TIME (6/27, Abrams) reports that according to a study published in the BMJ’s Journal of Epidemiology & Community Health, “women with chronic physical illnesses are 10% more likely to seek support for mental health issues than men with similar illnesses.” T

he study also revealed that “women tend to seek out mental health services months earlier than men.” For the study, investigators “looked at people diagnosed with at least one of four illnesses: diabetes, high blood pressure, asthma or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.”

Related Links:

— “Women More Likely Than Men to Seek Mental Health Help, Study Finds,” Abby Abrams, Time, June 26, 2014.

USA Today (6/27, Vestal) runs a Pew Stateline piece reporting that “a ‘telepsychiatry’ program that allows psychiatrists to examine South Carolina patients through videoconferencing, reducing the average wait time” for psychiatric evaluations “from four days to less than 10 hours.” Some 20 hospitals participate in the program, which, according to a study conducted by the University of South Carolina School of Medicine, “has reduced the frequency of hospital readmissions and involuntary commitments.”

A similar program was rolled out in North Carolina in 2010, “and a dozen other states, including Alabama, Kentucky and Wisconsin, plan to follow suit.”

Related Links:

— “Rural hospitals speeding up psychiatric evaluations,” Christine Vestal, USA Today, June 27, 2014.

USA Today (6/26) reports that a study conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that excessive drinking was the cause of one in 10 deaths among working-age adults between 2006 and 2010. The paper notes that the CDC defined excessive drinking activities to include “binge drinking, heavy weekly alcohol consumption and drinking while underage or pregnant.” The CDC found those activities instigated “long-term health effects such as liver disease and heart disease, as well as short-period effects such as violence, alcohol poisoning, car crashes and drowning.”

The Washington Post (6/27, Bernstein) “To Your Health” blog reports that CDC researchers estimated that “excessive drinking cost the United States about $224 billion in 2006, or about $1.90 per drink” in public health costs. The study found that deaths caused by excessive drinking varied greatly by state from the 16.9% of deaths occurring in New Mexico as the highest to the 7.6% of deaths occurring in Maryland as the lowest nationwide.

Related Links:

— “Drinking behind 1 in 10 deaths of working-age adults,” Hoai-Tran Bui, USA Today, June 27, 2014.

On its front page, the New York Times (6/27, A1, St. Louis, Subscription Publication) reports in a nearly 1,500-word article that while New York state has legalized medical marijuana for specific conditions, “no rigorous scientific evidence that marijuana effectively treats the symptoms of many of the illnesses for which states have authorized its use.”

The Times adds, “Experts say, lawmakers and the authors of public referendums have acted largely on the basis of animal studies and heart-wrenching anecdotes.” The article also mentions that the National Institute on Drug Abuse is the only legal supplier of the substance.

Related Links:

— “Politicians’ Prescriptions for Marijuana Defy Doctors and Data,” Catherine Saint Louis, New York Times, June 26, 2014.

HealthDay (6/27, Preidt) reports research suggests that “if your spouse has a stroke, and the two of you disagree about the rate of recovery, your own health might suffer.” Investigators found that “the caregiving spouse is at increased risk for emotional distress and depression if the couple has different perceptions of the post-stroke progress.” The researchers came to this conclusion after studying “35 couples in which one spouse had suffered a stroke within the past three years.” The findings were published online in Aging & Mental Health.

Related Links:

— “After Stroke, Spouse May Also Need Care,” Robert Priedt, HealthDay, June 26, 2014.