Category: Health

Monkey Business Images/Shutterstock.com When the weather turns hot, most of us remember sunscreen and water. But what about our medicines? Heat can quietly damage medicines, making them less effective or even unsafe. As heatwaves become more common in the UK and globally, knowing how to store medicines properly is becoming essential. Medicines are more sensitive […]

For decades, cancer has been thought of as a purely human disease – rogue cells multiplying out of control, with no room for anything else in the picture. But a growing body of research suggests that isn’t quite right. Some tumours, it turns out, come with company: communities of bacteria, viruses and fungi living on, […]

Jemastock/Shutterstock.com Sitting for more than 30 minutes at a time is linked to a higher risk of dying from cancer, while breaking up long sitting spells with light activity appeared to lower that risk, according to new data. But media reports of the study left many questions unanswered. Here’s what you need to know. What […]

In a typical year, scientists discover two or three viruses that have never been seen in people before. The number fluctuates, but the trend has been fairly steady since the 1960s. Most of these viruses attract little attention, and my colleagues and I have often had to search through old medical papers to find any […]

To understand the roots of how we think about pain today, it helps to go back and see how earlier cultures made sense of it. Zwiebackesser/Shutterstock Pain is one of the few things all of us experience, from stubbing a toe to waking up with an aching back; we can all relate to the feeling […]

York city centre. Clare Louise Jackson/Shutterstock Air pollution is often portrayed as something that affects entire cities. In fact, levels can vary enormously over just a few metres. Our research shows that one of the greatest challenges for academics is not simply measuring air pollution, but making it visible and meaningful enough for people to […]

New Africa/Shutterstock.com People are often treated as unreliable narrators of their own past, and this scepticism runs especially deep around emotionally charged early experiences. Researchers have long worried that memories of abuse and neglect might shift depending on someone’s mood, mental health or current circumstances, meaning what someone tells a researcher, doctor or social worker […]

Nicoleta Ionescu/Shutterstock.com Think about the last time you looked in the mirror and sighed at the sight of your hair. Maybe it was frizzing, flattening, greying, thinning or simply refusing to do what you wanted. For many people, hair comes with a running commentary – a private, near-constant negotiation that we rarely stop to notice, […]

Human placenta and umbilical cord Sinhyu Photographer/Shutterstock In many cultures, the placenta is more than tissue left over after birth. It may be understood as spiritually linked to the baby, treated as a companion or sibling, and buried to protect the child or connect them to family and land. Yet in many maternity settings, what […]

LightField Studios/Shutterstock Many people in the UK now use apps, smartwatches or wearable devices to track their physical activity. Fitness trackers promise to help users become fitter, happier and healthier versions of themselves. For many people, they can be useful: a nudge to move more, a way to notice patterns, or a reminder that activity […]