Psychiatric News (10/12) reports, “Children and adolescents with avoidant/restrictive food intake disorder (ARFID) are likely to present with a variety of symptoms depending on their age and sex,” investigators concluded in a study that included data on “207 children and adolescents.” The study revealed that “older youth with ARFID were more likely to report not eating enough and a loss of appetite, whereas younger children were more likely to report a lack of interest in food, avoidance of certain foods, and refusal based on sensory characteristics.” The study also found that “boys were more likely to refuse food based on sensory characteristics while girls were more likely to eat but not enough.” The findings were published online Oct. 11 in JAMA Pediatrics.

Related Links:

— “Symptoms of Avoidant/Restrictive Food Intake Disorder Vary by Sex, Age, Psychiatric News, October 12, 2021

Healio (10/8, Gramigna) reported, “Changing patients’ pain-related beliefs via psychological treatment appeared to offer them durable relief for chronic back pain, according to results of a randomized clinical trial.” The findings were published online in JAMA Psychiatry.

Related Links:

— “Reprocessing therapy may reduce chronic back pain “Joe Gramigna, Healio, October 8, 2021

Healio (10/11, Miller) reports, “Adults with autism spectrum disorder [ASD] were about 2.6 times more likely to be diagnosed with early-onset dementia than adults in the general population,” researchers concluded in a “case control study” that “included adults with either ASD only (n = 12,648), ASD and another intellectual disability (n = 26,168), intellectual disability without ASD (n = 406,570) and neither ASD nor intellectual disability (n = 798,828).” The findings were published in the October issue of the journal Autism Research.

Related Links:

— “Adults with autism more than two times likely to receive dementia diagnosis “Janel Miller, Healio, October 11, 2021

Reuters (10/8, Smout) reported, “The COVID-19 pandemic led to a surge in anxiety and major depressive disorders across the world, particularly among women and young people, a study published in the Lancet on Friday found.” The researchers found that “young people suffered as school closures kept them away from friends, and many women found themselves bearing the brunt of household work and facing an increased risk of domestic violence.” The study“recorded 76 million additional cases of anxiety disorders and 53 million of major depressive disorder as COVID-19 spread in 2020.”

Related Links:

— “Anxiety surged during pandemic, particularly among women – study “Alistair Smout, Reuters, October 8, 2021

Modern Healthcare (10/7, Subscription Publication) runs a piece from The 19th News, reporting, “Expanding Medicaid and telehealth, investing in community-based care services, and providing paid leave and child care will all help address negative mental health outcomes for pregnant people and new parents,” experts concluded in a paper (10/4) published in the October issue of the journal Health Affairs. The authors of the paper “focus on six ways they say policy would better support people during and after pregnancy.” Such “moves would help prevent potentially harmful mental health conditions, in addition to properly treating them, they said.”

Related Links:

— “Paid leave, healthcare access and child care: How policy can protect parents’ mental health, Modern Healthcare, October 7, 2021