Sarah McDonald and André Tomlin consider another meta-analysis of mindfulness in young people, which finds “small effect sizes on a range of outcomes”. They conclude that we badly need more RCTs that reliably evaluate the effectiveness, safety and cost effectiveness of mindfulness in young people.
[read the full story...]Tobacco smoking, cognition and first episode psychosis: time for a rethink?
Marcus Munafo appraises a recent cross sectional study of tobacco smoking and its association with cognition in first episode psychosis patients.
[read the full story...]Gamification for health and wellbeing
Sasha Danilina publishes her debut blog about a recent literature review on the effectiveness of gamification applied to health and wellbeing.
[read the full story...]Reminiscence groups for people with dementia and their family carers: REMCARE trial
Elizabeth Collier writes her debut blog on the REMCARE randomised controlled trial of reminiscence groups for people with dementia and their family carers.
[read the full story...]Cognitive stimulation therapy for dementia
Clarissa Giebel summarises a multicentre RCT that assesses the clinical effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of individual cognitive stimulation therapy for dementia.
[read the full story...]Art therapy for common mental health disorders
Chris Sampson reports on a new HTA systematic review and economic evaluation of art therapy for non-psychotic mental health disorders like depression, anxiety and phobias.
[read the full story...]Lifestyle changes for cognition and dementia: better than a new drug?
Should all molecular research institutes looking at neurodegenerative diseases be replaced by parks, playgrounds and cycle paths? Mark Horowitz highlights a recent systematic review of modifiable risk factors associated with cognition and dementia, which suggests that from a public health perspective, there may be some sense in this idea.
[read the full story...]Cognitive and exercise interventions for older adults with and without cognitive impairment
Jake Crawshaw reports on a recent systematic review of cognitive and exercise interventions for older people with and without cognitive impairment.
[read the full story...]Intensive cognitive training may help to prevent cognitive decline
Cognitive decline describes increasing problems with memory, comprehension, language and mental agility. Mild cognitive impairment means that a person has cognitive decline beyond that which might be expected for their age, but generally do not experience problems with everyday living (Alzheimer’s Society, 2012). Dementia has similar symptoms, but these are more severe and people with [read the full story…]
Cognitive deficits, depression and education level all predict worklessness in bipolar disorder, says systematic review
People with bipolar disorder have high levels of post 16 years education, but it’s estimated that only half of those living in Europe with the condition are in paid employment. This is a real concern because the illness typically affects young and middle-aged people who would normally be active in the workforce. Of course, living [read the full story…]