HealthDay (9/9, Norton) reports, “A growing number of Americans may be having serious reactions after taking phenibut – an unapproved anxiety” treatment “sold in some dietary supplements,” investigators concluded in a study that examined “calls to U.S. poison control centers.” Starting in 2015, investigators found “a sharp rise” in such calls, “going from a handful of calls each year to between 300 and 400 in 2018 and 2019.” What’s more, “the effects were sometimes life-threatening or fatal, said” one of the researchers. The findings were published online Sept. 4 in the CDC’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report.

Related Links:

— “Dangerous Abuse of Anxiety Drug Phenibut Is on the Rise “Amy Norton, HealthDay, September 9, 2020

MedPage Today (9/9, Hlavinka) reports that diagnoses of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (AD/HD) “were more common in Black people than for people of other races/ethnicities,” investigators concluded in a meta-analysis that revealed “in 21 U.S. studies conducted from 1979-2020, the pooled prevalence of” AD/HD “was 14.54% for Black adults and children and 13.87% for Black children only.” In comparison, “estimates for” AD/HD “prevalence in all races/ethnicities hover around 10% in children and are lower in adults.” The findings were published online Sept. 9 in JAMA Psychiatry.

Related Links:

— MedPage Today (requires login and subscription)

Psychiatric News (9/8) reports that with the increasing “number of mental health apps available for download…psychiatrists are likely to receive questions from patients on the risks and benefits of these products.” Now, “to help psychiatrists and other mental health professionals when selecting apps,” the American Psychiatric Association “has created the APA App Advisor,” which is “a website that guides users through questions to consider when evaluating mental health apps.”

Related Links:

— “Considering Mental Health Apps? APA App Advisor Can Help, Psychiatric News , September 8, 2020

The New York Times (9/9, Reynolds) reports, “Exercise makes it easier to bounce back from too much stress, according to a fascinating new study with mice.” The study “finds that regular exercise increases the levels of a chemical in the animals’ brains that helps them remain psychologically resilient and plucky, even when their lives seem suddenly strange, intimidating and filled with threats.” While “the study involved mice…it is likely to have implications for our species, too, as we face the stress and discombobulation of the ongoing pandemic and today’s political and social disruptions.” The study was published in August in the Journal of Neuroscience.

Related Links:

— “Exercise May Make It Easier to Bounce Back From Stress “Gretchen Reynolds, The New York Times, September 9, 2020

The Wall Street Journal (9/8, Kamp, Campo-Flores, Subscription Publication) reports the COVID-19 pandemic has worsened the opioid crisis with deaths from opioid overdoses continuing to increase in many parts of the US.

Related Links:

— “The Opioid Crisis, Already Serious, Has Intensified During Coronavirus Pandemic “Jon Kamp and Arian Campo-Flores, The Wall Street Journal, September 8, 2020