Many soldiers returning from duty in Afghanistan and Iraq may be suffering from post traumatic stress disorder in silence, reports The Telegraph.

A ’stiff upper lip’ attitude may be preventing soldiers from admitting they have a problem, and talking about how they feel.

Professor Alexander McFarlane, professor of psychiatry at the University of Adelaide and head of the Australian Centre for Military and Veterans’ Health has claimed that British soldiers do not receive the same level of after care as American and Australian soldiers.

He said: “People who have been traumatised are in a peculiar position in a community.

“The very nature of what they have suffered silences them. People who have had these sort of experiences can’t understand what they have been through, so even if veterans do speak they are not heard. ”

Read more here…

In a world of rolling news and constant information updates, scientists fear that it is causing extra stress on the brain, reports The Times.

Two new studies have suggested that the constant flood of information may result in brains blocking the development of wisdom - traits such as empathy, tolerance, emotional stability and compassion, and we become ‘ethically numb’.

With the amount of information consumed increasing each year - the amount of time people spend on line went up by nearly a quarter from 2006 to 2007, it’s feared that the brain may reach saturation point, and begin to shut down.

Professor Dilip Jeste, the author of one of the studies said: “Psychosocially positive behaviours such as admiration and indignation are more work for the brain than basic emotions such as pain response.

“Constant bombardment by outside high-intensity stimuli is not likely be healthy. It may prevent people from having an opportunity to digest the information, match it with culturally resonant reactions and then execute well-considered behavioural responses.”

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Moving house more than three times can have a detrimental effect on children’s’ mental health, reports the Telegraph.

A new study has shown that moving house, and therefore losing contact with friends and being taken away from familiar surroundings, may cause the child to feel they’re being ignored, and can result in suicidal feelings.

The study monitored how many children had committed suicide over a period of 17 years, and found over half of those who took their own life had moved house more than three times.

Ping Qin, the lead author, wrote: “The breakdown of connections with peers, discontinuation of group activities, distress and worries related to the new environment are potentially psychologically distressing events for young children. Frequent exposures to these events can be stressful and confusing and may affect their psychosocial wellbeing, thus increasing their intention toward ending their life if they are unable to cope.

“Children may feel ignored and have no one to communicate with. A suicide attempt may, to some extent, express the need for more attention from their parents.”

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An article over at the Guardian website highlights how children can be affected by using social networking sites such as Facebook.

Children see their profile on such sites as ‘advertising’ for themselves, aiming to get as many friends as possible, rather than a few close friends. The child’s self-esteem may be affected by comments from others, and those who already suffered from low self-esteem were more likely to use social networking sites to try and boost it, rarely with successful results.

A recent study of 21 year-olds showed that, in those that were prone to loneliness, talking online could often result in them feeling more lonely than those doing other activities, including sitting by themselves or talking face-to-face.

Parents are being encouraged to talk with their children about their use of social networking sites, particularly if they feel their child is struggling with self-esteem and loneliness.

Read the article here…

Despite another crackdown on illegal drugs, it’s feared that drug manufacturers and dealers are already one step ahead, reports The Independent.

BZP, a worming treatment for cattle, but with effects similar to ecstasy is due to be classified as a Class C drug, however, manufacturers have already begun making a different drug, with similar effects to cocaine, that will be entirely legal.

Mephedrone has a very cheap street value, and is sometimes marketed as plant food, is another such ‘legal high’, and is similar to amphetamines. Several countries have already banned it, but many believe the UK is behind on this issue.

The UK is slow and behind the times in banning BZP,” said Dr John Ramsey, a toxicologist at St George’s University of London, who is also the director of Tic Tac Communications, a drug analysis body that studies recreational drugs. “We can’t rely on the Home Office to play catch up when it comes to these drugs. We need a sensible debate in the media about their potential risks.”

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Researchers in Canada have announced that playing music to babies born prematurely may have them grow, reports the BBC.

Premature babies are those born before 37 weeks. Premature birth can be caused by a number of factors, including infections, or smoking.

Music appeared to help the babies gain weight quicker, reduce pain and help encourage feeding. The researchers looked at the evidence from nine previous studies to draw their conclusions. More and more neonatal units in hospitals are playing music, usually lullabies, sometimes with heartbeat or womb sounds.

The study authors, Dr Manoj Kumar and colleagues, said: “There is preliminary evidence to suggest that music may have beneficial effects in terms of physiological parameters, behavioural states and pain reduction during painful medical procedures.

“While there is preliminary evidence for some therapeutic benefits of music for specific indications, these benefits need to be confirmed in well-designed, high quality trials.”

Read more here…

Plans from the government to raise the retirement age to 70 have been welcomed by those researching Alzheimer’s disease, reports the Times.

The Institute of Psychiatry, at the Maudsley Hospital in London said that for every extra year worked dementia could be off-set by just over a month. So working until age 70 rather than the current retirement age, 65, could prevent the on-set of dementia by another six months.

Keeping the brain active and stimulated won’t prevent Alzheimer’s, but can help the severity of the symptoms. “Exercising” the brain can also help, such as doing puzzles and challenging it. It’s also important to look after the rest of the body, particularly the heart, blood pressure and cholesterol.

Read more tips on helping prevent dementia and Alzheimer’s here…

New figures released by the Department of Health shows that those who work in media, publishing and entertainment consume almost twice the amount of recommended daily alcohol units, and are the heaviest drinkers, reports The Independent.

Those who work in education and transport - such as drivers - had the lowest alcohol intake, on average 24 units a week. IT workers were in the middle, consuming around 33 units per week.

YouGov carried out the survey, questioning 1,400 people.

Public Health Minister, Dawn Primarolo, said: “After-work drinks are often part of working life. It’s tempting to just go for ‘a swift one’, even when you know your body needs a rest. But, one can quickly turn into many.”

Read more of the survey findings…

New figures released have shown that Britain is sinking deeper into dangerous drinking habits, reports the Independent today.

New figures published by the NHS Information Centre shows that one in three men and one in six women drink to a point where they are in danger of suffering from mental health problems such as depression, and are likely to cause damage to their liver. One in ten men and one in 25 women exhibited signs of being dependent on alcohol - suggesting that developing alcoholism is likely.

Over the last five years the number of people being admitted to hospital due to alcohol has risen by 70%, putting a huge strain on the NHS and costing around £2.7 billion.

Professor Ian Gilmore, an alcohol expert said: “The pivotal role of increasing affordability of alcohol over the last few decades as a key factor in increasing consumption and harm has been yet again confirmed.”

Read more here…

Post-natal depression is a familiar condition, however antenatal depression is far more unheard of, reports The Times.

One in four women experience an episode of depression in their life, and it’s most likely to occur during the reproductive years.

Symptoms during pregnancy such as tearfullness, anxiety, and being irritable are often put down to hormones, but could be signs of depression. Women who have had previous mental health problems are more likely to develop antenatal depression, as are women with difficult social circumstances or those in an unhappy relationship.

Treatments from the condition range from counselling, being encouraged to take more exercise, or in more serious cases cognitive behavioural therapy or being prescribed antidepressants, although this is only in very serious cases as it can harm the development of the baby.

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The first study to investigate adolescent victims of stalking has showed that the problem is largely being ignored, reports the Guardian.

the report says that behaviour associated with stalking is instead being categorised as bullying if the victim is a teenager, whereas if the victim was an adult it would warrant a police investigation.

the research consisted of interviewing those who had been convicted of stalking to determine what form the stalking had taken - 67% said they’d used text messages and phone calls and 54% had physically or sexually assaulted their victim.

Emma-Jane Cross of Beatbullying said: “The research further proves that juvenile stalking is a very dangerous form of bullying and one that is likely to escalate to youth-on-youth violence. Early intervention and on the ground bullying prevention work in schools and local communities needs to be part of the solution, with young people at the heart of implementing change.”

Read more about the report…

Despite those suffering with depression now being offered many more options for treatment, the cost of antidepressants in Scotland has soared to £40million, reports The Times.

3.9 million prescriptions for antidepressants were issued last year, and there was an increase across every area in Scotland. The Western Isles saw the biggest increase with a rise of 7.7%. Milton in Glasgow is ‘the most depressed’ area, with antidepressants being prescribed to one in five residents.

The opposition parties in Scotland have highlighted this as a failure for the current government, who pledged to try and reduce the use of antidepressants. They are calling for more funding for alternative methods of treatment, such as counselling, to try and combat the problem, as well as tackling the causes of depression, such as unemployment and poverty.

A Scottish government spokeswoman said: “As a first step we have set a target to reduce the growth in prescribing of antidepressants to zero by 2010.Latest figures show an 11% increase in the numbers of mental health staff in the past year, which will result in improved access to talking therapies in NHS Scotland.”

Read more here…

A mental health nurse is calling for more training to consider children’s needs when assessing parents mental health, reports the BBC.

Sarah Rutherford from Manchester Metropolitan University said that currently children are still being cared for by parents who are undergoing treatment for mental health problems, which could be putting them at risk. She said that there were no guidelines for how to assess what should happen to the child, and also no follow-up procedure after the parent had been given treatment.

It is the responsibility of the mental health nurse to inform social services if a child may be at risk due to their parents mental health issues, and Ms Rutherford said that they were not given guidelines to follow or any training on what to look out for.

Ms Rutherford said: “It used to be the case that children were taken away from mothers with serious mental health problems. Now, this is not the case and that is a good thing because children are often better off with their parents. But we do not know if children are being put at risk either emotionally or physically.”

Read more here…

A new survey carried out by mental health charity Mind has found that nearly half of men are suffering from ‘recession blues’, reports the BBC.

In a survey of 2000 men, 40% said they feel low due to job and money worries. However, the survey also found that men are less willing to talk about their mental health problems, and less likely to seek help than women. 29% of men said they would talk about their problems with friends, as opposed to 53% of women.

Paul Farmer, chief executive at Mind, said: “The recession is clearly having a detrimental impact on the nation’s mental health, but men in particular are struggling with the emotional impact.

“Being a breadwinner is something that is still crucial to the male psyche so if a man loses his job he loses a large part of his identity putting his mental wellbeing in jeopardy.”

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New research from the Joseph Rowntree Foundation has shown that the number of women drinking harmful amounts of alcohol has risen considerably, reports the Guardian.

In 1998, 8% of women were classed as binge drinkers, a figure which rose to 15% in 2006. There was also a narrowing of the gender gap in binge drinking, as male binge drinking only rose by one percent, to 23%, over the same period of time.

The largest rise was in women over 65, who are now consuming on average 5.1 units, a rise from 2.7 units. The research also showed that, despite stereotypes, there had in fact been a reduction of 9% in the number of men aged 16 to 24 binge drinking.

Lesley Smith, from Oxford Brookes University, who helped lead the study said: “Many people will be ­surprised to learn that young men’s drinking, including binge drinking, has gone down in recent years, while middle-aged and older people’s drinking has increased.”

Read more of the figures…