Bloomberg News (8/14, Lopatto) reports, “Men in rural areas may be prone to suicide during times of drought,” according to a study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. After analyzing nearly 40 years of Australian rainfall records, researchers found that “in addition to the financial stress of failed crops, environmental degradation caused by extended dry spells also can be psychologically harmful.” In “men ages 30 to 49 who live in farming communities, droughts were associated with a 15 percent increase in the relative risk of suicide, the” study found.

Related Links:

— “Drought Increases Suicides For Rural Men, Researchers Say, “Elizabeth Lopatto, Bloomberg, August 13, 2012.

The Arizona Republic (8/12, Ortega) noted that although it “can seem all but impossible to understand why anyone would commit a mass murder” as James Holmes is “accused of doing” in Aurora, Colorado in July, “forensic psychologists and other behavioral scientists are increasingly identifying reasons that can predispose someone to commit mass violence, and ‘warning behaviors,’ such as a fast-growing fascination with weapons and violence, that should signal the need for intervention.” J. Reid Meloy, a “forensic psychologist and professor of clinical psychiatry at the University of California-San Diego” said it’s often “possible to identify people who fall into high-risk groups and to take some action to intervene — from requiring counseling to restricting someone’s access to weapons to seeking involuntary commitment, or many other steps in between.”

Physicians Want Gun Violence Treated As A “Social Disease.” The AP (8/11, Marchione) reported that some public health experts want gun violence to be treated as a “social disease” that requires a public health approach. They give examples from past public health problems addressed with “highway safety measures, product changes and driving laws that slashed deaths from car crashes decades ago.” The CDC estimates that some 73,000 visits to emergency rooms in 2010 stemmed from firearms, and recent mass shootings have led one expert, Dr. Stephen Hargarten of the Medical College of Wisconsin’s Injury Research Center, to ask whether “we have a public health issue to discuss.” The AP cites other experts and lists some examples of how a public health approach would work.

Related Links:

— “Psychologists look for ‘warning behaviors’ to stop killings,”Bob Ortega, USA Today, August 12, 2012.

The Washington Times (8/13, Howell) reports, “The District and Maryland are moving aggressively to implement virtual markets of insurance plans, becoming national leaders in carrying out President Obama’s vision for health care reform.” In the district, the Health Reform Implementation Committee “has met twice, to organize itself and to elect Dr. Mohammad Akhter as its chairman,” and “needs to submit a proposal on its exchange to the federal government by Wednesday to obtain an estimated $70 million to $80 million in federal funding this October.” The exchange may be designed as “an open system that welcomes all providers, or it can be selective about which providers fit the city’s needs.” Maryland “has already received $34.4 million in federal grants and is expecting to receive additional federal funds,” to implement an exchange on the basis of a state law enacted last year with the strong support of the governor.

Related Links:

— “Health law readiness follows state, party lines, “Tom Howell Jr., The Washington Times, August 12, 2012.

USA Today (8/6, Jayson) reports on psychologist Robert Hogan’s presentation, during a psychology conference this past weekend, about the stress impact of poor management. USA Today quotes Hogan as saying, “Seventy-five percent of working adults say the worst aspect of their job — the most stressful aspect of their job — is their immediate boss. Bad managers create enormous health costs and are a major source of misery for many people.” USA Today adds, “Other leadership consultants across the country agree that the impact of immediate supervisors is more far-reaching than many would believe.”

Related Links:

— “Bad bosses can be bad for your health, “Sharon Jayson, USA Today, August 06, 2012.

HealthDay (8/4, Gordon) reported, “Middle school students who are physically fit are likely to score higher on standardized tests measuring reading and math abilities,” according to a study of 1,200 middle-school students presented at a psychology meeting. What’s more, “the average scores went up in correlation with levels of fitness, the findings showed.”

Related Links:

— “Fitter Kids May Make Better Grades: Study, “Serena Gordon, HealthDay, August 03, 2012.

HealthDay (8/4, Dallas) reported, “Girls who are sexually or physically abused may start menstruating earlier or later than average,” according to a study published online July 26 in the Journal of Adolescent Health. “After analyzing information on nearly 69,000 women, researchers from Boston University School of Medicine found those sexually abused during their childhood were 49 percent more likely to have their first period before age 11 than women who were not abused,” while “women who suffered severe physical abuse had a 50 percent increased risk for starting their menstrual cycles late, or after age 15.”

Related Links:

— “Child Abuse Might Alter Onset of Menstruation in Girls, “Mary Elizabeth Dallas, HealthDay, August 03, 2012.

USA Today (8/6, Jayson) reports, “Honesty may boost your health, suggests a study that found telling fewer lies benefits people physically and mentally.” During “the study period, the link between less lying and improved health was significantly stronger for participants in the no-lie group, the study found.” Researchers found that “when participants in the no-lie group told three fewer minor lies than they did in other weeks, for example, they experienced, on average, four fewer mental-health complaints and three fewer physical complaints.”

Related Links:

— “Study finds that avoiding lies can improve your health, “Sharon Jayson, USA Today, August 05, 2012.

HealthDay (8/6, Gray) reports that according to a study presented at a psychology meeting, “helping teens learn to count their blessings can actually play an important role in positive mental health.” The study, which “involved 700 students living in New York, aged 10 to 14,” revealed that “as gratitude increases, so do life satisfaction, happiness, positive attitudes, hope and even academic performance.”

Related Links:

— “Grateful Teens May Have Less Risk for Depression, Other Problems, “Barbara Bronson Gray, HealthDay, August 05, 2012.

MedPage Today (8/4, Petrochko) reported, “Whether or not a child maintains a treatment for mental health may depend on parents’ perceived benefits of that treatment,” according to a 573-participant study published in the August issue of the journal Psychiatric Services. Specifically, the “cohort study of parents and guardians of children receiving outpatient mental health services found those who saw treatment as providing ‘a lot’ of benefit (versus some or no benefit) to their child were significantly more likely to continue treatment at six-month follow-up, at an adjusted odds ratio of 1.96 (95% CI 1.19 to 3.21, P=0.008),” researchers reported. Notably, “medication with or without therapy was perceived as more beneficial than therapy alone and that perceived benefit was strongly related to continued use of treatment.”

Related Links:

— “Parental Approval Key to Keeping Kids on Psych Tx, “Cole Petrochko, MedPage Today, August 03, 2012.

NBC Nightly News (8/2, story 7, 0:25, Williams) reported, “The FDA has approved a kind of attachment for all types of pills, a tiny, harmless transmitter that will electronically register if you’ve taken your pill or not. It mixes with stomach acids and sends out a signal you’ve taken the pill.”