Newswise — We've all heard the expression " "it's just in your head" . But, Canadians are beginning to realize that mental health problems are every bit as real as other diseases such as breast cancer or arthritis. One-in-five Canadians will experience a mental heath problem at some point in their lives and poor mental health is costing Canadian employers billions of dollars in lost productivity each year.

CIHR experts have been studying mental health issues and are working on solutions to this widespread and misunderstood problem.

Experts:

Stress getting to you? Maybe it's all in the side of your brainDr. Ronald Sullivan, CIHR-funded researcher from the Université de Montréal (Montréal)

Preventing despair from taking hold: Trying to avoid the worst!Dr. Marnin Heisel, CIHR-funded researcher from the University of Western Ontario (London)

Can your neighbourhood affect your mental health? A look at where we live"¦Dr. Patricia O'Campo, CIHR-funded researcher from the University of Toronto (Toronto)

Does too much dopamine make you manic? Maybe not"¦Dr. Lakshmi Yatham, CIHR-funded researcher from the University of British Columbia (Vancouver) and a mood disorders expert with the Vancouver Coastal Health Research Institute.

Links between behaviour and mental health: Why do so many people with schizophrenia smoke?Dr. Sandra Boye, researcher funded by CIHR, the Canadian Psychiatric Research Foundation, and AstraZeneca Canada Inc., Université de Montréal (Montréal),

The Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) is the Government of Canada's agency for health research. CIHR's mission is to create new scientific knowledge and to catalyze its translation into improved health, more effective health services and products, and a strengthened Canadian health-care system. Composed of 13 Institutes, CIHR provides leadership and support to more than 11,000 health researchers and trainees across Canada. http://www.cihr-irsc.gc.ca

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