News 2019

New research from the University of Sussex shows that people who take part in Dry January - living alcohol-free for a month - are still drinking less six months later. In the most robust research on the subject to date, the study, led by University of Sussex psychologist Dr Richard de Visser , compared the experiences of participants in the Dry January 2019 challenge with adult drinkers who did not take part.

Women who have symptoms of depression and anxiety during pregnancy do not report concerns with their infant sons' behaviour - but do with daughters, a Cardiff University study has found. As many as one in four women experience depression and/or anxiety in pregnancy and evidence suggests it can increase the risk of emotional and behavioural issues, particularly in boys.

Scientists from Cardiff University have studied the sleep patterns of children and adolescents with one of the most common genetic conditions - 22q11.2 deletion syndrome (22q). The researchers found nearly two thirds (60%) of the group aged 17 and under experienced insomnia or restless sleep and in turn, a higher proportion of these had conditions such as ADHD, anxiety disorders and conduct disorder.

White British young people living in more ethnically diverse deprived neighbourhoods have better mental health than those living in "white working-class" neighbourhoods, according to a new UCL study. The study found there was no difference in the mental health of ethnic minority youths by whether they lived in neighbourhoods of differing levels of ethnic density and ethnic diversity.

One of the world's leading centres for research into the underlying causes of mental health issues is marking its 10th anniversary. The MRC Centre for Neuropsychiatric Genetics and Genomics is also transitioning from a Medical Research Council Centre to a Cardiff University Centre, and Professor James Walters is taking over as director, replacing Professor Sir Michael Owen.

Professor Peter Fonagy, Head of UCL Psychology & Language Sciences, writes about how wide social networks can help to shield people from mental disorder, arguing that we should celebrate this collective responsibility. The government published its first national review of children and young people's mental wellbeing on 10 October, World Mental Health Day.

Scientists witnessing the destruction of the natural world must be supported and "allowed to cry", researchers say. In a letter published in the journal Science , three leading researchers say it is "dangerously misguided" to assume scientists are dispassionate observers. They say many scientists experience "strong grief responses" to the current ecological crisis, and there are profound risks to ignoring this emotional trauma.

How much does social media help or hinder young people's efforts to seek support for their emotional wellbeing? What challenges do students face when accessing services and how might they navigate them? Is there sufficient support available for students with autism? These are some of the questions that lie at the heart of a series of new research projects led by the University of Bristol's Elizabeth Blackwell Institute.

A period of rest following a traumatic event can reduce the subsequent development of involuntary 'memory intrusions'*, one of the hallmark symptoms in post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), a new UCL study has found. The study, published in Scientific Reports and funded by the European Research Council and Wellcome, suggests memory disturbances in PTSD may be ameliorated by increased 'consolidation' (a process by which memories are stored and contextualised), which could shed new light on treatment and prevention.

Future treatment and prevention of suicidal behaviour in lowand middle-income countries (LMIC) should involve a wider range of approaches beyond just the treatment of psychiatric illness, according to a new University of Bristol study published on World Mental Health Day today [Thursday 10 October] in PLOS Medicine.

Teenagers are less likely to cooperate and put effort into their mother's requests when they are said in a controlling tone of voice, researchers have found. Speaking to a son or daughter in a pressurising tone is also accompanied by a range of negative emotions and less feelings of closeness, a new study has discovered.

A study by the University of Birmingham has shown that children who have experienced child abuse or neglect are four times more likely to develop serious mental illness such as psychoses, schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. Researchers studied GP records dating between 1995 and 2018 of 217,758 patients aged under 18 who had experienced, or were suspected to have experienced, childhood maltreatment or related concerns, and then compared them to the records of 423,410 patients who had not.

One in five women report sex discrimination and these women are more likely to develop poorer mental health after the sexist experience, according to a new UCL study investigating links between sexism and mental health and wellbeing. The study, published today in Health Psychology, analysed data from nearly 3,000 women from T he UK Household Longitudinal Study (UKHLS) over a period of four years.

New research from the University of Bristol is the first to use a large generational family study to examine links between childhood trauma, the impact of inflammation and self-harm. Epidemiologists examined 4300 young people in Bristol's Children of the 90s study to see if adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) such as experiencing abuse, witnessing domestic violence or having separated parents are linked to self-harm at the age of 16.

Levels of the stress hormone cortisol are higher in women who give birth in the autumn and winter than those who give birth in the spring or summer, finds a new study by researchers at Cardiff University. The new findings could explain why mental health disorders are more common in people born during the winter.

A survey of more than 3,400 university students in the USA has found that one in five respondents reported problematic smartphone use. Female students were more likely be affected and problematic smartphone use was associated with lower grade averages, mental health problems and higher numbers of sexual partners.

Aggressive behaviour in pet dogs is a serious problem for dog owners across the world, with bite injuries representing a serious risk to both people and other dogs. New research by the University of Bristol has explored the factors that influence how owners manage aggressive behaviour in their dogs.

Academics at the University of Birmingham have identified a significant association between mental illness and domestic abuse in UK women. Up until now, there has been confusion whether the mental illness or the abuse came first and very few previous studies have been able to demonstrate the direction of the relationship.

A new study of non-suicidal self-harm in England, published in The Lancet Psychiatry journal, suggests that rates grew from around 2 per cent to 6 per cent of the population between 2000 and 2014. At the same time, the study noted no evidence of an increase in treatment contact for this group. Non-suicidal self-harm (NSSH) is defined as self-inflicted harm without suicidal intent.

Behavioural problems in young people with severe antisocial behaviour - known as conduct disorder - could be caused by differences in the brain's wiring that link the brain's emotional centres together, according to new research led by the University of Birmingham. Conduct disorder affects around 1 in 20 children and teenagers and is one of the most common reasons for referral to child and adolescent mental health services.