Other Health Risk Behaviors
Citation: Krishna S, Pham D, Rapoport E, Scott-Wellington F, Adesman A. Mental Health and Sexual Risk Behaviors Among US Adolescents. JAMA Pediatr. Published online March 02, 2026. doi:10.1001/jamapediatrics.2025.6419
Objectives: This study explored the association of mental health with sexual risk behaviors (SRBs) in a national sample of youth from the Youth Risk Behavior Studies.
Methods: Mental health focused on past year persistent sadness, considered, planned or attempted suicide. Sexual behaviors was measured by lifetime number of sex partners, substance use before sex, and use of condoms. The sample size was 14,807 youth who had had sex at least once. Grade level 9-12 is the target population.
Results:
1. Those with 4 or more lifetime sexual partners were significantly more likely to be:
a. persistently sad (OR 1.44)
b. considered suicide (OR 1.63)
c. planned suicide (OR 1.64)
d. attempted suicide (OR 2.16
2. Substance use before sex was also related to doubling the odds of attempted suicide
3. There were no differences by gender.
Notes from Duane McBride: Frequent sexual partners was strongly related to poor mental health and suicidality and may be indicative of a wide scope of emotional and mental health issues.
Title:
Key Points
Question: Is reducing social media use associated with (better) behavior and mental health outcomes among young adults?
Findings:
1. In this cohort study of 373 participants, problematic use of social media was found to be
significantly associated with worse mental health outcomes.
2. A 1-week social media detox intervention significantly reduced symptoms of
a. anxiety by 16.1%,
b. depression by 24.8%, and
c. insomnia by 14.5%.
Notes from Duane McBride: These findings suggest that reducing social media use for 1 week may improve mental health outcomes in young adults.
Citation: Dinçer, E. M., Durmuş, H., Demirgül, S. A., Kavla, Y., Kitapçıoğlu, S., Aktürk, İ., Bozdemir, T., Sandıkçı, T., Büyükçorak, M.,& Barış, F. Y. (2025). A roadmap to problematic pornography use: Research, assessment, and treatment. Addicta: The Turkish Journal on Addictions, 12(4), 498-514.
Purpose: The purpose of the article was to review a wide variety of research on pornography and do a summation of the findings on risk and protective factors and consequences.
Major findings:
Risk factors
1. Being male
2. Loneliness
3. Lower religiosity
4. Higher SES
5. Such personality characteristics as low self-control, low self-esteem, maladaptive coping
6. Non-heterosexual
7. Neuroticism
Protective Factors
1. Family functioning
2. Religious – engagement in faith
3. Strong social support network
4. All of these factors help produce resilience to pornography
Consequences
1. Emotional dysregulation
2. Guilt and sexual shame
3. Sexual and relationship dysfunction
4. Depression, borderline personality disorders, substance use disorders
5. Internet addiction to pornography
Treatment: They focus on Cognitive Behavior Therapy
Notes from Duane McBride: This is a complex comprehensive review of the literature on pornography use (they include IPA research). Perhaps the key finding is the importance of building resilience by strong functioning families, faith engagement, and a strong social support groups. The consequences noted are serious and underline the role of prevention.
Title:
Citation: Cid Pozo, Ignacio. (2025). INCONGRUENCIA MORAL: LOS EFECTOS DEL CONSUMO DE PORNOGRAFÍA EN LA SALUD MENTAL DE PERSONAS RELIGIOSAS Moral incongruency: the effects of pornography consumption on the mental health of religious people.
Abstract
Background: Recent literature has widely highlighted the positive relationship between religion and mental health. However, increasing attention has been given to the negative aspects of this relationship. This study analyzes the effects of pornography consumption on the religious population in Chile, using data from the National Survey of Health, Sexuality, and Gender (ENSSEX).
Findings:
1. Research reveals that, while for non-religious people the consumption of pornography
may not have significant effects on mental health,
2. Religious individuals who perceive this consumption as problematic experience
moral incongruence, resulting in psychological stress and deterioration of
mental health.