mental health
Exercise for depression matches first-line treatment
Exercise for depression performs comparably to therapy and medication in a 2023 umbrella review of 1,039 trials, with walking, strength work and yoga all showing benefit.
mental health
Mental health tips with trials behind them
The mental health tips worth acting on, exercise, mindfulness at a real dose, social connection, all have controlled trials behind them. The ones that do not are named here too.
6 briefings
mental health
The effects of loneliness carry a mortality risk near smoking
The effects of loneliness are measurable: meta-analyses of 300,000-plus people put strong social connection at roughly a 50% increase in odds of survival, comparable to well-known clinical risks.
mental health
Panic attack vs anxiety attack: the difference that matters
Panic attack vs anxiety attack: a panic attack is a defined diagnostic event, abrupt, peaking within ten minutes, intensely physical. Anxiety attack is not a clinical term but describes something real and slower.
mental health
Meditation for anxiety: does it work? What trials show
Meditation for anxiety produces moderate reductions in mindfulness-based programmes, and one trial matched an SSRI head to head. The effective dose is larger than an app streak.
mental health
ADHD symptoms in women, and why they get missed
ADHD symptoms in women skew inattentive: distractibility, disorganisation, internal restlessness and emotional dysregulation rather than visible hyperactivity. Masking and male-derived criteria mean many are diagnosed decades late.
mental health
Beta blockers for anxiety, what they do and do not treat
Beta blockers for anxiety blunt the physical symptoms, racing heart, tremor, shaky voice. Propranolol does nothing for the worry itself, which is why it suits performance anxiety.