Vegetarian diet and oral health

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This review of the association between a vegetarian diet and (a) non-carious/cervical lesions (NCCL), (b) dental caries and (c) number of natural teeth included 18 mainly cross-sectional studies suggesting a possible link with a higher prevalence of dental erosion.

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School based obesity prevention for 6 and 7 year olds

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Alison Tonkin writes her debut elf blog on the WAVES study: a cluster randomised controlled trial looking at the effectiveness of a childhood obesity prevention programme delivered through schools, targeting 6 and 7 year olds.

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Screen time: Is it linked to intake of cariogenic food in children?

Polls regularly highlight 'growing fears' about children being bullied on the internet.

This review of the association between screen-time behaviour and diet, including a potentially cariogenic diet, in children younger than 12 years old includes 19 cross-sectional studies. All of the included studies suggest a relationship.

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Is too much screen time bad for our children? Perhaps, but how much do we really know?

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David Turgoose explores a systematic review of reviews that looks at the effects of screen time on the health and well-being of children and adolescents. The review found that higher levels of screen time were related to some physical and mental health concerns, such as poor diet, obesity and depression.

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Psychosis and physical health: listening to patients and family carers

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Shuichi Suetani and Sharon Lawn explore a recent viewpoint article on physical health problems in psychosis, which asks: Is it time to consider the views of family carers?

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Alternatives to medication for children and young people with ADHD

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Joff Jones summarises a recent systematic review, which looks at the evidence for a wide range of non-pharmacological treatments for ADHD. The review finds the strongest evidence for diet, child/parent training and behavioural interventions.

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Lifestyle training for schizophrenia: STEPWISE fails to make a difference

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Ben Janaway writes his debut elf blog on the STEPWISE RCT which is out today in the British Journal of Psychiatry: Structured lifestyle education for people with schizophrenia, schizoaffective disorder and first-episode psychosis.

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Tooth loss: does it affect dietary intake and nutritional status?

A Mediterranean diet high in fruits, vegetables, fish and wholegrains has been associated with decreased depression. Is there a key ingredient?

This review of the impact of tooth loss on dietary intake and nutritional status included 8 low quality cohort studies. Weak and inconsistent evidence of an association was seen. Further high quality studies are needed.

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Diet and depression: can we eat our way out of clinical depression? The ‘SMILES’ trial

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Murtada Alsaif chews over the SMILES RCT of dietary improvement for adults with major depression, which reports encouraging results for healthy diet in people with depression.

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Peer support for physical health improvement: recovering ‘stolen years’?

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Lucy Simons discusses whether peer support interventions can help to provide physical health improvements for people living with severe mental illness.

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