MedPage Today (2/13, George) reported, “A lifetime enriched with intellectually stimulating activities – including reading, writing, or frequently visiting museums – was associated with lower risks of Alzheimer’s disease dementia and mild cognitive impairment in late life, longitudinal research showed.” Researchers found that “over nearly 8 years of follow-up, each 1-point increase in lifetime cognitive enrichment correlated with a 38% lower risk of Alzheimer’s dementia,” while “the risk of developing mild cognitive impairment also was reduced by 33%.” The findings were published in Neurology.

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— MedPage Today (requires login and subscription)

MedPage Today (2/13, George) reported, “A lifetime enriched with intellectually stimulating activities – including reading, writing, or frequently visiting museums – was associated with lower risks of Alzheimer’s disease dementia and mild cognitive impairment in late life, longitudinal research showed.” Researchers found that “over nearly 8 years of follow-up, each 1-point increase in lifetime cognitive enrichment correlated with a 38% lower risk of Alzheimer’s dementia,” while “the risk of developing mild cognitive impairment also was reduced by 33%.” The findings were published in Neurology.

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— MedPage Today (requires login and subscription)

HealthDay (2/13, Thompson) reported a study found that “depression, sleep problems, ADHD, substance use, suicidal behaviors and conduct problems all were more likely among 11- to 12-year-olds with problematic digital habits.” The researchers “analyzed data from more than 8,000 children participating in an ongoing federally funded study of teenage development.” Study results “showed that problematic mobile phone, social media and video game use is associated with depression, ADHD, conduct problems, suicidal behavior and sleep problems. Tweens addicted to their mobile phones or social media also were more likely to drink, smoke or use weed, researchers found.” The study was published in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine.

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— “Tween Screen Addiction Linked To Mental Health Problems, Substance Use,”Dennis Thompson, HealthDay , February 13, 2026

Oncology Nurse Advisor (2/12, Garlapow) reports a systematic review of 30 studies found that “alienation is a profound and multidimensional consequence of childhood and adolescent cancer that warrants clinical recognition alongside physical morbidity.” The review included data “derived from 980 respondents aged 1 to 29 years and encompassed diverse cancer types, most commonly leukemia, lymphoma, central nervous system tumors, sarcoma, and other solid tumors.” The meta-aggregation yielded 4 synthesized findings and 13 categories: environmental alienation, self-alienation, interpersonal alienation, and social alienation. Researchers concluded that pediatric healthcare professionals “should adopt a person-centered approach that values the ‘voices’ of children and adolescents, supports the rebuilding of social connections and the continuity of identity, and promotes meaningful societal participation during and beyond cancer treatment.” The review was published in the Journal of Adolescence.

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— “Addressing Alienation Can Improve Psychosocial Outcomes in Pediatric Cancer,”Megan Garlapow, PhD, Oncology Nurse Advisor, February 12, 2026

HealthDay (2/12, Thompson) reports a study presented at The Pregnancy Meeting suggests that “pregnant women who quit their antidepressants are nearly twice as likely to experience a mental health emergency compared to those who keep taking their meds.” The researchers “tracked insurance health records for nearly 4,000 women who gave birth in 2023 and 2024. All were diagnosed with depression or anxiety prior to pregnancy.” They found that “of those patients, 37% entered pregnancy with a prescription for an antidepressant. About 18% had no prescription fills during their pregnancy, and 65% had a gap of more than 60 days in fills.” Study results indicated that “women who quit their antidepressants had nearly double the risk for a mental health problem such as suicidal thoughts, substance overdose or psychosis. The risk peaked in the first and ninth months of pregnancy, researchers found.”

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— “Antidepressant Discontinuation By Pregnant Patients Linked To Higher Mental Health Emergency Risk, Study Suggests,”Dennis Thompson , HealthDay , February 12, 2026