Here are the top medical news for the day:
Simple Habits, Big Impact: Study Reveals Keys to Mental Wellness
Simple, everyday behaviours such as chatting with friends, spending time outdoors, and engaging in mentally stimulating activities can significantly enhance mental health, according to new research published in the British Journal of SSM-Mental Health. The study surveyed over 600 adults and found that regular participation in low-cost, accessible activities was strongly associated with improved mental well-being.
According to the findings, individuals who engaged in daily conversations with others scored 10 points higher on a standard mental well-being scale than those who rarely interacted socially. Daily exposure to nature was associated with a five-point increase. Other activities such as regular social catchups, physical activity, spiritual practice, and acts of kindness also contributed to higher levels of mental wellness.
The research assessed 15 behaviours and found a consistent correlation between frequency of participation and improved mental well-being. Public awareness of the mental health campaign that promoted these behaviours was notably high, with 86 percent of participants recognising it. Nearly all agreed that mental health deserves the same prioritisation as physical health.
“These aren't expensive programmes or clinical interventions -- they're behaviours that are already part of many people's lives and can be easily encouraged through public health messaging,” said lead researcher Professor Christina Pollard. “Regular connection with others, even a daily chat, can make a measurable difference to how people feel. Similarly, spending time outdoors or doing something that requires thinking and concentrating, like doing crosswords, reading, or learning a new language, provides an important mental reset.”
“This research confirms that when people are supported and encouraged to engage in mentally healthy behaviours, the benefits can be felt across the community,” Professor Pollard stated. “It's about prevention, not just treatment -- helping people stay mentally well before they reach crisis point.”
The findings reinforce the importance of sustained community-level investment in preventive mental health strategies that move beyond awareness to practical engagement.
Reference: Pollard, C. M., Alati, R., Lawrence, D., Clary, M., Walton, A., Dunne, J., ... & Millar, L. (2025). The association between participation in mental health protective behaviours and mental well-being: cross sectional survey among Western Australian adults. SSM-Mental Health, 100441.
Can Migraine Medication Reduce Depression Symptoms Too? Study Finds
A migraine medication has been found to significantly reduce symptoms of both migraine and depression, marking the first clinical trial to demonstrate improvements in both conditions using a single drug. The findings, published in JAMA Neurology, suggest that fremanezumab, a drug currently available in India, may offer dual therapeutic benefits for patients suffering from these often co-existing disorders.
The study involved 540 patients and was conducted over a 28-week period at 61 centres across 12 countries, including the US, UK, France, and Germany, between July 2020 and August 2022. Participants were randomly assigned to receive either a monthly dose of fremanezumab (225 milligrams) or a placebo. The drug was administered subcutaneously—through an injection beneath the skin—at the beginning of the trial, and again at weeks four and eight.
Migraine, a neurological condition marked by recurring headaches, is known to increase the risk of depression by two to four times. Both conditions are thought to share common genetic and biological pathways, including disruptions in brain chemicals like serotonin and glutamine. Traditionally, patients with both migraine and depression are prescribed antidepressants to regulate serotonin levels. However, antidepressants are not consistently effective in managing migraine, and little data exists on how migraine-specific therapies impact patients with psychiatric comorbidities.
“Although treatment with fremanezumab and placebo both resulted in clinically meaningful reductions in depressive symptoms, fremanezumab achieved statistical significance vs placebo at week 8,” the authors wrote. They noted that the improvement in depression symptoms could be an indirect effect of the drug’s efficacy in treating migraine, though more research is needed to clarify the mechanism.
The researchers concluded that fremanezumab “was effective in a difficult-to-treat clinical population with migraine and comorbid major depressive disorders and may also be effective in alleviating psychiatric comorbidities, therefore reducing the cumulative burden on patients.”
The results open new possibilities for integrated treatment approaches, highlighting the potential for migraine-specific therapies to benefit broader aspects of patient health.
Reference: Lipton RB, Ramirez Campos V, Roth-Ben Arie Z, et al. Fremanezumab for the Treatment of Patients With Migraine and Comorbid Major Depressive Disorder: The UNITE Randomized Clinical Trial. JAMA Neurol. Published online May 05, 2025. doi:10.1001/jamaneurol.2025.0806
Want to Age Gracefully? Study Suggests Sip Tea and Eat More Apples
Higher intakes of black tea, berries, citrus fruits and apples could help to promote healthy ageing, new research has found. The study was conducted by researchers from Edith Cowan University, Queen's University Belfast and Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, found that foods rich in flavonoids could help to lower the risk of key components of unhealthy aging, including frailty, impaired physical function and poor mental health.
The study which analysed data from 62,743 women and 23,687 men over 24 years, found that women with the highest flavonoid intakes had a 15% lower risk of frailty, a 12% lower risk of impaired physical function, and a 12% lower risk of poor mental health compared to those with the lowest intakes.
While fewer associations were observed in men, higher flavonoid intake was still linked to a lower risk of poor mental health.
"Flavonoids are well known for reducing oxidative stress and inflammation, supporting blood vessel health, and even helping to maintain skeletal muscle mass -- all of which are important for preventing frailty and maintaining physical function and mental health as we age," said senior author, Professor Aedin Cassidy from Queens University Belfast.
She added that regularly consuming flavonoid-rich foods -- such as berries, apples, red wine, oranges, and tea -- could support healthier aging by reducing the risk of frailty, physical decline, and poor mental health.
The stronger associations observed in women may be due to differences in follow-up time between the two cohorts rather than true sex-specific effects, which remain underexplored in existing research.
"We found that participants who increased their intake of flavonoid-rich food by three servings a day, had a 6% to 11% lower risk across all three of the ageing outcomes in females, and a 15% lower risk of poor mental health in males.
Reference: https://www.ecu.edu.au/newsroom/articles/research/black-tea-and-berries-could-contribute-to-healthier-ageing
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