Distress Leads To Higher COVID Vaccine Rates, Less Adherence To Distancing Guidelines, Study Finds

Distress leads to higher COVID vaccine rates, less adherence to distancing guidelines, study finds

People who were more distressed -- showing signs of anxiety or depression -- during the COVID-19 pandemic were less likely to follow some best practice recommendations from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, according to a new study. However, those same people were more likely than their non-distressed peers to get vaccinated. The authors refer to this as differential distress: when people act safely in one aspect while disregarding safety in another, both in response to the same psychological distress.
Read More
Feeling Anxious Or Blue? Ultra-processed Foods May Be To Blame

Feeling anxious or blue? Ultra-processed foods may be to blame

More than 70 percent of packaged foods in the U.S. are classified as ultra-processed food and represent about 60 percent of all calories consumed by Americans. A study in 10,359 adults 18 and older found those who consumed the most ultra-processed foods as compared with those who consumed the least amount had statistically significant increases in the adverse mental health symptoms of mild depression, 'mentally unhealthy days' and 'anxious days.' They also had significantly lower rates of reporting zero 'mentally unhealthy days' and zero 'anxious days.' Findings are generalizable to the entire U.S. as well as other Western countries with similar ultra-processed food intakes.
Read More
Study Examines Distorted Time Perception During Pandemic

Study examines distorted time perception during pandemic

The passage of time was altered for many people during the COVID-19 pandemic, ranging from difficulty in keeping track of days of the week to feeling that the hours themselves rushed by or slowed down. In prior work, these distortions have been associated with persistent negative mental outcomes such as depression and anxiety following trauma, making them an important risk factor to target with early interventions, according to a new study.
Read More
Study With Military Suggests 'blended' Individual And Team Mindfulness Is At Least As Effective As Standard Mindfulness Training

Study with military suggests 'blended' individual and team mindfulness is at least as effective as standard mindfulness training

New study suggests that a 'blended' eight-week mindfulness program that adds Team Mindfulness Training (TMT) to a shortened version of the mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) course for individual mindfulness is just as effective as the standard MBSR course alone. It may even offer further benefit by increasing collective stress management skills.
Read More