How Loneliness Affects Our Health
From The New York Times: The potentially harmful impact of loneliness and isolation on our health and well-being have been well documented over the past...
Cognitive Enhancement With Yoga
From Psychiatric Times: A recent study suggests that Kundalini yoga may be at least as effective as memory training in improving cognitive resilience in older adults with...
Anticholinergic Medications Linked to Dementia Similar to Early Alzheimer’s
A new study, published in the Journal of Clinical Psychiatry, investigates the effects of anticholinergic medications, such as antidepressants and antipsychotics, on cognition in older adults diagnosed with schizophrenia.
Almost No Nursing Homes Meet Federal Standards for Antipsychotic Use
The Office of the Inspector General finds that 99.5% of nursing facilities in the United States are non-compliant regarding federal regulations concerning antipsychotic use....
Policies to Reduce Antipsychotic use Among Elderly are Failing
Research reveals that rates of antipsychotic prescribing to the elderly in the UK have not dropped despite national recommendations.
AARP Joins Antipsychotic Lawsuit Against CA Nursing Home
The AARP has joined an "unprecedented class-action lawsuit" against a California nursing home accused of using antipsychotics without informed consent from residents or family...
Rampant Prescription Errors in CA Nursing Homes
Recent investigations by the California Department of Public Health found that in 18 of 31 nursing homes in San Francisco (plus one outside of...
Effort to Curb Antipsychotics for Dementia Announced
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services is launching an initiative to curb the use of antipsychotic medications for nursing home residents with dementia....
Elderly With Dementia can be Withdrawn From Antipsychotics
The Cochrane Library reports that "many older people with Alzheimer's dementia and NPS (neuropsychiatric symptoms)Â can be withdrawn from chronic antipsychotic medication without detrimental effects...
Antipsychotic Use in Nursing Homes Causing Many Adverse Effects in Elderly
A literature review found that the extensive off-label use of antipsychotic medications in nursing homes is causing many adverse effects and providing limited benefits.
Benzodiazepines Linked to Increased Risk of Alzheimer’s: Causation or Not?
According to a study in the British Medical Journal, benzodiazepine use is associated with a significantly increased risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease. Some experts...
Turns out Action Video Games Really can Harm Your Brain
From Global News: According to a recent Montreal study, habitually playing action video games can lead to grey matter loss in the hippocampus, which is...
PTSD and Psychiatric Medication Linked to Dementia in Older Veterans
Veterans diagnosed with PTSD and taking SSRIs, novel antidepressants, or atypical antipsychotics are more likely to develop dementia.
“This Nursing Home Calms Troubling Behavior Without Risky Drugs”
NPR Shots explores a nursing home where "residents can always find something to do," and where use of antipsychotic drugs has dropped dramatically.
This Nursing...
Discontinuing Psychotropics Reduces Falls in Elderly
Australian researchers look at the literature on the effect of psychotropics on falls in the elderly; largest effect of any randomized trial was achieved...
Inappropriate Use of Antipsychotics on Adults with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities
One-third of adults with an intellectual or developmental disability are dispensed antipsychotics, despite having no existing psychiatric diagnosis.
Centers For Medicare & Medicaid Keep Pushing To Reduce Antipsychotic Use In Elderly
-"The push for long-term care facilities to abandon the use of off-label use of antipsychotic medications for residents with dementia will intensify over the next two years."
The Foods That Can Help and Harm Your Brain
From The Guardian: Nutrition can have a major impact on the health of our brains, including our risk for dementia and cognitive decline. Here is...
“Does Air Pollution Cause Dementia?”
-Mother Jones examines the growing body of research implicating air pollution in dementia.
Antidepressant Use Linked to Higher Dementia Risk
From The Telegraph: A major new study has found a strong association between long-term exposure to antidepressants and risk of dementia.
"Researchers warned there may be...
Fewer Antipsychotics, More Nurses Will Improve Care and Save Money in Nursing Homes
The Center for Medicare Advocacy advised yesterday that nursing facilities could realize huge savings by eliminating "inappropriate and life-threatening" antipsychotic drugs. The statement added...
Older Patients Being Prescribed Risky Anticholinergic Drugs
From MinnPost: A new University of Minnesota study has found that anticholinergic drugs, including antidepressants, continue to be prescribed to millions of older Americans despite...
Stigma
In this episode of BBC's Thinking Allowed, Laurie Taylor invites three researchers to speak about the origins and meaning of the term "stigma," as well as...
Why Nutritional Psychiatry is the Future of Mental Health
From The Independent: The role that nutrition can play in improving our mental health is often overlooked. Research suggests that we should devote more resources to dietary...
The Hidden Costs of Paying Physicians More to Diagnose Dementia
A plan from the British government to pay doctors for every diagnosis of dementia that they make is an act of "folly," writes physician...
