Category: Health

Rawpixel.com/Shutterstock.com On an average day, around one in ten hospital beds in England are occupied by someone medically fit to leave, but unable to do so because the care they need at home is not available. At an estimated cost of £562 per hospital bed per day, this costs £2.7 billion a year. Pressure is […]

Hot weather can affect how we experience pain. DexonDee/ Shutterstock This summer’s amber heat warnings have brought with them many risks to health. Many people have experienced these health effects first-hand: brain fog, physical fatigue, restless nights and reduced productivity. If that sounds familiar, you’re not imagining it. Science shows that high temperatures can affect […]

samoila ionut/Shutterstock In November 2020, a Belgian racing pigeon called New Kim sold at auction for £1.44 million. The record price offered a striking insight into the money, competition and international interest surrounding pigeon fancying. The breeding and keeping of pigeons for racing or showing is practised worldwide, with particularly valuable European birds attracting buyers […]

Artem Bestsenny/Shutterstock It is easy to assume that harder training always produces better results. In resistance training, which includes lifting weights or using resistance machines, taking every set to the point where you cannot complete another repetition may create more fatigue without producing better results. A repetition, or rep, is one complete movement of an […]

koldo_studio/ Shutterstock For three decades, successive governments have attempted (and failed) to reform the social care system. Most debates have focused on finances: who should pay for social care and how much should each person be expected to contribute? These are of course important questions – but if we’re serious about fixing the adult social […]

Pixel Shot/Shutterstock.com I am a runner who loves being active alongside my dogs. Actually, I am more of a plodder – and one with very bad knees. Those knees benefit from regular physiotherapy and sports massage. You might not be surprised, then, to hear that I have regular physiotherapy appointments. The slight curveball is that […]

Shyntartanya/Shutterstock Recent reports have highlighted AI-generated “doctors” spreading dubious health advice to millions of social media users. Fabricated wellness trends can travel just as quickly. A supposed “pink jelly” weight-loss treatment, for example, reportedly fooled at least one celebrity. These examples gain credibility in different ways. Influencers can appear familiar and sincere, while AI-generated doctors […]

For-profit organisations actually worsen many of the core problems with England’s social care systems. Monkey Business Images/ Shutterstock Prime minister Andy Burnham announced on Wednesday his commitment to improving England’s social care system. If the new prime minister has his way, England will legislate a new national care service within the next two years. Burnham […]

Angele Bu/Shutterstock Dave, a retired dockworker, has smoked since his teens. When he develops a persistent cough, he dismisses it as “just a smoker’s cough”. Then he loses weight, develops fevers and wakes at night drenched in sweat. After several courses of antibiotics, he continues to deteriorate and is admitted to hospital. Doctors find emphysema, […]

AnnaStills/Shutterstock.com Money worries can keep us up at night, but could decades of financial stress leave a lasting mark on the brain itself? That’s the question my colleagues and I set out to answer in a new study – and the answer, it turns out, is yes. Most research on money and brain health looks […]