Smartphone bans in schools are not associated with better mental wellbeing or reduced screen-time out of school

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Emma Sullivan summarises a cross-sectional observational study investigating associations between school smartphone policies and mental wellbeing in young people.

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What’s the matter? The role of white matter microstructure in depression-related cognitive decline

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Fionnuala Rogers discusses a study on the role of white matter microstructure in depression-related cognitive dysfunction, which highlights the importance of viewing major depressive disorder not only as a mood disorder, but as a condition with significant neurocognitive implications.

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Can we prevent major depression before it starts? A global review of psychological interventions

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Alexis An Yee Low considers a systematic review published in The Lancet Psychiatry which highlights the effectiveness of preventive psychological interventions for subthreshold depressive symptoms.

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Can sleep and activity changes really predict mania in bipolar disorder?

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Alyson Dodd reports on a year long study of digital mood monitoring in people with bipolar disorder, which suggests that sleep and activity changes precede hypomanic episodes by three days. This data could be a useful clinical tool, but more research is needed.

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City limits: untreated psychosis in the Global South

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Izah Bowes considers a cross-sectional study exploring urbanicity and rates of untreated psychotic disorders in three diverse settings in the Global South: Trinidad, India and Nigeria.

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“They referred to one of the consumers as a BPD c**t”: uncomfortable narratives of borderline personality disorder

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Keir Harding looks at an Australian qualitative study that reveals difficult and harmful narratives around people given a diagnosis of ‘borderline personality disorder’.

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The other side of postnatal depression: what about Dads?

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Demetra Christodoulou reviews a new randomised controlled trial from Pakistan testing “Learning Through Play Plus Dads”: a group parenting programme designed to support fathers with postnatal depression.

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Neigh to PTSD: can horses help veterans heal?

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Ana Veic reviews a study on equine-assisted services (EAS) for military veterans with PTSD. The research shows EAS may help reduce symptoms, highlights barriers to care, and looks at the quality of evidence in this growing field.

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Most people receive support from community mental health services, but how safe are they?

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Samuel Woodnutt summarises a mixed-methods study that identifies themes in community-based incident reports. This is the first study of its kind, providing new evidence on community mental health patient safety incidents and solutions.

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Age-at-migration and ethnicity may increase psychosis risk

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Sueda Coskun reflects on a recent case control study with data from five European countries, which suggests that migration during adolescence may be a particular risk factor for developing psychosis.

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