Healio (11/17, Gramigna) reports, “Job insecurity during the COVID-19 pandemic has led to a significant mental health burden among young adults,” researchers concluded in a study that analyzed “data from June 15 to June 30 of 4,852 young adults in this age range who were included in the weekly, cross-sectional Household Pulse Survey.” Next, the investigators “analyzed two job insecurity measures and four anxiety and depression measures using multivariable Poisson regression models, which they adjusted for race/ethnicity, age, sex, marital status and education.” The findings were published online Nov. 9 in the Journal of Adolescent Health.

Related Links:

— “COVID-19-related job insecurity linked to young adult mental health burden “Joe Gramigna, MA, Healio, November 17, 2020

The New York Times (11/17, Rabin) reports, “Gun violence kills about 40,000 Americans” annually, with the “majority” of those deaths suicides. In fact, “just over half of suicides involve guns.” Now, a growing worry “about suicides has led to an unusual alliance between suicide-prevention advocates and gun-rights proponents; together they are devising new strategies to prevent suicide in a population committed to the Second Amendment and the right to bear arms.” The article details a number of ongoing initiatives and efforts to stem the tide of gun-related suicides, particularly now during the COVID-19 pandemic.

People Who Buy Guns During Pandemic More Likely To Be Suicidal Than Those Who Already Own Firearms, Researchers Say. HealthDay (11/17) reports, “Those who buy guns as the pandemic rages are more likely to be suicidal than those who already own firearms,” researchers concluded after surveying some “3,500 Americans,” a third of whom owned guns. The study revealed that “among people who bought guns during the pandemic, about 70% reported having suicidal thoughts, while just 37% of other gun owners had such thoughts.” The findings were published online Nov. 17 in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine.’

Related Links:

— “Buying Gun During Pandemic Might Raise Suicide Risk ” Steven Reinberg, HealthDay, November 17, 2020

Healio (11/17, Gramigna) reports, “Prevention and intervention targets for prescription stimulant misuse vary by age and education level,” investigators concluded in a study that “used data from the 2015 to 2018 National Survey on Drug Use and Health to examine numerous prescription stimulant misuse among 86,918 adolescents and young adults aged 14 to 25 years.” The researchers “examined individual prescription stimulant misuse motives, such as study aid, and motive categories, such as cognitive enhancement only, recreational only, weight loss only and combined motives, by age,” then “used logistic regression models to evaluate associations between individual motives or motive categories and educational status, substance use, DSM-4 substance use disorder and mental health correlates.” The findings were published online Nov. 3 in the Journal of Clinical Psychiatry.

Related Links:

— “Motivating factors for prescription stimulant misuse vary by age, education level “Joe Gramigna, Healio, November 17, 2020

HealthDay (11/16, Murez) reports, “Less screen time and more sleep are critical for preventing depression,” investigators concluded after analyzing “UK Biobank data from 85,000 people to determine impact of lifestyle on depression.” The study revealed that “physical activity, a healthy diet and getting between seven and nine hours of sleep nightly was associated with less frequency of depressed mood.” What’s more, “screen time and tobacco smoking were significantly associated with higher frequency of depression,” researchers discovered. The findings were published online Nov. 11 in the journal BMC Medicine.

Related Links:

— “Two Key Lifestyle Factors May Ward Off Depression, HealthDay, November 16, 2020

CNN (11/16, LaMotte) reports new research “comparing poor sleep among more than a million adults and children in the United Kingdom, the Netherlands and the United States found women experience more insomnia problems than men in all three countries.” What’s more, “the trend emerges during puberty, ‘suggesting sex hormones, among other social factors such as stress or parenting,’ might contribute to the development of insomnia in women,” investigators concluded after comparing “sleep studies on 1.1 million people from the US, the UK and the Netherlands.” The findings were published online in the journal Nature Human Behavior.

Related Links:

— “More women than men struggle to fall asleep in both Europe and the US, study finds “Sandee LaMotte, CNN, November 16, 2020