Recent research: relationships & fairness – 3 papers on large social groups, 2 on bullying, and 2 on generosity
Originally added on Thu, 27/01/2011 - 11:43Last updated on Sun, 30/01/2011 - 07:32
"If you want others to be happy, practice compassion. If you want to be happy, practice compassion." Dalai Lama
Recent research: six studies on mindfulness, values & meaning
Originally added on Thu, 27/05/2010 - 14:08Last updated on Sun, 30/05/2010 - 14:26
Here are half a dozen recent research studies on mindfulness, values & meaning - fuller details, links and abstracts for all studies are listed further down this page. Hofmann and colleagues' meta-analysis on "The effect of mindfulness-based therapy on anxiety and depression" found encouraging effect sizes for mindfulness training and concluded "These results suggest that mindfulness-based therapy is a promising intervention for treating anxiety and mood problems in clinical populations". Meanwhile Barnhofer & Chittka underlined the toxicity of ruminative brooding with their demonstration that the well-demonstrated link between neurotic temperament and depression is mediated by "Tendencies to respond to mild low mood with ruminative thinking". They conclude that "The results suggest that neuroticism predisposes individuals to depression by generally increasing the likelihood of ruminative responses to low mood&quo
Recent research: articles from January journals
Originally added on Thu, 04/02/2010 - 19:19Last updated on Tue, 16/02/2010 - 19:34
I read a lot of research. When I find an article of particular interest I download it to my bibliographic database - EndNote - which currently contains nearly 14,000 abstracts.
Exercise 3: US Department of Health & Human Services, resources for assessment & advice
Originally added on Mon, 18/01/2010 - 05:43Last updated on Thu, 10/06/2010 - 05:37
Getting help for depression in Scotland – support groups, online & face-to-face courses, newsletter, telephone service, and more
Originally added on Sun, 20/12/2009 - 06:38Last updated on Mon, 21/12/2009 - 07:01
The e-newsletter from Depression Alliance Scotland (DAS) popped into my inbox last week. What good work they do. The new information that particularly caught my eye was access to an online facilitated self-help course. The description runs: "We have a new service offering support for people to use Living Life to the Full Interactive, a computerised online self-help programme based on cognitive behaviour therapy. You will work through a six session course and a DAS staff member will be there to offer 4 - 6 short telephone contacts on an individual basis over 6 weeks to help you get the most out of it. Interested? Email info@dascot.org or call 0845 123 23 20"
Recent research: diet associated depression, weight & violence, vitamin D fall prevention, IBS & anxiety, yoga & mindfulness
Originally added on Thu, 26/11/2009 - 07:11Last updated on Mon, 30/11/2009 - 07:24
Here are a mixed bag of six recent research papers on diet, vitamin D, IBS and yoga (all details & abstracts to these studies are listed further down this blog post). The first three papers highlight the toxic effects on psychological health, physical health, and society of our processed, high sugar diets. Sanchez-Villegas et al map a bit more clearly the potential link between diet and depression. They conclude "Our results suggest a potential protective role of the MDP (Mediterranean dietary pattern) with regard to the prevention of depressive disorders; additional longitudinal studies and trials are needed to confirm these findings." Fiorito et al show that intake of sweetened drinks in 5 year old girls predicts overweight over subsequent childhood and adolescence, and - rather scarily - Moore & colleagues show a link between confectionary consumption at age 10 and subsequent violence in adulthood. They concluded "Children who ate confectio
Recent research: seven studies on diet, supplements & smoking
Originally added on Thu, 27/11/2008 - 06:58Last updated on Sun, 30/11/2008 - 06:48
Here are a couple of studies on smoking, a couple on B vitamins, a couple on vitamin D, and an intriguing study on iron. The smoking papers underline the varieties of damage this habit produces. So the Pasco et al study shows that, for women, being a smoker is associated with double the risk of developing subsequent major depression. The Strandberg research challenges any notion of "Eat, drink and be merry for tomorrow we die". This study of 1658 men reports that "During the 26-year follow-up of this socioeconomically homogeneous male cohort, HRQoL (quality of life) deteriorated with an increase in daily cigarettes smoked in a dose-dependent manner.
Recent research: fish and n-3 fatty acids
Originally added on Thu, 06/11/2008 - 09:26Last updated on Thu, 06/11/2008 - 09:36
Fish, fish oils, and n-3 fatty acids are often in the health news. Here are seven recent papers illustrating the breadth of fish oil relevance. The papers look at treatment of rheumatoid arthritis, the potential of flax as a dietary source of n-3 fatty acids, effects on indicators of cardiovascular disease, potential protection against dementia, reduction in mortality, and importance in pregnancy. The papers also illustrate the patchwork, three steps forward/one step back, meandering, spreading, accretion of scientific knowledge. As the proverb goes "One swallow doesn't make a summer". Similarly, a single research study is usually simply one brick in the gradual building of our knowledge. For more on fish and n-3 fatty acids, see other relevant blog posts I've written, articles in the linked Connotea database, and some recommended websites.
Would you like to be 14 years younger – it’s largely a matter of choice!
Originally added on Fri, 03/10/2008 - 05:38Last updated on Sat, 10/09/2011 - 06:17
Back in January I wrote a blog post entitle "Does a healthy lifestyle really make a difference? " I highlighted that it makes a hell of a lot of a difference. At around that time another major study was published that hammered this point home even more thoroughly and I've been meaning to mention it in a post ever since. The recent publicity on poor fruit and veg intake in the UK population triggered me into looking the earlier study out.
Does healthy lifestyle really make much difference?
Originally added on Tue, 08/01/2008 - 10:41Last updated on Tue, 01/07/2008 - 08:51
