HealthDay (1/31, Thompson ) reported, “A mom’s health during pregnancy is not likely to influence her child’s risk of autism, a new study argues.” Numerous “previous studies have reported such a link, but researchers say nearly all these associations can be explained by other autism risk factors – genetics, pollution exposure, access to health care and the like.” One researcher said, “Our study shows that there is no convincing evidence that any of these other diagnoses in the mother can cause autism.” The findings were published in Nature Medicine.

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— “No Link Between Maternal Health During Pregnancy and Autism, Researchers Say,”Dennis Thompson, HealthDay , January 31, 2025

HealthDay (1/31, Thompson ) reported, “Calorie labels on restaurant menus are harming people with eating disorders, a new evidence review claims.” Individuals “diagnosed with eating disorders tend to respond poorly when presented with a menu featuring calorie labels, researchers reported.” Investigators found that “unhealthy responses included avoiding restaurants altogether, triggering harmful thoughts associated with eating disorders, and obsessing over the calorie counts.” The findings were published in BMJ Public Health.

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— “Calorie Labels Harmful For People With Eating Disorders,”Dennis Thompson, HealthDay , January 31, 2025

Medscape (1/30, Larkin , Subscription Publication) reports, “Physical activity reduces chronic disease risks, improves function, and extends lifespan, thus supporting clinicians’ use of exercise prescriptions as a health intervention, new research suggests.” The “review of the effects of physical activity for older adults documented specific benefits, such as preventing or reducing the risks for > 30 chronic conditions including coronary artery disease, heart failure, type 2 diabetes, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, osteoporosis, depression, dementia, and cancer.” The findings were published in the Canadian Medical Association Journal.

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— Medscape (requires login and subscription)

Medscape (1/30, Brooks , Subscription Publication) reports, “A new study released this week adds to mounting evidence that suggests climate change, with extreme hot and cold temperatures, threatens not only physical health but also mental well-being.” By “analyzing data from two population-based birth cohorts in Europe, researchers found that ambient temperature has distinct associations with psychiatric symptoms in adolescents, with cold exposure in the Netherlands associated with more internalizing symptoms and heat exposure in Spain associated with more attention problems.” The findings were published in JAMA Network Open. Joshua Wortzel, MD, Chair of the APA Committee on Climate Change and Mental Health, said that it is “novel to have these kinds of rich datasets (both mental health measures and temperature data) with large sample sizes. However, interpreting these data [is] difficult.”

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— Medscape (requires login and subscription)

Healio (1/30, Rhoades) reports, “Approximately one-third of high school girls surveyed in the United States in 2021 identified themselves as lesbian, gay, bisexual or questioning their sexuality, according to results of a cohort study.” That marks “a dramatic and significant increase from previous polling just 2 years earlier that showed 22% of high school aged girls identifying as LGBQ.” This change “is occurring alongside increases in suicidal thoughts, planning and attempts among women, with significant upticks among those identifying as LGBQ, researchers reported.” The findings were published in Educational Researcher.

Related Links:

— “Increasing LGBQ identification may contribute to surge in suicide among high school girls,”Andrew (Drew) Rhoades, Healio, January 30, 2025