The fathers impact on eating disorders

A study has suggested that a woman's relationship with her father can be a major factor in her developing an eating disorder. The study shows that women with over protecting fathers or fathers who have rejected them believe that they are defective and vulnerable to harm or rejection leading to the conclusion that paternal rearing can be used as a predictor of an eating disorder.

British Journal of Clinical Psychology (2006) 45: 319-330

Stalked... by their colleagues

Half of mental health nurses responding to a survey claimed to have been stalked, with 23% of the stalkers being other mental health nurses.

Journal of Psychiatric and Mental Health Nursing (2006)

Nightmares and suicide

Frequent nightmares have been linked to severe suicidal tendancies in people who have previously attempted suicide. This has prompted calls for sleep disturbance to be factored into assessments of risk with improved and higher profile interventions for sleep disorders.

Sleep (2007) 30: 91-95

PTSD gender differences

US research suggests that men and womens different responses to traumatic events results in more women meeting the diagnostic criteria for post traumatic stress syndrome. The study also found that men generally experienced more traumatic events than women. I'm sure someone somewhere will have something to say about that.

Psychological Bulletin (2006) 132: 959-992

Rural suicide

Researchers have identified higher than expected suicide rates amongst men in remote rural coastal areas, and whilst unemployment and chronic ill health were contributory factors it was suggested that rural life itself may be a risk factor.

Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health (2006) 60: 1040-1047

Puberty is accelerated by stress

Researchers in Liverpool say that stress amongst teenagers may bring on puberty more quickly, claiming that the trend towards earlier onset of puberty over the last 150 years has been triggered by stressors such as divorce, single parenting and poor nutrition.

Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health (2006) 60: 910-911

Depression and your heart

Research from the Netherlands shows that patients whose first experience of depression follows a heart attack are at increased risk of heart problems. Seperate research from the UK indicates that patients with a severe mental illness are 3.22 times more likely to die from coronary heart disease and 2.53 times more likely to die from a stroke.

Journal of the American College of Cardiology (2006) online DOI: 10.1016/j.jacc.2006.06.077

Archives of General Psychiatry (2007) 64:242-249

Drunk not spiked

Research from the Emergencey Medical Journal showed that the majority of patients arriving at A&E claiming to have had their drinks spiked tested positive for alcohol but not GHB or Rohypnol, the drugs commonly associated with cynical spiking. So watch your drinking as well as your drinks.

Emergency Medical Journal (2007) 24: 89-91