Health

A pill that vaccinates people against salmonella has been developed amid fears terrorists could turn the deadly food poisoning bug into a weapon. Designed to be taken by mouth, it also has the added advantage of using the same pathway that salmonella uses to wreak havoc on the digestive system. Salmonella is responsible for one of the most common food-borne illnesses in the world. In the US alone, the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention estimates there are about 1.4 million...

People who leave school with no qualifications are more than twice as likely to suffer a heart attack as those with a university degree, according to new research. The findings come from a groundbreaking new Australian study of healthy ageing in the Southern Hemisphere. Researchers investigated the links between education and cardiovascular disease events - such as a heart attack or stroke - by following 267,153 men and women in the state of New South Wales aged over 45 for...

We are all guilty of making gym excuses. Right now I’m sat at my desk dreaming up logical reasons why I can’t go this evening. And with the darker evenings and colder weather, it’s probable I’ll be making even more of them. But the excuses don’t just stop there. They continue when we reach the gym and are faced with the machine battlefield ahead. Every time I get to the gym floor, my stomach flips. It’s how I imagine life...

By Phil Jones is Director of the Military Preparation Schools Child obesity levels have risen once again, according to National Child Measurement Programme figures published last week. The percentage of overweight 10- and 11- year olds in this country has increased by 0.7%, and while that’s a relatively small increase on the face of things, it’s important that a spotlight is shone on the direction in which things are heading. There is a need, and an urgent need, for schools...

Council chiefs who were shown a video of a mum struggling to carry her disabled son up 30 stairs still refused her priority housing - because she made it to the TOP. Sharon Arkell, 38, and Richard Mikkelson, 37, live with Tommy, four, and his little sister Susie in a second-floor flat. Tommy cannot reach it unaided as he suffers from muscular dystrophy, a progressive illness which means he'll soon have to use a wheelchair permanently. So mum Sharon carries...

Are online medical consultations the way of the future? Is it possible to just fill in an online form and receive both a diagnosis and prescription in a couple of minutes? If this is true, it means that you will no longer have to join long queues just to see a general practitioner. You will be able to consult with a general practitioner online and receive your prescription medication the next day. This seems almost of unimaginable. How can it be...

Alison Rooks leads Macmillan Cancer Support’s Energy Advice Team, who offer help to people with cancer with energy worries. Whenever I tell people I work for a cancer charity, they immediately assume I’m a nurse. Everyone knows the terrific work nurses do, yet less well known is the fact that people with cancer need a wide range of support. You wouldn’t think it was the case but people are much more likely to call our support line about financial worries...

I’ve got a friend who, despite being one of the most lethargic people I know, has got calves the size of tree trunks. To the innocent bystander he’s a physical anomaly. This is a man who has spent the best part of his life on a diet of cheese toasties and Walkers crisps, who would struggle to ride a bike without stabilisers and thinks squats are what you do when you can’t get to the toilet, and yet he can...

Migraine is a complex condition with a wide variety of symptoms. About one in seven people suffers from migraine and it is most prevalent among adults of working age. It is ranked globally as the seventh most disabling disease among all diseases, responsible for 2.9% of all years of life lost to disability (YLDs), and the leading cause of disability among all neurological disorders. For many people the main feature is a painful headache. Other symptoms include disturbed vision, sensitivity...