The Washington Post (6/4, Montgomery) reports, “Numbers released in May by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention show a dramatic spike in suicides among middle-aged people, with the highest increases among men in their 50s, whose rate went up by nearly 50 percent to 30 per 100,000; and women in their early 60s, whose rate rose by nearly 60 percent (though it is still relatively low compared with men, at 7 in 100,000). The highest rates were among white and Native American and Alaskan men. In recent years, deaths by suicide has surpassed deaths by motor vehicle crashes.” The findings “suggest that more suicide research and prevention should ‘address the needs of middle-aged persons,’ a CDC statement said.”

Related Links:

— “Baby boomers are killing themselves at an alarming rate, raising question: Why?, ” Tara Bahrampour, The Washington Post, June 03, 2013.

Politico (5/31, Slack) reported that President Obama and Vice President Biden “will address a White House conference Monday on mental health as part of an effort to launch a national conversation to increase understanding and awareness.” HHS Secretary Sebelius and Education Secretary Duncan “are scheduled to moderate two of the sessions” during the day. Politico lists some of the stakeholders expected at the conference.

Related Links:

— “Obama to speak on mental health, “Donovan Slack, Politico, May 31, 2013.

HealthDay (6/1, Dallas) reported, “Children who are bullied in elementary school are almost five times more likely to engage in self-harm by the time they are teenagers,” according to a study published in the June issue of the Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry. For the study, researchers focused on some 5,000 children in the UK. “After taking into account other factors, such as domestic violence, parenting styles or poor family life, the findings still demonstrated a clear link between being bullied at a young age and self-harm as a teen. Bullying, the researchers said, may increase children’s risk for depression or worsen the negative effects of a difficult family situation.”

Related Links:

— “Bullied Kids More Likely to Self-Harm as Teens, “Mary Elizabeth Dallas, HealthDay, June 01, 2013.

Medwire (6/3, Lyford) reports, “Poor sleep increases women’s risk for depression by reducing their experience of positive affect in daily life, thereby leading to increased negative reactivity,” according to a study published online May 9 in the British Journal of Psychiatry. Researchers arrived at that conclusion after studying “553 women who were monitored for sleep and affect for five days using the experience sampling method (an ambulatory diary technique).” Next, “471 participants who were free of depression at baseline were then periodically assessed for depressive symptomatology over a mean follow up of 432 days.”

Related Links:

— “Pathway from poor sleep to depression elucidated, “Joanna Lyford, Medwire, June 03, 2013.

Bloomberg News (6/1, Hallam) reported, “Older people who undergo general anesthesia for major surgery have a 35 percent higher risk of developing dementia later in life,” according to research to be presented at the European Society of Anaesthesiology’s annual meeting. “The findings are based on information from the Three-City Study, which included thousands of people age 65 and older in Bordeaux, Dijon and Montpellier starting in 1999.” Bloomberg News added, “In a subpopulation of 7,008 citizens, 632 participants developed dementia over the course of the study, and those patients were more likely to have had general anesthesia than those who didn’t develop mental deterioration.” Also covering the story were the Daily Telegraph (UK) (6/1, Donnelly) and the Daily Mail (UK) (6/1, Hope).

Related Links:

— “Dementia Risk Raised 35% by General Anesthesia in Study, ” Kristen Hallam, Bloomberg News, May 31, 2013.