Obesity increases risk of mental disorders: People suffering from obesity are at a significantly greater risk of also developing mental disorders. This applies to all age groups, whereby women are more at risk than men for most diseases, as a recent study by the Medical University of Vienna and the Complexity Science Hub Vienna shows. […]
High-strength cannabis linked to addiction and mental health problems: Largest ever study into the health effects of different types of cannabis highlights concerns about stronger forms of the drug. As the strength or potency of cannabis products has increased internationally over the years, so have rates of people being treated for cannabis addiction, say the […]
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WHO highlights urgent need to transform mental health and mental health care: Report urges mental health decision makers and advocates to step up commitment and action to change attitudes, actions and approaches to mental health, its determinants and mental health care. The World Health Organization today released its largest review of world mental health since […]
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New research provides reassurance that the most common ADHD drug is not linked to psychotic symptoms The most commonly prescribed ADHD drug methylphenidate does not increase the risk of psychotic episodes in patients, according to experts from the University of Nottingham. In the new study, published in The Lancet Psychiatry, experts found no evidence that […]
New NHS figures showed there were 125,290 cannabis and spice-related hospital admissions in England from April 2013 to March 2018, including 14,888 under-20s. Consultant psychiatrist Dr Niall Campbell, who treats 18-year-olds and older, at Priory’s Roehampton Hospital, said 25% of paranoid psychosis cases were caused by the use of marijuana. “I am seeing an increasing […]
A constituent of cannabis known as cannabidiol could hold promise as a new class of treatment for psychosis, according to King’s College London research showing significant benefits in a clinical trial. The main psychoactive compound in cannabis is delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), which is responsible for many of the drug’s harmful effects, such as paranoia and anxiety. […]
City life may substantially increase a young person’s risk of having psychosis, including hearing voices and feeling extremely paranoid, according to a new study from King’s College London and Duke University. Published today in Schizophrenia Bulletin, the study found that British adolescents raised in major cities in England and Wales were over 40 per cent more likely to […]
Clinical Psychologist Emmerson Gono from MSF describes the challenges of working with mentally ill patients in a Zimbabwean prison. *Stephen is a 30 year old psychiatric inmate at the Chikurubi Maximum Security Prison’s Psychiatric Wing. His name has been changed to protect his identity. While at home one day, Stephen heard voices from what he […]
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This is a form of psychosis, triggered by a traumatic event or stressor, that lasts a short time only. Brief psychotic disorder is classed as an illness lasting from 1 day to 1 month, with an eventual return to normal level of functioning. People suffering with the condition are more at risk of harming themselves or others. It tends to […]
Fear is a basic human emotion which causes a pyschological and physiological response in the body known as ‘fight or flight.’ It occurs as a result of a sense of impending danger, evil or pain. Fear is a necessary defensive stragegy against things that may cause us harm because it serves as a motivation to […]