HealthDay (9/4, Gotkine) reports a study suggests that “initiating cannabis use for self-medication is associated with higher weekly use and increased anxiety, depression, and paranoia.” The researchers “examined reasons for first using cannabis (RFUCs) and their associations with reasons for continuing cannabis use, weekly consumption, and symptoms of paranoia, anxiety, and depressive symptoms using data from the Cannabis&Me survey.” They observed that “weekly THC units were higher with initiation of cannabis for anxiety, for depression, or because family members were using it. Higher paranoia scores were seen in association with RFUC to relieve physical discomfort, anxiety, depression, and minor psychotic symptoms. Associations for anxiety and depression were similar. In contrast, lower paranoia and anxiety were seen for starting for fun or curiosity. Increased depression was seen in association with RFUC for boredom.” The studywas published in BMJ Mental Health.

Related Links:

— “Self-Medication With Cannabis Linked to Anxiety, Depression, Paranoia,” Elana Gotkine, HealthDay, September 4, 2025

HealthDay (9/3, Thompson) reports a new study published in Health Affairs found that “only 2 in 5 retail pharmacies carried buprenorphine,” one of the “most effective medications for treating opioid addiction,” in 2023. The researchers “analyzed buprenorphine claims logged between 2017 and 2023 in a database that covers 93% of U.S. retail prescription claims. Results showed that buprenorphine was available at only 39% of U.S. pharmacies in 2023, up from 33% in 2017.” Furthermore, “pharmacies in minority neighborhoods are even less likely to have buprenorphine on hand, results showed.” Rural counties were also “persistently more likely to carry buprenorphine, as well as counties with high rates of opioid overdose deaths. But in 73 hard-hit rural counties, less than 25% of pharmacies carried buprenorphine, and another 25 counties lacked a pharmacy altogether.”

Related Links:

— “It’s Still Tough to Find a Key Anti-Opioid Treatment at U.S. Pharmacies,” Dennis Thompson, HealthDay, September 3, 2025

HealthDay (9/2, Gotkine) reports new research shows that “from 2021 to 2024, 59.0 percent of overdose deaths involved stimulants.” The researchers “found that during January 2021 to June 2024, 59.0 percent of overdose deaths involved stimulants: 43.1 and 15.9 percent co-involved stimulants and opioids and involved stimulants and no opioids, respectively.

Compared with those who died of overdoses involving stimulants and opioids, people who died of overdoses involving stimulants and no opioids were older (aged 45 years and older: 66.5 versus 44.2 percent) and more often had a history of cardiovascular disease (38.7 versus 21.2 percent).”

The research also highlights that from 2018 to 2023, “there was an increase in stimulant-involved overdose death rates,” with increases “largest among non-Hispanic American Indian or Alaska Native persons and among non-Hispanic Black or African American persons.” The research was published in the CDC’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report.

Related Links:

— “59.0 Percent of Overdose Deaths Involved Stimulants in 2021 to 2024,” Elana Gotkine, HealthDay, September 2, 2025

HealthDay (9/2, Mundell) reports that even though the “expert consensus on the treatment of preschoolers diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder” is that behavioral therapies should be tried six months prior to prescribing medications, a study published in JAMA Network Open “found this guideline was followed in only 14.1% of U.S. cases involving children ages 3 to 5.”

The researchers “tracked the treatment of more than 9,700 kids ages 3, 4 and 5 who were diagnosed with ADHD at primary care clinics run by eight academic medical centers nationwide. Patients were seen at least twice by doctors during a six-month period. The result: More than 42% of the kids received a prescription for an ADHD medication within a month of their diagnosis, contrary to established guidelines.” They observed that “14.1% got medications after the recommended six months of behavioral therapy.”

Related Links:

— “ADHD Drugs Often Prescribed Too Early To Preschoolers,” Ernie Mundell, HealthDay, September 2, 2025

CNN (9/2, Rogers ) reports that “schizophrenia is simultaneously one of the most famous mental illnesses and one of the most misunderstood.” According to the APA, schizophrenia “is a chronic brain disorder often marked by psychosis, delusions, hallucinations, lack of motivation, and disorganized thinking and speech” that affects “0.32% of the global population, or around 24 million people.” The belief that “schizophrenia means a split mind has contributed to a widespread belief in more formal contexts that the condition is like dissociative identity disorder.”

Such misconceptions explain why schizophrenia is one of the most heavily stigmatized mental health disorders. Some stereotypes “are based in true symptoms that some patients experience,” but researchers believe “they aren’t reflective of all patients and can prevent a holistic, compassionate view of schizophrenia as a treatable disorder that’s usually more harmful to the patient than to others.” Some experts also support “changing the name of this chronic brain disorder.”

Related Links:

— “Why schizophrenia may be ‘the most devastating of mental illnesses’,” Kristen Rogers, CNN, September 2, 2025

Healio (8/28, Herpen) reports a study found that “among seven cognitive domains, alcohol-related cognitive impairment had a more significant impact on cognitive control during a delayed recall task compared with matched controls.” According to study results, “no other cognitive domains showed a significant difference between those with ARCI and matched controls.” The data also show “that 20% of patients in the ARCI group had an unspecified neurocognitive phenotype and 45% had a neurocognitive etiology of unspecified nature.” Researchers concluded, “Our results suggest a specific memory pattern linked to excessive alcohol use, which can help clinicians distinguish alcohol-related cognitive impairment from other neurocognitive disorder etiologies.” The study was published in the Journal of Clinical Psychiatry.

Related Links:

— “Alcohol-related cognitive impairment significantly impacts delayed recall tasks,” Robert Herpen, MA, Healio, August 29, 2025

HealthDay (8/28, Edwards) reports a study found that “teens who feel connected to their school may be better protected from depression linked to bullying.” Researchers observed that “school connectedness – feeling safe, included and supported at school – significantly reduced the risk of depression for teens who had recently been bullied, but not for those bullied earlier in childhood.”

According to the study: “11.9% of participants experienced bullying at both ages 9 and 15 (long-term);” 43% said they “experienced bullying only at age 9, while 5.7% reported bullying only at age 15;” and “those bullied both in childhood and adolescence had the highest depression and anxiety scores, with average anxiety levels of 6.9 on an 18-point scale and depression scores of 4.7 out of 15.

Importantly, extracurricular activities did not significantly buffer anxiety or depression symptoms, suggesting that feeling connected within the school environment itself plays a larger role.” The study was published in BMC Public Health.

Related Links:

— “School Connection May Protect Teens From Depression Linked To Bullying,” I.Edwards, HealthDay, August 28, 2025

The AP (8/27, Ungar) reports that nonalcoholic (NA) beers and mocktails are fueling a “booming industry” as people are trying to reduce their drinking for health reasons, in addition to “the rising number of young adults forgoing alcohol altogether.” A typical beer has about 5% alcohol by volume, while “NA drinks are only allowed to have up to 0.5%, about the same as a ripe banana.” A recent online survey conducted by researchers at Stanford University “found that the vast majority of people who drink both beverages say NA drinks help them reduce their alcohol use.” Nevertheless, health experts warn that “nonalcoholic beverages aren’t for everyone, especially if they might trigger cravings for alcohol. These so-called NA drinks are meant to mimic alcohol in many ways, such as appearance, smell and taste.”

Related Links:

— “Nonalcoholic beer and mocktails can help people stay sober or drink less, but are not for everyone,” Laura Ungar, Associated Press, August 27, 2025

Psychiatric News (8/27) reports a study found that “individuals with opioid use disorder (OUD) treated in primary care with a collaborative care model (CoCM) focused on medications for OUD experienced a greater reduction in nonmedical use of opioids than those receiving collaborative care that only treats co-occurring mental health symptoms.” Researchers found that “at three months, patients receiving the OUD-focused CoCM had an average of 1.44 days using opioids compared with 3.98 days among those receiving standard CoCM; at six months, patients in the intervention group had 0.72 days using opioids compared with 3.92 days in the control group. Scores on the MCS improved in both groups, but there was no statistical difference.” The study was published in JAMA Psychiatry.

Related Links:

— “Collaborative Care for Opioid Use Disorder in Primary Care,” John C. Fortney, PhD; Anna D. Ratzliff, MD, PhD; Brittany E. Blanchard, PhD, JAMA Psychiatry, August 20, 2025

HealthDay (8/26, Solomon) reports, “Few teens with depression receive treatment, with disparities seen based on residence, gender, and race, according to a study.” The investigators “found that 19.2 percent of adolescents experienced [major depressive episodes], but only 47.5 percent received treatment within the past year.” Researchers found “there were significantly lower odds of receiving specialist treatment for adolescents in rural areas versus their urban counterparts.” The findings were published in PLOS Mental Health.

Related Links:

— “Less Than Half of Teens With Major Depression Receive Treatment,” Lori Solomon, HealthDay, August 26, 2025