The researchers say depressed women have more sex regardless of whether they're in a committed relationship, from kissing and displays of affection, to foreplay and intercourse.

Dr. Sabura Allen, who led the research says the results of their study of 107 Melbourne women confirmed suspicions gleaned from earlier work which indicated that some women use sex as a treatment for depression.

Dr. Allen a clinical psychologist, says when people are depressed they feel more insecure about their relationships and concerned that their partner may not care about them or find them valuable and therefore having sex helps depressed women achieve the sense of closeness and security they need.

Allen says depressed women are likely to seek sexual intimacy more often to help feel more secure.

The study found depression was also linked to more sexually liberated and adventurous attitudes and in single women it was linked with a wider variety of sexual encounters and a greater frequency of causal sex.

The study found that women who suffer from mild to moderate depression have a third more sexually active than those who are not.

The research was presented at an international Women's Mental Health conference in Melbourne where the latest research into mental illness and hormone-related conditions is being showcased.

Other new research has shown high rates of severe PMS and post-natal depression among Australian women, a dramatic drop in the abortion rate, and a new treatment for Alzheimer's disease.

The study will be published in the British medical journal.

The symptom criteria for insomnia, according to the APA's Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) IV, includes difficulty initiating sleep, difficulty maintaining sleep, early morning awakening and nonrestorative sleep over the past four weeks.

In the initial screening, 27 percent had one of more symptoms of insomnia, 7 percent had one or more symptoms of insomnia plus daytime fatigue or sleepiness or both, and 5 percent met the DSM clinical diagnosis criteria, which attempts to rule out other psychiatric disorders, as well as the effects of alcohol, drugs or medication, which can be confused with chronic insomnia.

Other studies indicate that chronic insomnia among adolescents can be caused by behavioral and emotional issues, Roberts said.

Roberts said adolescents with chronic insomnia were more likely to seek medical care. ???These data suggest that primary care settings might provide a venue for screening and early intervention of adolescent insomnia,??? he said.

Roberts' collaborators include Catherine Roberts, Ph.D., Vivian Driskell, Wenyaw Chan, Ph.D., and Hao T. Duong, M.D., all with the UT Health Science Center at Houston. Research was supported by the National Institutes of Health.

The study is titled ???Chronic Insomnia and Its Negative Consequences for Health and Functioning of Adolescents: A 12-Month Prospective Study.???

uthouston/