Health
Back in the saddle
Time was when people routinely stayed for decades in marriages that were devoid of fun or frolics. How very different…
When death is a side effect
‘Is there any other point to which you would wish to draw my attention?’ ‘To the curious incident of…
The white death
White poison; pure, white and deadly; the silent killer. These are just some of the phrases that have been used…
Well spotted
Continuing our series of undercover reports from the world’s best health spas, our reviewer hopped on a plane to stay…
The Wonga diets
Imagine that you have a 21-year-old nephew or godson who has a problem managing his finances. In addition to a…
Why warming up won’t stop the pain
As you get older, you may notice that everything takes a little longer to get better. If you have a…
It’s up to each woman to decide whether the pill’s benefits are worth the risks
According to a new paper published in the journal Cancer Research women taking combined oral contraceptive pills (COCP) have a…
Stop blaming doctors for antibiotic abuse
According to the World Health Organisation’s latest report into antibiotic resistance we are facing a ‘problem so serious that it…
Nine natural ways to keep your teeth white
Smile! There are ways you can help your teeth to remain dazzling and healthy without paying to have them whitened:…
‘Unhealthy’ foods that are surprisingly healthy
Thank you, oh thank you, dear scientists, for rehabilitating these dietary dangers: Chocolate Previously dismissed as full of sugar and…
Calling doctors fat won’t make anyone thinner
Obesity. Everyone’s talking about it. It’s bad. Gives you diabetes, heart disease, and it makes you fat. And if you’re a…
Ten healthy reasons to drink a cup of tea
Drinking tea might stop you having a stroke. A meta-analysis of nine studies revealed that people who drank three or…
Seven ways to protect your ears
Did you know that ten million people in the UK have some hearing loss? In fact, long-term exposure to sounds…
And the best private hospital for food is…
News today that the government is going to try to improve NHS food with that old New Labour favourite, the…
Why the World Health Organisation’s fears about e-cigarettes are based on prejudice, not science
This is an extract from this week’s Spectator, available from Thursday. To subscribe, click here. I was waiting on an…
China’s public health crisis
During a recent visit to China I knew I was being watched. My family were also frequently photographed and videoed.…
How self-testing can help beat cervical cancer
Self-testing is now available to any individual wishing to rule out conditions such as diabetes, pregnancy and bowel cancer. Traditionally, however,…
It’s time we accepted that depression is a terminal illness
For Robin Williams, depression was a terminal illness. He also, his wife has revealed, suffered from Parkinson’s disease. These two…
Ten foods to tackle diabetes
Diabetes is spreading to epic proportions in the UK. It affects 3.2 million people, a figure which has doubled since…
Does pre-diabetes really exist?
Pre-diabetes is an artificial category with virtually zero clinical relevance,’ said an American professor in the Times. A friend of mine…
The NHS’s sympathy deficit
Sometimes I have a quiet time as a voluntary hospital visitor. But recently I’ve witnessed a lot of distress from…
The insidious re-normalisation of smoking
The NHS has long since been smoke free, banning smoking on-site for patients and staff alike back when I was…
Time for a new, patient-driven approach to cancer screening?
No screening test for cancer is 100 per cent accurate. While some individuals might benefit from having an early cancer…
I thought I had contracted Ebola. Life doesn’t get much scarier than that
Juba After an all-night rainstorm in Juba I woke to see the mosquito that bit me in the dark. Now,…
Paracetamol might not ease back pain – but doctors should prescribe it anyway
Upon seeing the headline ‘Paracetamol does not help lower back pain’, I found myself emitting a small (well – actually…
Dieting, Hong Kong style
Three weeks in to my six week stint as an English teacher in Hong Kong, I’ve been struck by how…
Podcast
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Podcast: Table Talk with Kate Young
Kate Young is a food writer and chef, whose cookbooks take recipe inspiration from literary classics, recreating favourite dishes of Harry Potter, Sherlock Holmes, and more
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