”

The Washington Post (1/29, Hobson) reports, “While the study’s authors cautioned their subject group was limited – all former NFL players who have complained of cognitive, behavioral or mood problems – their findings suggest football is unsafe for children.” One of study authors said, “This study supports the idea…that there may be later life consequences associated with childhood exposure to repetitive head impacts.” He added, “Regardless of the results, it makes logical sense that children whose brains are rapidly developing should not be hitting their heads over and over again.”

The AP (1/29, Golen) reports that the study has limitations in that “it only looked at former NFL players; the conclusions cannot be generalized to a broader population.”

Related Links:

— “To Allay Fears, N.F.L. Huddles With Mothers,” Ken Belson, New York Times, January 28, 2015.

HealthDay (1/29, Doheny) reports that a study published online Jan. 28 in JAMA Psychiatry suggests that “more than 10 percent of preschool-age children diagnosed with autism saw some improvement in their symptoms by age six,” and “20 percent of the children made some gains in everyday functioning.” Researchers arrived at that conclusion after following 421 youngsters “from diagnosis (between ages two and four) until age six, collecting information at four points in time to see how their symptoms and their ability to adapt to daily life fared.”

Related Links:

— “Some Kids With Autism Show Improvement by Age 6: Study,” Kathleen Doheny, HealthDay, January 28, 2015.