Mental Illness

82% Of Australians Say Loneliness Is Increasing

Milos Kreckovic/Getty Images Are you lonely? Chances are, according to a Lifeline survey, the answer is yes – but you’re unwilling to talk about it. The national survey, released on Tuesday, found about 60% of the 3,100 respondents said they “often felt lonely” and 82.5% said they felt loneliness was increasing in society, [...]

Why Isn’t There A Gene For Depression?

Pixabay Images Depression is sometimes categorised as a mental, rather than a physical illness – as though somehow mental health is different from physical health. But the brain is not a magical black box inside your head. It is an organ, just like the heart or lungs, made up of cells and supplied [...]

Could Bad Buildings Damage Your Mental Health?

Pixabay Images Research has shown city dwellers are more likely to suffer from anxiety and depression – but could individual buildings have a negative impact on wellbeing? Screaming sirens, overcrowding, traffic; life in the city isn’t always relaxing. These stressors aren’t simply inconvenient or irritating, though; research has suggested that urban living has [...]

The Unique Body Image Problem Posed By Social Media

iStock Images Social media is a strange beast. Consider the app, Facetune, which makes the application of Valencia seem like child's play. Facetune is the Photoshop of selfies; it allows you to retouch your skin, add make-up, whiten your teeth, widen your mouth, change your eye colour, change your hair and basically make [...]

The ‘Tyranny’ Of Positive Thinking Can Threaten Your Health And Happiness

Images: MichaelBlann/Getty Everyone has heard “Just look on the bright side!” or “Happiness is a choice—so choose to be happy!” Countless self-help books on choosing happiness line the shelves of bookstores; You Are a Badass by Jen Sincero has been on the New York Times best-seller list for 32 weeks; and The Power of [...]

Parents’ Mental Health Linked To Violence In Kids

Flickr Images Kids who have a parent who has been diagnosed with certain psychiatric disorders may be at increased risk for attempting suicide or committing a violent offense, a new study of people in Denmark suggests. These kids are at even greater risk of these behaviors when both parents have the disorders, the study [...]

Can Apps Improve Your Mental Wellbeing?

Pixabay Images To the smartphone-addled among us, advising the use of apps to fix mental health problems might seem like telling someone who needs to get fit to live on jam and fags. But it’s happening all the same. While gadget and social media addiction are lampooned for increasing teenage depression, and complaints [...]

Mental Health At Work A Challenge

Pixabay Images Reported mental health issues in the workplace have risen 56 per cent in the past year, and almost half of companies in a major survey say at least one employee has committed suicide or been at risk of doing so, according to a new report. Eighty-one per cent of the company [...]

Toxic Air Pollution Particles Found In Human Brains

Flickr Images Toxic nanoparticles from air pollution have been discovered in human brains in “abundant” quantities, a newly published study reveals. Air pollution is a global health crisis that kills more people than malaria and HIV/Aids combined and it has long been linked to lung and heart disease and strokes. But research is [...]

We May Be Able To Treat Depression With Anti-Inflammatory Drugs – Here’s Why

Pixabay Images There is growing evidence that inflammation – already known to be a cause of many whole-body diseases – is also involved in diseases of the brain, including psychiatric conditions like depression. Depression is a common and crippling disease affecting over 350m people worldwide. Around 20% of the UK population will suffer [...]

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