Minneapolis St. Paul Mental Health Blog

In a recent study that puts antidepressants up against CBT and their effectiveness, the results are promising.

According to the researchers at the U of Alabama, sleeping less than seven hours a night contributes to more secondary eating and drinking, thus increasing obesity risk.

Counseling is a good thing, education is always encouraged, have we gone too far?

A newly proposed bill by a Kentucky legislator requires men to get signed consent from their spouses and visit a doctor twice prior to receiving drugs for erectile dysfunction (ED). Also, married men would be required to make a sworn statement they will only use the prescription when having sexual relations with their current spouse.

Mental Health Studies | Psychiatric diagnoses are still based on criteria that focus on behavioral observation and symptom endorsement without corresponding biological validation.

This contrasts with other fields of medicine, where diagnosis and treatment are often based not only on a sound clinical examination, but also biological tests based on validated biomarkers.

Patients with major depressive disorder treated with the selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) escitalopram (brand name Lexapro) experienced significant drops in the levels of 2 neurotoxic compounds that can cause memory loss and dementia.

The holidays can be difficult for children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), particularly because of new or different social situations.

One reason scientists believe ASD causes impairment in social interactions is due to an inability to effectively infer other's thoughts and feelings through "theory of mind," or ToM -- the ability to understand the mental states of others and oneself.

According to a study on patients with unipolar depression, the risk of mania / bipolar disorder increases with antidepressant treatment.

This was a retrospective cohort study using an anonymised electronic health record case register.

Almost 10% of Americans have had DSM-5 drug use disorder (DUD) at some point in their life, many of them also with potentially disabling comorbidities, according to a large national survey.

Complicating matters further, fewer than 25% have received treatment for DUD, according to data from the first nationally representative survey of individuals after Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition (DSM-5) replaced DSM-IV in 2013.

Taurine, what is it? It's role in the body, is it safe for the body?

Taurine is a sulphur-containing amino acid, taurine has a number of biochemical roles in human metabolism.

Taurine is one of the major ingredients in most of the common energy drinks, and concerns over the safety of these drinks and questions as to the ingredients' role in human cellular function have sparked renewed interest in this compound.

Loneliness is not just an excruciating feeling that can lead to other mental health problems, it can actually be a cause of premature death.

While loneliness can affect anyone at any point in life, it is particularly common among the rapidly increasing population of old people. When you read stories about how many old people live alone and say the television is their main company, you realise that tackling loneliness is one of the greatest challenges facing our society.

Now a new study in humans and rhesus macaques suggests that loneliness is associated with inflammation of the brain. This is potentially a very important finding, but it is important not to jump to conclusions.

Understanding the biological response to a condition like loneliness should lead to a more holistic understanding of mental health problems rather than a knee-jerk solution like a quick-fix drug.