mental

Wild Paper Claims Psychopathy May Not Be a Mental Disorder, But Something Else

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For more than half a century, the kinds of antisocial personality traits we think of as psychopathic – such as a lack of remorse, aggression, and disregard for the wellbeing of others – have been associated with mental illness.   The line between broken and useful traits can be hazy in biology, leaving open the … Read more

Elephant seals seem to have precise mental maps for navigating home

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Northern elephant seals seem to know how far they have travelled and when they need to head back towards the beaches where they breed Life 28 February 2022 By Chen Ly An adult female elephant seal on a beach at Año Nuevo State Park in California Dan Costa Northern elephant seals (Mirounga angustirostris) return to … Read more

Ageing: Mental speed stays high until age 60

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Although people take longer to make decisions from age 20 onwards, this may not be due to a decline in the speed of information processing, a large study has found Mind 17 February 2022 By Carissa Wong People playing chess WHL/Getty Images Our ability to process information during decision-making doesn’t drop off until age 60, … Read more

Vast Majority of People With Depression Aren’t Getting Treatment, Global Review Finds

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Depression has become a leading cause of disability worldwide with no signs of slowing down. By 2030, the World Health Organization predicts the disorder could be the main contributor to the global burden of disease.   Even though we now have some effective treatments for depression, including medications and psychological interventions, medical care remains woeful … Read more

Interoception: This ‘sixth sense’ could be key to better mental health

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How our brains interpret signals from within the body has a surprisingly big influence on the mind, an insight that is leading to new ways to tackle conditions like depression, anxiety and eating disorders Health 2 February 2022 By Caroline Williams Brett Ryder LYING in the dark, my senses are straining for inputs and finding … Read more

We Have a ‘Sixth Sense’ That Is Key to Our Wellbeing, But Only if We Listen to It

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Most people are familiar with the five senses (touch, sight, hearing, smell, and taste), but not everyone knows that we have an additional sense called interoception. This is the sense of our body’s internal state. It helps us feel and interpret internal signals that regulate vital functions in our body, like hunger, thirst, body temperature, … Read more

COVID Is Driving a Children’s Mental Health Emergency

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When COVID shut down life as usual in the spring of 2020, most physicians in the U.S. focused on the immediate physical dangers from the novel coronavirus. But soon pediatrician Nadine Burke Harris began thinking of COVID’s longer-term emotional damage and those who would be especially vulnerable: children. “The pandemic is a massive stressor,” explains … Read more

COVID Is Driving a Chlidren’s Mental Health Emergency

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When COVID shut down life as usual in the spring of 2020, most physicians in the U.S. focused on the immediate physical dangers from the novel coronavirus. But soon pediatrician Nadine Burke Harris began thinking of COVID’s longer-term emotional damage and those who would be especially vulnerable: children. “The pandemic is a massive stressor,” explains … Read more

Just 10 Minutes of Moderate Running Can Boost Brain Activity, Study Shows

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As little as 10 minutes of moderate-intensity running is enough to boost your mood and cognitive function, according to a new study – findings that give us a better understanding of how physical exercise is related to mental health.   The study looked at the prefrontal cortex (PFC) in particular, the part of the brain … Read more