Health News Trends: Mental Health, Women and Children's Health, and More

A look at health news from PR Newswire in March and April that you might have missed.

By Caitlyn Wojnarowski | Published May 10, 2023

Throughout the months of March and April, we identified recurring trends among health-related press releases regarding new medical technologies, healthcare studies, and the latest health education programs and campaigns. This also included information about mental health, new brand partnerships, child-related health, and women’s health trends.

April also marked Stress Awareness Month and Autism Awareness Month, putting mental health and children's health front and center.

Let’s take a closer look at the noteworthy healthcare trends we’ve seen across the wire in March and April.

Popular Health Releases

Over the last two months, these healthcare releases stood out from the crowd regarding overall views, engagement, and uniqueness:

• New Reports Reveals 85% Worsening Mental Health in Students This School Year: According to the survey, the repercussions of students’ declining mental health have far-reaching consequences.
• New Bloomfully “I Believe in Me” program provides prevention and solutions for the current mental health crisis in adolescent girls: “I Believe in Me” teaches life tools and habits to fight and protect against the rapid decline of mental health and happiness in girls ages 10-13.
• JadeYoga Announces Collaboration with the Seattle Mariners: Baseball is a mental health game and the act of being present is all-important, making it the perfect match for yoga. JadeYoga provided its Harmony™ mats, cork yoga blocks, and cotta yoga straps to the Mariners for Spring Training to help get them ready for 2023 season.
• The Healing Company acquires Chopra Global’s wellbeing experiences businesses, deepening partnership with wellness icon, Dr. Deepak Chopra: The Healing Company and Chopra Global entered this partnership to usher the brand into a new era of growth.

Health News Trends

Throughout March and April, we distributed over 6,000 health-related press releases, and we took notice of a few popular topics:

Mental Health

Did you know that mental illness is among the most common health conditions in the United States? More than 1 in 5 U.S. adults live with a mental illness, according to the CDC. 

Mental health and physical health are equally important components of overall health and a person’s mental health can change over time, depending on many factors. 

During March and April (which is Stress Awareness Month), we saw 420 press releases related to mental health cross the wire, a nearly 18% increase from the prior two months. 

Here are some good examples from March and April:

• Solutions to the Workplace Mental Health Crisis in America: What the U.S. Surgeon General's Report and the Healthy Work Campaign Want You to Know Today
• MindWise Innovations and Christie Campus Health Announce a Partnership to Support Mental Health on College and University Campuses
• Merck Manuals Shares Tips for Recognizing and Treating Seasonal Affective Disorder

Health Brand Partnerships

Brands are constantly trying to reach new audiences and expand their customer base and one way to do that is through brand partnerships. These collaborations create unique products and services that appeal to both parties as well as patients and customers.

Here are a few partnership releases from the past two months:

• Wonderbelly™ Disrupts the Over-the-Counter Medicine Aisle with National Retail Launch
• TikToker Allie Bennett Brings Her Viral #TreadmillStrut to Orangetheory Fitness Studios Across the Globe
• Vuzix Smart Glasses Support New Partnership Designed to Solve Global Health Workforce Shortages
• Introducing Eiyan Lens: A New Contact Lens Brand with a Mission to Make Quality Contact Lenses Affordable for Everyone

Children's Health

Over the course of the pandemic, healthcare professionals witnessed an alarming rise in mental health issues among children — enough for the American Academy of Pediatrics, American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Children’s Hospital Association to declare a national emergency in child and adolescent mental health.

One year after declaring the emergency, the agencies said the problems persist and asked for continued funding and recognition of the issues from the Biden administration. The urgency of the situation is evident across the wire, as healthcare organizations work to address mental health issues in children.

Over the last couple of months, especially during Autism Awareness Month, we saw plenty of news releases related to children’s health, with a big focus (50 releases) specifically on children's mental health. Here are some examples:

• The Dove Self-Esteem Project Calls for Action to Address Youth Mental Health Crisis Caused by Social Media
• Make-A-Wish partners with Red Robin in record-breaking pledge to make wishes possible for children with critical illnesses
• The Children's Place and Eli Manning Team Up to Treat Hundreds of NJ Families to a Memorable Day
• In Celebration of Autism Awareness Month, Sami's Angels Share Their Insights on Celebrating Differences
• Breakthrough Study from American Camp Association Outlines the Benefits of Camp Experiences

Women’s Health

As we celebrated Women’s History Month in March, we saw many press releases that took the time to celebrate the diverse, brilliant women across the nation and provide educational information, including in the healthcare space. 

Women have a unique set of healthcare challenges and are at higher risk of developing certain diseases and conditions. The leading causes of death for women include cancer, heart disease, and diabetes. Women are also often the caregivers for their families and friends and put their own mental health on the back burner.

During the months of March and April, women's health-related news announcements, of which there were more than 250, covered these topics and more. Here are a few examples:

• Maternity and Baby Brand Momcozy Launches 'Parachute Care Program' to Support Breastfeeding Journeys
  
• Health & Science Leader, Dr. Ifeoma C. Udoh, Appointed Executive Vice President, Policy, Advocacy and Science for the Nation's Leading Black Women's Health Organization
• SHE Media Announces the Future of Health at SXSW®
• Pink Fund unveils revealing campaign highlighting unseen hardships of breast cancer
• FIT4MOM Designs Fitness Programs to Promote Early Childhood Development and Maternal Mental Health

Conclusion

These past couple of months, healthcare-related content focused largely on children's health, mental health, women’s health, and new brand partnerships. Mental health and physical health are equally important components of our overall health. So during Mental Health Awareness Month (May) and beyond, we encourage you to get outside, take a walk, enjoy the sunshine, meditate, or find something that brings you your own kind of joy. 

About the Author

Caitlyn Wojnarowski is a Content Specialist at Cision PR Newswire and has a degree in Public Relations and Marketing from the University of Akron. Since working at Cision, she has joined the CLEmpower and Industry Ambassadors groups, as she enjoys being involved inside the workplace. Recently, she has taken on a new adventure and moved to Long Island, NY, with her boyfriend Jeff. Outside of work, Caitlyn can be found exploring the nearest hiking trail, trying her hand at new recipes in the kitchen, starting the day at the yoga studio, or listening to Crime Junkies podcasts.