No corner of the planet is free from minuscule fragments of plastic packaging, textiles or utensils. We ask scientists what this means for our health – and what we should do to protect it

A meta-analytic review of previous studies indicates that obese individuals have an increased risk of depression and that this relationship isn't just correlational -- obesity might be one of the causes of depression. The researchers argue that the increased occurrence of depression in the population in recent decades might be at least partly due to the increase in obesity. The study was published in the Journal of Psychiatric Research. ...

Northwestern scientists have conducted a new study to see if living near green spaces, like parks and areas with a lot of plants, can affect how our bodies age and contribute to overall healthy aging. More green spaces were associated with slower biological aging, according to a Northwestern Medicine report. People who lived near more green spaces were biologically 2.5 years younger, on average, than those who live near less greenness.

Writing is therapy. We share stories of abuse, addictions, trauma, illness, crime and regrets. We tell stories of redemption and victory over challenges.

Australian researchers have made a major leap forward, paving the way for the treatment of endometriosis, which could rapidly change health outcomes for women.

In the hills north of Brisbane, a mental health and addiction treatment centre is home to a group of four-legged staff who can calm clients just by their presence. The health benefits of animal therapy, alongside other treatment methods, for people suffering from issues like anxiety is well known.

Essay - expressive writing to cope with cancer.

A new study published in Mental Health and Physical Activity finds that when one partner is depressed, the other increases their sedentary behaviors and vice versa. This research reveals the potential negative impact partners can have on one another. Understanding this can help clinicians and individuals take steps to prevent the vicious cycle of depression and sedentary behaviors in partnerships.

Hundreds of thousands of Britons are taking antidepressants for chronic pain without enough evidence they work, according to a large study. Researchers looked at drugs commonly prescribed by the NHS including amitriptyline, duloxetine, fluoxetine (Prozac), citalopram, paroxetine (Seroxat) and sertraline.

U of A researchers have developed a machine learning program that predicts patients’ risk of death within one month, one year and five years based on the results of routine hospital electrocardiograms and blood tests. This information may help clinicians improve care — and make the health-care system smarter over time.

Most deaths do not correspond to what we often call a "good" death - when one still has control over their own body and mind, and requires little health or hospice care. This is shown in a new study by Marcus Ebeling, a demographer at the Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research in Rostock, Germany, and his two colleagues at the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm. “Our results indicate the hypothesis that rising life expectancy, especially at older ages, is partly due to a prolonged death process,” says Ebeling.

The study compared BMI changes from nearly 100,000 people across Washington, aged 18 to 65.

People diagnosed with dementia are more likely to self-harm within the first six to 12 months after initial diagnosis, highlighting the need for health services to offer more follow-up support in this crucial period. In what is believed to be the largest study of its kind, researchers with expertise in medicine, psychiatry and psychology at UNSW Sydney looked at NSW hospital data captured for more than 180,000 people admitted to hospital between 2001 and 2015.

I’m sitting in the back of the plane when the pilot announces we’ve reached maximum altitude. One of the crew gets up and – somewhat theatrically – slides open the side of the plane. In ones and twos, we shuffle towards the open door. When it comes to my turn, standing on the edge of a two-mile vertical drop, I’m more terrified than I’ve ever been.

A few dozen high schools across the U.S. combine education with treatment for substance use disorders to keep kids in recovery — and in school.

A large study in South Korea exploring the relationship between age and well-being revealed that whether well-being improves in advanced age or not depends on the personality traits of agreeableness and neuroticism. Notably, well-being did not increase in advanced age in people with low agreeableness and high neuroticism. The study was published in Applied Psychology: Health and Well-being.

A new analysis of over 100 studies debunks beliefs about possible benefits of alcohol.

Decades after pioneering prescription heroin and safe injection sites, Switzerland is now experimenting with decriminalising recreational cannabis. It’s being done in a very Swiss way, according to addiction experts: taking things slow and steady to see how the population responds.

This is according to a new global analysis of trends in child and adolescent height and body mass index (BMI) led by Imperial College London and published in Nature. The research, by a global consortium of more than 1500 researchers and physicians, analysed height and weight data from 71 million children and adolescents (aged 5 to 19 years) across urban and rural areas of 200 countries from 1990 to 2020.

A decade after a landmark report on Americans' shorter lives, the problem has only gotten worse. Unlike other wealthy nations, U.S. life expectancy has not bounced back from the pandemic.