If you’re seeing in 2019 tonight at a boozy do, be very wary of doing any driving at all tomorrow – it could lead to a very unhappy new year. Alcohol stays in the blood much longer than you think … Read More
Your level of empathy is down to brain cells
Are you someone who loves a weepie? Do you find your eyes filling with tears when a friend shares a sad experience with you? Do you feel yourself sympathising with every lame duck you meet? Well, I’m the same and … Read More
Success with weight loss is all in the mind
Whenever I’ve tried to lose weight I know my efforts will be unsuccessful unless a switch in my brain flicks on. You could call it the willpower switch. Well, it seems some brains aren’t wired for self-control. Turns out high-level … Read More
Christmas songs playing in shops will make you spend more, according to science
Are you being driven mad by the Christmas music blasting out in every shop you enter? Music psychologists aren’t surprised. They say there’s something about holiday jingles that make them particularly irritating. Any repetitive playlist can be annoying but there’s something particularly … Read More
There’s a new reason for the low uptake of vaccinations
Vaccination rates in the UK and Europe continue to fall. In Britain, take-up of the MMR vaccine has fallen for four years in a row. It could even dip below 90% for the first time since the scare in the … Read More
‘Gluten free’ can be fashionable but being a coeliac isn’t
At every turn in supermarkets I’m assailed by products claiming to be gluten free, some crazily so. Gluten is a protein so why would a fizzy drink contain gluten? It couldn’t. The other day I saw an ad for gluten-free manicures. It’s … Read More
Red meat tax would make half a million pounds for every life saved
Are you a meat and two veg person? Is the burger a staple of your diet? Well, if you are, how would you respond to having to pay a meat tax? If a recent study is anything to go by … Read More
Health risks of alcohol mean it should be treated like a drug
Around 2.4 billion people globally drink alcohol, a drug which alters perception and depresses brain function – and now we know the only safe level of consumption is zero. Its health risks include a range of cancers, and any possible … Read More
Tots and elderly are great for each other
Putting nursery-age children together with elderly people in care homes began a few years ago. And, slowly, health trusts and care workers are realising the huge benefits of doing so – particularly within social care for the elderly. Now the … Read More