Tag Archives: mental health

Examining Nutritional Interventions for Improved Wellbeing and Mental Health 

August 5, 2021

Emerging findings from intervention studies implicate healthy dietary patterns combined with lifestyle modifications have the potential to prevent and treatment mental health disorders and modify drug treatment effects.

There is strong evidence that nutritional patterns can affect later-life brain function; a healthy diet filled with high-quality foods has been linked to reductions in cognitive decline risk, while a poor diet appears to increase cognitive decline along with other health concerns. Mounting evidence suggests that early evaluation and treatment for depression can improve or maintain cognitive function in patients with mild cognitive impairment – the first stage of Alzheimer’s disease. Furthermore, the risk of developing dementia is doubled in older adults with depression, whereas the risk of Alzheimer’s is up to 65% greater. Not only is a healthy diet beneficial for preventing neurological decline, but it can also help address cardiometabolic health conditions such as type 2 diabetes, hypertension, and metabolic disorders.

Continue reading →

Early-Life Exposure to Dogs Linked to Decreased Schizophrenia Risk

July 30, 2021

Owning a pet has been associated with many health benefits, ranging from decreased blood pressure and cholesterol levels to increased life expectancy. Pet dogs specifically provide opportunities for increased physical activity, socialization, and time spent outdoors while also improving emotional well-being by providing their owners with companionship. As a result, pet ownership is on the rise, according to data from the American Pet Products Association’s National Pet Owners Survey. Per current estimates, 67% of households in the United States own at least one pet – which equals approximately 85 million homes across the country.

The full extent of the health benefits – and risks – of pet ownership is yet unknown, however, the latest research reveals that there may be positive neurologic implications of owning a dog. Published online in the journal PLOS One, a recent study from Johns Hopkins Medicine implicates that exposure to dogs at an early age may have psychiatric health benefits, including the lessening of the likelihood of schizophrenia development in adulthood.

Continue reading →

The Lasting Effects of the COVID-19 Pandemic: Bracing for the “Mental Health Tsunami”

June 25, 2021

In addition to the widespread socio-economic distress, civil unrest, and political destabilization, yet another wave of COVID-19 is weighing down the already overwhelming burden of the ongoing pandemic on public health. The viral outbreak has taken a tremendous toll on the global healthcare system and the physical wellbeing of millions across the globe. Yet further still, it has contributed to the festering of a mental health epidemic that will long outlast the pandemic environment. ”

An array of additional risk factors is compounding the mental health challenges facing the global population, ranging from unemployment and underemployment to increasing healthcare costs, childcare concerns, and mounting racial inequities. On top of this, mental healthcare services have become inaccessible to many individuals in the United States as COVID-19 restrictions shuttered facilities, suspended support groups, and moved many services to online platforms. The immense psychological burden has acute effects on public health, leading experts to forecast an impending “mental health tsunami” – one of the biggest post-pandemic issues facing the population in 2021 and the years to come.

Continue reading →