HealthDay (10/6, Gordon) reports researchers found “girls who played after-school sports in elementary school seem to have fewer symptoms of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (AD/HD) once they reach middle school.” The findings were published in Preventive Medicine.

Related Links:

— “Early School Sports Reduce ADHD Symptoms Years Later for Girls “Serena Gordon, HealthDay, October 6, 2020

CNN (10/6) reports “researchers at New York’s Columbia Business School and Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management in Chicago found” that “being authentic” on Facebook might be beneficial for people’s mental health. The study’s authors said, “Being prompted to post in an authentic way was associated with more positive mood and affect, and less negative mood within participants. Our findings suggest that all individuals regardless of personality traits could benefit from being authentic on social media.” The study was published in Nature.

Related Links:

— “Being authentic on Facebook is better for your mental health, researchers say “Katie Hunt, CNN, October 6, 2020

Medscape (10/5, Brauser, Subscription Publication) reports researchers found “substance use disorders, particularly opioid addiction and smoking, are tied to an increase risk for COVID-19 and serious adverse outcomes including hospitalization and death.” The findings were published in Molecular Psychiatry. Dr. Andrew J. Saxon, professor at the University of Washington School of Medicine’s Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences and a member of the APA’s Council on Addition Psychiatry, said, “I found it pretty convincing that people who have substance use disorders are probably at higher risk for getting COVID-19 infection and more complications once they are infected.”

Related Links:

— Medscape (requires login and subscription)

The New York Times (10/5, Belluck) reports in a study published in Annals of Clinical and Translational Neurology, researchers at Northwestern Medicine found that almost a third of patients hospitalized with COVID-19 “experienced some type of altered mental function – ranging from confusion to delirium to unresponsiveness – in the largest study to date of neurological symptoms among coronavirus patients in an American hospital system.” In addition, the researchers found that “patients with altered mental function had significantly worse medical outcomes.”

TIME (10/5, Ducharme) reports the researchers also found that “out of 509 people admitted…for coronavirus care this spring, 82% had a neurologic symptom at some point.” TIME adds, “The most common neurologic symptoms were muscle aches and headaches, which were experienced by about 45% and 38% of patients, respectively.”

HealthDay (10/5, Preidt) also covers the study.

Related Links:

— “Nearly One-Third of Covid-19 Patients in Study Had Altered Mental State “Pam Belluck, The New York Times, October 5, 2020

Healio (10/3, Downey) reported, “There was a 32.5% increase in THC-exposed newborns at a Michigan hospital following the legalization of recreational marijuana in the state,” investigators concluded after identifying “the rate of newborn exposure to marijuana in utero prior to and following the legalization of recreational marijuana in Michigan in a 2018 vote.” The findings were presented during the AAP National Conference & Exhibition.

Related Links:

— “Number of THC-exposed newborns increases after recreational marijuana legalized “Ken Downey Jr., Healio, October 3, 2020