Swedish researchers who studied 2,510 children aged 10, 12 and 15 from 44 schools found a strong association between reported physical abuse and three or more psychosomatic symptoms. The association was highest in children who were physically abused and also witnessed intimate partner violence (IPV). However, there was no significant association between IPV on its own and multiple symptoms.

“The children were asked if they had experienced any of the following symptoms at least twice in the last month: stomach ache, headache, sleeplessness, dizziness, back pain and loss of appetite” explains co-author Professor Staffan Janson from the Division of Public Health Sciences at Karlstad University, Sweden. 

“Of the 300 adolescents who have participated in the RAP Program, most have shown substantial improvement,” noted Barbara Cornblatt, Ph.D., director of the Recognition and Prevention (RAP) Program and investigator at The Feinstein Institute for Medical Research. “If this study continues to show success, Omega 3 could offer a natural alternative to the range of medications and therapies now offered to RAP participants. Ultimately, the goal of the RAP Program is to intervene and prevent illness before symptoms get worse.”

Omega 3 fatty acids are critical for normal brain function and they have been increasingly studied as potential treatments for medical and psychiatric disorders. The RAP Program study will randomly assign participants to either Omega 3 supplementation or to a placebo, and will compare the groups on key measures of symptoms and functioning after six months. Participants in both groups will be monitored closely on a monthly basis and compensation will be provided. All supplements are offered free of charge.

The study supports recent findings that linked psychotic disorders such as schizophrenia and certain types of international immigration. Investigators believe the research suggests the mental health of young children can be adversely affected by traumatic social upheaval.

Sadly, children who immigrated when under the age of five had a twofold higher risk of such disorders than those who immigrated at age 10-14 years, and a threefold higher risk than those who immigrated as adults.

The new study also found that adolescents with schizophrenia showed an increase in cerebrospinal fluid in the frontal lobe of their brain.

“Progressive loss of brain gray matter has been reported in childhood-onset schizophrenia,” the authors note in the new study. “However, it is uncertain whether these changes are shared by pediatric patients with different psychoses.”

The study was conducted by Celso Arango, M.D., Ph.D., of the Hospital General Universitario Gregorio Marañón, Madrid, Spain, and colleagues, and was designed to examine the progression of brain changes in first-episode early-onset psychosis in teens. The research also wanted to look at the relationship to diagnosis and prognosis after two years.

Sufferers report feeling that bugs are crawling all over their skin or just under it. They have fatigue and painful sores. They also say that they’ve pulled “fibers” and other solid materials like “specks, granules, dots, worms, sand, eggs, fuzz balls and larvae” through their skin, leaving lesions, according to new research by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

The new study - a $600,000 project launched in 2008 in response to a massive swell of interest and inquiries about the condition from lawmakers and patients - sought to determine how common Morgellons is. Perhaps more importantly for sufferers, the study also looked for a medical cause. The result: there is none.

The variants, also known as CNVs, are alterations in which there are too few or too many copies of sections of DNA. Researchers have known that spontaneously occurring or de novo CNVs, which are genetic mutations not inherited from parents, increase the risk for some neuropsychiatric conditions, such as schizophrenia or autism.

But their role was unclear in bipolar disorder, according to principal investigator Jonathan Sebat, Ph.D., assistant professor of psychiatry and cellular and molecular medicine at the University of California San Diego’s Institute of Genomic Medicine.

Sebat and his colleagues found that de novo CNVs contribute “significant” genetic risk in about 5 percent of early-onset bipolar disorder, which appears in childhood or early adulthood.

New research finds that brain activity increases during delusional thinking, a finding that may allow new interventions and retraining for people with the disorder.

The study, found in the journal Biological Psychiatry, compared brain activity as statements were read to a group of individuals with schizophrenia and to a group without schizophrenia.

Investigators discovered the genetic variation can cause a six-fold greater risk for children to develop metabolic syndrome. Metabolic syndrome is a combination of symptoms that increase the risk for cardiovascular disease.

The study showed susceptible children displayed an increased risk to develop high blood pressure and elevated fasting blood sugar levels (a precursor to diabetes).

The criteria for depression are being reviewed by the American Psychiatric Association, which is finishing work on the fifth edition of its Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, or D.S.M., the first since 1994. The manual is the standard reference for the field, shaping treatment and insurance decisions, and its revisions will affect the lives of millions of people for years to come.

In coming months, as the manual is finalized, outside experts will intensify scrutiny of its finer points, many of which are deeply contentious in the field. A controversy erupted last week over the proposed tightening of the definition of autism, possibly sharply reducing the number of people who receive the diagnosis. Psychiatrists say current efforts to revise the manual are shaping up as the most contentious ever. 

The researchers say their findings indicate that people around 100 years old may see life differently than people 20 or 40 years their junior and traditional tests for depression may not be effective in the extremely old.

“We’re saying look at more of the components that make up depression,” said Peter Martin, a gerontology researcher at Iowa State University and one of the study’s authors. “Some may be more relevant to centenarians than others.”

The latest upset? The fact that the new DSM-5 suggests that depression could co-occur with grief. Critics see the changes as suggesting the DSM is trying to “medicalize” normal grieving. Anyone who experiences grief after a tragic or significant loss will now be at risk for receiving - heaven forbid - mental health treatment and a diagnosis.

We’ve covered this ground here on more than one occasion, but it appears time to talk about whether depression can occur at the same time as grief or not. My first reaction was - grief is grief, depression is depression, and the two never really co-occur. But a few years ago, I read a piece here on World of Psychology by Dr. Ron Pies which completely changed my perspective. 

Prior studies have linked the virus to mental illnesses such as bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, anxiety disorder and dementia. Investigators were open-minded to the possibility as genetic fragments and antibodies to this RNA virus causes behavior disorders in a range of mammals and birds.

Moreover, although the results have been inconclusive, traces of the virus have been found to be prevalent in psychiatric patients.

Researchers from Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis determined school-age children whose mothers nurtured them early in life have brains with a larger hippocampus. The hippocampus is a key structure important to learning, memory and response to stress.

The research is published online in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences Early Edition.

Improved self-esteem is a key psychological benefit of regular physical activity. When you exercise, your body releases chemicals called endorphins. These endorphins interact with the receptors in your brain that reduce your perception of pain.

Endorphins also trigger a positive feeling in the body, similar to that of morphine. For example, the feeling that follows a run or workout is often described as “euphoric.” That feeling, known as a “runner’s high,” can be accompanied by a positive and energizing outlook on life.

Physical Results of Stress
The body is often the one to cry out for stress relief. There are a host of illnesses and diseases which you become susceptible to when you are exposed to frequent, regular and prolonged periods of stress. Under these adverse pressures of life, people often turn to drinking, smoking, excessive eating and even drugs to find relief. However, these activities make you prone to heart disease, lung disease, diabetes and other compromises in your health and quality of life. Those under prolonged stress are 90% more likely to have a stroke and it is a big factor in the development of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS).

A much better solution to stress is to participate in a regular exercise program. Exercising on a regular and even daily basis reduces such stress hormones as cortisol and adrenaline and boosts your physical health. In-depth studies have proven that regular exercise provides weight loss, increases the body’s oxygen levels, lowers blood pressure, improves cardiovascular health, bolsters immune levels and overall reduces the chance of acquiring disease.