Youmayknowthefeeling.It’sthelateafternoon,andyoustillhaven’tleftthehouse.You’vespentseveralhoursonyourphone,scrollingthroughyourFacebooknewsfeed,refreshingTwitterandwatchingYoutubevideos.Asmartphonemightfeellikeit’skeepingyouconnectedbutitcanalsobeawayofsecludingyourself. DatafromarecentstudyconductedbyresearchersatNorthwesternUniversity’sFeinbergSchoolofMedicinefoundthatthescenariodescribedabove—highvolumeofphoneuseandastaticgeographiclocation—couldbelinkedtodepression.ThestudypublishedinTheJournalofMedicalInternetResearch,alsofoundthatdepressedpeople,onaverage,spendmoretimeonthephonethannon-depressedpeople. “Peoplearelikely,whenontheirphones,toavoidthinkingaboutthingsthataretroublingpainfulfeelingsordifficultrelationships,”saidDavidMohr,oneofthestudy’sseniorauthorsandaprofessorofbehavioralpsychologyatNorthwestern,inastatement.“It’sanavoidancebehaviorweseeindepression.”Mohralsopointedoutthatdepressedpeopletendtowithdrawemotionallyandavoidgoingout—behaviorsthatarearguablyfacilitatedbytheconstantentertainmentstreamavailableonsmartphones. Thestudy’sparticipantsconsistedofamixofpeoplewithandwithoutpriordepression.Theycompletedaquestionnairedescribingtheirsymptomsbeforeagreeingtohavetheirphoneusemonitoredfortwoweeks.UsingGPS,theresearcherstrackedtheirlocationandtheamountoftimetheyspentonthephone.Theywerethenabletoidentifywhichparticipantsweredepressedusingtheaggregatedphonedata,with87percentaccuracy. SohrobSaeb,aresearchfellowatNorthwestern,saidinthereleasethatphonescouldbemorereliablefordiagnosingdepressionthantraditionalmethods.Instandardindustrypractice,patientsareoftenaskedtodescribetheirsymptomsbyindicatinghowsadtheyareonascaleof1to10.AccordingtoSaeb,thereleasereported,theseresponsescanberoteandunreliable.Incontrast,thestudyfound,asmartphonecanunobtrusively(不引人注目地)andaccuratelymeasureapatient’sdailyactivity,providingdatathatcouldtriggerahealthcareprovidertorecognizetheneedforanintervention. Whatistheauthor’sopinionaboutusingasmartphone?

Youmayknowthefeeling.It’sthelateafternoon,andyoustillhaven’tleftthehouse.You’vespentseveralhoursonyourphone,scrollingthroughyourFacebooknewsfeed,refreshingTwitterandwatchingYoutubevideos.Asmartphonemightfeellikeit’skeepingyouconnectedbutitcanalsobeawayofsecludingyourself. DatafromarecentstudyconductedbyresearchersatNorthwesternUniversity’sFeinbergSchoolofMedicinefoundthatthescenariodescribedabove—highvolumeofphoneuseandastaticgeographiclocation—couldbelinkedtodepression.ThestudypublishedinTheJournalofMedicalInternetResearch,alsofoundthatdepressedpeople,onaverage,spendmoretimeonthephonethannon-depressedpeople. “Peoplearelikely,whenontheirphones,toavoidthinkingaboutthingsthataretroublingpainfulfeelingsordifficultrelationships,”saidDavidMohr,oneofthestudy’sseniorauthorsandaprofessorofbehavioralpsychologyatNorthwestern,inastatement.“It’sanavoidancebehaviorweseeindepression.”Mohralsopointedoutthatdepressedpeopletendtowithdrawemotionallyandavoidgoingout—behaviorsthatarearguablyfacilitatedbytheconstantentertainmentstreamavailableonsmartphones. Thestudy’sparticipantsconsistedofamixofpeoplewithandwithoutpriordepression.Theycompletedaquestionnairedescribingtheirsymptomsbeforeagreeingtohavetheirphoneusemonitoredfortwoweeks.UsingGPS,theresearcherstrackedtheirlocationandtheamountoftimetheyspentonthephone.Theywerethenabletoidentifywhichparticipantsweredepressedusingtheaggregatedphonedata,with87percentaccuracy. SohrobSaeb,aresearchfellowatNorthwestern,saidinthereleasethatphonescouldbemorereliablefordiagnosingdepressionthantraditionalmethods.Instandardindustrypractice,patientsareoftenaskedtodescribetheirsymptomsbyindicatinghowsadtheyareonascaleof1to10.AccordingtoSaeb,thereleasereported,theseresponsescanberoteandunreliable.Incontrast,thestudyfound,asmartphonecanunobtrusively(不引人注目地)andaccuratelymeasureapatient’sdailyactivity,providingdatathatcouldtriggerahealthcareprovidertorecognizetheneedforanintervention. WhatcanbelearnedfromthestudyconductedbyresearchersatNorthwesternUniversity?

EatingaMediterraneanstylediet-packedwithvegetables,legumes(豆类),nuts,oliveoilandfish–isgoodforyourheart,manystudieshavefoundNowscientistsaresuggestingthedietmaybegoodforyourmentalhealth,too. Astudyofover10,000SpaniardsfollowedforalmostfourandhalfyearsonaveragefoundthatthosewhoreportedeatingahealthyMediterraneandietatthebeginningofthestudywereabouthalfaslikelytodevelopdepressionthanthosewhosaidtheydidnotsticktothediet Alloftheparticipantswerefreeofwhentheywererecruitedtothestudy,andeachfilledouta136-itemfoodfrequencyquestionnairewhentheyjoined.Basedontheirself-reporteddietaryhabits,theywereassignedascorebetween0and9,withthehighestscorereflectingthecloseststickingtoaMediterraneandiet. Overtime,thosewhohadscoredbetween5and9ontheMediterraneandietwere42percentto51percentlesslikelytodevelopdepression,thestudyfound,thanthosewhoscoredbetween0and2. Thestudydoesnotproveacause-and-effectrelationshipbetweentheMediterraneandietandalowerriskfordepression,onlyanassociationbetweenthetwo.Still,manyscientistsareconvincedthatsomedamagingprocessesinvolvedincardiovascular(心血管的)diseasemayalsoplayaroleinmentalhealth. “Bothcardiovasculardiseaseanddepressionsharecommonmechanisms,”saidDr.MiguelAngelMartinez-Gonzalez,professorofpreventivemedicineatUniversityofNavarrainPamplona,Spain,andseniorauthorofthepaper,publishedIntheOctoberissueofArchivesofGeneralPsychiatry. “Themembrane(细胞膜)ofournervecellarecomposedoffat,sothequalityoffatyouareeatingdefinitelyhasaninfluenceonthequalityoftheneuronmembranes,andthebody’scombinationofneurotransmittersisdependentonthevitaminsyou’reeating,”Dr.Martinez-Gonzalezadded.“WethinkthoseleaststickingtotheMediterraneandietaryplanhaveadeficiencyofessentialnutrients.” Theelementsofthedietmostcloselylinkedtoalowerriskofdepressionwerefruits,nutsandlegumes,thestudyfound. ScientistshaveprovedthataMediterranean-stylediet.

Youmayknowthefeeling.It’sthelateafternoon,andyoustillhaven’tleftthehouse.You’vespentseveralhoursonyourphone,scrollingthroughyourFacebooknewsfeed,refreshingTwitterandwatchingYoutubevideos.Asmartphonemightfeellikeit’skeepingyouconnectedbutitcanalsobeawayofsecludingyourself. DatafromarecentstudyconductedbyresearchersatNorthwesternUniversity’sFeinbergSchoolofMedicinefoundthatthescenariodescribedabove—highvolumeofphoneuseandastaticgeographiclocation—couldbelinkedtodepression.ThestudypublishedinTheJournalofMedicalInternetResearch,alsofoundthatdepressedpeople,onaverage,spendmoretimeonthephonethannon-depressedpeople. “Peoplearelikely,whenontheirphones,toavoidthinkingaboutthingsthataretroublingpainfulfeelingsordifficultrelationships,”saidDavidMohr,oneofthestudy’sseniorauthorsandaprofessorofbehavioralpsychologyatNorthwestern,inastatement.“It’sanavoidancebehaviorweseeindepression.”Mohralsopointedoutthatdepressedpeopletendtowithdrawemotionallyandavoidgoingout—behaviorsthatarearguablyfacilitatedbytheconstantentertainmentstreamavailableonsmartphones. Thestudy’sparticipantsconsistedofamixofpeoplewithandwithoutpriordepression.Theycompletedaquestionnairedescribingtheirsymptomsbeforeagreeingtohavetheirphoneusemonitoredfortwoweeks.UsingGPS,theresearcherstrackedtheirlocationandtheamountoftimetheyspentonthephone.Theywerethenabletoidentifywhichparticipantsweredepressedusingtheaggregatedphonedata,with87percentaccuracy. SohrobSaeb,aresearchfellowatNorthwestern,saidinthereleasethatphonescouldbemorereliablefordiagnosingdepressionthantraditionalmethods.Instandardindustrypractice,patientsareoftenaskedtodescribetheirsymptomsbyindicatinghowsadtheyareonascaleof1to10.AccordingtoSaeb,thereleasereported,theseresponsescanberoteandunreliable.Incontrast,thestudyfound,asmartphonecanunobtrusively(不引人注目地)andaccuratelymeasureapatient’sdailyactivity,providingdatathatcouldtriggerahealthcareprovidertorecognizetheneedforanintervention. Patients’dailyactivitiescanbemeasuredbysmartphonessothat_______.