Night owls — people who stay up late — have been shown to have an increased risk of depression. And now a new study says why that might be. Dusk dwellers tend to be less mindful — that is, less engaged in the present moment, researchers found. That, along with poor sleep quality and higher alcohol consumption, are likely explanations for their increased depression risk, researchers reported in the journal PLOS One. “Importantly, we considered the different facets of mindfulness as factors,” concluded the team led by senior researcher Simon Evans, a lecturer in neuroscience of the University of Surrey in the U.K.  “Results pointed specifically to a protective role of the ‘acting with awareness’ facet,” in which people engage fully in the present moment and carry out actions with deliberate attention rather than on autopilot, researchers wrote. For the study, researchers surveyed nearly 550 university students using an online questionnaire. Students reported information on their sleep patterns, mindfulness, alcohol use and levels of depression and anxiety. The responses revealed that night owls were indeed more likely to report symptoms of depression compared to average sleepers, researchers report. Night owls also had worse sleep quality than average sleepers or morning birds, and they tended to consume more alcohol. These results jibe with earlier studies linking bad sleep and alcohol to depression, researchers noted. But this…  read on >  read on >

Microplastics that invade and burrow deep within the human body are becoming an increasing concern among doctors and health experts. Now, a new study shows that even medical care is causing increased exposure to the tiny plastic particles. Microplastics can be found in the solutions administered through plastic IV bags, researchers recently reported in the journal Environment & Health. In fact, thousands of plastic particles could be delivered directly to a person’s bloodstream from a single standard 8.4-ounce bag of IV fluid, researchers said. “Our findings highlight an aspect of plastic pollution that affects humans most directly, as microplastics are being injected into the bloodstream,” concluded the research team led by senior researcher Liwu Zhang, a professor with the Fudan University Department of Environmental Science & Engineering in Shanghai, China. Studies have tied microplastics to a range of health problems, a recent Forbes article noted. These include dementia and brain health, heart disease, stroke, reproductive issues and infant illnesses. Microplastics have been found in human blood, and they tend to accumulate in organs like the lungs, liver, kidneys and spleen, researchers said in background notes. A study published earlier this year in Nature found that the amount of microplastics found in human brains has increased by about 50% — the equivalent of a plastic spoon in weight. For the new study, researchers purchased two different…  read on >  read on >

The blues and the jitters are very common among people battling chronic pain, a new evidence review says. About 40% of adults with chronic pain have symptoms of depression or anxiety, researchers report in JAMA Network Open. Women, younger adults and people suffering from fibromyalgia are particularly vulnerable to mood disorders caused by chronic pain, researchers found. “People who have chronic pain are more likely than those who don’t to have depression and anxiety,” lead researcher Rachel Aaron, an assistant professor of physical medicine and rehabilitation at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, said in a news release. “This is a significant public health problem that should be addressed with routine screening of depression and anxiety in clinical settings and the development of novel treatments that target their (mood disorder),” Aaron said. At the same time, she added, this is also a story of resilience.  “Most people with chronic pain do not have depression or anxiety,” Aaron said. “These results challenge the ableist narrative that chronic pain is inherently depressing and remind us that people with chronic pain can and do lead psychologically healthy, fulfilling, lives.” About 21% of U.S. adults have a condition that causes chronic pain, researchers said in background notes. For the study, researchers pooled data from 376 studies conducted in 50 countries involving nearly 350,000 people. The average age of…  read on >  read on >

The time of day — or year — an asthma test takes place can affect its accuracy, a new study says. Routine asthma testing is more reliable when done in the morning, researchers reported in the journal Thorax. Starting at 8:30 a.m., the chances of the test accurately detecting a person’s asthma decreases by 8% for every subsequent hour that passes, results show. People are also 33% less likely to have a positive result on an asthma test if it is done during the autumn compared to the winter, researchers found. These results startled researchers, even though they jibe with the known fact that patients respond better to asthma drugs in the morning than in the afternoon. “Given what we know about how the risk of an asthma attack changes between night and day, we expected to find a difference in how people responded to the lung function test, but even so, we were surprised by the size of the effect,” said lead investigator Ben Knox-Brown, lead research respiratory physiologist at Royal Papworth Hospital NHS Foundation Trust in Cambridge, U.K. “This has potentially important implications,” he added in a news release. “Doing the test in the morning would give a more reliable representation of a patient’s response to the medication than doing it in the afternoon, which is important when confirming a diagnosis such as…  read on >  read on >

Playing with a dog for just 15 minutes can significantly reduce a person’s stress, a new study reports. Stressed students who interacted with a friendly dog reported less stress, had a reduced heart rate and had lower levels of the stress hormone cortisol in their saliva, researchers said in the journal PLOS One. The experience also appears to be beneficial for dogs, researchers added. Fecal tests showed that canine cortisol levels were lower a week after hanging with a human. “Even brief interactions with dogs can significantly reduce stress levels among university undergraduate students,” concluded the research team led by senior investigator Jaruwan Khonmee with Chiang Mai University in Thailand. For the study, researchers recruited six friendly dogs 3 to 6 years old to interact with college students. They included five chihuahuas raised by veterinarians and a Shetland sheepdog raised by a psychologist. None of the dogs were certified for therapy work, researchers noted. This was the first time they’d participated in any sort of canine-assisted intervention, and they participated without the presence of their owner. In the main library of Chaing Mai University, 122 students completed a stress assessment questionnaire, had their blood pressure and pulse taken, and provided a saliva sample for cortisol testing. They then were given 15 minutes to play with a dog after being told the pooch’s name, personality traits…  read on >  read on >

Nostalgia might be met by eyerolls from some, as the emotion might inspire insipid images of rose-tinted glasses, gooey sentimentality and living in a time-lost past. But people prone to nostalgia have an edge when it comes to their health and well-being, a new study says. Nostalgic people have more close friends and put more effort into maintaining friendships and relationships than less sentimental sorts, researchers reported in the journal Cognition and Emotion. Even teenagers can feel and benefit from nostalgia, researchers noted. “People who feel nostalgic more often and value those memories are more aware of their important relationships and the need to nurture them,” lead researcher Kuan-Ju Huang, a doctoral student at Kyoto University in Japan, said in a news release. “This means these friendships may be more likely to last, even as we get older and our lives, interests and responsibilities, change,” Huang continued. Social networks play a critical role in a person’s well-being, providing psychological and cognitive benefits into old age, researchers said in background notes. The reported results come from three experiments involving nearly 1,500 people in the U.S. and Europe, researchers said. In the first, a group of nearly 450 undergraduate students at the University of Buffalo in New York were surveyed about their level of nostalgia and their networks of friends. Those who said they were nostalgic put…  read on >  read on >