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Doctors yesterday urged the government to raise taxes on alcohol and introduce tough new laws to control marketing and ban irresponsible promotions in bars and off-licences. A report from the British Medical Association called for taxes to be raised in line with alcohol content, pushing up the price of stronger drink, a new lower permitted alcohol limit for drivers, and bans on TV advertising before 9pm. Irresponsible promotional tactics such as happy hours and two-for-one offers must be outlawed, it said.
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BMA demands crackdown on alcohol misuse - The Independent 22nd February 2008
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Higher tax on alcohol 'would save lives' - The Telegraph 22nd February 2008
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The problem of 'demon drink' - BBC Health News 21st February 2008
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Obesity rates start badly and get worse at primary school - The Guardian 22nd February 2008
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BMA demands crackdown on alcohol misuse - The Independent 22nd February 2008
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Higher tax on alcohol 'would save lives' - The Telegraph 22nd February 2008
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The problem of 'demon drink' - BBC Health News 21st February 2008
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Obesity rates start badly and get worse at primary school - The Guardian 22nd February 2008
Nearly one in four children starting primary school are either overweight or obese, according to government figures which also show that by the time they leave aged 11 the proportion has risen to one in three. The scale of the epidemic is made clear by yesterday's release of the latest results of the National Child Measurement Programme, which showed that 22.9% of four and five-year-olds are either overweight or obese, indicating that there is a serious problem before children even reach school.
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Focus on tests is blamed for obesity in primary pupils - The Independent 22nd February 2008
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Archbishop orders Catholic hospital board to resign in ethics dispute - The Guardian 22nd February 2008
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Focus on tests is blamed for obesity in primary pupils - The Independent 22nd February 2008
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A third of Year 6 children are overweight - The Times 22nd February 2008
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A quarter of all children aged four and five are 'obese or overweight', study shows - Daily Mail 21st February 2008
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A quarter of all children aged four and five are 'obese or overweight', study shows - Daily Mail 21st February 2008
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Archbishop orders Catholic hospital board to resign in ethics dispute - The Guardian 22nd February 2008
A Roman Catholic hospital is in chaos after the Archbishop of Westminster ordered the resignation of its board of directors. Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O'Connor, head of the Catholic church in England and Wales, intervened in the affairs of the hospital of St John & St Elizabeth in London, where he is patron, after protracted rows over the adoption of a tighter ethical code banning non-Catholic practices such as abortions, contraception and sex-change operations.
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Case brings contrasting calls for change in 'inadequate' law - The Guardian 22nd February 2008
Campaigners with widely diverging beliefs last night called on the government to re-examine the law on prostitution following the murder convictions of Steve Wright. Both those calling for the liberalisation of prostitution laws and those advocating increased sanctions argued that the laws as they stand are inadequate, but they suggested very different solutions.
The increased number of suicides in the Bridgend area (Report, February 20) has rightly alarmed parents and professionals everywhere and drawn attention to a distressing aspect of more widespread mental health problems among young people. But we should try to avoid grasping for simple answers or attempting to blame soft targets such as tabloid journalism. Sensationalist press reporting doesn't help, but it equally does not make someone kill themselves. Each young person's suicide will have happened as a result of a unique history and set of circumstances.
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Sheep do it. Goats do it. Trekkers climbing steep hills by instinct do it . . . But only now have academics investigated why we create zigzags when we climb hills - and why, when it can mean walking 20 times as far, a zigzag is faster than the shortest distance between two points. Writing in the Journal of Theoretical Biology, they explain that zig-zagging requires less puff.
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There are two types of people: the well and the ill. The well this week have been enjoying the half-term sunshine, worrying about whether a cold snap will kill their daffodils, wondering whether to put their savings in Northern Rock or debating if they would smack their child. The ill inhabit another world. It's a stifling place of bleeping machinery, linoleum floors, cold toast arriving at strange times, strip lights, ambulance sirens, wailing children, hushed voices and long waits for nurses, consultants and results.
Scientists are a step closer to curing diabetes using injections of stem cells, it emerged yesterday. The cells taken from a human embryo are capable of turning into any type of tissue, and researchers have managed to convert them into cells that alleviate the disease's symptoms.
Reducing the amount of salt that children eat could provide a short-cut to keeping them slim, British researchers announced today. They found that children who ate less salt also drank fewer sugary soft drinks, which reduced their risk of high blood pressure and obesity. Writing in the journal Hypertension, they said this could lower rates of heart attack and stroke in later life.
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Mother paralysed after being injected with cleaning fluid during childbirth to win £5m in
damages - Daily Mail 21st February 2008
A mother left paralysed by an injection contaminated with cleaning fluid is in line for up to £5million in compensation. Angelique Sutcliffe, 47, was given the botched epidural jab just before the hospital birth of her daughter seven years ago. The blunder saw her suffer catastrophic neurological damage which has put her in a wheelchair for life.
Most tradespeople are unaware of the health risks linked to asbestos, a survey suggests. The British Lung Foundation said just 12% of the 400 it questioned knew exposure could lead to them developing the incurable lung cancer mesothelioma. Three-quarters had not had any training on dealing with asbestos and just over 25% thought some levels were safe.
Experts have criticised ministers for pushing ahead with a £5bn scheme to carry out NHS care in private clinics without evidence they are working. Edinburgh University researchers said there was no data proving independent sector treatment centres were providing value for money or good quality care.
A new £45m medical school is to be built in St Andrews which will lead research in areas such as cancer, health psychology and infections. It will be one of the first in the UK to bring together university science faculties and training of new doctors.
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International Health News
Doctors have boosted the immune systems of long-term HIV patients with a new therapy designed to protect them from common but potentially lethal infections. The treatment doubled the number of immune cells HIV patients had circulating in their blood, suggesting it was rebuilding their ailing immune systems. Infection with HIV wipes out immune cells and ultimately leads to the collapse of the entire immune system, leaving patients vulnerable to even minor infections.
Regular unintentional daytime dozing may be an early warning sign of stroke in elderly people, say US researchers. For those who had a habit of nodding off, the risk of stroke was two to four times higher than for those who never fell asleep in the day, a study found.
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'Anger control' key to recovery - BBC Health News 21st February 2008
Learning to control your anger may also speed up the healing process after surgery, US research suggests. The Brain Behavior and Immunity study indicates stress has a major impact on the body's ability to repair itself. Nearly 100 participants were asked to rate how well they could control their temper, and the speed at which they recovered from a blister was monitored.
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Cheshire and Merseyside Health News
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A CAMPAIGN to stop young people using cocaine has been launched. Residents aged 20-24 are the focus of a new “Cocaine is not all it is wrapped up to be” drive in Knowsley. Knowsley primary care trust and Knowsley’s drug and alcohol team will distribute posters and information wraps warning of cocaine’s dangers in pubs, clubs and salons.
CANCER patients in Halton last year received more than £38,000 worth of grants from Macmillan Cancer Support. The one-off payments were received by 98 people across Runcorn and Widnes to help pay for fuel bills, travel costs and practical aids such as chairs, stair lifts or clothing.
A SURGEON from Ormskirk has been suspended for 12 months after he prescribed himself the sex drug Viagra because he was too embarrassed to go to his GP. Dr Jonathan Bala, 43, used his
sister-in-law’s name to get the drug while working at Llandudno Hospital.
BETWEEN July and September last year Southport & Ormskirk Hospital NHS Trust had fewer cases of MRSA bacteraemia than in the previous quarter. This was a reduction from six cases to five, and – during the whole of the period for which figures have been reported since April 2001 – it still has the fewest cases of any non-specialist hospital in the North West and the fifth fewest in the country.
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Super surgeries back on the agenda - Warrington Guardian 21st February 2008
THE debate that sparked thousands of people to protest has been reignited after a government minister said he wants super surgeries back on the agenda. Lord Darzi, who led a review of the NHS last year, announced that "polyclinics" are better suited to the nation's health needs.
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Cumbria and Lancashire Health News
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Greater Manchester Health News
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MORE than 400 staff working with mental health patients in Bolton and the surrounding areas were physically assaulted over the course of a year. Figures released by the Greater Manchester West Mental Health NHS Foundation Trust, which covers Bolton, Salford and Trafford, have revealed 419 employees were attacked between December, 2006, and November, 2007.
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IT never fails to amaze me how the country is gripped by panic by news of a health scare. Bird flu was going to kill us all a couple of years back. Before that it was SARS and mad cow disease.
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Stretford optician's glaucoma warning - Altrincham Messenger 21st February 2008
A STRETFORD optician is warning of the silent effects of glaucoma ahead of World Glaucoma Day on March 6. Glaucoma is the leading cause of preventable blindness in the UK and Specsavers Opticians is hoping to raise awareness of how it can be detected and treated.
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