Marina Biryukova/Shutterstock While the world is eagerly waiting for COVID-19 vaccines to bring an end to the pandemic, wearing a mask to help prevent viral transmission has become more or less mandatory globally. Though many people embrace mask wearing and adhere to public health advice, some rebel and argue thatContinue Reading
England recently emerged from a four-week lockdown into a series of tiered restrictions, and there is good news about the authorisation of the first vaccine for COVID-19, which is starting to be deployed. But with restrictions loosened, infection rates still high and vaccine deployment slow, is there a risk ofContinue Reading
Rawpixel.com/Shutterstock Both in the UK and around the world, healthcare workers will be among the first to be offered a vaccine against coronavirus. But research suggests that some staff are hesitant about accepting one. Why might there be a level of vaccine hesitancy among health workers, and how can weContinue Reading
The diet could reinforce bad eating habits. Bon Appetit/ Shutterstock The “metabolic confusion” diet is one of the latest fad diets to be blowing up on social media. Like many fad diets, it promises you can lose weight while still eating what you want. Fans of the diet claim thatContinue Reading
BaLL LunLa/Shutterstock Vaccinations against COVID-19 are getting underway in England and will soon follow elsewhere. This is great news, but just the start of a long programme that could extend well into the middle of 2021 – and beyond. In the meantime, the number of people protected from symptomatic COVIDContinue Reading
Infant formula sales have doubled between 2005 and 2019. 279photo Studio/ Shutterstock Breastfeeding can play an especially important role in early-life nutrition. It can benefit children’s future school performance and economic prospects in later life, as well as the mother’s health. Health authorities across the world endorse the World HealthContinue Reading
Statins lower cholesterol if taken daily – but may also have other effects on the body. StockLite/Shutterstock Nothing in medicine is as exciting as discovering new drugs. However, this process is time consuming, expensive and not always necessary. Sometimes, existing drugs can be used to manage illnesses that are differentContinue Reading
The protein, called GDF5, plays an important role in the development and function of certain brain neurons. pikselstock/ Shutterstock Parkinson’s disease, a brain disorder that affects over 10 million people worldwide, is caused by the gradual loss of dopamine neurons. The loss of these neurons leads to involuntary tremors, stiffnessContinue Reading
dotshock/Shutterstock In the global effort to overcome COVID-19, much scientific and medical attention has focused on the ability of our immune system to generate antibodies. Antibodies are one of our body’s main weapons against viruses, created to recognise specific proteins on a virus’s surface and initiate processes that ultimately neutraliseContinue Reading
Scientists have recreated the mutant gene that causes a rare cancer called phaeochromocytoma in a millimetre-sized worm. University of Dundee, Author provided When the Williamson family from Dundee lost their mother Sue to a rare cancer named phaeochromocytoma in 2003, they didn’t realise that further devastation was to follow. OfContinue Reading
