If at 58, I were to agree to a boxing match with a person half my age, much alarm would be caused. My daughters would burst into tears, my partner would have strong words, and my students would have final confirmation that I had lost the plot. I, however, amContinue Reading
tomertu/Shutterstock Can you pass me the whatchamacallit? It’s right over there next to the thingamajig. Many of us will experience “lethologica”, or difficulty finding words, in everyday life. And it usually becomes more prominent with age. Frequent difficulty finding the right word can signal changes in the brain consistent withContinue Reading
Social media users aren't used to seeing this — men's nipples and even pubic hair aren't censored but posts about women's bodies are assumed to be pornographic Sergiy Nigeruk/Shutterstock What’s the difference between men’s nipples and women’s? How about men’s pubic hair and women’s? Well, on social media, at least,Continue Reading
Some strains of _R gnavus_ have developed a sweet tooth for the sugars found in the gut's lining. Thanatip S./ Shutterstock Having a sweet tooth isn’t just a human characteristic. It turns out our gut microbes can have a preference for sweets, too – and one of these selfish, sugar-lovingContinue Reading
Pregabalin on its own is typically not dangerous – but can cause harm if taken alongside certain drugs. Brian A Jackson/ Shutterstock There has been a significant rise in deaths linked to the commonly prescribed anxiety drug, pregabalin. While in 2018 there were 187 deaths linked to pregabalin in EnglandContinue Reading
Jennifer Lopez is a fan of the statement earring, but will her lobes forgive her? Kathy Hutchins/Shutterstock The perilous nature of some fashion items have a long history, from the potentially hazardous heights of stilettoes to the damaging constrictions imposed by the corset. But health-harming trends aren’t a thing ofContinue Reading
You may have heard of a birth doula – someone who provides non-medical support and advocacy throughout pregnancy, birth and after the baby has been born. More recently, so-called death doulas – people who assist at the other end of the lifespan – have been growing in popularity. The roleContinue Reading
meigav/Shutterstock Ultra-processed foods, such as cereals and fizzy drinks, have been linked to 32 harmful health effects, according to the largest review of the evidence to date. Globally, one in five deaths are thought to be due to poor diet, and the role of ultra-processed foods or UPFs has attractedContinue Reading
In 2020, in a medical facility in one of the southern states of the US, a patient wandered into an unsecured nursery for extremely premature children. Unfortunately, the patient managed to accidentally disconnect multiple babies from their life support. Worried that they would get in trouble, they fled the scene.Continue Reading
Kateryna Kon/Shutterstock Bifidobacterium breve, or B breve for short, is a bacterial species that’s found in the human intestine. It’s especially relevant in early life, being one of the most abundant bacteria in the newborn gut. B breve is a species of the genus Bifidobacterium and is considered key inContinue Reading
