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<td><span style="font-family:Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size:20px;font-weight:bold;">PsyPost – Psychology News</span></td>
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<td><a href="https://www.psypost.org/brain-rhythms-tied-to-social-anxiety-may-explain-why-mistakes-linger-in-memory/" style="font-family:Helvetica, sans-serif; letter-spacing:-1px;margin:0;padding:0 0 2px;font-weight: bold;font-size: 19px;line-height: 20px;color:#222;">Brain rhythms tied to social anxiety may explain why mistakes linger in memory</a>
<div style="font-family:Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align:left;color:#999;font-size:11px;font-weight:bold;line-height:15px;">May 11th 2025, 10:00</div>
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<p><p>People with higher levels of social anxiety are more likely to remember faces they saw while making mistakes, and this may be due to how their brains respond to errors in the moment. A new study published in <a href="https://doi.org/10.3758/s13415-024-01198-5"><em>Cognitive, Affective, & Behavioral Neuroscience</em></a> suggests that social anxiety is linked to enhanced neural activity in the brain’s monitoring system during errors, which in turn predicts stronger memory for those moments. This finding could help explain why social anxiety persists over time and may eventually guide more targeted treatments.</p>
<p>The authors of the study sought to better understand how social anxiety affects the way people process and remember social situations. According to psychological models, individuals with social anxiety tend to focus more on their own mistakes and perceived flaws in social settings. This heightened self-focus can lead to biased memories, where negative moments are more likely to be remembered than positive or neutral ones. These memory biases can reinforce anxious beliefs and behaviors, creating a cycle that maintains or worsens social anxiety over time.</p>
<p>While previous research has shown that people with social anxiety exhibit stronger brain responses to errors, it remained unclear whether those neural responses had any lasting impact—such as changing how people remember what happened during social mistakes. The goal of the new study was to test whether brain activity related to error monitoring could help explain the memory biases seen in socially anxious individuals.</p>
<p>“My interest started when I was doing clinical rotations as an undergraduate. There, I saw that the usual treatments didn’t always work well for complicated brain problems. This made me want to use brain imaging to understand the brain better,” said study author Kianoosh Hosseini Ghalebin, a cognitive neuroscience PhD candidate at Florida International University.</p>
<p>“My path led me to pursue a PhD in Cognitive Neuroscience at Florida International University (FIU), working with <a href="https://www.ndclab.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Dr. George Buzzell</a> and the Neural Dynamics of Control Laboratory, within the <a href="https://ccf.fiu.edu/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Center for Children and Families (CCF)</a>.”</p>
<p>“As I got further into my PhD work, I became really interested in neural oscillations, which are like the brain’s electrical rhythms,” Hosseini explained. “I liked them because they offer a direct way to see what the brain is doing while it’s happening. These rhythms don’t just reflect ongoing brain activity; they can also be manipulated externally. For instance, stimulating specific brain regions at particular frequencies can alter cognitive functions and related behaviors. This ability to both measure and change brain activity makes these rhythms a powerful tool for understanding why complex conditions arise in the brain.”</p>
<p>“Building on this, I became especially interested in social anxiety, given its high prevalence and the persistent challenge it poses for treatment. Cognitive models suggest that biased thinking and memory—especially focusing on and remembering mistakes—are key reasons why social anxiety lasts. Meanwhile, brain research has found different brain activity in people with social anxiety, like their brain being extra sensitive to mistakes (i.e., enhanced error monitoring) in a part called the mediofrontal cortex.”</p>
<p>“Working together with Drs. Buzzell, Pettit, and Mattfeld at FIU/CCF, we saw a good opportunity to connect these two ideas—enhanced error monitoring and biased thinking and memory in individuals with social anxiety—by using neural oscillations, particularly the theta rhythms recorded over the mediofrontal cortex, as a way to observe in real time the brain activity that might be causing these cognitive biases.”</p>
<p>“Our research is based on the idea that this enhanced error monitoring, reflected in these oscillations, could lead to people remembering negative social events more strongly and in a biased way,” Hosseini continued. “This mechanism might help explain why social anxiety is so persistent. Ultimately, identifying such concrete neural mechanisms could pave the way for more targeted and effective interventions, moving beyond symptom descriptions to directly address the underlying brain processes that maintain social anxiety.”</p>
<p>To investigate this, the researchers developed a novel experimental task called the Face-Flanker task. Participants completed this task while their brain activity was recorded using electroencephalography (EEG). The task was designed to simulate a socially evaluative situation: participants were told their performance would be observed and judged, and each trial featured a unique face image in the background.</p>
<p>During each trial, participants saw an array of five arrows and had to respond to the direction of the center arrow while ignoring the others. The background included a face from a diverse database of neutral expressions. The task was structured to induce mistakes, especially on trials where the surrounding arrows pointed in the opposite direction from the center arrow.</p>
<p>After completing the task, participants were given an unexpected memory test. They were shown a mix of faces—some they had seen during the task and some they had not—and asked to identify which ones were familiar. This allowed the researchers to assess whether participants were more likely to remember faces that had appeared during error trials compared to correct ones.</p>
<p>Fifty-four adults initially took part in the study, but after excluding those who made too few mistakes or had unusable data, the final behavioral analysis included 32 participants. Of these, 24 participants had EEG recordings suitable for analyzing brain activity. Participants also completed a self-report questionnaire measuring social anxiety symptoms.</p>
<p>The researchers focused on a specific type of brain activity known as theta oscillations, particularly those originating in the medial frontal cortex—a region known to play a key role in monitoring errors. They analyzed both the power (strength) and synchrony (timing consistency) of these brain signals. They also examined how strongly the medial frontal cortex synchronized with sensory areas of the brain, especially those involved in processing visual information.</p>
<p>The results revealed a consistent pattern. People with higher levels of social anxiety showed stronger synchronization of theta waves in the medial frontal cortex and between that region and visual sensory areas during errors. This enhanced brain synchrony was not present during correct responses, suggesting it was specific to error processing.</p>
<p>“A couple of our findings were particularly interesting,” Hosseini told PsyPost. “What stood out was the specific nature of the brain activity linked to social anxiety symptoms. Instead of just seeing a general increase in the strength (power) of error-related theta brain waves, we found that higher social anxiety was specifically associated with the synchrony—the coordinated timing—of these waves.</p>
<p>“This was evident both within the mediofrontal cortex (MFC), a key region for error processing, and notably, in the communication between the MFC and sensory (visual) processing areas. This finding provides a more nuanced picture than simply concluding that social anxiety involves generally increased error monitoring. It suggests a specific mechanism involving potentially altered communication between error detection and sensory processing regions.”</p>
<p>Importantly, social anxiety symptoms were also associated with a memory bias: individuals with higher anxiety were more likely to recognize faces that had appeared during their mistakes. This was true even though, on average, the group as a whole did not show a significant memory difference between error and correct trials. The memory bias was more pronounced in those whose brains showed the strongest synchronization between the frontal and sensory regions during mistakes. In other words, the more their brain circuits responded to errors, the more likely they were to remember the faces they saw during those moments.</p>
<p>This finding provides a potential explanation for why social anxiety persists. If people with social anxiety are more likely to remember their social errors—and this is linked to how their brains respond to mistakes—it could lead to a distorted self-image over time. They may replay negative social memories more often, fueling worry and avoidance in future interactions.</p>
<p>“Our research highlights two key findings regarding individuals with higher social anxiety symptoms,” Hosseini said. “First, they demonstrate heightened brain activity when registering their own mistakes, reflecting more intensive error monitoring. Second, they show an enhanced ability to recall contextual details that were present when those errors occurred, even without actively trying to memorize them. This combination points toward a potential brain mechanism contributing to social anxiety: the act of monitoring errors more intensely may inadvertently strengthen the memory trace for associated information present during those moments.”</p>
<p>“Building on this, our more recent (unpublished) research adds a layer of specificity: this memory bias appears selective for social information. We found that higher social anxiety predicted better memory specifically for faces present during errors, but showed no such relationship for non-social objects present during errors. This distinction is significant; it implies the underlying mechanism isn’t simply a general memory boost around errors for anxious individuals, but is specifically tuned to enhance the encoding of social cues during mistakes. This provides a more direct potential pathway linking error processing biases to the maintenance of social anxiety.”</p>
<p>The researchers emphasized that their task allowed them to isolate the effect of error-related brain activity on memory formation in a way that past studies could not. Because each trial used a unique face and was followed by a surprise memory test, the researchers could more precisely link neural activity at the time of the error to later memory performance.</p>
<p>However, the study has some limitations. It included a relatively small number of participants, and most were young adults, predominantly female and Hispanic, from a university population. These factors limit how broadly the findings can be generalized. Also, while the results show a link between brain responses to errors and memory biases, they cannot prove causation.</p>
<p>“This was a proof-of-concept study with a relatively small sample size, primarily undergraduate students, so the findings need replication in larger, more diverse groups,” Hosseini noted. “Also, our study design is correlational, meaning we can show associations between error monitoring, incidental memory bias, and social anxiety, but we cannot definitively prove causation—such as that social anxiety results in enhanced error monitoring, which then causes a memory bias that maintains social anxiety. Longitudinal studies and methods that can probe causality are needed to track these factors over time and better understand the causal relationships.”</p>
<p>Future research could explore how these brain-based memory biases interact with other aspects of social anxiety, such as rumination after social events. It is also important to investigate whether similar patterns emerge with different types of memory, like intentional recall or emotional memory, and whether this brain activity is specific to social stimuli or occurs with other types of mistakes.</p>
<p>The researchers hope that identifying how brain signals shape memory in social anxiety could help inform new interventions. For instance, non-invasive brain stimulation might be used to modify the neural circuits involved in error processing, potentially reducing the lasting impact of social mistakes on memory and self-perception.</p>
<p>“Our ultimate goal is to identify concrete neural mechanisms involved in social anxiety, such as the oscillatory dynamics linking error monitoring and memory bias,” Hosseini said. “Determining these mechanisms is important because it could eventually inform the development of targeted and effective treatments, potentially through causal interventions like non-invasive brain stimulation aimed at modulating the specific neural circuits identified.”</p>
<p>“Building on our current findings, we plan to use longitudinal studies to determine if this link between error monitoring and memory bias prospectively predicts changes in social anxiety symptoms over time. Furthermore, we hope to investigate how these error- and memory-related processes interact with other key features of social anxiety, such as post-event rumination, to gain a more comprehensive understanding of the disorder’s neurocognitive underpinnings.”</p>
<p>“Finally, I would like to acknowledge the invaluable support from the Center for Children and Families (CCF) at Florida International University and express my sincere gratitude to my co-authors, Jeremy W. Pettit, Fabian A. Soto, Aaron T. Mattfeld, and George A. Buzzell, for their essential contributions to this research,” Hosseini added.</p>
<p>The study, “<a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.3758/s13415-024-01198-5">Toward a mechanistic understanding of the role of error monitoring and memory in social anxiety</a>,” was authored by Kianoosh Hosseini, Jeremy W. Pettit, Fabian A. Soto, Aaron T. Mattfeld, and George A. Buzzell.</p></p>
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<td><a href="https://www.psypost.org/common-antidepressant-may-increase-pain-sensitivity-later-in-life-if-taken-during-adolescence/" style="font-family:Helvetica, sans-serif; letter-spacing:-1px;margin:0;padding:0 0 2px;font-weight: bold;font-size: 19px;line-height: 20px;color:#222;">Common antidepressant may increase pain sensitivity later in life if taken during adolescence</a>
<div style="font-family:Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align:left;color:#999;font-size:11px;font-weight:bold;line-height:15px;">May 11th 2025, 08:00</div>
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<p><p>A new study published in the <em><a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0022395625002626" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Journal of Psychiatric Research</a></em> raises concerns about the long-term effects of fluoxetine—better known by its brand name Prozac—when used during adolescence. Researchers found that female mice given fluoxetine during a juvenile period displayed heightened sensitivity to pain and lower body weight in adulthood, even weeks after treatment had ended. The findings suggest that adolescent exposure to this commonly prescribed antidepressant may have lasting effects beyond mood regulation.</p>
<p>Fluoxetine is a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor widely used to treat depression, anxiety, and premenstrual disorders, especially in adolescents. Prescription rates for fluoxetine have been rising sharply among young people, particularly girls. The increase has been partly attributed to growing mental health needs during and after the COVID-19 pandemic, during which in-person therapy was less available.</p>
<p>Previous research has shown that early-life exposure to fluoxetine can lead to lasting changes in mood, memory, and drug sensitivity. These behavioral effects are often linked to changes in brain circuits involved in emotion regulation, such as the prefrontal cortex and amygdala. Some studies have also suggested that fluoxetine can affect inflammatory processes and body weight, raising the question of whether its effects extend into other areas, such as pain perception.</p>
<p>“Our lab has been interested in this topic due to growing concerns about the increased use of antidepressants like Prozac (fluoxetine) among young girls. Since adolescence is a crucial period of development, the idea that medications affecting neurotransmitter systems, like serotonin, may have long-term consequences on brain function and behavior, including pain sensitivity, is particularly alarming,” said study author <a href="https://www.utep.edu/liberalarts/psychology/people/sergio-d-iniguez.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Sergio Iñiguez</a>, a professor of psychology at the University of Texas at El Paso.</p>
<p>The researchers conducted a controlled experiment using female C57BL/6 mice, a widely used laboratory strain known for its genetic consistency and well-documented behavioral and physiological responses. Twenty adolescent mice were randomly divided into two groups. One group received fluoxetine dissolved in their drinking water for 15 days during adolescence—starting on postnatal day 35 and ending on day 49. The other group received regular water and served as a control. The dosage of fluoxetine was designed to match levels known to have antidepressant-like effects in rodents, adjusted for the higher metabolic rates found in females and younger animals.</p>
<p>Three weeks after the treatment period ended—when the mice had reached adulthood at postnatal day 70—the researchers assessed the animals’ sensitivity to thermal pain using the hot plate test. This test involves placing a mouse on a heated surface and measuring the time it takes for the mouse to show a pain response, such as licking its hind paw. Shorter reaction times suggest increased sensitivity to pain, a condition known as hyperalgesia.</p>
<p>The researchers found that mice exposed to fluoxetine during adolescence responded to the heat stimulus significantly faster than those in the control group. On average, they took less time to lick their hind paw, indicating that they were more sensitive to pain. Importantly, this increased sensitivity was observed well after the drug had been cleared from their system, suggesting a lasting change in their pain-processing mechanisms.</p>
<p>The researchers also tracked body weight throughout the experiment. Mice that received fluoxetine began to gain less weight starting on the second day of treatment, and this effect persisted into adulthood. At the time of the pain sensitivity test, the fluoxetine-exposed mice weighed significantly less than the controls. Although reduced body weight might influence pain responses, previous work suggests that fluoxetine does not impair general movement in rodents, making it unlikely that changes in locomotion affected the test results.</p>
<p>“Adolescent exposure to antidepressants like Prozac may have long-lasting effects that extend beyond mood regulation and can influence sensory processes, such as pain sensitivity,” Iñiguez told PsyPost. “Increased pain sensitivity in adulthood could be an unintended consequence of SSRIs, which is especially important to consider when prescribing these medications to young people.”</p>
<p>These findings align with earlier studies showing that early-life fluoxetine exposure can cause long-term alterations in brain function. In particular, serotonin—the chemical targeted by fluoxetine—plays a key role not only in mood but also in the regulation of pain. Disrupting serotonin levels during adolescence may interfere with the normal development of brain regions involved in processing pain, such as the prefrontal cortex. This area continues to mature during the teenage years and is involved in both emotional regulation and pain perception.</p>
<p>Other studies have shown that fluoxetine can affect inflammation, another pathway that influences how pain is experienced. For instance, clinical research has found that children and adolescents treated with fluoxetine show elevated levels of inflammatory markers like interleukin-6 and interleukin-1β months after treatment. This kind of immune activity could sensitize pain pathways and lead to lasting changes in how the brain and body respond to discomfort.</p>
<p>While the results of this study are based on an animal model and should not be directly applied to humans without further research, they raise important questions about how antidepressants may influence more than just mood. In particular, they suggest that fluoxetine use during adolescence could carry unintended consequences for sensory processing in adulthood.</p>
<p>One limitation of the study is that it did not include additional stressors, which are often present in human experiences of depression and anxiety. Stress is known to interact with both mood disorders and pain perception, and it is possible that the combination of fluoxetine and environmental stress would lead to different outcomes. Future research should examine how fluoxetine interacts with stress and other common adolescent experiences, including the use of other medications or the presence of psychiatric symptoms.</p>
<p>Another point to consider is that fluoxetine is prescribed for a range of conditions beyond depression, including eating disorders and premenstrual mood symptoms, both of which are more common in adolescent girls. Since these conditions themselves may involve altered sensitivity to pain or changes in body weight, more studies are needed to tease apart the effects of the medication from the effects of the underlying disorder.</p>
<p>“We plan to evaluate molecular markers within brain circuits involved in pain processing, particularly focusing on regions such as the prefrontal cortex and hypothalamus,” Iñiguez said. “We hope that the findings of this project inspire other researchers to further investigate the potential long-term side effects of SSRIs in adolescents, especially considering that antidepressants are frequently prescribed during this stage of development for a variety of illnesses.”</p>
<p>The study, “<a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jpsychires.2025.04.027" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Prozac exposure during adolescence increases pain sensitivity in adulthood</a>,” was authored by Anapaula Themann, Minerva Rodriguez, Daniel E. Calvo, Paulina Vargas, and Sergio D. Iñiguez.</p></p>
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<td><a href="https://www.psypost.org/maternal-warmth-in-childhood-predicts-key-personality-traits-years-later/" style="font-family:Helvetica, sans-serif; letter-spacing:-1px;margin:0;padding:0 0 2px;font-weight: bold;font-size: 19px;line-height: 20px;color:#222;">Maternal warmth in childhood predicts key personality traits years later</a>
<div style="font-family:Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align:left;color:#999;font-size:11px;font-weight:bold;line-height:15px;">May 11th 2025, 06:00</div>
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<p><p>Children who receive more warmth and affection from their mothers grow into more open, conscientious, and agreeable young adults, according to a new study published in <a href="https://doi.org/10.1037/amp0001508"><em>American Psychologist</em></a>. The findings, drawn from a long-running twin study in the United Kingdom, suggest that parenting may have lasting effects on certain personality traits—even after accounting for genetic and environmental influences.</p>
<p>Researchers have long been interested in how early life experiences shape who we become. Personality traits like openness, conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness, and neuroticism are known to predict many outcomes in adulthood, including career success, relationships, and mental and physical health. These traits, sometimes referred to as socioemotional skills, are also viewed as potentially malleable—especially compared to traits like intelligence—raising hopes that interventions in childhood could support healthier development.</p>
<p>One key question is whether parenting plays a meaningful role in shaping personality, and if so, how long that influence lasts. Previous studies have shown that positive parenting is linked to personality traits during childhood and adolescence. But few have followed children into adulthood, and many studies cannot rule out the possibility that genetics or shared family environments drive these associations.</p>
<p>To address this gap, a team of researchers led by Jasmin Wertz at the University of Edinburgh used a powerful study design involving monozygotic (identical) twins. Because these twins share 100% of their genes and the same family environment, any differences between them can more confidently be attributed to differences in experience. In this case, the researchers focused on maternal affection—measured during early childhood—and how it related to personality traits at age 18.</p>
<p>“We knew from previous research that the way parents treat their children – such as how affectionate and supportive they are – is linked with how children’s personalities develop,” explained Wertz, an assistant professor of psychology. “However, it is difficult to know whether these links are the result of parenting itself, or because parents pass on genes to their children. By studying twins who share all of their genes and grow up in the same home, we were able to study the effects of parenting separately from the effects of genes, to see if parenting has an effect on young people’s personalities.”</p>
<p>The data came from the Environmental Risk (E-Risk) Longitudinal Twin Study, which followed a nationally representative cohort of 1,116 British families with same-sex twins born in 1994–1995. Maternal affection was measured at ages 5 and 10 using the Five-Minute Speech Sample method, where mothers were asked to talk freely about each of their children. Researchers rated the tone and content of these recordings for warmth and dissatisfaction, providing a measure of affectionate parenting. At age 18, twins’ personalities were assessed using both interviewer ratings and reports from family members.</p>
<p>The analysis showed that, across the full sample, higher levels of maternal affection predicted greater openness, conscientiousness, and agreeableness, as well as slightly higher extraversion and lower neuroticism. These findings held even when adjusting for variables like sex and clustering within families.</p>
<p>But the study’s most revealing results came from comparisons within twin pairs. Even among identical twins raised in the same household, the twin who received more maternal affection was more likely to be open, conscientious, and agreeable as a young adult. These associations remained even after controlling for early emotional and behavioral problems, experiences of maltreatment, and the level of family support at age 18. In contrast, the links between maternal affection and the traits of extraversion and neuroticism disappeared in the twin comparison models, suggesting those associations may be explained by shared genes or environment rather than parenting alone.</p>
<p>“We were not surprised by finding positive effects of parenting for young people’s open-mindedness, conscientiousness and agreeableness, as we had expected that affectionate parenting would be linked with twins’ differences in these traits,” Wertz told PsyPost. “However, it was surprising that parenting was not linked with the other personality traits, particularly with twins being less neurotic.”</p>
<p>These findings provide rare and rigorous evidence that the emotional tone of parenting—not just the presence of abuse or neglect—can shape personality well into young adulthood. Importantly, the effects held even when personality was assessed by people outside the family, reducing the chance that mothers’ views on their parenting were simply mirrored in how they rated their children.</p>
<p>“Our findings imply that when parents are supported in being more affectionate in their relationships with their children, it can have an impact on how children’s personalities develop,” Wertz explained. “There are many proven ways to support parents, such as parenting programmes that help parents build stronger relationships with their children, but also policies that improve a family’s financial situation or make it easier for parents to access treatment if they struggle with mental health problems such as depression.</p>
<p>“The personality traits we found effects for – being open-minded, conscientious and considerate – are not only important for young people themselves, but they also matter for how they contribute to society. Supporting parents can therefore have a wide-reaching positive impact for society.”</p>
<p>The study challenges a view held by some behavioral geneticists that differences in personality are largely shaped by random or unpredictable factors in the environment. The fact that identical twins raised in the same household can differ in personality based on differences in parenting suggests that specific, modifiable experiences do matter.</p>
<p>But the authors caution against overgeneralizing the findings. The measure of parenting focused only on maternal affection, leaving open the question of how other parenting styles or paternal behaviors might influence development. The effects were also statistically modest.</p>
<p>“All findings were quite small, so the findings should not be misinterpreted to mean that affectionate parenting is all that matters for personality,” Wertz noted. “Also, the young people were 18 years old, which is still quite young. The young people in the study are currently being followed up, which will make it possible to test whether the effects of parenting last even longer. We are also working on repeating our study in a German cohort, to test if effects are generalizable across other settings and contexts.”</p>
<p>The study, “<a href="https://www.apa.org/pubs/journals/releases/amp-amp0001508.pdf">Parenting in Childhood Predicts Personality in Early Adulthood: A Longitudinal Twin-Differences Study</a>,” was authored by Jasmin Wertz, Terrie E. Moffitt, Flora Blangis, Antony Ambler, Louise Arseneault, Andrea Danese, Helen L. Fisher, and Avshalom Caspi.</p></p>
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<td><a href="https://www.psypost.org/psilocybin-use-has-surged-in-the-united-states-since-2019/" style="font-family:Helvetica, sans-serif; letter-spacing:-1px;margin:0;padding:0 0 2px;font-weight: bold;font-size: 19px;line-height: 20px;color:#222;">Psilocybin use has surged in the United States since 2019</a>
<div style="font-family:Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align:left;color:#999;font-size:11px;font-weight:bold;line-height:15px;">May 10th 2025, 16:00</div>
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<p><p>The use of psilocybin—the active compound in so-called “magic mushrooms”—has increased significantly in the United States since 2019, according to a new study published in the <em><a href="https://doi.org/10.7326/ANNALS-24-03145" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Annals of Internal Medicine</a></em>. Drawing on data from five national sources, researchers found sharp increases in both lifetime and recent use, especially among adults with symptoms of anxiety, depression, and chronic pain.</p>
<p>Psilocybin is a naturally occurring hallucinogen found in certain species of mushrooms. It has attracted growing scientific and public attention due to promising early studies suggesting it may help treat depression, post-traumatic stress disorder, and substance use disorders. Although not currently approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, psilocybin has entered clinical trials and has been decriminalized or legalized in parts of Oregon, Colorado, and several municipalities. This shifting legal landscape has raised questions about whether broader public use is increasing—and what the public health consequences might be.</p>
<p>“With efforts to legalize psilocybin mushrooms in Colorado, Oregon, and elsewhere ongoing, we wanted to determine whether there were more people using psilocybin mushrooms now than when legalization first passed here in Denver in 2019,” said Joshua Black, the co-lead author and senior scientist at <a href="https://www.rmpds.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Rocky Mountain Poison and Drug Safety</a>, a division of Denver Health.</p>
<p>To investigate these trends, the researchers analyzed five major U.S. data sources to examine psilocybin use from 2014 to 2023: the National Survey on Drug Use and Health, the Survey of Non-Medical Use of Prescription Drugs, Monitoring the Future, the National Poison Data System, and the National Hospital Ambulatory Medical Care Survey. By comparing responses across these sources, the team aimed to track changes in who is using psilocybin, how often, and whether they’re showing up in healthcare settings as a result.</p>
<p>The researchers chose 2019 as a key benchmark, since that year marked the first legal policy changes regarding psilocybin in the United States. Until then, use patterns were relatively stable. But after 2019, things began to shift. According to the National Survey on Drug Use and Health, lifetime use of psilocybin among adults rose from 10 percent (around 25 million people) in 2019 to 12.1 percent (over 31 million people) in 2023. Among adolescents aged 12 to 17, lifetime use rose more modestly, from 1.1 percent to 1.3 percent.</p>
<p>The increases were even more dramatic when looking at recent use. Among adults aged 18 to 29, past-year use rose 44 percent from 2019 to 2023. Among adults 30 and older, it jumped 188 percent. By 2023, 2.1 percent of adults reported using psilocybin in the past year—more than the number who reported using cocaine, LSD, methamphetamine, or illegal opioids.</p>
<p>“A lot more people are using psilocybin mushrooms,” Black told PsyPost. “And we observed increases across many different age groups. Psilocybin mushrooms are now the 2nd most frequently used substance in the country, behind only cannabis.”</p>
<p>The Monitoring the Future study, which focuses on adolescents, also found that past-year use among 12th graders rose by 53 percent during the same period, reaching 2.5 percent in 2023. Most users were younger and more likely to be male compared to the general population, according to the Survey of Non-Medical Use of Prescription Drugs.</p>
<p>“We were surprised at how consistent the information was across data sources. Use in communities and the number of healthcare interactions were both higher in 2023 than in 2019.”</p>
<p>Mental and physical health appeared to be major drivers of use. People with moderate to severe symptoms of anxiety or depression were about three times more likely to have used psilocybin in the past year compared to those with milder symptoms. A similar pattern was observed among those experiencing chronic pain. These findings suggest that a substantial number of people may be turning to psilocybin in an attempt to manage ongoing health issues—perhaps influenced by growing media attention to its therapeutic potential.</p>
<p>While the study found little evidence that psilocybin users were flooding emergency rooms, it did reveal a sharp rise in calls to poison control centers. Between 2019 and 2023, such calls increased by 201 percent for adults, 317 percent for adolescents, and 723 percent for children aged 11 and younger. In 2023 alone, U.S. poison centers received over 1,100 calls related to adult psilocybin exposures, over 500 involving adolescents, and nearly 300 involving children. Notably, the vast majority of these cases led to some form of health care contact.</p>
<p>In contrast, official hospital data showed only three emergency department cases involving psilocybin between 2015 and 2021. This discrepancy highlights a problem with how medical systems currently track psychedelic-related health incidents. The researchers suggest that existing diagnostic codes—used in hospital records—may be failing to capture psilocybin cases accurately.</p>
<p>The researchers emphasized that the increasing use of psilocybin, particularly for self-treatment, creates a need for better education, surveillance, and policy responses. “Public views on psilocybin are shifting,” said Black. “However, that means we also need to make sure people understand the risks, know how to use it safely if they choose to, and that health care systems are prepared.”</p>
<p>Co-lead author Karilynn Rockhill added that the speed of change surprised the research team. “What really surprised us was how quickly these numbers changed and how many people using psilocybin had conditions like depression, anxiety, or chronic pain,” she said.</p>
<p>The study had some limitations. All the data came from self-reported surveys, which are subject to inaccuracies such as underreporting or exaggeration. Also, while the study examined national trends, it did not explore state-by-state differences, which could be important given the local nature of drug policy in the United States. Still, by drawing on multiple large-scale datasets, the study offers one of the most comprehensive views to date of how psilocybin use is evolving.</p>
<p>“We’d like to study how safe and effective it is to use psilocybin mushrooms in community settings,” Black said. “With legalization likely to increase availability and decrease stigma, we want to ensure both the public and policymakers have the information they need to make evidence-based decisions.”</p>
<p>“A main message we have for the public is plan before you trip,” he added. “Find a safe place to use and find someone who you trust to be present. We don’t recommend using alone, especially for the first time.”</p>
<p>The study, “<a href="https://doi.org/10.7326/ANNALS-24-03145" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Rise of Psilocybin Use in the United States: A Multisource Observational Study</a>,” was authored by Karilynn M. Rockhill, Joshua C. Black, Michael S. Ladka, Kanku B. Sumbundu, Heather A. Olsen, Jennifer S. Jewell, Joshua Hunt, R. Cameron Wolf, Karuna Nerurkar, Richard C. Dart, and Andrew A. Monte.</p></p>
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<td><a href="https://www.psypost.org/knowledge-isnt-enough-what-really-predicts-condom-use-in-teens/" style="font-family:Helvetica, sans-serif; letter-spacing:-1px;margin:0;padding:0 0 2px;font-weight: bold;font-size: 19px;line-height: 20px;color:#222;">Knowledge isn’t enough: What really predicts condom use in teens</a>
<div style="font-family:Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align:left;color:#999;font-size:11px;font-weight:bold;line-height:15px;">May 10th 2025, 14:00</div>
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<p><p>A systematic review of studies on adolescents in the United States examined factors associated with condom use. The strongest predictor was condom use at first sex—adolescents who used a condom during their first sexual experience were more likely to continue using them in the future. Contrary to expectations, knowledge about safer sex was not associated with condom use. The findings were published in<em> JAMA Pediatrics</em>.</p>
<p>Adolescence, typically defined as the period between ages 10 and 19, is a stage of rapid physical, emotional, and cognitive development. It is marked by puberty, identity exploration, and growing independence. This period plays a critical role in shaping social skills, decision-making abilities, and long-term behavioral patterns.</p>
<p>It is also a time when many individuals begin engaging in sexual activity. While sex can be an important part of emotional intimacy and overall well-being, it also carries the risk of sexually transmitted infections if not practiced safely. Research has shown that adolescents are more likely than adults to experience unintended pregnancies.</p>
<p>Study author Laura Widman and her colleagues set out to identify the factors linked to condom use among adolescents. Although condoms are a simple and effective way to reduce the risk of sexually transmitted infections and unintended pregnancy, only 52% of sexually active high school students reported using a condom during their last sexual encounter, according to previous studies.</p>
<p>The researchers conducted a systematic review of the scientific literature. They searched databases including Medline, CINAHL, PsycINFO, and Communication Source using keywords related to adolescents, condom use, and various potential predictors of condom use.</p>
<p>They looked for studies conducted on U.S. adolescents with an average age under 19 and no participants older than 24. To be included, studies also had to report on condom use behaviors, be published in English after January 2000, and examine associations between condom use and at least one of 36 potential correlates.</p>
<p>The search initially yielded 1,597 articles. After review, 249 studies met the inclusion criteria. Together, these studies represented a total of 251,713 participants, with an average age of 16.</p>
<p>From these studies, the researchers identified 23 factors that were associated with adolescent condom use. The most consistent and strongest correlate was condom use at first sex. Adolescents who used a condom during their first sexual encounter were significantly more likely to use them in later sexual experiences. Intentions to use condoms and communication with partners about condom use were also strongly associated with actual condom use.</p>
<p>Surprisingly, knowledge about safer sex—a core component of most sex education programs—was not associated with condom use. This finding challenges the common assumption that increasing awareness alone will lead to safer sexual behavior.</p>
<p>“This systematic review and meta-analysis identified the strongest and weakest correlates of adolescent condom use across nearly 25 years of research. These results can be used to refine sexual behavior theory and guide more targeted evidence-based intervention efforts for adolescents,” the study authors concluded.</p>
<p>The study sheds light on the factors associated with condom use by adolescents. However, it should be noted that condom use depends on many factors and is a habit that can easily change. Because of this, results of future studies might not be the same.</p>
<p>The paper, “<a href="https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/fullarticle/10.1001/jamapediatrics.2024.5594?utm_campaign=articlePDF%26utm_medium=articlePDFlink%26utm_source=articlePDF%26utm_content=jamapediatrics.2024.5594">Identifying the Strongest Correlates of Condom Use Among US Adolescents A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis,</a>” was authored by Laura Widman, Reina Evans-Paulson, Anne J. Maheux, Jordyn McCrimmon, Julia Brasileiro, Claire D. Stout, Aaron Lankster, and Sophia Choukas-Bradley.</p></p>
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<td><a href="https://www.psypost.org/schizophrenia-may-accelerate-brain-ageing-new-study-finds/" style="font-family:Helvetica, sans-serif; letter-spacing:-1px;margin:0;padding:0 0 2px;font-weight: bold;font-size: 19px;line-height: 20px;color:#222;">Schizophrenia may accelerate brain ageing, new study finds</a>
<div style="font-family:Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align:left;color:#999;font-size:11px;font-weight:bold;line-height:15px;">May 10th 2025, 12:00</div>
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<p><p>Current theories about why schizophrenia develops <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/36370183/">suggest</a> it may be linked to changes in brain development during this critical period of emerging adulthood. Schizophrenia is also <a href="https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/314464">thought to be similar</a> to conditions such as dyslexia, autism and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), which are neurodevelopmental but usually manifest in childhood.</p>
<p>However, <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0165178124003585">our research</a> suggests that accelerated brain ageing could be another potential driver in the development of schizophrenia – and this can be measured using a simple blood test.</p>
<p>Our study is unique because we measured proteins in blood derived directly from brain neurons – the brain’s nerve cells – in people suffering from schizophrenia. This protein, called neurofilament light protein (NfL), consists of long, thread-like structures that help maintain the size and shape of nerve cells.</p>
<p>NfL is released into the blood and cerebrospinal fluid when brain neurons are damaged or undergo neurodegeneration. Its release when these cells are damaged makes it a <a href="https://www.mdpi.com/1422-0067/24/14/11624">useful biomarker</a> for diagnosing and monitoring neurodegenerative diseases and neurological damage. Measuring the levels of NfL can also provide insight into the extent of neuronal injury.</p>
<p>Neuronal injury is damage or harm to neurons, the specialised cells in the nervous system essential for communication in the brain, spinal cord and peripheral nervous system. When neurons are injured, their ability to function properly is impaired, which can result in a range of neurological symptoms depending on the severity and location of the damage.</p>
<p>Raised levels of NfL have been associated with a range of neurological conditions including Alzheimer’s disease, multiple sclerosis, Parkinson’s disease and frontotemporal dementia. But NfL levels also <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37511382/">normally increase with age</a> as these proteins lose the ability to repair themselves as effectively. This is due to a combination of factors including gradual wear-and-tear on neurons over time.</p>
<p>While reductions in the brain’s grey matter, white matter and connectivity are all part of normal, healthy ageing, these changes are usually gradual and not disabling. Grey matter contains most of the brain’s neurons and is responsible for processing information, memory, decision-making, muscle control, and seeing and hearing. White matter is the long fibres that connect different brain regions, allowing them to communicate quickly and efficiently.</p>
<p>Noticeable symptoms of normal, healthy brain ageing might include a bit more forgetfulness, slower reaction time, and difficulty juggling multiple tasks. Such changes are very different from the patterns seen in illnesses like schizophrenia where, <a href="https://academic.oup.com/schizophreniabulletin/article/40/5/1140/1924488">our study shows</a>, the decline is faster and more severe, indicating an older brain age than would be expected from the patient’s chronological age.</p>
<p>Our research found that, in people with schizophrenia, NfL levels appeared to increase more quickly with age, compared with the rate of increase in healthy people, indicating an acceleration of the brain ageing process.</p>
<p>We also studied samples from people suffering from bipolar disorder, which did not show the same accelerated increase. Data from <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41537-022-00330-z">other methods</a>, such as calculating “brain age” from MRI scans, also points to accelerated brain ageing in people with schizophrenia.</p>
<h2>Lifestyle factors</h2>
<p>For people suffering from schizophrenia, accelerated ageing of the body is already a serious problem, as Christos Pantelis, a Melbourne psychiatrist and senior author of our study, explains:</p>
<blockquote><p>An important problem is that people with chronic schizophrenia are often exposed to an <a href="https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC7796511/#abstract1">unhealthy lifestyle overall</a>. They can experience isolation, unemployment, lack of physical activities, smoking – and many resort to illicit drug use that <a href="https://theconversation.com/cannabis-increased-schizophrenia-risk-in-young-people-linked-to-both-low-and-high-use-175463">can make their condition worse</a>.</p></blockquote>
<p>Currently, people diagnosed with schizophrenia have <a href="https://www.mdpi.com/2227-9032/10/12/2366">a life expectancy</a> 20-30 years shorter than the average. This is mainly due to earlier development of common age-related diseases such as cancer and <a href="https://academic.oup.com/eurheartj/article/45/12/987/7611764">cardiovascular disease</a>. <a href="https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/statistics/schizophrenia">Around half</a> of people with schizophrenia have at least one other chronic medical condition, such as obesity, respiratory conditions, chronic pain and substance-use disorders.</p>
<p>People with schizophrenia have <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK571451/">a higher risk</a> of substance-use disorders due to a combination of biological, psychological and environmental factors. These include self-medication for distressing symptoms, impaired cognitive function, social isolation, and difficulties with treatment adherence.</p>
<p>While lifestyle is a factor in the accelerated ageing of the body for those living with schizophrenia, our study could prove another important step in understanding – and in time, treating – this distressing disease.<!-- Below is The Conversation's page counter tag. Please DO NOT REMOVE. --><img decoding="async" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/239979/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1"><!-- End of code. If you don't see any code above, please get new code from the Advanced tab after you click the republish button. The page counter does not collect any personal data. More info: https://theconversation.com/republishing-guidelines --></p>
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<p><em>This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/brains-of-people-with-schizophrenia-may-age-faster-how-our-research-adds-to-the-evidence-239979">original article</a>.</em></p></p>
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<p><strong>Forwarded by:<br />
Michael Reeder LCPC<br />
Baltimore, MD</strong></p>
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