Each month our editorial team sifts through hundreds of papers and curates notable findings—for practitioners and informed readers who want to stay current with the evidence. Subscribe to the monthly Research Digest for expert analysis and concise summaries of key papers.
20 papers
This 12-week randomised trial tested a structured dietary program (a modified Mediterranean-style diet) against a social-support control in adults with moderate to severe major depression. Sixty-seven people were randomised (33 to diet, 34 to control). The diet group showed larger drops in depressive symptoms on the MADRS scale at 12…
Treatment-resistant depression means depression that does not get better after usual treatments. Scientists do not all agree on one clear definition, which makes it hard to know exactly how common it is or which treatments work best. Using the definition that regulators often use, about 30% of people with depression…
This review describes compounds in medicinal mushrooms and how they work in lab and animal studies. It lists many possible effects, such as immune changes, anti-inflammatory and anticancer actions, and names key molecules like polysaccharides (β-glucans), terpenes, and fungal proteins. Most evidence so far comes from in vitro or animal…
In a small, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial of Japanese adults aged 50–80 with mild cognitive impairment, 30 people were randomly assigned to take Yamabushitake (an edible mushroom) or placebo for 16 weeks. The mushroom group took four 250 mg tablets three times a day and showed higher scores on a cognitive…
Researchers tested deep brain stimulation (DBS) in a small group of people whose depression did not get better with usual treatments. They used an implanted device that both delivered stimulation to the subcallosal cingulate (a brain area linked to mood) and recorded brain electrical signals. Around 9 out of 10…
Past large trials found that using combined estrogen and progestin was linked to higher heart-related risk, and hormone therapy (HT) use fell a lot afterward. In the last 20 years, research shows that when HT starts (age and time since menopause) and how it is given (route) affect heart disease…
This meta-analysis combined 20 randomized clinical trials up to February 22, 2019, and found that a single dose of ketamine produced rapid antidepressant effects that were strongest at 24 hours and that these effects were still detectable up to 7 days. The analysis also found that repeated ketamine doses helped…
This small open-label study tested whether a 12-session course of cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) given alongside four intravenous ketamine infusions could help maintain ketamine's antidepressant effects in people with treatment-resistant depression. Sixteen patients started the study; 8 (50%) responded to ketamine and 7 (43.8%) reached remission in the first two…
This review combined 17 studies of deep brain stimulation (DBS) for people with treatment-resistant depression. Across studies, about 56% of patients showed a clinical response and 35% reached remission, while 14% later had recurrence. Adverse events were common (about 67%), and the two randomized trials did not show a clear,…
This review looked at animal and human studies of cannabidiol (CBD) for anxiety. In animals, CBD often reduced anxiety-like behaviors at low or medium doses but sometimes increased anxiety at high doses. Small human studies and public-speaking tests suggest CBD might reduce anxiety in healthy people and in social anxiety…
Researchers tested repeated subcutaneous (under-the-skin) injections of racemic ketamine in people whose depression had not improved after at least two antidepressant trials. People got injections twice a week for 4 weeks and neither participants nor the raters knew which drug they were getting. When the study allowed higher, response-guided ketamine…
This 2023 review looks at many studies of cannabidiol (CBD) for brain and nerve conditions. It found lab, animal, and human evidence that CBD can reduce seizures and may protect nerve cells, lower inflammation, and act as an antioxidant. The review says results are promising for epilepsy, multiple sclerosis, Parkinson's…
