Healio (8/6, Monostra) reports a study found “older adults with diabetes who spend less time within their individualized HbA1c target range have a higher risk for developing Alzheimer’s disease and dementias.” In the analysis, “veterans aged 65 years and older with diabetes were assigned an HbA1c target range based on measurements during a 3-year baseline period.” Researchers found that “during follow-up, adults who spent less than 20% of the time within their HbA1c target range had a 19% higher risk for Alzheimer’s disease and other related dementias than adults who spent 80% or more time in their target HbA1c range.” The findings were published in JAMA Network Open.

Related Links:

— “Spending less time in HbA1c target range may increase dementia risk for older adults,”Michael Monostra, Healio, August 6, 2024

The AP (8/6, Johnson ) reports, “There are small signs of improvement in the mental health of U.S. teenagers, a government survey released Tuesday said, but the share of students – particularly girls – feeling sad and hopeless remained high.” From 2021 to 2023, the percentage “of high school students who reported feelings of persistent sadness or hopelessness declined from 42% to 40%, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report” (PDF). Among girls, the CDC found “the percentage reporting persistent sadness or hopelessness fell from 57% to 53%.”

The New York Times (8/6, Ghorayshi ) reports the survey found “just 28 percent of teenage boys felt persistent sadness, about the same as in 2021.” Meanwhile, “suicide risk among girls stayed roughly the same as the last survey.” However, “Black students, who reported troubling increases in suicide attempts in 2021, reported significantly fewer attempts in 2023.”

ABC News (8/6, Kekatos ) reports the survey found “youth who identify as LGBTQ+ reported higher rates of poor mental health and experiencing suicidal thoughts and behaviors than their cisgender and heterosexual peers.” Last year, “more than three in five LGBTQ+…high school students said they experienced persistent feelings of sadness or hopelessness, and more than half reported having poor mental health, according to” the findings.

Also reporting is CNN (8/6, Goodman ).

Related Links:

— “High schoolers’ mental health shows small improvement in a US government survey,”Carla K. Johnson, AP, August , 2024

Endocrinology Advisor (8/5, Kurek) reports, “The addition of a weight stigma intervention to a behavioral weight loss program is associated with greater weight loss regardless of physical activity, according to the results of a study.” After conducting “a secondary analysis of a randomized controlled trial,” investigators discovered that decreases in internalized weight stigma “at week 20 were associated with greater weight loss at week 20.” The findings were published in Obesity Science and Practice

Related Links:

— “Internalized Weight Stigma Intervention Lowers Weight Despite Physical Activity,”Ellen Kurek, Endocrinology Advisor, August 5, 2024

The Washington Post (8/5, Nix ) reports, “A minor from New York on Monday filed a lawsuit seeking class-action status against Meta, alleging that the social media giant sought to keep teens hooked on Instagram while knowingly exposing them to harmful content.” Filed in the US District Court for the Northern District of California, the lawsuit “argues that Meta implemented features its leaders knew would make Instagram addicting for teens, such as displaying counts of how many ‘likes’ posts receive, even as internal evidence grew that the service could harm their mental health.” The plaintiff “is seeking $5 billion in damages, to be shared among eligible Instagram users if the suit is certified as a class action.” The filing “adds to a growing swarm of suits against the company from state attorneys general and school districts aiming to tie America’s teen mental health crisis to social media.”

Related Links:

— “The Washington Post (requires login and subscription)

HCP Live (8/5, Derman) reports, “A recent study revealed Medicaid enrollees struggle to receive psychiatric care.” Investigators came to this conclusion after conducting “a ‘secret shopper’ audit study to evaluate availability and wait times for adult appointments with psychiatrists or mental health professionals across 4 of the largest US cities: New York City, Los Angeles, Chicago, and Phoenix,” all of which had “expanded Medicaid eligibility under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act.” The researchers found that “among the sampled clinicians, only 17.7% had availability, and 9.4% of the alternate clinicians at the same practice had availability.” The findings were published in JAMA.

Related Links:

— “Medicaid Enrollees Struggle to Receive Psychiatric Care,”Chelsie Derman, HCP Live, August 5, 2024