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Antipsychotic Drugs - Breaking Habits - PTSD

The health risks of antipsychotic drugs - are psychiatrists doing enough? Breaking bad habits and Jess Goodell the marine who got PTSD after retrieving bodies in Iraq.

People with severe mental disorders are at much greater risk of dying prematurely compared to the general population. How much are the drugs for some mental illnesses contributing to their risk of disease? Anti psychotic drugs can cause people to rapidly put weight on and increase the risk of developing conditions like heart disease and diabetes. Claudia talks to psychiatrist, Dr Alex Mitchell about whether psychiatrists are doing enough to monitor these potentially health threatening side effects in their patients and what needs to be done.

Can bad eating habits be changed just by changing the hand you use to eat? New research on cinema going popcorn eaters has found that these kind of strategies could be a very effective way of disrupting the brain processes in habitual behaviour. Dr David Neal from the University of Southern California explains.

Also in the programme marine, Jess Goodell talks about about her role in Mortuary Affairs in the US Marines. Her job was to recover the remains of soldiers in Iraq so they could be returned to the US. She talks about the psychological impact of retrieving bodies often in the aftermath of Improvised Explosive Devices. In her training she was told "PTSD is real - like 'flu." She discusses the reality of living with PTSD and how she dealt with the nightmares and depression on returning home to civilian life.

Available now

30 minutes

Chapters

  • Physical health risks of anti-psychotic drugs

    Anti psychotic drugs can cause people to rapidly put on weight and increase the risk of developing conditions like heart disease and diabetes. Claudia Hammond talks to Alice Evans and Dr Alex Mitchell

    Duration: 11:51

  • Can bad eating habits be changed just by changing the hand you use to eat?

    New research on cinema-going popcorn eaters has found that the environment is a very powerful force in continuing bad habits. Claudia Hammond talks to Dr David Neal

    Duration: 05:46

  • Living with PTSD after retrieving bodies in Iraq

    US Marine Jess Goodell talks about the psychological impact of her job which was to recover the remains of soldiers in Iraq so they could be returned to the US

    Duration: 09:22

Broadcasts

  • Tue 4 Oct 2011 21:00
  • Wed 5 Oct 2011 16:30

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