A programme aired on BBC2 yesterday evening aimed to highlight how the authorities are playing down the number of murders committed by the mentally ill, reports The Independent.
The head of the National Confidential Inquiry into Suicide and Homicide by People with Mental Health Problems (NCISH) has said that approximately 50 people a year who read more »

Recent research has found there could be a link between viral infection in the womb and unborn offspring being predisposed to schizophrenia, reports The Times.
Previous research has suggested that women who contract flu during pregnancy are at higher risk of giving birth to a baby likely to develop schizophrenia later on in life.
The read more »

According to a major recent study, members of the African Carribian community are nine times more likely to suffer from schizophrenia than people in the white community, reports the Guardian.
The New Horizons mental health strategy, which was released on Monday has moved away from the idea of providing specialist services for ethnic minorities and this read more »

Mood tracking can be more effective for bi-polar sufferers than prescription drugs, reports The Times.
Plotting your moods on a chart and making changes based on these patterns can be an effective tool for treating bipolar disorder, or anyone suffering from negative moods.
Psychologists have long since used this method. Encouraging patients to write a mood diary, read more »

UK doctors are trialling a new scheme which sees psychiatric patients receive cash for taking their medication correctly, reports BBC News.
68 patients suffering with bipolar disorder or schizophrenia are participating in a new scheme in which they are rewarded with £15 for every jab of anti-psychotic drug they take, giving them a possible annual read more »

Times online have recently created a number of questionnaires to help you determine if you might have a mental illness. If you are worried that your winter blues might be something a little more serious then find out if you need to seek help. We are all guilty of using the terms stressed and depressed read more »

New research has shown that there may be a link between a genetic variation and developing schizophrenia, reports the BBC.
Three separate teams analysed thousands of DNA samples in the biggest study ever into the genetics of schizophrenia, and the findings showed that the illness can come from common as well as rare genetic forms. It’s read more »

Research suggests that those from broken homes may be more prone to psychotic illnesses. Separation was associated with a 2.5 fold increased risk in developing psychosis: “Separation from one or both parents for more than a year before the age of 16, as a consequence of family breakdown, was associated with a 2.5 fold increased read more »

According to an article in The Guardian, scientists have discovered a variation in a gene in people at risk of schizophrenia. This provides strong evidence of a key genetic link, which gives hope to schizophrenia victims of finding a cure. Apparently, the mental health charity Sane described the research as “exciting” and referred to the read more »

Experts believe the term schizophrenia should be abolished. Apparently the category “falsely groups a wide range of symptoms and encourages over-reliance on anti-psychotic drugs rather than psychological intervention”.
Paul Hammersley, who is involved with the Campaign to Abolish the Schizophrenia Label (Castle) said “It is associated with violence, dangerousness, unpredictability, inability to recover, constant illness, constant read more »