HealthDay (5/29, Gotkine) reports a study found that “overdose deaths attributable to synthetic opioids alone are increasingly predominant” among US youth. Researchers found that between 2018 and 2022, overdose death counts among US youth aged 15 to 24 years “increased from 4,652 to 6,723 (10.85 to 15.16 per 100,000), with a slight decrease between 2021 and 2022. Deaths involving synthetic opioids only showed the largest increases (1.8 to 4.8 deaths per 100,000).” They noted that “regardless of race, ethnicity, or sex, fatal synthetic opioid-only overdose rates were higher than polydrug overdose rates involving synthetic opioids since 2020. In 2022, rates of synthetic-only overdose deaths were 2.49- and 2.15-times higher among male versus female youth and among those aged 20 to 24 versus 15 to 19 years, respectively.” The study was published in Pediatrics.

Related Links:

— “Youth Deaths Attributable to Synthetic Opioids Alone Increasingly Predominant,”Elana Gotkine, HealthDay, May 29, 2025

The New York Times (6/2, Span ) reports that a “wave of recent research points to reasons for concern for older users, with cannabis-related emergency room visits and hospitalizations rising.” An analysis of national survey data published Monday in JAMA found that cannabis use within the past 30 days “jumped among adults over age 65, to 7 percent of respondents in 2023 from 4.8 percent in 2021.” Studies also show “climbing rates of older people seeking medical treatment for cannabis-related issues, both in outpatient settings and in hospitals.” For example, “cannabis-related emergency room visits In California by those over 65 rose, to about 395 per 100,000 visits in 2019, from 21 in 2005.” Meanwhile, a recent study published in JAMA Neurology found that older patients with cannabis-related conditions seeking care at emergency departments or being admitted to hospitals “had 1.5 times the risk of a dementia diagnosis within five years, and 3.9 times the risk for the general population.”

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— The New York Times (requires login and subscription)

The Washington Post (6/2, McMahan) reports a study suggests that “at age 11, daily physical activity was associated with a 12 percent lower risk of a psychiatric diagnosis at age 18 for every hour of activity recorded.” Researchers observed that “physical activity decreased the risk of anxiety by almost 40 percent for boys at both 5 and 11.” Notably, the “same held true for depression and boys: Physical activity was associated with a 19 percent reduction in depression among boys at age 5 and 23 percent at age 8.” They found that “at age 11, physical activity was associated with a decreased risk for depression for both boys and girls. Participation in organized sports at age 11 correlated with a reduced risk of mental health diagnoses – 12 percent lower for girls and 23 percent for boys.” The researchers concluded “that ages 10 to 12 might be a critical period for the development of psychological resilience.” The study was published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine.

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— “The Washington Post (requires login and subscription)

Oncology Nurse Advisor (5/28, Garlapow) reports, “Young adults caring for terminally ill parents with cancer experience greater psychological vulnerability than older caregivers, with significantly poorer mental health during end-of-life care and elevated depressive symptoms during bereavement, according to” research. The findings are “based on a large cross-sectional study of” more than 18,000 “bereaved caregivers who had provided parental cancer care.” The findings were published in Psycho-Oncology.

Related Links:

— “Young Adults Face Higher Depression Risk While Caring for Parents With Cancer at EOL,” Megan Garlapow, PhD, Oncology Nurse Advisor, May 28, 2025

Psychiatric News (5/28) reports a study published in the American Journal of Psychiatry found that “suicidal thoughts and attempts steadily rose among high school students between 2007 and 2021, with similar trends seen in students at low and high risk of suicide.” Researchers observed the “percentage of students reporting past-year suicidal ideation rose from 14.4% to 22.1% between 2007 and 2021, while those reporting suicidal plans rose from 11.2% to 17.6% and those reporting suicide attempts rose from 6.9% to 10.1%.”

Meanwhile, a second study published in the American Journal of Psychiatry “revealed that adolescent Black females have significantly higher risks of suicidal ideation compared with their White and/or male peers.” Researchers observed that “girls had had 1.75 times the odds of past-year suicide ideation compared with boys and 1.81 times the odds of a past-year suicide attempt.” However, they noted that “Black girls had 1.26 times the odds of suicidal ideation compared with all their peers; there were no significant race and sex disparities for suicide attempts.”

Related Links:

— “Suicidal Thoughts, Behaviors Rise in Adolescents; Black Girls Have Highest Risk,” Psychiatric News, May 28, 2025