Author: Hill Castle
Paddy Murphy had been living an active life until January 2020 when he put on his coat as usual to walk down to his local pub for a pint, as was his routine. ‘I got about a couple of 100 yards down the road and I couldn’t breathe which was very unusual for me,’ says Paddy. ‘I had to sit down on a wall for a few minutes and I felt a bit better but when I started walking the same thing happened.’ Paddy rang his GP who had grave concerns and sent him to the Mater Hospital. He…
A cheap fermented vegetable and staple of Korean cuisine may help in combating a build-up of harmful microplastics linked to heart disease, cancer, inflammation and brain damage. In a new study, a beneficial bacterium isolated from kimchi was found to bind to nanoplastics in the intestines and carry them out of the body. Nanoplastics are tiny plastic particles even smaller than microplastics, measuring just one micrometer (µm) or less in diameter, making them invisible to the naked eye. These particles have built up in the environment as well as the human body since the plastic boom of the last century, where…
Blood pressure, weight and cholesterol are considered the top measures for predicting a person’s overall health and how long they may live. These metrics can show how much stress essential organs like the heart are under on a day-to-day basis, but improving them can take months or years of dieting, exercise and medication. They also fluctuate and can be difficult to track. However, scientists in the UK have identified simpler measures that could signal how long you have left to live. In a new study, 400,000 adults were divided into four groups based on their lifestyle habits, body mass…
A major shake-up could be coming to grocery stores in California — and it might just help health-conscious shoppers. In a new bill, California state has proposed a first-in-nation label that would warn consumers which foods are ultra-processed. Under the plan, foods that are not ultra-processed — such as canned beans, yogurt and sauces made with few ingredients — would be able to apply for and carry a new label, ‘California Certified,’ that would signal they are not heavily processed. It would function in the same way as other labels, such as USDA Organic. Grocery stores would also be…
New research points to the effects someone’s risky behavior in their 20s has on their cognitive health in their 50s and beyond. University of Michigan researchers followed people from age 18 through their 50s and 60s, tracking people with ‘triple threat’ habits – smoking daily, binge drinking or using cannabis frequently. A daily smoking habit in young adulthood predicted worse self-reported memory by age 50, regardless of whether the person had quit by age 35. For binge drinking and cannabis, the harm to memory was indirect: heavy use in young adulthood raised the odds of developing a substance use…
Addressing the six pillars of lifestyle medicine including eating a plant-based diet, exercising regularly, and prioritising sleep could help reverse type 2 diabetes, experts said today. With nearly six million people in the UK thought to be living with diabetes, the need for realistic and effective interventions has never been greater. Now doctors at The American College of Lifestyle Medicine, have shown that evidence-based lifestyle medicine can treat and even achieve remission of the condition. Lifestyle medicine heroes a clinical framework that focuses on the root cause of chronic disease through simple lifestyle interventions, such as stress management, exercise…
By CIARAN FOREMAN, REPORTER Published: 12:30 EDT, 20 March 2026 | Updated: 12:30 EDT, 20 March 2026 Stopping weight loss jabs such as Ozempic or Mounjaro may not trigger the drastic rebound weight gain previously feared, a major real-world study has found. It had been thought that halting use of the fat-busting drugs – known as GLP-1s and used by around 1.6 million Brits – caused people to pile their lost pounds back on. British Medical Journal data published earlier this year suggested that people could regain all of their lost weight within 18 months of coming off the jabs, sparking…
When Gillian Owens suffered whiplash from a fairground ride, she had no idea the biggest rollercoaster of her life awaited her: addiction to super strong painkillers. Ms Owens, now 50, was prescribed co-codamol by her GP in 2012 to treat pain caused by ‘throwing her neck out’, but soon found herself relying on the medication to help navigate a toxic relationship following the collapse of her marriage and to fall asleep at night. Speaking in an emotional TikTok video, Ms Owens – the younger sister of former First Minister Nicola Sturgeon – said her addiction could have killed her. She…
Phil Galewitz, KFF Health News Last August, as part of the federal government’s crackdown on people in the country illegally, the Trump administration sent states the names of hundreds of thousands of Medicaid enrollees with orders to determine whether they were ineligible based on immigration status. But seven months later, findings from five states shared with KFF Health News show that the reviews have uncovered little evidence of a widespread problem. Only U.S. citizens and some lawfully present immigrants are eligible for Medicaid, which covers health care costs for people with low incomes and disabilities, and the closely related Children’s…
Thousands of people living with motor neurone disease could be given the chance to live longer, thanks to a new drug which has been shown to slow the progression of the most common form of the degenerative illness. Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is the most common form of motor neurone disease, a muscle wasting condition progressively damages parts of the nervous system and is incurable. It gradually stops patients being able to move, talk, swallow and even eat. But now scientists believe they may be able to slow down the progression of the disease whilst preserving motor function and…
A vaccine that is injected directly into tumours could boost survival rates from hard-to-treat cancers. The one-off jab works by reprogramming cancer cells, so they become fully exposed to the body’s immune system, which responds by releasing disease-fighting T-cells to kill off the tumour. In tests on mice with bowel cancer, the vaccine was 100 per cent effective at completely eradicating tumours. Separate laboratory tests on human breast cancer cells produced similar results, with the vaccine resulting in their complete destruction. For decades, cancer treatment revolved around long-established techniques such as chemotherapy – where powerful drugs are given to…
Samantha Liss and Rachana Pradhan 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 referred to 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. These…
The most effective way to eliminate lingering pesticide residues on fresh produce involves ingredients found in nearly every American household, according to experts. Dr Paul Saladino, a well-known advocate for an animal-based diet, highlighted a comprehensive study that found the most sure-fire way to wash off chemicals linked to cancer and neurological harm is not a fancy commercial product, but a simple solution of baking soda and water. Saladino cited a comprehensive study from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, providing rigorous scientific backing for this claim. It found that a simple baking soda solution is significantly more effective at…
By CIARAN FOREMAN, REPORTER Published: 02:00 EDT, 31 March 2026 | Updated: 02:04 EDT, 31 March 2026 A mother-of-six has been told she ‘should be ashamed’ of herself after buying seven Easter eggs for each of her children.Gemma Loveden, from Bury, Lancashire, has spent a whopping £120 on the chocolate eggs to give her children – who are aged between 19 and four – an Easter Sunday to remember.The 39-year-old, who previously lost 16 stone after undergoing weight loss surgery in 2022, even topped up the pile with toys, pyjamas, mini chocolates and chocolate figures.However, after posting a video of…
On the latest episode of the Daily Mail’s Life of Bryony podcast, dietician Josie Porter cuts through the noise on some of the most popular supplements of today – ahead of the release of her new book which takes aim at a murky, trillion dollar industry.In How Not to Take Supplements, the dietitian reveals how many products are missold to consumers, with some containing far less of their key ingredient than advertised.Speaking to columnist Bryony Gordon, Porter argued that despite their recent explosion in popularity, most supplements are simply not necessary for most people. Real food will always offer ‘more…
Bird flu has jumped to two new species of marine mammals in California, igniting fears that the virus is mutating and could spread among humans.Officials in San Mateo County, near San Francisco, have confirmed infections in a California sea lion and a southern sea otter, marking the first time ever that the virus has been detected in these species in the state.No further details were revealed on the condition of the animals, but officials warned the cases were likely linked to an outbreak in the county’s elephant seal colony, where at least 30 seals have been infected.Health officials have also…
Over the past eight weeks I’ve developed numbness in the fingers of both hands and this prevents me doing many things, such as fastening buttons. However, it’s not painful. Can you recommend any medication, or food to avoid? I’m 91 and otherwise healthy.Gordon McCready, Eaglesham, GlasgowIt sounds like you might have carpal tunnel syndrome where the median nerve, one of the main nerves to the hand, becomes compressed as it passes through the wrist joint. This can be triggered by inflammation or swelling – often as a result of repetitive use, such as from gardening – causing tingling, numbness or…
Ben Crofts doesn’t join his family at the table for meal times; instead, he takes his plate to a quiet room and eats alone. The reason? He suffers from misophonia – an intolerance of sounds, where noises such as chewing and crunching trigger emotional or physiological responses.The 50-year-old musician from Somerset has lived with it all his life – it has ruined relationships and caused him immense anxiety.And he’s far from alone. Studies suggest 20 per cent of the population report symptoms resembling misophonia.‘But it’s difficult to draw a line between everyday disliking, and the extreme disliking found in misophonia,’…
For Dawn Lord and her husband, Steve, a recent overnight stay in the Lake District marked something of a milestone.The getaway – the kind of trip the couple used to take often – was the first time in two years that Dawn felt well enough to leave their home in Hartlepool since a routine medical procedure caused her such intense pain and trauma that it triggered a breakdown.Like around 60,000 women in the UK each year, Dawn underwent a hysteroscopy in May 2023 – a procedure to look inside the womb, which the NHS generally regards as routine and low…
‘Mum, I have a slight line forming – do you think I need to get it treated?’ That’s what my 23-year-old daughter Grace said recently, as she pointed to a faint line running down what to me looked like a perfect, youthful forehead.By ‘treated’ she meant getting Botox injections – and I felt my heart drop. My instant reaction was: ‘But you have such a young beautiful face, you don’t need it.’I was concerned about why Grace would even consider anti-ageing injections at her age, when there’s clearly no need. But was I shocked? Honestly, no.Because increasingly in my role…
A sudden, stabbing pain in the back, waves of nausea and bouts of vomiting so severe some patients collapse. For 600,000 Americans every year, that is the reality of developing kidney stones – pebble-like clumps of minerals that form in the urinary system – and doctors say the problem is getting worse. Once considered a condition that struck in middle age, kidney stones are now increasingly being seen among people in their 20s and 30s.’People used to present for the first time in middle age,’ said Dr Ryan Steinberg, a urologist at the University of Iowa Health Care. ‘Now we are seeing…
By CIARAN FOREMAN, REPORTER Published: 19:01 EDT, 30 March 2026 | Updated: 19:03 EDT, 30 March 2026 Nearly a third of people skip bowel cancer screening in England – risking thousands of missed cases and preventable deaths, a leading cancer charity has warned.Since 2019, adults aged 50 to 74 have been sent a home testing kit as part of an NHS drive to diagnose bowel cancer earlier, when it is far more treatable.The faecal immunochemical test (FIT) checks for tiny traces of blood in a stool sample – an early warning sign of the disease. Once returned by post, results…