PsychBriefs: December 30, 2007-January 5, 2008

Our weekly wrap-up of news, interesting research, and noteworthy happenings in the worlds of psychiatry, psychology, and social work.

Stress Hormones Drop Fast in Happy Marriages
A study of 60 couples living in Los Angeles shows that levels of stress hormone cortisol drop further in happily married women compared to women who are less happy in their relationships. Happily married women also show a more consistent release of cortisol throughout the day.
[ARTICLE]

Religious Activity Lowers Anxiety, Alcohol Abuse
For people who were religiously active as children, discontinuing activities such as worship or church social activities may put them at an increased risk for mental health problems, shows a study of 718 adults. Women who discontinued religious activity reported higher rates of alcohol use and triple the rate of generalized anxiety as women who continued religious activity into adulthood. However, men who stayed religiously active were more likely to report depression than those who did not. Previous studies have shown that religious people are less depressed than their spiritual counterparts. The authors of this study speculate that the social aspects of church activities, which are more likely to involve women, may shield participants from anxiety.
[ABSTRACT]