The Los Angeles Times (11/11, Rivera) reported that some college campuses “are adopting new tools that outline common situations and ways to respond” to students in mental distress, “such as the Red Folder, a quick reference guide developed at the University of California that is being adopted by the 23-campus California State University system and many community colleges.” The point “is to distill information from more detailed training into a set of simple actions – see something, say something, do something.” That initiative receives partial funding from “Proposition 63, the Mental Health Services Act approved by California voters in 2004 to expand such services through a 1% tax on incomes at or above $1 million.”

Related Links:

— “California colleges step up efforts to help students in mental distress,” Carla Rivera, Los Angeles Times, November 10, 2015.

According to the Texas Tribune (11/11, Silver), a report released Nov. 10 by the Death Penalty Information Center and called “Battle Scars: Military Veterans and the Death Penalty” finds that “veterans sentenced to death in Texas murder cases – and nationwide – might have escaped the punishment if juries had been told about their military service and any ensuing mental health problems.” In the report, “several examples” are cited of “veterans who have been executed or sentenced to death in Texas with little or no consideration of their mental state.”

Related Links:

— “Report: Veteran Mental Health Ignored in Capital Cases,” Johnathan Silver, Texas Tribune, November 10, 2015.

In a nearly 2,000-word article, the Chicago Tribune (11/11, Taylor) reports that “a growing body of research is exploring links among sleep deprivation, sleep disturbance and Alzheimer’s disease.” For example, Dr. Erik Musiek, an assistant professor of neurology at Washington University in St. Louis, “said new research suggests that sleep and circadian rhythm problems experienced earlier in life actually may contribute to the risk of Alzheimer’s and accelerate the disease.”

In addition, a PET scan study of 70 seniors conducted at Johns Hopkins and the National Institute on Aging revealed that people who reported “poorer sleep quality and shorter sleep duration had higher amounts of beta-amyloid in their brains than those who reported sleeping longer and better.”

Related Links:

— [Free Registration Required] “Sleep Could be the Missing Link in Dementia,” Mark Taylor, Chicago Tribune, November 10, 2015.

The Wall Street Journal (12/2, Peterson, Subscription Publication) reports that yesterday, House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-WI) called for Congress to overhaul the US mental healthcare system. Ryan’s remarks come as a response to the shootings last week at a Planned Parenthood clinic in Colorado.

The New York Times (12/2, A20, Pérez-Peña, Subscription Publication) reports, “While Democrats made it clear they believed that Republicans were avoiding the real problem – lax restrictions on access to guns – Mr. Ryan encouraged lawmakers from both” sides of the aisle “to present their ideas to address the problems with mental health care.”

Related Links:

— “Ryan Calls for Mental-Health Overhaul After Planned Parenthood Shooting,” Kristina Peterson, Wall Street Journal, December 1, 2015.

The CBS News (11/19, Welch) website reports that “about one in 10 Americans struggles with a drug use disorder at some point in their lifetime, according to” the results of a study published online Nov. 18 in JAMA Psychiatry. The research, conducted by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA), also reveals that most of these individuals do not get treatment.

TIME (11/19, Sifferlin) reports that the “data comes from interviews with 36,309 adults who participated in a national survey between 2012 and 2013.” Drug use disorders “involved a variety of substances from marijuana and cocaine to hallucinogens and heroin.” Overall, the study found that disorders were “more common among men, young unmarried adults, people with lower education and income, and white and Native American groups.” Drug abuse problems were also more likely to be reported by people who “abused alcohol and nicotine and those with mental health issues such as major depressive disorder, bipolar disorder and post traumatic stress.”

Related Links:

— “Nearly 10 percent of Americans struggle with drug problems,” Ashley Welch, CBS News, November 18, 2015.