Post-traumatic stress disorder, or PTSD, and alcohol or drug problems often co-occur, or exist together, and military veterans experience these challenges at higher rates than civilians. For years, research has suggested that veterans don’t always benefit from PTSD treatments in the same way that civilians do, pointing to a need to learn more about the treatments that work for them. Today, we talk with clinical psychologist and mental health researcher Dr. Shannon Blakey, who breaks down new research on what actually works for veterans confronting these dual disorders.

Read Shannon's article in Psychological Trauma: Theory, Research, Practice, and Policy: https://doi.org/10.1037/tra0002043

Learn more about different types of therapy for mental health and addiction here:

https://www.ptsd.va.gov/understand_tx/prolonged_exposure.asp

https://www.ptsd.va.gov/understand_tx/cognitive_processing.asp

https://www.ptsd.va.gov/professional/treat/cooccurring/tx_sud_va.asp

https://strongstartraining.org/upcoming-events/

For healthcare providers: https://www.ptsd.va.gov/professional/consult/index.asp

For patients/families: https://www.ptsd.va.gov/

In our media-saturated world, our kids are impressionable targets for advertisements for foods that are “high in” ingredients linked to obesity and nutrition-related disease: saturated fats, sodium, sugar, and calories. Children who see these ads have poorer health trajectories and higher rates of obesity. Unhealthy food ads contradict every parent’s best intentions to provide their child with a nutritionally balanced diet, turning daily choices into hair-pulling battles and grocery aisle meltdowns.

In this episode, we are joined by nutritional epidemiologist Dr. Lindsey Smith Taillie and media effects researcher Dr. Francesca Dillman Carpentier, who teamed up to understand the impact of global food policies that restrict advertising of unhealthy foods toward children. The study examines a case study of new regulations that rolled out in Chile, and how the country took a stand against food advertising for the sake of preserving the health of children. Lessons from Chile are spreading across the world and could serve as a model for reducing the influence of advertising on poor dietary choices for kids in the United States, where one in five children are obese.

Learn more about the UNC Global Food Research Program here: https://www.globalfoodresearchprogram.org/

Read the paper published in the International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity here: https://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s12966-023-01454-w

In today’s world, children are surrounded by stressors that can jeopardize their mental health. National statistics show a troubling increase in mental health disorders and a growing incidence of suicide among younger populations over the past decade. Many parents and caretakers hesitate to discuss critical topics like death and suicide, fearing that such conversations may do more harm than good. But what does the science say about having talks about suicide with young kids?

In this episode, we tackle this important issue and highlight a research project focused on suicide prevention among children under 10 with experiences that put them at risk of mental health problems. Child psychologists Dr. Adam Bryant Miller of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and Dr. Caroline Oppenheimer of RTI International discuss their study adapting a suicide risk assessment for young children and examining its impact on children and parents. They provide insights from their research and offer actionable guidance for families seeking to support their children’s mental health and prevent suicide.

Read the article in the Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry.

#childadversity #youthmentalhealth #suiciderisk #suicideprevention #youthsuicide #stopyouthsuicide #988helpline #sciencetranslation #sciencecommunication

This episode addresses a sensitive yet important topic and may not be suitable for all listeners. Anyone struggling with thoughts of suicide should dial 988 for immediate support.