Author: dispatchtimes news

A new meta-analysis has found that lithium supplementation does not slow cognitive decline in older adults with Alzheimer’s disease or mild cognitive impairment. The study pooled data from six randomized, placebo-controlled trials involving 435 participants and found no significant cognitive benefit from commonly used inorganic lithium salts, such as lithium carbonate, compared with placebo. The research appears in Neuroscience and Biobehavioral Reviews. Alzheimer’s disease is a progressive brain disorder characterised by memory loss, confusion and difficulties with daily tasks, underpinned by the accumulation of amyloid-beta plaques and tau tangles in the brain. Mild cognitive impairment represents an intermediate stage of…

A new piece of psychology research suggests that dark personality traits—specifically psychopathy and sadism—are linked to a broader endorsement of political violence, beyond any single side of the Israel–Hamas conflict. The study, published in Personality and Individual Differences, reports that these traits predict support for violent actions by both Israel and Hamas in two online studies conducted with European and British participants. In political psychology, researchers have long argued that people judge violence through the lens of group identity and ideology. When confronted with a highly polarised conflict, the expectation is that individuals support violence from one side while opposing…

A new psychological survey has been developed to measure the unpaid, emotional labour women perform to organise and sustain the social lives of their romantic partners. The research introduces a scale designed to quantify how women experience the effects of men’s shrinking friendships, offering researchers a standardised way to study its impact on relationship satisfaction and personal well‑being. The study centres on a concept called mankeeping, which describes the efforts women make to compensate for declines in their male partners’ social networks. It includes actions like arranging social gatherings, urging men to reconnect with friends, and providing the primary or…

A large analysis published in Nature Human Behaviour finds that everyday physical activity is linked to a major boost in energy and mood in daily life, and that improvements in well-being can also prompt people to be more active afterwards. The study defines physical activity as more than organised exercise, including walking, household movement, commuting and other everyday movements, while affective well-being covers momentary feelings such as happiness, energy, calmness and general mood. Led by Johanna Rehder of the University of Salzburg, the team pooled 67 datasets from 14 countries, encompassing 8,223 participants with an average age of about 36.3…

A new study suggests measuring brain activity before starting depression treatment could help doctors predict which patients will experience sexual side effects from antidepressants. The research points to a serotonin-related brainwave pattern that forecast whether a patient might struggle to reach orgasm after taking common SSRIs, and was published in the Journal of Psychiatric Research. Sexual difficulties are a frequent challenge for people with major depressive disorder. Across the condition’s spectrum, between 40 and 60 per cent experience sexual disturbances. While improving mood can sometimes help the sex life, the medications themselves often create new problems, particularly with desire, arousal…

A teenager from Poland diagnosed with a rare memory condition has been shown to experience an unusually high rate of involuntary memories, even when engaged in a simple, repetitive task. In a study published in Cortex, researchers report that a 16-year-old boy, identified in the study as KCL, demonstrated a marked propensity for spontaneous autobiographical memories to intrude on his thoughts far more often than a control group. Highly Superior Autobiographical Memory (HSAM) is a rare condition in which individuals can recall past personal events with extraordinary detail. While much of the prior work has focused on deliberate recollection in…

A Bangladeshi study of university students has found associations between symptoms of caffeine use disorder and sleep problems, with depressive symptoms partially mediating the relationship. The findings appear in Addictive Behaviors Reports. Caffeine is one of the most widely consumed psychoactive substances, commonly used to boost alertness and fight fatigue. Among university students, caffeine consumption is particularly common due to demanding academic schedules, long study hours and insufficient sleep. While moderate caffeine use can temporarily improve wakefulness, excessive or poorly timed consumption may disrupt sleep quality. Sleep disturbances themselves are linked with impaired daily functioning, poorer mood and a higher…

A new study into women diagnosed with ADHD in midlife reveals years of hidden emotional struggle and misdiagnoses, but also shows that a late diagnosis can reframing certain traits, such as hyperfocus, as personal strengths. The research, published in the Journal of Attention Disorders, is based on in-depth interviews with women who received formal ADHD diagnoses as adults. ADHD is a neurodevelopmental condition marked by ongoing patterns of inattention, hyperactivity and impulsivity. The researchers note that differences in cognitive control—how prior knowledge and goals guide attention and behaviour—can leave people with ADHD struggling to sustain focus and regulate emotions when…

A new study published in the Journal of Affective Disorders reports a sex-divergent relationship between testosterone and suicide risk in late-life depression, with higher testosterone appearing to shield older men from suicidality, while being linked to greater risk among older women. Researchers from Beijing Anding Hospital and Capital Medical University in China led the investigation. Depression in later life is a pressing global public health concern. Among those aged 60 to 89 experiencing major depressive episodes, suicidal thoughts tend to persist and the risk of suicide is higher than in younger groups. Social isolation, chronic illnesses and declining cognitive function…