From ‘French leave’ to ‘Irish goodbyes’: why you may be right to exit a party without saying goodbye

Rawpixel.com Whether you call it an Irish goodbye, French leave or filer à l’anglaise (leave in the English style), as the French prefer, the act of quietly slipping out of a party without fanfare is a familiar social impulse. The Brazilians called it sair à francesa (French style), the Germans a Polnischer Abgang (Polish departure), […]

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Cannabis: it’s medicine if you’re rich enough – a crime if you’re not

elenavolf/Shutterstock.com In Britain, whether cannabis is treated as medicine or a crime may depend less on medical need than on the ability to pay. In 2018, the UK government changed drug policy, allowing specialist doctors to prescribe cannabis-based medicinal products. The decision was presented as a move towards evidence-based healthcare, recognising cannabis may have therapeutic […]

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Are you exercising at the wrong time? How your body clock can affect your workouts

Your chronotype plays an important role in many bodily processes. we.bond.creations/ Shutterstock While some people can spring out of bed at six in the morning and go straight into their day, others prefer to wake up later as they’re most productive in the afternoon or evening. This difference is due to your chronotype – the […]

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Vitamin B12: the essential nutrient with a complicated cancer link

KhalifahFA/Shutterstock We’ve all heard the advice: eat your fruit and vegetables, get your vitamins, and stay healthy. For the most part, that guidance holds up. But some nutrients have a more complicated story, and vitamin B12 is a fascinating example. Also known as cobalamin, B12 is essential for life. It helps the body produce red […]

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The mental toll of quarantine on board a cruise ship – explained by a psychologist

Mystic Stock Photography/Shutterstock The MV Hondius left Ushuaia, Argentina, on April 1. Within days, one passenger had become ill. Within weeks, the voyage had become the focus of an international health response after cases of Andes virus, a type of hantavirus, were identified among passengers and crew. By early May, several people had died. Passengers […]

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Osteoarthritis: how stimulating the muscles with electricity may help manage the condition

EMS training could be particularly beneficial for people with osteoarthritis who have limited mobility or pain. roibu/ Shutterstock An estimated 595 million people globally are living with osteoarthritis. This makes it one of the leading causes of pain and disability. Osteoarthritis is a degenerative joint disease, in which tissues in the joint break down over […]

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Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease develops over decades – and we are missing the window to prevent it

CI Photos/Shutterstock Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, or COPD, is one of the world’s leading causes of death, responsible for 3.5 million deaths in 2021 alone. It is often thought of as a disease of older smokers. But that picture is too simple. COPD usually develops slowly over many years, often long before symptoms become obvious. […]

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A bird flu vaccine for humans is being trialled – here’s how it works

SvetikovaV/ Shutterstock The first ever avian influenza vaccine recently started trials in the UK. This marks a milestone in the prevention of bird flu infections in humans. The vaccine targets the H5N1 flu strain, which causes severe infections in bird populations worldwide. However, this strain of bird flu virus is also able to spread to […]

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Why do heights make your feet feel strange?

Anton Gvozdikov/Shutterstock.com I wouldn’t say that I’m afraid of heights. I can stand on a cliff path or look out from a tall building without the rush of panic people often associate with vertigo. What I really dislike is something much harder to explain: the peculiar feeling in my feet. It’s a sensation that’s difficult […]

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Five reasons to add peas into your diet

Peas are seriously underrated. masa44/ Shutterstock Peas aren’t often seen as a particularly exciting vegetable. They tend to be treated as a basic side dish or something people eat out of habit, rather than choice. But they’re also cheap, widely available and contain a combination of nutrients that can have a positive impact on our […]

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