USA Today (3/1, Austin) reports on ways to address “fears and phobias” exacerbated by COVID-19. For example, both children and adults can be afraid of the dark. Approximately “11% of adults were already struggling with this fear before the pandemic, and experts say COVID has made matters worse.” Having “consistent bedtime routines” may be “helpful for anyone afraid of the dark.” In addition, “taking a bath or mindful breathing techniques can be helpful for adults and children alike, said” Mari Kurahashi, MD, MPH, “a director in the Division of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry at Stanford School of Medicine.” Dr. Kurahashi stated, “A predictable bedtime routine…helps condition the (person) to prepare for sleep by winding them down for bedtime.”

Related Links:

— “More Americans than ever are afraid of the dark, experts say. Here’s why. “Daryl Austin, USA TODAY, March 1, 2022

CNN (2/28, Rogers) reports research indicates that “adolescents ages 11 to 15 who” had obesity, “smoked cigarettes daily, or had a psychological disorder, such as anxiety, depression or” attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, “biologically aged nearly three months faster every year than their peers.” Researchers arrived at this conclusion after using “data from 910 people who were part of the Dunedin Study, a long-term investigation that tracked the health and behavior of participants born between April 1972 and March 1973 in Dunedin, New Zealand, following” participants “from age three until they were 45 years old.” The findings were published online in JAMA Pediatrics.

Related Links:

— “Having certain health conditions in adolescence may be linked with faster aging in adulthood, study says “Kristen Rogers, CNN, February 28, 2022

Healio (2/28, Gramigna) reports, “Brief social contact-based videos effectively reduced adolescent transphobia and depression-related stigma,” researchers concluded in a study that randomized “1,437 participants to one of four video-based conditions in a 2:2:1:1 ratio.” The findings of the “randomized clinical trial” were published online Feb. 25 in JAMA Network Open.

Related Links:

— “Brief video intervention may reduce adolescent transphobia “Joe Gramigna, Healio, February 28, 2022

Healio (2/28, Gramigna) reports, “Lesbian, gay, bisexual and queer people had higher exposure to all adverse childhood experiences compared with heterosexual adults,” researchers concluded after analyzing the “data of 61,871 adults, of whom 6.7% identified as lesbian, gay, bisexual or queer.” The findings of the “cross-sectional study” were published online Feb. 23 in a research letter in JAMA Psychiatry.

Related Links:

— “Lesbian, gay, bisexual, queer adults have high rates of adverse childhood experiences “Joe Gramigna, Healio, February 28, 2022

HealthDay (2/28, Norton) reports, “First-time moms and new mothers of twins may be among those at greatest risk of postpartum depression symptoms,” researchers concluded in a survey study “based on responses from more than one million women in 138 countries who took an ‘after childbirth’ survey via smartphone app.” Of those women, “roughly 10% reported suffering depression symptoms since giving birth about 90 days prior to the survey.” The findings were published online ahead of print in the March issue of the Journal of Affective Disorders.

Related Links:

— “Which New Moms Are at Highest Risk for Postpartum Depression? “Amy Norton, HealthDay, February 28, 2022