Category Archives: Health

Doctors accuse Nationals of serving interests of tobacco lobby by opposing vaping prohibition

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Exclusive: AMA president says party’s push to regulate vapes like cigarettes is a ‘tax grab’ that shows ‘complete disregard’ for health

The Australian Medical Association has accused David Littleproud and the Nationals of taking the advice of the tobacco lobby over health experts on vaping and accused the junior Coalition party of seeking “to gamble with people’s health”.

Ahead of a crucial vote on the government’s anti-vaping restrictions in parliament this week, the AMA president, Prof Steve Robson, claimed the Nationals’ suggestion of regulating vapes the same way as cigarettes is “a tax grab that shows a complete disregard for the health of Australians”.

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Heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua wants to open care home for retired boxers

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Boxer says ex-fighters suffer poor health and that he hopes to help them as part of his sports legacy

Anthony Joshua has said he is considering opening a care home for retired boxers with health problems.

Speaking to Lauren Laverne on Sunday’s episode of BBC Radio 4’s Desert Island Discs, the former world heavyweight champion said he had discussed issues faced by ex-fighters with his former boxing coach, John Oliver.

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Research reveals toxic PFAS ‘forever chemicals’ accumulate in testes

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Study suggests exposure to chemicals manufactured to resist water and heat likely to affect health of offspring

New research has found for the first time that PFAS “forever chemicals” accumulate in the testes, and the exposure probably affects children’s health.

The toxic chemicals can damage sperm during a sensitive developmental period, potentially leading to liver disease and higher cholesterol, especially in male offspring, the paper, which looked at the chemicals in mice, noted.

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Women urged to accept NHS cervical screening invitations

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NHS England says its ambition to wipe disease out by 2040 relies on more under-50s coming forward

Women have been urged by NHS officials to attend cervical screenings after figures showed a third of those under 50 do not take up their invitation.

Each year, about 3,200 women in the UK are diagnosed with cervical cancer and 850 die from it. It is the 14th most common cancer affecting women in Britain, with women aged 30 to 34 most likely to be diagnosed with it.

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Some takeaway meals contain more calories than daily limit, UK study finds

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Cafes, fast-food outlets, restaurants, bakeries, pubs and supermarkets accused of fuelling the obesity crisis

Some takeaway meals contain more calories in one sitting than someone is advised to consume in an entire day, a study of British eating habits has revealed.

Cafes, fast-food outlets, restaurants, bakeries, pubs and supermarkets are fuelling the UK’s obesity crisis because so many meals they sell contain dangerously large numbers of calories, it found.

Supermarket meal deals – usually comprising a sandwich, snack and drink – contain on average 780 calories, more than the 600 advised.

Burgers are the most popular takeaway dish in England, Scotland and Wales, followed by chips, fries or wedges.

People consume an average of 300 calories a day in takeaway food and drink.

Non-alcoholic drinks, especially coffee and fizzy soft drinks, contribute 12% of all the calories consumed by people in out-of-home premises.

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Starmer says he would not let SNP hold new independence referendum or lift veto on gender recognition bill – as it happened

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Labour leader says he would refuse to participate in negotiations for another independence referendum if he is elected PM

Speaking of Nigel Farage: the Reform UK leader has praised the misogynist influencer Andrew Tate for being an “important voice” for the emasculated and giving boys “perhaps a bit of confidence at school” in online interviews that appear to be aimed at young men over the past year.

The Guardian’s Rowena Mason and Ben Quinn report:

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Pregnant women should be tested for diabetes far earlier, study suggests

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Women should be tested for gestational diabetes before 14 weeks, say academics

Pregnant women should be tested for diabetes much earlier than the current practice of doing so between 24 and 28 weeks, according to research.

Gestational diabetes, a form of the condition that only develops in pregnancy, affects thousands of women in the UK and one in seven pregnancies worldwide. It is the most common medical pregnancy complication and occurs when a hormone made by the placenta stops the body from using insulin effectively, leading to elevated blood glucose levels.

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Microplastic discovery in penises raises erectile dysfunction questions

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The contaminants have also recently been found in testes and semen amid concerns about falling male fertility

Microplastics have been discovered in penises for the first time, raising questions about a potential role in erectile dysfunction.

The revelation comes after the pollutants were recently detected in testes and semen. Male fertility has fallen in recent decades and more research on potential harm of microplastics to reproduction is imperative, say experts.

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UK children shorter, fatter and sicker amid poor diet and poverty, report finds

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Food Foundation says height of five-year-olds falling, child obesity up by a third and type 2 diabetes by a fifth

Children across the UK are getting shorter, fatter and sicker amid an epidemic of poor diets, food insecurity and poverty, according to a report warning that millions are facing a “timebomb” of avoidable health conditions.

The average height of five-year-olds is falling, obesity levels have increased by almost a third and the number of young people being diagnosed with type 2 diabetes has risen by more than a fifth, the report by the Food Foundation said.

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Weightlifting at retirement age keeps legs strong years later, study finds

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Year of heavy weights resistance training around retirement age has long-lasting benefits, research suggests

Lifting heavy weights three times a week around the age of retirement could dramatically preserve your leg strength long into the later stages of life, research suggests.

People naturally lose muscle function as they get older, and experts say faltering leg strength is a strong predictor of death in elderly people.

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Boss of US firm given £4bn in UK Covid contracts accused of squandering millions on jets and properties

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Rishi Sunak’s team helped fast-track deal with firm founded by Charles Huang, who says contracts generated $2bn profit

In California, state of sunshine and palm trees, a small group of men are locked in a big legal fight over the money made by a US company selling Covid tests to the British government. The founder of Innova Medical Group says his business collected $2bn (£1.6bn) in profits, one of the largest fortunes banked by any medical supplier during the scramble for lifesaving equipment in the early months of the pandemic.

In a storm of claims and counter-claims, Innova’s boss, Charles Huang, is accused by former associates of “squandering” or moving $1bn of those profits, spending lavishly on luxury aircraft, an $18m house in Los Angeles and “homes for his mistresses”.

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Pornography and social media driving rise in labia surgery, Australian report finds

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More than half a million people have had or considered having the procedure due to lack of education and diverse representation, survey shows

Pornography and social media are driving a rise in people having or considering labia surgery, with images and videos distorting perceptions of what genitalia look like, a new report has found.

The surgery, known as labiaplasty, is one of the fastest growing cosmetic procedures among young people in Australia and worldwide.

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Australia news live: Minns ‘really sorry’ final Vivid drone show cancelled with 20 minutes notice; Malinauskas welcomes ‘exciting’ panda news

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The current pair, Wang Wang and Fu Ni, will return to China this year. Follow the day’s news headlines

Labor ‘continuing to consult’ on Makarrata commission, Albanese says

Anthony Albanese says he will attend Arnhem Land’s Garma festival in August to “talk about a way forward” on Indigenous policy after the defeat of the voice referendum, keeping open the prospect of setting up a Makarrata commission to advance truth and treaty processes.

Treaty process is undergoing at the various states and that’s appropriate. With regard to Makarrata, we’re continuing to consult on those issues. said.

Indigenous leaders, of course, were very disappointed by the referendum result. I’ll attend Garma once again this year and sit down with people and talk about a way forward.

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Labour and Tories would ‘both leave NHS worse off than under austerity’

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Analysis by leading experts the Nuffield Trust reveals that main parties’ manifestos would squeeze health spending

Labour and the Conservatives would both leave the NHS with lower spending increases than during the years of Tory austerity, according to an independent analysis of their manifestos by a leading health thinktank.

The assessment by the respected Nuffield Trust of the costed NHS policies of both parties, announced in their manifestos last week, says the level of funding increases would leave them struggling to pay existing staff costs, let alone the bill for massive planned increases in doctors, nurses and other staff in the long-term workforce plan agreed last year.

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Top CDC officials warns US needs ‘more tests’ in face of bird flu fears

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Agency principal deputy director wants more testing of farm workers who work in proximity to affected animals

There is not enough testing for bird flu among people and animals in the US, says Dr Nirav Shah, principal deputy director of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) – but he is wary of pushing the issue and damaging fragile trust among farm workers and owners.

“We would like to be doing more tests,” Shah said. “We’d like to be testing particularly not just symptomatic workers, but anyone on a farm who is exposed.”

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Police investigate after pro-Palestinian slogans graffitied on Canberra war memorial – as it happened

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The education minister, Jason Clare, has said stricter regulations on social media for teenagers had bipartisan support.

Speaking to Channel 7’s Sunrise, Clare called social media a “cesspit”, and added that Labor’s age verification trial would be the first step to protecting young people.

I think we all agree that social media’s a cesspit. We all agree we don’t want our kids on it. It’s about how do you do it?

This should be something where the Labor party and the Liberal party can work together.

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Immunisation rates fall among Australia’s vulnerable as experts blame pandemic misinformation and practical barriers

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Below-target levels come after record highs in 2020, with some areas in NSW, Queensland and WA now showing consistently lower vaccination rates

Immunisation rates are lagging in Australia’s most vulnerable populations – the very young and old – with experts blaming practical barriers as well as the misinformation and vaccine hesitancy that took off during the Covid-19 pandemic.

In 2020 Australia achieved a record high rate of 95.09% five-year-olds fully immunised against infectious diseases, even surpassing the government’s target of 95%, which provides “herd immunity”.

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Deadly cancer treatment delays now ‘routine’ in NHS, say damning reports

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Studies sound alarm at state of cancer care with hundreds of thousands waiting months to start essential treatment

Hundreds of thousands of people are being forced to wait months to start essential cancer treatment, with deadly delays now “routine” and even children struck by the disease denied vital support, according to a series of damning reports.

Health chiefs, charities and doctors have sounded the alarm over the state of cancer care in the UK as three separate studies painted a shocking picture of long waits and NHS staff being severely hampered by a worsening workforce crisis and a chronic lack of equipment.

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Pop singer Kevin Jonas documents skin cancer treatment

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Jonas Brothers star revealed he has had surgery for basal cell carcinoma, advising followers to get moles checked

Pop singer Kevin Jonas, a member of chart-topping trio the Jonas Brothers, has received treatment for skin cancer.

In an Instagram video, the 36-year-old singer, guitarist, actor and reality TV star said he had been diagnosed with basal cell carcinoma.

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Akira Endo, ‘remarkable’ scientist who discovered statins, dies aged 90

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Biochemist found cholesterol-lowering compound in 1973 and the drugs have prolonged millions of lives

The scientist whose work led to the creation of statins, a chemical that prevents heart attacks and strokes, has died aged 90.

Akira Endo found the first cholesterol-lowering compound in 1973 in a lab in Tokyo. The Japanese biochemist was said to have been inspired by Alexander Fleming’s discovery of penicillin in 1928, which lead him to study mould or fungi in order to develop medicines.

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