The whole phase of pregnancy makes a woman witness various hormonal changes, and along with it different symptoms. Some of the common changes include hair fall, postpartum depression, hot flashes, etc. According to a new study done by Johns Hopkins University in Maryland in the US, pregnant women having lower levels of an anti-anxiety hormone in their second trimester had an increased chance of developing postpartum depression. The study published in the journal Psychoneuroendocrinology, a woman with an allopregnanolone hormone level of about 3.75 nanograms per milli-liter had a 33 per cent likelihood of developing the disorder.
While a woman having 7.5 nanograms per milli-liter had a 1.5 per cent chance of developing postpartum depression. For every additional nanogram per milli-liter increase in allopregnanolone, the risk of developing postpartum depression dropped by 63 per cent, the researchers said.

Further, the risk was particularly high in women already diagnosed with mood disorders, such as major depression or bipolar disorder.

"Many earlier studies haven't shown postpartum depression to be tied to actual levels of pregnancy hormones, but rather to an individual's vulnerability to fluctuations in these hormones and they didn't identify any concrete way to tell whether a woman would develop postpartum depression," said Lauren M. Osborne, Assistant Professor at the Johns Hopkins University in Maryland, US.

"Every woman has high levels of certain hormones, including allopregnanolone, at the end of pregnancy, so we decided to look earlier in the pregnancy to see if we could tease apart small differences in hormone levels that might more accurately predict postpartum depression later," Osborne added.

For the study, the team included 60 pregnant women between the ages of 18 and 45, all who had been previously diagnosed with a mood disorder.

Using the blood samples, the researchers measured the blood levels of progesterone and allopregnanolone, a by-product made from the breakdown of progesterone and known for its calming, anti-anxiety effects.

No relationship was found between progesterone levels in the second or third trimesters and the likelihood of developing postpartum depression. However, a link between postpartum depression and diminished levels of allopregnanolone levels in the second trimester was observed.

Women are taking over the world and how! Be it the corporate sector, education or the sports there is just no stopping the women achievers, but to this bright side of affairs there is also a dark side which involves the excess pressure caused by changing societal roles and the stress of multiple responsibilities. According to a latest study, this stress and anxiety is rapidly contributing to the rising cases of depression amongst women who are succumbing to death sooner than before.

The study published in CMAJ revealed that the risk of death associated with depression appeared strongest in the years following a depressive episode.

"During the recent years in which women's risk of death increased significantly, roles have changed dramatically both at home and in the workplace, and many women shoulder multiple responsibilities and expectations," said Ian Colman from the University of Ottawa.

the team discovered that the lifespan for young adults with depression at age 25 was markedly shorter over the 60-year period -- the lifespan shortened ranging from 10 to 12 fewer years of life, then four to seven years and later seven to 18 fewer years of life.

"At first the association was limited to men, but in later years it was seen for women as well," said Stephen Gilman from the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development in Maryland, US.

For the study, the team analyzed the 60 years of mental health data on 3410 adults from a region in Atlantic Canada and linked the data to deaths in the Canadian Mortality Database.
Though depression has also been linked with poorer diet, lack of exercise, smoking and alcohol consumption – Most of these factors can result in chronic health conditions –but further study and research needs to be done to find out if any of these factors have a direct link to the rising trend of early deaths.
The researchers said that family physicians should monitor the patients for mood disturbances, especially recurrent episodes of depression for immediate treatment and care.
You are what you eat and your diet can play a crucial role in maintaining mental health. Try to include these foods in your daily diet to curb symptoms of depression.

1. Complex carbohydrates
Include foods that are rich in complex carbs in your diet like whole grains and brown rice. A lot of studies have shown that low carb diets have been linked to nervousness, anxiety, decreased concentration and insomnia.

2. Vitamin D
A deficiency of this nutrient if often linked with mood swings and depression. Add natural sources of Vitamin D like mushrooms, eggs and soy milk to your diet.

3. Antioxidants
Antioxidants can help in reducing the oxidative stress on your mental health. Berries and foods like cherries, grapes and dark leafy greens are your best bet.

4. Good quality proteins
Protein rich foods are known to boost alertness. Some of them contain an amino acid called tryptophan which helps your body make the mood boosting brain chemical, serotonin. Peas, beans, soya, lentils and paneer are good options and so are chicken and fish.

5. Protein rich foods
Protein rich foods are known to boost alertness. Some of them contain an amino acid called tryptophan which helps your body make the mood boosting brain chemical, serotonin. For vegetarians peas, beans, soya, lentils and paneer are good sources of protein and non-vegetarians should opt for lean meat and eggs.

One of the emerging psychiatric disorder that has significant medical and psychiatric consequences is compulsive sexual behaviour or hypersexuality, is an obsession with sexual thoughts in which people cannot manage their sexual behaviour. It may involve a commonly enjoyable sexual experience as self-stimulation which becomes an obsession. The person suffering from the condition may also get involved in sexual behaviours that are outside the bounds of commonly accepted conduct like paying for sex or having extramarital affairs.

Untreated compulsive sexual behaviour damages one’s self-esteem, health, job, relationships and career. However, with treatment and self-help,
one can manage compulsive sexual behaviour and learn to manage one’s urge. Males are more likely to be unfaithful than females because they have stronger sexual impulses and weaker self-control. Compulsive sexual behaviour symptoms vary in type and severity. During intense sexual impulses, one feels as if they're beyond control. This is the first and the most common symptom as the patient uses compulsive sexual behaviour as an escape route for problems like loneliness, depression, anxiety and stress. One has trouble establishing and maintaining emotional closeness, even if one is married or in a committed relationship.

The treatment for compulsive sexual behaviour involves psychotherapy and medications. A primary goal of treatment is to help one manage urges and reduce excessive behaviours while maintaining healthy sexual activities. If one has compulsive sexual behaviour, one may need treatment for mental health condition. People with compulsive sexual behaviour often have alcohol or drug abuse problems or a mood disorder such as depression.

Counselling sessions can help one learn how to manage one’s compulsive sexual behaviour. Intensive treatment programs for compulsive sexual behaviours focus on identification of core triggers and beliefs about sexual addiction. It assists in development of healthier choices and coping skills to minimize urges and deal with the preoccupation of sexual addiction. Psychodynamic psychotherapy can prove to be very useful as it focuses on increasing one’s awareness of unconscious thoughts and behaviours, and developing new insights into their motivations. Resolving conflicts using this therapy is also recommended. The other kind of treatment program is cognitive behavioural therapy. This therapy helps one to identify unhealthy, negative beliefs and behaviours and replace them with healthy, positive ones. Family therapy and couples therapy may restore trust, minimize shame and guilt thus establishing a healthy sexual relationship between partners.

Medications include anti-depressants like selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, mood stabilizers and anti-androgens have also been used to treat compulsive sexual behaviour. Anti-androgens are prescribed as it reduces the biological effects of sex hormones in men thus reducing sexual urges. Luteinizing hormone is also prescribed as it reduces obsessive sexual thoughts by reducing the production of testosterone. Anti-seizure medications, naltrexone, and medications which decrease male hormones have been found to decrease the compulsive urges and impulses associated with sexual addictions for some sufferers.

Participating in yoga and mindfulness activities at school helps relieve stress and anxiety in young children, improving their wellbeing and emotional health, a study has found.

Researchers from Tulane University in the US worked with a public school to add mindfulness and yoga to the school's existing empathy-based programming for students needing supplementary support.

Third graders who were screened for symptoms of anxiety at the beginning of the school year were randomly assigned to two groups.


A control group of 32 students received care as usual, which included counselling and other activities led by a school social worker.

The intervention group of 20 students participated in small group yoga/mindfulness activities for eight weeks using a Yoga Ed curriculum.

Students attended the small group activities at the beginning of the school day. The sessions included breathing exercises, guided relaxation and several traditional yoga poses appropriate for children.

The study, published in the journal Psychology Research and Behavior Management, evaluated each group's health related quality of life before and after the intervention, using two widely recognised research tools.

"The intervention improved psychosocial and emotional quality of life scores for students, as compared to their peers who received standard care," said Alessandra Bazzano, associate professor at Tulane University.

"We also heard from teachers about the benefits of using yoga in the classroom, and they reported using yoga more often each week, and throughout each day in class, following the professional development component of intervention," Bazzano said.

Researchers targeted third grade because it is a crucial time of transition for elementary students, when academic expectations increase.

"Our initial work found that many kids expressed anxious feelings in third grade as the classroom work becomes more developmentally complex," Bazzano said.

"Even younger children are experiencing a lot of stress and anxiety, especially around test time," she said.

Nearly 80 genes that could be linked to depression have been identified, a finding that adds to the evidence that it is partly a genetic disorder, say scientists.

Depression, a common mental disorder, is the leading cause of ill health and disability worldwide.

According to the latest estimates from the World Health Organisation (WHO), more than 300 million people are now living with depression, an increase of more than 18 per cent between 2005 and 2015.


"This study identifies genes that potentially increase our risk of depression, adding to the evidence that it is partly a genetic disorder," said lead author David Howard, research fellow at the University of Edinburgh.

Some of the pinpointed genes are known to be involved in the function of synapses, tiny connectors that allow brain cells to communicate with each other through electrical and chemical signals, the researchers said.

The study could help explain why some people may be at a higher risk of developing the condition as well as help researchers develop drugs to tackle mental health conditions.

"The findings also provide new clues to the causes of depression and we hope it will narrow down the search for therapies that could help people living with the condition," Howard added.

For the study, published in Nature Communications, the team scanned the genetic code of 300,000 people to identify areas of DNA that could be linked to depression.

The WHO has identified strong links between depression and substance use disorders and diabetes and heart disease.

Depression is also an important risk factor for suicide, which claims hundreds of thousands of lives each year.

Lack of support for people with mental disorders, coupled with a fear of stigma, prevent many from accessing the treatment they need to live healthy, productive lives.