Medical Bulletin 18/Jul/2025

A new study published in Frontiers in Psychiatry reveals that music therapy could offer a low-cost and compassionate alternative to psychotropic medications for dementia patients in NHS mental health wards. The research uses a structured music therapy tool known as MELODIC to help reduce patient distress.

Dementia patients in inpatient wards often experience high levels of confusion and emotional agitation, placing immense pressure on care staff. Current treatment methods often rely on psychotropic medications, which can come with side effects. To address this, researchers embedded a music therapist in two NHS dementia wards, delivering clinical music sessions and creating personalised music care plans for patients.

Music therapy sessions included singing, listening to music, and playing instruments, with therapists identifying musical strategies that families and staff could incorporate into daily care. The pilot study showed slight improvements in patients’ quality-of-life scores and reductions in the severity of distress symptoms and disruptiveness. While agitation scores rose slightly, there were no related adverse events or increases in incidents reported on the wards.

“People with dementia on inpatient mental health wards are often experiencing very high levels of distress, and staff are under immense pressure to manage this in ways that are safe and compassionate,” said lead author Naomi Thompson of ARU’s Cambridge Institute for Music Therapy Research. “Our study yielded promising results and importantly showed that the MELODIC tool can be used effectively in these highly complex settings, giving an alternative option to current ways of managing severe distress, such as psychotropic medication.”

The MELODIC approach was shaped through interviews with 49 healthcare professionals, patients, and family members to understand their experiences managing distress and using music in care. The intervention represents a scalable and affordable model for NHS wards.

Reference: Thompson Naomi , Odell-Miller Helen et al, Music therapy embedded in the life of dementia inpatient care to help prevent and manage distress: a feasibility study to inform a future trial, Frontiers in Psychiatry, Volume 16 – 2025.

https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/psychiatry/articles/10.3389/fpsyt.2025.1618324

DOI=10.3389/fpsyt.2025.1618324

Intermittent Fasting Outperforms Other Diets for Diabetes Control: Study Finds

A new study presented at ENDO 2025 reveals that while all three popular dietary strategies intermittent energy restriction, time-restricted eating, and continuous energy restriction can aid in blood sugar control and weight loss for people with obesity and type 2 diabetes, intermittent energy restriction stands out for offering the greatest metabolic benefits and adherence.

"This study is the first to compare the effects of three different dietary interventions intermittent energy restriction, time-restricted eating, and continuous energy restriction in managing type 2 diabetes with obesity," said Haohao Zhang, Ph.D., chief physician at The First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University in Zhengzhou, China. "The research fills a gap in directly comparing 5:2 intermittent energy restriction with a 10-hour time-restricted eating in patients with obesity and type 2 diabetes. The findings provide scientific evidence for clinicians to choose appropriate dietary strategies when treating such patients."

The study was a single-center, randomized, parallel-controlled trial conducted between November 2021 and November 2024. Ninety patients were randomly assigned to one of three groups intermittent energy restriction, time-restricted eating, or continuous energy restriction with equal caloric intake across all groups. Participants underwent a 16-week intervention supervised by a team of nutritionists.

Sixty-three participants completed the trial. While all three dietary approaches led to improvements in HbA1c and body weight, the intermittent energy restriction group experienced the greatest reductions. Additionally, intermittent energy restriction significantly lowered fasting blood glucose and triglyceride levels and improved whole-body insulin sensitivity, measured by the Matsuda index.

Adverse events were mild, with a few cases of hypoglycemia reported across all groups. The intermittent energy restriction group also showed the highest adherence rate at 85%, compared to 84% in the continuous energy restriction group and 78% in the time-restricted eating group.

Zhang said these findings highlight the feasibility and effectiveness of dietary interventions for people who have obesity and type 2 diabetes.

Reference: https://www.endocrine.org/