Thinking Globally to Improve Mental Health

The Grand Challenges in Global Mental Health Initiative, led by the National Institutes of Health and the Global Alliance for Chronic Diseases, has identified the top 40 barriers to better mental health around the world. Similar to past grand challenges, which focused on infectious diseases and chronic, noncommunicable diseases, this initiative seeks to build a community of funders dedicated to supporting research that will significantly improve the lives of people living with MNS disorders within the next 10 years.

Twenty-five of the specific challenges and the process used to derive them are described in an article that will be published on July 7, 2011, in the journal Nature.

"Participating in global mental health research is an enormous opportunity, a means to accelerate advances in mental health care for the diverse U.S. population, as well as an extension of our vision of a world where mental illnesses are prevented and cured," said Thomas R. Insel, M.D., director of the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), the NIH institute heading this effort.

According to the paper's authors, the disorders targeted by the Grand Challenges in Global Mental Health -- for example, schizophrenia, depression, epilepsy, dementia, and alcohol dependence -- collectively account for more years of life lost to poor health, disability, or early death than either cardiovascular disease or cancer. Yet, compared to illnesses like cardiovascular disease and cancer, there are far fewer effective treatments or preventive methods. In addition, interventions are not widely available to those who need them most.

In recognizing the need to address this imbalance, Pamela Collins, M.D., M.P.H., of the NIMH Office for Research on Disparities and Global Mental Health, and colleagues assembled an international panel of experts to identify research priorities using the Delphi method, a widely accepted consensus-building tool. The panel consisted of 422 experts in fields such as neuroscience, basic behavioral science, mental health services, and epidemiology, and represented more than 60 countries.

Over the course of two months, NIMH staff pared the panel's initial list of 1,565 challenges down to 154, with input from a scientific advisory board. From this list, the expert panel selected the top 40, of which the top five challenges identified after the third and final round of ranking are:
Read more

Ways to Keep Your Brain Healthy and Maintain a Good Memory

Many of us don't bother a lot about our fading memory. A startling observation has come out in a study carried out by the University of Virginia in the US. Memory problems can surface as early as in somebody's 20s.

Researchers noted that by the age of 27, brain-speed, puzzle solving capabilities and abstract reasoning take a hit in most people. There's no need to ring the alarm bells on reading, it wouldn't happen that you'll forget your girl's name but at the same time it's important that you realise that brain is a vital part of the body and needs your constant attention. Here's how you can keep it fit:

Stay Active
Staying physically fit is favourable for the brain as well. It is very likely to magnify the size of your hippocampus - the region of the brain connected to long-term recall. Jogging and swimming are a boon for the brain, however, anything that gets you blood flowing can be handy.

Eat Healthy
What's good for your heart is good for your head - this may not hold otherwise but it makes perfect sense if you care for your brain. Experts advise an anti-oxidant-rich diet, coupled with omega-3 fatty acids to maintain a healthy brain.

Organise and Visualise
Get involved in various mental exercises. Teach yourself mental prompts. If you need to remember numerous different items, try organisinf them into smaller bunches. Take your credit card number. You probably know it by heart as it is already arranged into groups of four.

Play and Relax
Contrary to what some people say, video games don't ruin your brain. In fact, there are several games which help to strengthen and train your brain. Relaxing is also big stressbuster.
Read more