Post Archive by Month

Most of us would benefit from having a ‘buddy’ to help us achieve something we’d find hard to do on our own. Twenty years ago I did a charity cycle challenge through Jordan, Egypt and Israel. If I hadn’t had … Read More

Stopping cancer before it starts would be a game-changer. And researchers at University ­College London are hoping to do just that, with a clever new test that could measure a ­woman’s future ­cancer risk. From a single sample taken during routine cervical … Read More

The nation is out of shape, with two-thirds of adults either ­overweight or obese. And as waists have ­expanded over the years, we are gradually learning the full – and ­sometimes shocking – ­impact on the health of the body. … Read More

Mental illness can often occur alongside chronic conditions such as heart and lung ­problems, diabetes and ­arthritis. This strikes me as understandable given the poor quality of the lives of the sufferers and we should be seeking ways to sort … Read More

For years, I’ve followed the research on ageing that seeks to slow down the process. So are we any closer to achieving what could be the Holy Grail of medicine? Studies from Edinburgh University investigating which proteins could influence how … Read More

How brains age and why people develop dementia is still a mystery. But there’s some exciting research that’s hoping to shed light on it – and how beetroot could boost our grey matter. More than 25,000 people aged over 40 have already … Read More

There’s no better way to ­describe the brain research going on at King’s College and Imperial ­College London than “epic”. To get the gist, here’s a little anatomy. The brain is protected by the ­blood-brain barrier. Whereas the skull guards against physical … Read More

One by one, the long-term ­effects of Covid are revealing themselves. Some of them are physical, like a distorted sense of smell, and some are mental, such as being unable to concentrate. One of the more serious may affect our … Read More

Anyone who knows someone with dementia understands that the most distressing aspects of the condition are the psychiatric symptoms such as depression, anxiety and agitation. A review published in 2015 revealed up to 90% of patients with dementia living at … Read More

Waking up after a heavy night, feeling at death’s door and wondering how you’ll get through the day, is never fun. And it’s tempting to try any weird and wonderful ­concoction that promises to ease your hangover. But you might … Read More