As the final part of this series on #mentalhealth and baking/cooking, we review some of the evidence behind using food as a therapeutic modality for #mentalillness ... While we posted this article as part of a "Psych In The News" feature a number of months ago, it is worth highlighting again and having a read through if you have not yet already ... The article (a summary of which can be found here: http://www.medicaldaily.com/treating-depression-kitchen-cooking-baking-classes-can-double-therapy-313792), reviews how cooking classes are a quickly growing adjunct therapy for various psychiatric conditions, most notably depression. Especially for affected teens, cooking classes can "soothe stress, build self-esteem and curb negative thinking". "Psychologists say #cooking and #baking are pursuits that fit a type of therapy known as behavioral activation. The goal is to alleviate depression by boosting positive activity, increasing goal-oriented behavior and curbing procrastination and passivity. “If the activity is defined as personally rewarding or giving a sense of accomplishment or pleasure, or even seeing the pleasure of that pumpkin bread with chocolate chips making someone else happy, then it could improve a sense of well-being,” says Jacqueline Gollan, associate professor of #psychiatry and behavioral sciences at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine in Chicago." http://www.wsj.com/articles/a-road-to-mental-health-through-the-kitchen-1418059204 Schizophrenia affects individuals around the world. Though it is not something unique to developed nations like our own, researchers are starting to discover that the experience of schizophrenia symptoms can vary widely between different countries. In the brief study summary "Hallucinated voices’ attitudes vary with culture", we learn that the context of auditory hallucinations, such as whether they are positive or negative, can vary greatly between the East and West, and this may perhaps be due to difference in cultural beliefs about the mind and mental health. "In the United States, schizophrenia’s symptoms include hallucinations of disembodied voices that hurl insults and make violent commands, says an international team led by Stanford University anthropologist Tanya Luhrmann. But in India and Ghana, schizophrenia patients often report positive relationships with hallucinated voices that they recognize as those of family members or God." A systematic review showed that the popular spice saffron has shown to be a safer alternative to pharmaceutical antidepressants in some instances. The review covered six studies involving 230 clinically depressed participants which found saffron was as effective in treating clinically diagnosed major depressive disorder as the commonly prescribed commercial medications fluoxetine (Prozac) and imipramine (Tofranil). The review also found saffron had a better safety profile than commercial antidepressants. Sedation, constipation, sexual dysfunction and tremor were the side effects most associated with pharmaceuticals. However, in studies which compared saffron to a placebo, side effects commonly experienced were anxiety, increased appetite, nausea and headaches. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2014-12-saffron-mental-illness.html Review article: http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/hup.2434/abstract;jsessionid=289D61F8E6EA43B9346884C23672910E.f03t04 "A group of psychology researchers at Florida State University have developed a simple computer-based approach to treating anxiety sensitivity, something that could have major implications for veterans and other groups who are considered at risk for suicide....The new intervention, called the Cognitive Anxiety Sensitivity Treatment, or CAST, is a 45-minute treatment that contains videos, interactive features and true-false questions designed to make sure the patient understands the topic."
Read more: http://medicalxpress.com/news/2014-12-computer-based-approach-anxiety-suicide.html Over the years imaging technologies have revealed a lot about what's happening in our brains, including which parts are active in people with conditions like depression, anxiety or PTSD. A new initiative, called NeuroCircuit, has the goal of finding the brain circuits that are responsible for mental health conditions and then developing ways of remotely stimulating those circuits and, the team hopes, potentially treating those conditions. "Many psychiatric disorders, especially disorders of mood, probably involve malfunction within specific brain circuits that regulate emotion and motivation, yet our current pharmaceutical treatments affect circuits all over the brain," said William Newsome, director of the Stanford Neurosciences Institute. "The ultimate goal of NeuroCircuit is more precise treatments, with minimal side effects, for specific psychiatric disorders." Read more: http://medicalxpress.com/news/2014-11-scientists-mental-illness-noninvasive-treatment.html Individuals with Social anxiety often pass up social invitations for fear of being rejected, embarrassed or otherwise singled out as a failure. However, maintaining strong social connections is one of best ways of warding off depression, anxiety and other mental illness. A study, published this month in the Journal of Abnormal Psychology, finds that people with social anxiety disorder often overestimate how bad their relationships are with friends, when compared to what the friends say.
Read the story here: http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/releases/285388.php |
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Supporting and enhancing students' and health professionals' knowledge and understanding of mental health and psychiatry
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