Click Here Learn More: January 2015

Saturday, January 31, 2015

Father of birth control dead at 91

Carl Djerassi, the chemist widely considered the father of the birth control pill, has died.

Is the failure of health regulation damaging our well-being? | Aseem Malhotra

Doctors are advised on pharmaceuticals by Nice, but this advice is often based on studies funded by the companies selling the drugs

Crises affecting the NHS are in the news every week. Staff shortages and bed-blocking; increasing demand from patients with chronic conditions; the worst A&E waiting times for a decade. This is despite the government investing £700m in emergency care over the past few months.

But perhaps it’s not all about money or, rather, it’s about spending whatever money we have wisely. For once in healthcare, there is a lesson to be learned from the US, where it is estimated that a third of all healthcare brings no benefit to patients.

Bacteria May Help Battle Cancer, Study Suggests

Weakened germ injected into tumor killed malignant cells, researchers report

New technology cutting hospital time for premature babies

Every year, one out of every nine babies in the U.S. is born premature and can spend weeks in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). Now new technology is helping preemies grow faster – and sending them home sooner.

UK health worker monitored for Ebola

A British healthcare worker is flown back to the UK for Ebola monitoring after suffering a needle-stick injury in Sierra Leone.

Ebola: military healthcare worker returns to UK after needle injury

Unnamed individual is likely to have been exposed to the virus in Sierra Leone but does not have symptoms

A British military healthcare worker who suffered a needlestick injury while treating an Ebola patient in Sierra Leone has been evacuated to the UK.

The healthcare worker arrived back in the UK on Saturday on an RAF flight and is being assessed at the specialist isolation unit at the Royal Free hospital in north London.

Alice and the Fly by James Rice review – the great cover-up

A tale of schizophrenia, bullying and loneliness that is oddly uplifting

I must confess my heart sank slightly when I started reading this debut novel, written from the point of view of a cripplingly shy young man whose life is riddled with phobias and obsessions. Since the huge success of Mark Haddon’s The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time there has been a steady stream of novels written in the ingenuous tones of a stream of “damaged” and “different” young people. It’s no surprise that such books are popular: they offer, in highly digestible form, the perspective of society’s outsiders. They expand our empathy, make us feel good for taking the side of the underdog – “so good it will make you feel a better person,” said the chair of the Costa judges of Nathan Filer’s overall winner The Shock of the Fall – and doubtless do much to raise awareness and challenge widespread stigma.

Alice and the Fly appears at first to sit squarely in this genre. Schizophrenic Greg suffers from a phobia of spiders, both real and hallucinated. Bullied at school and woefully neglected at home, he becomes entangled in the web of his obsession with Alice, a girl to whom he has never spoken but who has with a single unthinking smile appeared uniquely to acknowledge his status as a fellow human being. The novel takes the form of Greg’s diary entries, interspersed with transcripts of police interviews, which make it clear from early on that something catastrophic has happened. So far, so broadly familiar, but it soon becomes clear that there is far more to James Rice’s writing.

Researchers Learning More About Deadly Pancreatic Cancer

FDA hopes targeted drug research will lead to 'big break'

White House: Science indicates parents should vaccinate kids

Amid the measles outbreak stemming from California, the White House is telling parents that science indicates they should vaccinate their children.

Friday, January 30, 2015

Raw milk: Victorians who sell or supply it for consumption risk $60,000 fine

A strong bittering agent will be added to unpasteurised milk to deter people from drinking it, consumer affairs minister says

Victorians who give family members raw milk to drink face fines of $60,000 under new regulations.

As of Sunday, a strong bittering agent will be put into unpasteurised milk to deter people from consuming it, according to the state’s minister for consumer affairs, Jane Garrett.

Churches oppose three-person babies

Senior church figures call on the government to block the creation of so-called three-person babies, but scientists urge MPs to back a law change.

Study highlights people most likely to cheat

I was struck by a recent study showing that people might be more likely to cheat on a partner in the year before a milestone birthday. This suggests that if you’re in a committed relationship, you’re at roughly a 10-year cycle for heightened risk of infidelity.

UK urged to permit IVF procedure to prevent fatal genetic diseases

Top world scientists call on government to approve law allowing ‘three-person embryos’ which would remove mitochondrial DNA

Families at risk of passing on devastating genetic diseases to their children should be allowed to have a ground-breaking but controversial IVF procedure involving biological material from three “parents” to prevent the illnesses, leading experts have said.

Teens, Young Adults Most Likely to Go to ER After Car Accidents: Report

Race also played a role, with blacks more likely to visit ER after crashes than whites, Hispanics

Training cuts 'could harm patients'

Proposals to shorten medical training for doctors in the UK could seriously compromise patient care and safety, leading doctors warn.

Nearly 1 in 10 Adults Skips Meds Due to Cost, CDC Says

Not taking medications as prescribed can have serious health consequences, experts note

Clinical psychologist: I learn from my clients about what it is to be human

My job is unpredictable and dependent on the lives, experiences and challenges faced by my clients

On paper, the structure of my day as a clinical psychologist is reliable enough that I rarely write it down. In reality, though, it’s highly unpredictable; its true nature dependent on the lives, experiences, ambitions-realised and challenges faced by my clients since I last saw them. I travel to work hoping that the people I am due to see have had positive weeks.

I provide psychological therapy for people with psychosis, through south London and Maudsley’s (Slam) psychological interventions clinic for outpatients with psychosis (Picup). It hosts one of six national demonstration sites for improving access to psychological therapies for people with severe mental illness (IAPT-SMI), as part of the government’s plan to increase access to talking therapies.

My feelings at the end of the day will be almost entirely dependent on how the sessions went

Second study raises questions over the benefits of Tamiflu

Research published in Lancet suggests Tamiflu shortens flu symptoms by only a day, but causes nausea and vomiting

The drug Tamiflu shortens the symptoms of flu by about a day and reduces the numbers who end up in hospital, but it causes nausea and vomiting which may outweigh any benefit, according to a major new analysis of the data.

Tamiflu has been the subject of huge controversy. Researchers from the Cochrane Collaboration fought for four years to extract the full patient data from drug trials by the manufacturer, Roche. They eventually succeeded with the backing of the British Medical Journal and published their review which concluded that the British government’s £424m stockpile of Tamiflu against a pandemic was a waste of money.

Well: Positive Science on ART Babies

The healthy outcomes of babies born through assisted reproduction technology, or fertility treatments, are rising, a large study shows.

Child obesity rates 'levelling off'

The rise in childhood obesity, which has left one in three UK children overweight, may be beginning to level off in the under-10s, a study suggests.

Thursday, January 29, 2015

Measles outbreak jumps to 96 cases as worry grows over Super Bowl impact

California accounts for vast majority of confirmed cases but officials in Arizona where Super Bowl will be played on Sunday fear hundreds may have been exposed

The measles outbreak which started at Disneyland has grown to 96 confirmed cases in eight states, with California accounting for the vast majority.

At least nine new cases surfaced in recent days, including two in Arizona, where health officials worry that hundreds of people may have been exposed to the virus on the eve of the state hosting the Super Bowl.

Bedtime 'has huge impact on sport'

Our internal body clock has such a dramatic impact on sporting ability that it could alter the chances of Olympic gold.

Measles may become ‘endemic’ without vaccination, proper clinical diagnosis, CDC official says

The number of measles cases reported in the U.S. in January has surpassed the total median number of cases in previous years, and more adults are contracting the virus, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said during a telebriefing Thursday afternoon.

Eye Tracking May Help to Spot Concussions Quickly

Simple technique offers possible way to assess brain injury severity, study says

Young adults say they see e-cigs as safe, fun technology

Many young adults are enthusiastically “vaping” e-cigarettes, drawn by the nifty technology, tasty flavors and their own physical sense that the devices are doing them no harm, according to new research.

Company owned by Alan Milburn had £663,000 profit increase in 2013-14

AM Strategy, owned by former Labour health secretary, generated income primarily from private healthcare consultancy roles

A company owned by former Labour health secretary Alan Milburn recorded a £663,000 increase in profit last year, with the income generated primarily from a string of consultancy roles to the private healthcare sector.

Accounts filed with Companies House show that AM Strategy Ltd generated the income in 2013-14 at a time when Milburn worked as a senior advisor to Bridgepoint Capital, owners of one of the UK’s largest private companies delivering NHS healthcare, as well as working with PricewaterhouseCoopers, Lloyds Pharmacy and others.

Ebola virus mutating, scientists say

Scientists at the Institut Pasteur in France who are tracking the Ebola outbreak in Guinea say the virus has mutated.

Wednesday, January 28, 2015

FDA issues new requirements to improve defibrillator safety

The Food and Drug Administration is requiring makers of heart-zapping defibrillators to submit more data on the emergency care devices after years of recalls and manufacturing problems.

Weaponising of mass distraction: Tories and Labour face off over NHS

The NHS is at Defcon 1 as David Cameron seeks to defend it from weaponisation, with a full invasion of spin-doctors imminent

‘Weaponise, weaponise, weaponise.” David Cameron was so beside himself with anger that Ed Miliband had told the BBC he would weaponise the NHS that he felt obliged to turn himself into an out of control red-faced Dalek and repeat the word on every occasion possible at prime minister’s questions. The threat of weaponisation was now so great, he insisted, that he was left with little option but to weaponise it himself in order to defend it from weaponisation. The NHS is now officially at Defcon 1, with a full invasion of spin-doctors imminent.

All that Miliband – looking suspiciously like the disgruntled waiter in the new Shaun the Sheep movie – had done to precipitate this was to ask how many of the A&E units Cameron had promised to keep open at the last election were now closed. “It is very simple,” he replied. “One of the most respected political journalists in Britain, Nick Robinson …” Several Tory front-benchers did their best not to appear astonished at the BBC’s political editor being described with such affection. “… has said that weaponising the NHS is a phrase that the leader of the opposition uses. Will he apologise for that appalling remark?”

NHS hires up to 3,000 foreign doctors in a year to combat lack of UK staff

Exclusive: Guardian investigation finds that aggressive recruitment sees doctors from at least 27 countries hired in 32 of the 160 hospital trusts in England

Up to 3,000 doctors have been hired from overseas by the NHS in the past year, as the service battles to tackle staff shortages that medical professionals say are serious and growing.

They came from at least 27 countries, including India, Poland, Australia and Greece – but also even Iraq, Syria and Sudan – according to 32 of the 160 hospital trusts in England who responded to requests from the Guardian for details of their recruitment.

The problem is finding permanent staff to recruit. Some hospital finance directors are asking, ‘are there any?'

The NHS doesn’t have the doctors it needs. The shortage is real

Weight Gain or Loss Linked to Fracture Risk in Older Women

Study found just a 5 percent change in weight may affect postmenopausal bone health

Care spend 'cut by fifth in decade'

Spending on care for people aged 65 and over has fallen by a fifth in England over the last 10 years, an analysis by the BBC shows.

Trouble falling asleep may signal high blood pressure

Trouble sleeping, especially trouble falling asleep, may be associated with high blood pressure, according to a new study from China.

No housecalls? Mississippi probes 88-year-old doc who works out of car

For more than a half century, residents of a tiny western Mississippi community have counted on Dr. Carrol Landrum’s house calls for their health care.

Why you should consider a career in occupational therapy

There are a range of specialisms, such as mental health, and good job opportunities in social care

Paraig O’Brien was attracted to a career as an occupational therapist (OT) because he was unable to make up his mind whether to follow the arts or the sciences. “OT seemed to integrate both subjects and at the same time address people’s real human needs.” Thirty-two years on, his career has included roles in clinical practice, product design and testing, health and social care management and academia: “OT has been the passport to it all.”

Care calculator launched by BBC

The BBC has launched an online guide about how the care system for the over-65s works and how much services cost.

Tuesday, January 27, 2015

Female Hormone Disorder Linked to Numerous Health Conditions

Study found women with polycystic ovary syndrome more likely to be hospitalized for variety of reasons

Sugary drinks may cause menstruation to start earlier, study suggests

Scientists say impact of bringing forward girl’s first period by 2.7 months is likely to be modest

Sugary drinks may be causing girls to start menstruating earlier, research suggests. A study of girls aged nine to 14 found that those averaging more than 1.5 sugar-sweetened beverages a day had their first period 2.7 months earlier than those consuming two a week or fewer.

The difference of a few months is not great, but the researchers say it may be significant because earlier onset menstrual periods are among the factors contributing to an increased risk of breast cancer later in life. However, one expert said the small change may not be hugely biologically relevant.

Going vegan: Weighing the risks and benefits

Whether you do it for health reasons or moral beliefs, there’s no doubt about it – lots of people are going vegan these days. But there are things to consider before writing off animal products completely

Many asthma diagnoses 'may be wrong'

More than a million adults in the UK may be wrongly diagnosed as asthmatic and be receiving unnecessary medication as a result, warns an NHS watchdog.

App aims to help doctors monitor young patients’ hearts

Doctors at Children’s Mercy Hospital are keeping tabs on their some of their sickest patients with the help of an app they developed to monitor their hearts.

Don't Become a Blizzard Casualty

Doctor shares tips for staying warm, avoiding falls

Leaders in '100 days to go' battle

Labour sets out details of a "10-year plan" for the NHS and the Conservatives outline plans to lower the benefits cap as they step up campaigning 100 days from the general election.

Dementia findings are food for thought but not definitive proof

In light of possible link to some sleeping pills and antihistamines, it makes sense for people to consider what they are taking

The possibility that some very common over-the-counter sleeping pills such as Nytol and hayfever tablets like Piriton could trigger dementia is highly alarming for those who take them and likely to lead to the binning of many thousands of blister packs on several continents.

But the research from Seattle does not actually prove the link, experts say. It is a warning about the possible effects of long-term use of these drugs, not a copper-bottomed forecast of how many people who have ever taken such pills are going to get Alzheimer’s.

Royal Prince Alfred hospital contacts hundreds of women over vaccine fault

570 new mothers admitted to one of the postnatal wards at the Sydney hospital between August 2013 and January 2015 may not be adequately immunised

Royal Prince Alfred hospital in Sydney is contacting hundreds of women admitted to one of its postnatal wards between August 2013 and January 2015 after a fault was detected in a refrigerator containing routine vaccines.

Because of an issue with the thermostat in ward 8 East, the hospital said it could not guarantee the effectiveness of the measles, mumps and rubella combined vaccine, as well as diphtheria, tetanus and whooping cough vaccinations given to 570 new mothers as well as nine babies.

Many Breast Cancer Patients Lack Info on Their Cancer

Problem more pronounced among minority women, study finds

Study suggests sleeping drugs can increase risk of Alzheimer’s

Nytol, Benadryl, Ditropan and Piriton among the medications identified by scientists as raising likelihood of dementia

Over-the-counter sleeping aids and hayfever treatments can increase the risk of Alzheimer’s disease, a study has found. The sleeping medication Nytol and anti-allergy pills Benadryl and Piriton all belong to a class of drug highlighted in a warning from researchers.

Each of these drugs has “anticholinergic” blocking effects on the nervous system that are said – at higher doses – to raise the likelihood of developing Alzheimer’s and other forms of dementia significantly over several years.

Why do teens still smoke? On addiction, advertising, and the rise of e-cigarettes

U.S. teen smoking rates have dipped below 10 percent, but public health advocates worry that progress may soon level off, as other surveys suggest teens think light smoking is safe, and e-cigarette use is on the rise.

Miliband to pledge longer care visits

Labour leader Ed Miliband is to set out details of Labour's "10-year plan" for the NHS, including longer homecare visits, in a speech in Trafford.

NT: AMA head criticises 'empowered female lawyers' over abortion law reform

Head of the Northern Territory branch of the Australian Medical Association says they ‘don’t give a stuff’ about medical guidelines

The head of the Northern Territory branch of the Australian Medical Association has criticised “empowered female lawyers” who “don’t give a stuff” about medical guidelines for advocating abortion law reform in the territory.

The government would have to consider “a range of views on termination” – including anti-abortion advocates who picketed hospitals, Robert Parker said.

Monday, January 26, 2015

Reducing Work-Family Conflict May Improve Sleep

When managers and employees got more support in workplace, everyone got more rest, study says

Ed Miliband: the future of the NHS at stake in 2015 election

Labour is launching its pivotal election pledge on the NHS, promising 36,000 more staff and the repeal of privatisation laws

Labour is launching its pivotal election pledge on the NHS on Tuesday, promising 36,000 more staff and the repeal of privatisation laws. It also promises to end the culture of 15-minute visits by care workers by recruiting an extra 5,000 care workers and changing to the incentive structure.

Labour said the number of days that patients were left in hospital beds because they could not be discharged was at a record high; in the past year, more than a million days were lost, adding £278m to the NHS bill.

Pediatricians' Group Opposes Legal Marijuana

American Academy of Pediatrics says drug has potential to harm children

Sunday, January 25, 2015

Ukip now resembles its enemies, just like Animal Farm’s pigs | Matthew d’Ancona

With defections, dithering and division, the party’s claim to represent change is ever more ludicrous

The UK Independence party is in deep ideological crisis over an issue close to its tribal heart: the true significance of the pub, and what is said there. For years, Nigel Farage has held his pint aloft like the sword drawn from the stone, the grail of authenticity. Let the faceless men of Westminster mutter their evasions and lies in the metropolitan bubble, the Ukip leader has seemed to say. I speak the unvarnished truth of the saloon bar.

Now, however, the party’s general secretary, Matthew Richardson, has declared that “there are hundreds of thousands of bigots in the United Kingdom and they too deserve representation”. According to Richardson, this unfortunate description of Ukip’s electoral base was “lighthearted harmless banter in the pub”. But surely the pub is where the party’s most solemn verities are uttered? And if one of its most senior officials says Ukip’s ranks are heaving with bigots – well, isn’t he to be believed? I only ask. Clarification, please, Mr Farage.

Cosmetic surgery 'popularity falls'

The popularity of cosmetic surgery in the UK has plummeted in 2014, figures from the British Association of Aesthetic Plastic Surgeons show.

Watch Out for Falling Icicles

Winter's hazards aren't all underfoot, doctor warns

Measles outbreak centered in California climbs to 78 cases, 7 states

A measles outbreak that originated in Disneyland has climbed to 78 cases as the virus continues to spread.

WHO vows reform after Ebola 'shocks'

The World Health Organization sets out plans for reform, admitting it was too slow to respond to the "horrific" Ebola outbreak in West Africa.

App connects users to virtual nutritionist for health advice

We all know how hard it is to eat a healthy and balanced diet. But a new app promises to connect you to a live nutritionist for all the expert advice and feedback you need to make healthy decisions wherever you go

Doctors Dissected review – an eloquent case for consistent GP care

Britain’s GPs face the questions under Jane Haynes and Martin Scurr’s wonderfully humane examination

Being a GP is a performance – as perhaps are most jobs. But GPs have an audience in their patients, and for most of us there will always be speculation about what is going on in the minds of our doctors. What are they thinking as they pronounce and prescribe? What happens when they get sick themselves? Are they as stressed as we imagine, given their crowded waiting rooms, the ceaseless demand for their services, the lack of time and the NHS box-ticking bureaucracy? How do they manage what one imagines are squeezed private lives? Are they, once outside their surgeries, as faulty, neurotic, hypochondriacal as the rest of us?

But these are not questions I was expecting to have addressed in print, let alone with candour, informality, warmth and absence of taboo. This wonderfully readable and unusual book is not conventional in its approach, which is partly what makes it sympathetic. It is personal, conversational, unpredictable. Martin Scurr (distinguished physician and fellow of the Royal College of Physicians) and Jane Haynes, a psychotherapist (author of a wonderful memoir, Who Is It That Can Tell Me Who I Am?), are friends and ideal collaborators. Most of the book is set out in Q&A interviews. Haynes is the woman with the questions, and dogged about asking them. Smart and intrepid, she doesn’t miss a trick. She interviews more than half a dozen doctors, and we hear how and why they were drawn to medicine, learn about their family lives, their health problems, their attitude towards death and the dying (it is not a little alarming to read more than one anaesthetist admit to a fear of being put under). She reveals that many of the doctors are impatient patients. One doctor remarks: “We are doctors and not patients and so we are on the other side of the Berlin Wall.”

Saturday, January 24, 2015

Asylum seekers forcibly removed from Darwin detention in middle of the night

Four men were suddenly returned to detention centres on Manus Island and Nauru after being brought to Australia for medical treatment

Four asylum seekers have been forcibly removed from a Darwin detention centre where they were receiving medical treatment and returned to Manus Island and Nauru in the middle of the night.

The men had been brought over from Manus Island and Nauru for medical treatment but their level of recovery before being returned is not know. It is believed one man suffers chronic pancreatitis.

Howard Marks reveals he has inoperable cancer

The notorious former drug smuggler, known as Mr Nice, tells the Observer he has no regrets as messages of support pour in from celebrity friends

Howard Marks, the notorious former dope smuggler known as Mr Nice, has told the Observer he has been diagnosed with inoperable bowel cancer.

“I’ve come to terms with it in my own way – which for me was about learning how to cry,” Marks, 69, said this weekend. “It’s impossible to regret any part of my life when I feel happy and I am happy now, so I don’t have any regrets and have not had any for a very long time.”

Nurse who contracted Ebola released from hospital

Pauline Cafferkey ‘happy to be alive’ after making full recovery from disease, which she caught working in Sierra Leone

The British nurse who almost died after contracting Ebola while volunteering in Sierra Leone has been discharged from hospital after making a full recovery.

Pauline Cafferkey said she was “happy to be alive” as she thanked staff at the Royal Free Hospital in London who she said saved her life.

UK Ebola nurse 'happy to be alive'

British nurse Pauline Cafferkey tells the BBC she is "very happy to be alive" as she is discharged from hospital, having made a full recovery from Ebola.

Looking to Boost Your Exercise Level? Here Are Some Helpful Tips

Start slowly and allow for time to rest and recover, trainers recommend

Keep Allergies in Mind When Planning Valentine's Day

Expert offers allergen-avoiding advice for buying gifts and planning a night out

GP recruitment drive gets promo film

A national recruitment video to encourage medical students to choose general practice as a career is launched by the Royal College of GPs.

10 rules to make your relationship last

For better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, what is it that makes a marriage last (and last)?

Friday, January 23, 2015

Voters don't trust politicians to plan for ageing population, survey shows

Focus groups show voters understand that demographic change requires policy change, but the Coalition and Labor should proceed with extreme caution

The ageing population is cited by the Abbott government as the driver of many policy changes, including health cuts and tax reform.

But focus groups conducted across the country by the Ipsos Mind and Mood survey have a clear message for legislators. Voters understand that demographic change requires policy change, but politicians should proceed with extreme caution.

Pot-related poison control calls up in Washington, Colorado

Marijuana-related calls to poison control centers in Washington and Colorado have spiked since the states began allowing legal sales last year, with an especially troubling increase in calls concerning young children.

Eczema Linked to Other Health Problems

Study finds higher risk of heart disease, stroke in people with the skin condition

New video aims to boost GP numbers

A national recruitment video to encourage medical students to choose general practice as a career is launched by the Royal College of GPs.

Real risk of widespread health charging under Tories, says Labour

Ed Balls cites OECD figures on other countries where public spending is as low as Tory target

Shrinking the public sector to the size envisioned by the Conservatives could lead to widespread charging in the health service, Labour claims.

Ed Balls, the shadow chancellor, based his claim on figures covering 34 developed economies that show extensive health service charging in any country that shrinks its state spending to as small as 35% of GDP, the target proposed by the Tories for 2019-20. On average the level of charges is three times higher in those countries than in the UK at present.

Laughing gas makes a comeback in delivery rooms

Women aren't quite laughing their way through childbirth, but laughing gas is again helping ease the pain of women in labor across the country.

Ask Well: The Best Time of Day to Exercise to Lose Weight

There is some evidence that working out on a completely empty stomach prompts the body to burn more fat and potentially stave off weight gain, compared to exercising at other times.

Liberia's schools reopen amid warnings that hard work on Ebola is far from done

Decline in Ebola cases prompts return to classrooms but Liberian government echoes UN call for international community to make good on funding pledges

It would be a “colossal mistake” for the world to abandon the west African countries worst-affected by the Ebola epidemic in the premature belief that the disease has been beaten into retreat, the Liberian government has warned.

Speaking as the World Health Organisation (WHO) released figures showing a continuing fall in cases in Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea, Liberia’s information minister, Lewis Brown, asked the international community to honour its financial commitments to the region and help it rebuild its shattered health systems.

Stroke Survivors Who Live Alone Face Higher Risk of Early Death: Study

Men were particularly vulnerable in 12-year follow-up

Weight loss group members lose friends as they shed pounds, researchers say

University researchers said that members of Weight Watchers and other groups begin regimes supporting each other but become selfish, with 79 per cent relucant to share tips after they have lost weight.

A&E waiting times in England improve

Waiting times improve for second week in a row – but hospitals fail to meet target of 95% of patients seen within four hours

Waiting times in A&E departments of NHS hospitals in England improved for the second week in succession, but still failed to meet the target of 95% of patients seen within four hours.

Statistics released by NHS England showed that 92.4% of patients were admitted, transferred or discharged within the four-hour limit in the week ending January 18. About 8,900 patients waited more than four hours for admission, which NHS England said was “significantly down” from the 12,000 recorded in the previous week.

Have you been showering wrong?

There’s nothing like a nice, hot shower to wash the last remnants of sleep out of your eyes, right? Nope.

A&E waiting times in England improve

Waiting times in A&E units in England have improved to their best level since November - but the target is still being missed, figures show.

'Hidden' Brain Damage Seen in Vets With Blast Injuries: Study

Autopsies showed broken, swollen nerve fibers in regions related to memory, reasoning

Well: Ask Well: The Best Time of Day to Exercise

There is some evidence that working out on a completely empty stomach prompts the body to burn more fat and potentially stave off weight gain, compared to exercising at other times.

Natural News launches 3D print farm in Texas to produce functional parts for revolutionary inventions

(NaturalNews) It's official! As of today, Natural News has a print farm up and running near Austin, Texas, producing small but steady quantities of the very same 3D printable parts the world will soon be able to download for free from www.FoodRising.orgPhotos below show some of...

FDA Approves New Psoriasis Drug Cosentyx

Source: Food and Drug Administration
Related MedlinePlus Page: Psoriasis

Thursday, January 22, 2015

First GSK Ebola vaccine shipment due to arrive in Liberia

LONDON (Reuters) - The first batch of GlaxoSmithKline's experimental Ebola vaccine has been shipped to West Africa and is expected to arrive in Liberia later on Friday, the British drugmaker said.

Use of 'the Pill' Tied to Higher Risk for Rare Brain Cancer

But the odds of any one birth control pill user getting the tumor remain extremely small, experts stress

Plastic surgery rules proposed

Doctors should be prevented from performing plastic surgery outside their speciality, according to the Royal College of Surgeons.

Fifteen Iranian asylum seekers join Darwin hunger strike

Men have had their refugee applications denied and face the choice of returning to Iran voluntarily or remaining in Australian detention indefinitely

Another 15 Iranian men have begun a hunger strike inside Darwin’s Wickham Point detention centre, protesting against their treatment and detention.

The men have not taken food for six days, according to refugee advocates. Guardian Australia has been told at least one man has been persuaded not to embark on the hunger strike, but others were adamant.

How fat is YOUR country - and which nations have the highest obesity rates? These new maps may surprise you...

EXC: Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) data shows an obesity epidemic oacross most of Europe, Australia, the Middle East and the U.S. But the Pacific Islands east of Australia top the scale.

Type A Machines Series 1 3D printer: First impressions and brief review

(NaturalNews) As Natural News readers know, I'm on the verge of releasing a series of freely-shared 3D-printable inventions. These new objects will empower people with breakthrough non-electricity technology to grow their own food and medicine. The downloadable 3D object files will...

Laughing Gas Becoming Popular for Women Giving Birth

More women in delivery rooms in the U.S. are now reaching for an anesthetic more commonly seen in dentist offices: laughing gas.

NHS will need extra £65bn by 2030, say analysts

Health Foundation says service is unlikely to meet unrealistic productivity targets and may have to ration access to treatment

The NHS will end up with a £65bn hole in its finances by 2030 unless ministers plug the gap or allow the quality or availability of care to slip, say health economists.

The Health Foundation analysis identifies the sum as the extra amount of Treasury funding the NHS will need by then because it is unlikely to meet unrealistically optimistic productivity targets.

MDH - Clearway Minnesota news release: Minnesota’s Smoking Rate Falls to 14.4 Percent (PDF: 174KB/2 pages) (01/22/2015)

Findings from the latest Minnesota Adult Tobacco Survey (MATS) show that Minnesota is continuing to make progress in reducing tobacco use.

Ex-pro wrestlers sue WWE over concussions that caused injury

Two former professional wrestlers accuse the WWE of "selling violence" while ignoring concussions that they say left them with serious brain injuries.

Vaccines Alliance Set to Ramp Up Its Work, Hopes to Raise $7.5B

The GAVI global vaccines alliance is seeking to raise $7.5 billion at a funding conference in Berlin next week, as its battle to prevent infectious diseases in millions of children reaches an expected peak. The nonprofit organization, launched in Davos 15 years ago, aims to immunize another 300 million children between 2016 and 2020, saving an estimated 5 million to 6 million lives. The economic benefits of that will be some $80 billion to $100 billion, underscoring the cost-effectiveness of vaccines as a centerpiece of public health, Chief Executive Seth Berkley told the World Economic Forum on Thursday. Berkley said GAVI had already received extremely strong support from several governments but other major donors that have backed past funding rounds, notably the United States, have yet to show their hand ahead of the January 26-27 Berlin talks. One factor complicating the financing request is the strength of the dollar. GAVI buys its vaccines in U.S. currency, while some donors will face higher costs in local currencies. "We made our original requests almost seven months ago and exchange rates have dramatically changed. That is a challenge that we will have in front of us and will be discussed by the donors,'' Berkley said. GAVI, which is backed by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the World Health Organization, the World Bank, UNICEF, donor governments and others, funds immunization programs for nations that cannot afford standard prices. The group targets common but deadly diseases such as pneumonia, diarrhea and cervical cancer. GAVI uses its bulk-buying power to negotiate big price discounts with drugmakers like GlaxoSmithKline and Pfizer, although some have argued it should strike even tougher deals with companies. A full budget will also position GAVI to intervene in emergency situations such as Ebola, where it has already pledged to fund vaccine purchases once products are developed. The coming 2016-20 period will be the busiest in GAVI's history as it ramps up vaccine purchases to 2.7 billion doses from 2.1 billion in the preceding five years. Beyond 2020, however, GAVI's immunization programs are set to tail off, as many countries with growing economies become too wealthy to be eligible for its help. "This is peak GAVI,'' Berkley said. "We actually discussed whether we should consider going out of business, and we looked at 2030 as a possible date, but the challenge is that there will still be about 20 eligible countries, assuming the modeling is correct, and the majority are pretty fragile states.''

Sierra Leone lifts Ebola quarantine measures amid progress

FREETOWN (Reuters) - Sierra Leone's President Ernest Bai Koroma on Thursday removed Ebola district quarantine measures intended to curb the spread of the disease, declaring "victory is in sight" after a sharp drop in transmission.