Teens With Mood Disorders at Risk for Heart Disease - http://clapway.com/2015/08/11/teens-with-mood-disorders-at-risk-for-heart-disease123/

A statement released by the American Heart Association calls for early monitoring of blood vessel and heart disease (cardiovascular disease) in teens with major depression and bipolar disorder. It is recommended that mood disorders be considered as an independent risk factor that could lead to early development of heart conditions such as thickening blood vessels in adolescents.

The Link Between Mood Disorders and Heart Disease

Major depression and bipolar disorder belong to a broad category of mood disorders that could affect adults and adolescents alike. They are the first and the fourth leading cause of disability worldwide, respectively. Bipolar disorder often manifests as mood alterations between bouts of elation, energy, irritability and spurts of depressive behavior including sadness and lack of involvement. Depression symptoms are similar to the depressive episodes of bipolar disorder, minus the periods of elation. About 10% of adolescents in the United States suffer from mood disorders, which is ten times the prevalence of all the moderate risk factors of heart disease combined.

The authors of the statement found, upon a thorough analysis of published literature, that teens with mood disorders are more likely than other teens to have many risk factors associated with cardiovascular disease: high blood pressure, high cholesterol, obesity, type II diabetes, and the hardening of arteries. Though the exact cause for these associations remains unclear, studies suggest that biological processes controlling inflammation and oxidative stress could link the two. Additionally, depressed teens are more likely to have unhealthy habits such as alcohol and drug abuse, smoking and physical inactivity. Medications used to treat depression have side effects that might hasten heart disease, but neither lifestyle factors nor medications could independently account for the link between mood and heart disease.

The association between depression and heart disease in adults is well known. Adults with mood disorders are far more likely to suffer from cardiovascular disease than adults with normal mental status. Both mood disorders and heart disease tend to run in families. In line with that, children of depressed parents could have good mental health and still show markers of early heart disease. Teens with mood disorders usually have a parental history of heart disease. Add to this the fact that most mood disorders that develop early are known to persist or even worsen in adulthood, and you realize the importance of early detection and management of warning signs in adolescents.

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Teens With Mood Disorders at Risk for Heart Disease

Having Blue Eyes May Lead to Higher Chance of Alcoholism - http://clapway.com/2015/07/02/having-blue-eyes-may-lead-to-alcoholism764/

Does having light-colored eyes make you more susceptible to alcoholism?

This is a questions a recent study published this month in the recent volume of the American Journal of Medical Genetics Part B: Neuropsychiatric Genetics undertakes to find out. The hypothesis suggested by researches from the University of Vermont was that the population of people with light-colored eyes may have more occurrences of alcoholism than those with dark eye colors. Most individuals with light colored eyes are also of European ancestry, which is a possible cultural reason as to why they consume more alcohol than other individuals.

Upon further study, there were signs linking dependence on alcohol to blue eyes-having individuals in the research study. This shows that there is a higher risk factor involved in being susceptible to alcoholism if you have blue eyes rather than brown. Although having lighter-colored eyes still exacerbates a tendency toward alcoholism, the strongest pull has been seen in blue eye colored subjects.

How did this link get discovered?

The connection from having blue eyes to alcoholism may seem farfetched, but the two traits share the same chromosome. The study sampled a pool of 1,263 European Americans, and from there, after taking into account several different factors, found numerous genetic interactions between the two. Thereby, the finding gave some solidity to the theory that was postulated at the beginning of the study- that individuals with eyes of lighter colors may be more susceptible to alcoholism.

What does this mean for everyone else?

Although further testing of the results and theory will be needed, this finding by the researchers may help to understand alcoholism on the genetics level, as well as predisposition, psychology of addiction, and many more aspects. You don’t have to have blue eyes to see or feel the pain that alcohol abuse is causing. Alcoholism today affects many communities on both a small and large scale, which has complications that may be fatal if not dealt with correctly. Alcoholism very often disrupts family dynamics, and heightens the younger generation’s predisposition to alcoholism as a result of family history.

Only time will tell what else this study can inform the masses, scientists, and researchers about the roots of alcoholism and all that it entails.

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Having Blue Eyes May Lead to Higher Chance of Alcoholism

Can Virtual Reality Treat Alcoholism? - http://clapway.com/2015/06/24/can-virtual-reality-treat-alcoholism765/

Another Way to Treat Alcoholism?

A recent study in South Korea showed the potential role virtual reality can play in helping those who struggle with alcohol dependence. This study was led by senior researcher Doug Hyun Han, of the Chang-Ang University Hospital. Though the study had a relatively small number of people tested, those people were found to be craving less alcohol than when the virtual reality testing began. It’s a beginning step to what could hopefully be a technological breakthrough in helping those who struggle with addiction.

What Occurred In the Study?

Han and his team’s study had 12 patients being tested. For five weeks, these 12 people, who were being treated for their dependence, underwent a total of 10 virtual reality therapy sessions, broken down into two sessions a week. In these sessions, the patients were faced with three separate virtual realities. The first scene they were dealt was a calming environment meant to relax the patient. The second scene confronted alcoholics with a simulation of a restaurant in which others were drinking, which was referred to as a high-risk situation wherein cravings could possibly be triggered. The third virtual reality the patients were confronted with is known as an aversive situation, as they were subjected to both the sight and sound of drinking too much. Vomit was, unsurprisingly, heavily featured in this situation meant to showcase the least appealing and lowest points of heavy drinking. The simulation even involved a drink that tasted like vomit.

The researchers had the patients undergo PET ad CT scans both before the virtual reality therapy began and after the five weeks had been completed. What they found in the second scan was that the patients’ limbic circuits in the brain had seen a decrease in activity. The metabolism of the brain had also slowed down. Han theorized that this could result in a reduced craving for alcohol.

What Does This Mean Going Forward?

This study has the potential to be a big step in the treatment of dependence, but even the researchers themselves warn to not get ahead of ourselves. Larger studies will need to be done going forward. But optimism is strong in the researchers after their virtual reality findings.

 

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Can Virtual Reality Treat Alcoholism?