Sex, food, shopping, the Internet, video games—all of these activities are being studied by neuroscientists, which frequently leads to headlines like “ Oreos May Be As Addictive As Cocaine ” and “ Brain Activity of Sex Addicts...
[Photo: Regina H. Boone] The clinic was barely open but the tiny waiting room already was full: Three cases of diabetes — two entangled with hepatitis C — and at least one case each of of hypertension, obesity and a dangerously thickened heart muscle. Most worrisome, though, were the things that might not show up on a chart in another doctor’s office but that immeasurably complicate things: Homelessness. Poverty. Drug addiction. Severe mental illness. To nurse practitioner...
In South Carolina, a 46-year-old black woman has been arrested for letting her daughter play in a nearby park while trying to earn a living. " The mother, Debra Harrell, has been booked for unlawful conduct towards a child," a local TV station...
In the past year, my first in a prestigious Ph.D. program in creative writing and literature, I have often felt conspicuous as a writer of color. I have felt a responsibility to speak up when race is discussed, but I have also resented this...
[Image credit: David Parkins] When a patient talks with a psychological therapist, what changes occur in the patient's brain that relieve mental disorders? UCLA psychology professor Michelle Craske says the honest answer is that we don't know. But, according to Craske and two colleagues, we need to find out. Mental health disorders—such as depression, schizophrenia, post-traumatic stress disorder , obsessive–compulsive disorder and eating disorders—affect 1 in 4 people...
[Imam Zia Sheikh delivers sermon on Friday. Photo: Louis DeLuca] The men pack into the mosque — their feet bare, their heads covered with white prayer caps — and sit down on the carpet in untidy rows for afternoon prayer. A man wearing black scrubs. Little boys who cling to their fathers’ legs. The door continues to swing open long after the services start. Everyone’s attention is on Imam Zia Sheikh, a prominent figure among local Muslims, who has prepared a special...
At the beginning of July, 26-year-old Mallory Loyola gave birth to a baby girl. Two days later, the state of Tennessee charged her with assault. Loyola is the first woman to be arrested under a new law in Tennessee that allows the state...
"THURSDAY, July 17, 2014 (HealthDay News) -- Middle-aged women who were sexually abused as children may be more likely to develop early signs of heart disease, a new study suggests. Early Life Adversities may have Implications for the Development of...
Georgia Juvenile Court Judge Peggy H. Walker was sworn in Tuesday as president of the National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges at its 77th annual conference in Chicago, Ill. “My focus for the year of my presidency will be using my...
...Things Bamford likes to talk about candidly include the fact that she has disabling bouts of anxiety and depression, that she has contended with a form of O.C.D. called “unwanted thoughts syndrome” and that during her childhood, those...
Researchers from Queen’s University have found that exercise and relaxation practices can help people with social anxiety disorders view the world more positively. Adam Heenan, a Ph.D. candidate, discovered exercise and relaxation...
Chances are good that if you picture what hunger looks like, you don’t summon an image of someone like Christina Dreier: white, married, clothed, and housed, even a bit overweight. The image of hunger in America today differs markedly from...
This week, a Kentucky law kicks in that aims to protect domestic violence victims—not by taking away guns from their abusers, but by making it easier for victims to carry guns. Kentucky has some of the most lax gun restrictions for domestic...
...Experts attribute increased maternal death rates to uncontrolled chronic health conditions, which are more common in African-Americans, and to poverty that deprives low-income women of health insurance and access to health care. Detroit fits...
The profound and sometimes deadly impact of postpartum depression on mothers, children and their families was recently highlighted in a short series in the New York Times . ... We don’t know the early histories of the mothers whose...