999 Results
Dark Chocolate Offers a Variety of Potential Benefits
Many of us regularly enjoy, or even crave, chocolate at times. As you consider your chocolate choices, opting for dark chocolate may be your best bet. Research continues to identify a variety of health and mental health benefits associated with dark chocolate.
Alcohol Use Disorder: Social Media, Technology, and Treatment
While most can enjoy alcohol occasionally without problems, alcohol use disorder is common and often untreated. An estimated 11% of all adults and 15% of young adults (aged 18-25) had alcohol use disorder in the past year. Several recent studies highlight some challenges related to alcohol content on social media along with some promising approaches to treatment.
How Running and Resistance Training Can Help Depression and Anxiety
It is well-known that exercise or physical activity can help support mental health. It can help reduce symptoms, improve working memory and focus, and help prevent cognitive decline. New research points to specific significant benefits for treating depression and anxiety symptoms with running and resistance training. Resistance training, also called strength training or weight training, uses resistance to build muscle strength and anaerobic endurance.
Nature’s Benefits for Mental Health May Not Work So Well When Pressured
During the more than a year of pandemic restrictions, access to parks and other green spaces have been very important escapes for many, offering a place to go for exercise and social interaction when other options weren’t available. Fifteen national parks set new recreation visitation records in 2020, despite temporary park closures and restrictions in response to the pandemic.
More Benefits of Exercise: Preventing and Treating Anxiety
There are many reasons we should all be getting out to exercise– improved sleep, increased energy, reduced risk of chronic disease and more. Preventing anxiety is one more reason to keep up your exercise routine, according to new research published in June in the journal Depression and Anxiety.
Healing Through Art
Visual arts, whether you’re engaging in them or just appreciating them, can bring enjoyment and encouragement, but expressing oneself through art can also have physical and mental health benefits. Art therapy, a type of psychotherapy, helps provide a way to express emotions and experiences not easily expressed in words. It is not about the final product; it is about healing through the process of making art. Research has identified a range of physical and mental health benefits of art and art t
More Evidence of the Benefits of Trees in Urban Areas
Previous research has tied people’s exposure to natural environments, such as urban green spaces, to better health and mental health. A new study looks at whether a specific type of green space— trees, grass or low-lying vegetation— provides benefits.
Culture Corner: Traditional Chinese Medicine
Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) provides an excellent complementary alternative to contemporary treatments for physical and mental health needs. Integrating TCM with modern healthcare enriches the available treatment options and aligns with the shift towards a more holistic and integrated approach to care.
Mental Health Parity: New Proposed Rule
On July 25, 2023, the Departments of Labor and Health and Human Services released a proposed rule intended to strengthen enforcement of the 2008 Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act (MHPAEA) and improve patients’ ability to access care for mental health and substance use disorders (MH/SUD). At the same time, the agencies also released a Technical Release, seeking feedback on data requirements related to network composition and a possible enforcement safe harbor; a second Report to Congr
Treatments are Available for the So-called Winter Blues
As we move toward winter with shorter daylight hours and falling temperatures, many people begin to feel the cloud of seasonal depression. Seasonal affective disorder (SAD) is a form of depression that occurs seasonally, typically in the winter months. SAD is not just the winter blues – SAD is a subtype of major depressive disorder. It can also occur during summer, but it is much less common that time of year.
100 Day Step Challenge for Mental Health
Many employers offer wellness programs for their employees. A team of researchers in Australia wanted to explore the potential mental health benefits of a short-term workplace wellness program. Their study involved nearly 2,000 participants in a 100-day, 10,000-step challenge program. They found a small, but consistent effect on several measures of mental health over the term of the program. The positive mental health effect appeared regardless of whether a person reached the 10,000-step goal
Mental Health Pathfinders: APA President Ramaswamy Viswanathan, M.D. Dr.Med.Sc.
Current APA President Ramaswamy Viswanathan, M.D. Dr.Med.Sc. joins us to discuss his journey to psychiatric leadership and the early life events that inspired him to make a lifelong commitment to lifestyle medicine.