Religious activities good for mental health in women

Religious activities good for mental health in women, revealed by Temple University?s researchers. Religiously active women were less likely to suffer anxiety and depression. – For many, religious activity changes between childhood and adulthood, and a new study finds this could affect one’s mental health. According to Temple University’s Joanna Maselko, Sc.D., women who had stopped being religiously active were more than three times more likely to have suffered generalized anxiety and alcohol abuse/dependence than women who reported always having been active.

Massage eases pain and anxiety after surgery

Massage can ease pain after surgery and may complement the use of drugs for patients, US researchers said. – A 20-minute evening back massage may help relieve pain and reduce anxiety following major surgery when given in addition to pain medications, according to a report in the December issue of Archives of Surgery, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.

Late developmental growth may risk depression

Children with low weight during infancy or slight developmental delays may be at greater risk for developing depression.
– Psychiatrists remain divided as to how to define and classify the mood and anxiety disorders, the most common mental disorders. Committees across the globe are currently pondering how best to carve nature at its anxious joints for the fifth version of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (DSM-V), the “gold standard” reference book for psychiatrists.

Middle aged more anxious and depressed than elderly

Elderly people (those aged 65 and above) may have a lower prevalence of psychiatric and anxiety disorders and lower levels of psychological distress than middle-aged people.
– Research from the University of New South Wales has found that middle-aged Australians are more anxious and depressed than their elderly counterparts, turning on its head a prevailing myth about old age.

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