Health: Mood News.

83%

of female smokers and 73 percent of male smokers say that they smoke to relax. -- Mintel survey of 218 adults

Happiness Pills

At least half of depressed people who take antidepressants experience only partial or no improvement -- but taking them with a dietary supplement called SAM-e (s-adenosyl-methionine) may help. In a study of 30 de- pressed subjects headed by Harvard psychiatrist Jonathan Alpert, half improved after taking SAM-e in addition to such drugs as Prozac, Paxil, or Efflexor, which had previously had little or no effect. For 43 percent of the participants, symptoms subsided entirely. Also, sexual desire and functioning improved by nearly 10 percent. The subjects took 400 to 800 milligrams of SAM-e twice daily for six weeks. Alpert cautions that the results need to be duplicated in a larger trial and says people should talk to a doctor before taking SAM-e.

Breathe Deep, Crave Less

Smokers trying to quit may ben- efit from continuing to inhale -- just without the cigarettes. Breathing in a way that mimics smoking may diminish cravings, researchers at Duke University report. Their study, headed by clinical psychologist F. Joseph McClernon, involved 21 smokers who averaged about a pack and a half a day. During two morning sessions, during which no one had lit up since the night before, they abstained for four more hours and periodically completed questionnaires about withdrawal symptoms. During one session, they did a breathing exercise every half hour: For five breaths, they inhaled for five seconds, held the breath for two seconds, and exhaled for five ...