Author: Hill Castle

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I’ve developed two horrible-looking warts on my left foot. What can I do about them, and should I be worried?Dr Ellie replies: Warts are small, rough growths triggered by a viral infection. They are not dangerous and can – with some persistence – be removed.Some people will get one wart, while others will get clusters.The virus that triggers them is the human papillomavirus (HPV). It can infect the skin on any part of the body, but the feet are one of the most common points, where they are known as verrucas.The virus is often picked up from contaminated floors, such…

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I’ve just woken up from a dream about a slice of chocolate cake. Yesterday at lunch, I hovered outside a restaurant sniffing their noodles. And that evening, I found myself sitting by the refrigerator, hoping something new might appear.For the past four days, I have followed a diet consisting of foods Meghan Markle has said she eats. I put together a menu of breakfasts, lunches, dinners and snacks based on previous statements made by Markle and recipes shared by her. When setting out on the experiment, I expected delicious and well-rounded meals — served, of course, with a side of edible flowers and…

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Can’t stop at just a few Mini Eggs? You’re not alone – and research suggests there’s a reason why.Those colourful, sugar-coated chocolates have been a firm Easter favourite since 1967, appearing everywhere from crispy chocolate nests to egg hunts and, most often, straight out of the bag.But unlike a traditional hollow egg, Mini Eggs seem to have a unique ability to keep you reaching for ‘just one more’.According to weight loss app MyFitnessPal, Mini Eggs sharing bags were the most logged Easter item overall, racking up 230,614 entries – ahead of every other chocolate egg.Younger adults led the trend, with…

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Its recipe is so closely guarded that it is said to be stored in a secure location for use in a national emergency.And with only three people said to know exactly what goes into Irn–Bru – long hailed by devotees as the ultimate hangover cure – perhaps that level of caution is understandable.The mythology runs deep. Legendary comedian Sir Billy Connolly once joked that the drink had saved his life ‘on so many Sunday mornings’ – a sentiment that will feel familiar to anyone who has reached for its lurid orange glow after one too many the night before.But behind…

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By ETHAN ENNALS, HEALTH EDITOR Published: 19:48 EDT, 4 April 2026 | Updated: 19:55 EDT, 4 April 2026 A trip away this Easter break isn’t just an excuse for fun – it could also save people from life-threatening heart issues.Researchers at Texas A&M University have discovered that travelling boosts heart health, as well as increasing productivity and reducing stress levels.They also found that the longer the trip, the more beneficial it was to health.To assess the boost gained from a holiday, the researchers took a unique approach – they sent 20 students on a cruise, and equipped them with smartwatches…

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By MEIKE LEONARD, HEALTH REPORTER Published: 20:09 EDT, 4 April 2026 | Updated: 20:18 EDT, 4 April 2026 Broadcaster Mariella Frostrup has joined campaigners in calling for an end to Government delays in rolling out life-saving osteoporosis clinics.More than 40 organisations are urging the Health Secretary to deliver on his promise to end a postcode lottery for the clinics, which diagnose and treat patients with the debilitating bone-thinning condition.Ms Frostrup, chairman of Menopause Mandate and an ambassador for the Royal Osteoporosis Society (ROS), is the latest to condemn the lack of action.Nearly 3.5million patients in the UK live with osteoporosis,…

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From the age of six, Leeanne Davies-Grassnick knew she wanted to be a mother. ‘I was always crazy about babies and children,’ she says. ‘When I was in primary school, we had to write what we wanted to be when we grew up, and I remember putting “a mum”.’When she finally did have a baby, after years of hard work as a City banker, London-based Leeanne, now 42, says the first few months of motherhood were the happiest of her life. But it was during this blissful haze of caring for her new baby that she began to notice something…

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By MEIKE LEONARD, HEALTH REPORTER Published: 20:14 EDT, 4 April 2026 | Updated: 21:11 EDT, 4 April 2026 Breathing in particles from common cleaning products may cause serious lung damage that is even more harmful than accidentally drinking them, a study has found.A compound found in hundreds of disinfectant sprays sold in the UK, including Lysol and Clorox, has been linked to a slew of harmful lung conditions.Known as quaternary ammonium, or QAC, the substance has been used in cleaning products since the 1940s, and has long been known to be toxic if accidentally ingested.But researchers now believe that it…

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Unbearably itchy skin, angry red patches and a huge dent to self-confidence are just some of the symptoms of psoriasis – a condition that now affects nearly 2 million people in the UK.And figures show it’s on the rise. The number of Britons living with the skin complaint has risen nearly ten per cent in the past decade. And yet the understanding of it among the wider public has not advanced nearly as much.Experts have found that the condition can take a significant mental toll.Around 40 per cent of sufferers admit they avoid dating, social events or even just shaking…

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For many Americans, oral health is an afterthought. In fact, a 2025 Tufts University study estimates as many as one in three Americans have skipped their regular dental cleaning within the last year, twice the amount of those who didn’t get an annual physical.However, experts believe 90 percent of systemic diseases such as diabetes, heart disease and vitamin deficiencies cause symptoms in the mouth.In fact, dentists speaking with the Daily Mail have even suggested these signs can show up months or years before other symptoms elsewhere in the body. The mouth is also a prime breeding ground for harmful bacteria, especially without…

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Nearly half of all Americans have high blood pressure, a chronic disease that drastically raises their risk of a deadly blood clot, heart attack or stroke. Monitoring blood pressure and tracking trends — when it tends to spike or what works to lower it to baseline — is vital for preventing one of those deadly outcomes. Blood pressure is the force of blood pushing against artery walls as the heart pumps. Normal is below 120/80 mm Hg; high blood pressure, or hypertension, is 130/80 or higher. Causes of hypertension include some reversible factors, such as poor diet, inactivity, obesity,…

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After having four inches of his manhood removed in a drastic surgery to save his life, Steven Hamill feared he would never fulfil his dream of being a father. The 33-year-old food industry worker was diagnosed with penile cancer in April 2019, after suffering a raft of distressing symptoms. Steven first visited his GP in March that year complaining of pain and swelling in his genitals, and was diagnosed with balanitis – inflammation of the head of the penis that can be caused by infection or irritation. He was sent home with a topical cream. But after developing worsening,…

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One in three adults in the UK has high blood pressure, a condition medically known as hypertension. Often symptomless, it quietly wreaks havoc on the body, dramatically increasing the risk of heart attacks, strokes, kidney failure and even dementia. Because it shows no warning signs, many people don’t realise they have it until serious damage has already been done. Yet if detected early, these dangerous outcomes are largely preventable. NHS figures reveal a worrying trend: a quarter of young adults with hypertension aren’t getting it under control, compared with just one in seven older patients. High blood pressure often…

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Thank you for your interest in supporting KFF Health News, the nation’s leading nonprofit newsroom focused on health and health policy. We distribute our journalism for free and without advertising through media partners of all sizes and in communities large and small. We appreciate all forms of engagement from our readers and listeners, and welcome your support. KHN is an editorially independent program of KFF (Kaiser Family Foundation). You can support KHN by making a contribution to KFF, a non-profit charitable organization that is not associated with Kaiser Permanente. Click the button below to go to KFF’s donation page which…

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Daily Mail journalists select and curate the products that feature on our site. If you make a purchase via links on this page we will earn commission – learn more When people talk about brain fog during the menopause transition, they often mean they have a lack of focus, slow thinking, and forgetfulness. Studies show that about three in five women in midlife have difficulty recalling words and numbers, need to make lists and reminders, and forget why they’re doing something. Declining oestrogen is often the culprit. Oestrogen affects the levels of serotonin and dopamine, the natural chemicals in…

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Health researchers are sounding the alarm after noticing more people refusing life-saving blood transfusions because they come from vaccinated donors. In a study out of Vanderbilt University Medical Center, 15 patients or families of patients who needed blood transfusions rejected them because they requested blood from donors who were not vaccinated. The majority of patients were children or teenagers. The refusal led one patient to go into shock, another to develop anemia and others to have their surgeries delayed. Now, doctors involved say they fear more Americans, spurred by vaccine-suspicious health secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr, will follow. Over…

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Jamie Gruber was living the dream. The father-of-two had moved his family from chilly Michigan to the sun-soaked coast of Punta Cana, Dominican Republic, and they were overjoyed. The children spent virtually all their time outside by the pool, playing soccer or cycling around town. But 14 months into the family’s new life, their eldest, eight-year-old Sebastian, suddenly became unwell. ‘We honestly didn’t know what was wrong,’ Gruber told the Daily Mail. ‘We thought he was maybe dehydrated, maybe it was a cold that eight-year-olds tend to get.’ They put him on bed rest, but their son continued to deteriorate.…

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Raw cheeses linked to an E.coli outbreak that has sickened nine people and hospitalized three have now been recalled in the US. Health officials first issued an alert over the products on March 15, but its manufacturer denied the claim. Now, nearly three weeks later, the company has finally issued a recall — but not for all of the suspected products. The manufacturer, RAW FARM, said it was recalling some of its cheeses ‘under protest’ and that it ‘contested’ the link between its products and the outbreak. It did not issue a recall for any of its raw milk,…

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A child was rushed to the hospital after being poisoned by a common household fragrance product. An unidentified three-year-old girl from New York City was brought to the emergency room after having her first seizure. The child’s mother reported she was walking toward the kitchen as she fell to the ground and began seizing for five minutes. Each minute of a seizure causes neurons in the brain to fire uncontrollably, disrupting normal function, reducing oxygen and killing cells. The girl was transferred to the pediatric intensive care unit (PICU) for observation and appeared to be recovering normally at first.…

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The number of flea-borne typhus infections in Los Angeles County has hit an all-time high, with officials scrambling to contain outbreaks in several neighborhoods. Public health data reveal that 2025 saw a staggering 220 confirmed cases of the bacterial disease, eclipsing the previous high of 187 cases just one year earlier. The trend marks a troubling escalation in a disease that was once considered rare in the region. Of those infected last year, nearly nine out of every 10 patients required hospitalization, indicating that typhus is far from a mild illness. Symptoms of flea-borne typhus typically appear one to…

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States are paying contractors such as Deloitte, Accenture, and Optum millions of dollars to help them comply with the One Big Beautiful Bill Act — a law that will strip safety-net health and food benefits from millions. State governments rely on such companies to design and operate computer systems that assess whether low-income people qualify for Medicaid or food aid through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, commonly known as food stamps. Those state systems have a history of errors that can cut off benefits to eligible people, a KFF Health News investigation showed. States are now racing to update their…

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For years, the pain in Christine Wallace’s shoulder steadily worsened. What began as a dull ache became a constant, grinding stiffness – until the retired teacher could barely lift her left arm more than an inch. Simple tasks such as getting dressed or washing her hair became an ordeal, forcing her to rely on trips to a salon. Even tending to her beloved garden was no longer possible. After tests ruled out tears or fractures, she was diagnosed with frozen shoulder – a condition affecting around one in 20 adults, in which the capsule surrounding the joint becomes inflamed…

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