According to HealthDay (6/25, Gordon), “22% of young men and 5% of young women turn to potentially dangerous methods to ‘bulk up,’” research indicates. Such “unhealthy methods – dubbed ‘disordered eating behaviors’ – include eating to gain weight and using supplements or anabolic steroids to increase muscle or body size.” Included in the study were “nearly 15,000 young people across the” US who “were first interviewed when they were 11 to 18 years old, and again when they were between 18 and 24.” The findings were published online June 20 in the International Journal of Eating Disorders.

Related Links:

— “Many Young Men Putting Health at Risk to Bulk Up, “Serena Gordon, HealthDay, June 25, 2019

HealthDay (6/24, Thompson) reports on a study published in the journal JAMA Pediatrics finding that “Hispanic teens are being driven to anxiety and sleeplessness over the Trump Administration’s immigration policies, even though they are U.S.-born citizens and face no threat of deportation.” Researchers found that “nearly half…reported that they worry that U.S. immigration policy could tear their families apart.” The teens “had five times higher levels of anxiety as kids without similar worries,” and “they also had poorer sleep quality.” The study was conducted in Salinas, California.

MedPage Today (6/24, Hlavinka) reports, “U.S.-born Hispanic teens’ concerns about immigration policy may be affecting their overall mental health.” The study included “about 400 Hispanic adolescents – all U.S. citizens – with at least one immigrant parent.”

Related Links:

— “Hispanic Teens Losing Sleep Over Trump’s Immigration Policies, “Dennis Thompson, HealthDay, June 24, 2019

TIME (6/24, Adams) reports on the difficulties of responding to teens who have had “a suicide attempt or suicidal ideation” and have been hospitalized, stating “that where hospitalization provides effective crisis management in such situations, keeping young people safe back at home is a challenge that modern medicine has so far failed to solve.” TIME adds that some University of Michigan researchers have “been working with a simple yet powerful tool that just might help: recruiting three or four familiar adults — not just the young person’s parents — who pledge ongoing support through recovery.” They also offer training to the parents and the others “to encourage their struggling charges to stick to the treatment plan.” In a study of the results, “those who received the attention of trained adults in their lives were nearly seven times less likely to die than teens who received only standard care.”

Related Links:

— “New Research Is Focusing on Treating Teens’ Suicidal Thoughts With Support of Friends, Family, “Jill U. Adams, TIME, June 24, 2019

Reuters (6/24, Rapaport) reports on a study published in Pediatrics, finding that “teens who feel understood by their parents and teachers may grow up to be healthier adults.” The study included 14,800 participants who “completed health surveys at an average age of 15.” Researchers found that “at an average age of 28, participants with higher levels of school connectedness in adolescence had lower rates of emotional distress, suicidal thoughts, physical violence victimization and perpetration, multiple sex partners, sexually transmitted infections, and drug abuse.”

Related Links:

— “Teens with strong connections at home and school may become healthier adults, “Lisa Rapaport, Reuters, June 24, 2019

HealthDay (6/24, Preidt) reports, “U.S. veterans with PTSD are twice as likely as the general population to die from suicide, accidents and viral hepatitis,” researchers concluded after examining “the top causes of death among 491,000 veterans who began PTSD treatment at V.A. medical centers between 2008 and 2013.” The study also revealed that “veterans with PTSD also have a higher risk of death from diabetes and liver disease.” The findings were published online June 24 in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine.

Related Links:

— “Vets With PTSD Face Higher Odds for Early Death From Multiple Causes, ” Robert Preidt, HealthDay, June 24, 2019