Uk Health Radio Medical News Update on the Hour - Gracie on Obesity

Uk Health Radio Medical News Update on the Hour

Obesity

Obesity is another word for being overweight. It is a common problem and 1 in 5 children aged 10-11 in the UK are obese.

Obesity can lead to illnesses which can kill you such as:
2 diabetes

Heart disease

Breast cancer

Bowel and other cancer and

Stroke.

It can also stop you from doing weight restricted activities and it can make you self conscious about yourself and your body.

Obesity is caused by eating unhealthy or high calorie foods but not burning off the energy they provide, with exercise. The left over energy is stored by the body as fat.

Obesity is getting more common as people are spending their time sitting in cars or watching TV. Also unhealthy food is cheaper and more yummy than healthy food.

The best way to get rid of body fat is to eat a balanced diet, less high calorie foods and to exercise regularly.

For help with this you could:
Join a losing weight group,

Do fast walking and exercise every week,

Eat slowly and

Try to avoid situations when you feel like you want to eat a lot.

It won’t feel much if you lose only half a stone but even this will  reduce the risk of getting a life threatening illness. It takes time to loose weight so in stead of trying a fad diet it is always best to take it steady for reuslts that can be maintained.

Gracie Timms

Uk Health Radio Medical News Update on the Hour

Kindly sponosred by 1-stop-health–shop.com

UK Health Radio – Medical News Update on the Hour - Antibiotic Resistance.

UK Health Radio – Medical News Update on the Hour

Antibiotic Resistance.

Reports this week from the BBC that nearly one in seven antibiotic treatments given out by GPs for common infections over the last two decades in the UK have failed, researchers say.

The Cardiff University study assessed nearly 11m prescriptions issued between 1991 and 2012, to establish the level of antibiotic resistance.

Overall researchers found the drugs failed in just under 15% of cases however they did say that the rise seen over the 22-year period - from 13.9% to 15.4% - was not as great as they had feared.

Report author Prof Craig Currie said while this was not quite the "cliff" that many people had feared, it was still concerning.

"Given the lack of new antibiotics being developed, the growing ineffectiveness of the antibiotics we have is very worrying indeed. He said “There is a mistaken perception that antibiotic resistance is only a danger for hospital patients. We need to ensure that patients receive the appropriate medication for their condition and minimise any unnecessary or inappropriate treatment which could be fuelling resistance, prolonging illness and in some cases killing people."

During the study, which was funded by drugs firm Abbott Healthcare Products and is published in the British Medical Journal, researchers looked at patients given antibiotics for infections ranging from skin and ear complaints, to chest, throat and sinus infection.

To establish which prescriptions were failing, the team looked at which patients needed an alternative treatment within 30 days of the prescription being issued, or if the patient was admitted to hospital, or died with an infection-related illness.

This is not proof of resistance developing, but it is considered a reasonable way of estimating it.

The period that saw the biggest increase in antibiotic failure - 2000 to 2012 - was also the period when more patients began to be treated with the drugs.

Between those years the proportion of patients with infections who were given antibiotics, rose from 60% to 65%.

Edinburgh University infectious disease expert Prof Mark Woolhouse said the research was welcome because while antibiotic resistance was of "huge concern", there was a "paucity of hard data" available.

"We are increasingly reliant on a dwindling arsenal of drugs. That supports calls to develop new drugs but also, and probably even more importantly in the long term, to reduce usage and develop alternative therapies."

Prof Mark Fielder, of Kingston University, agreed, adding: "There is a continued need for education across the spectrum with both patients and medical professionals being aware of the importance of this issue."

Amanda Thomas

UK Health Radio – Medical News Update on the Hour

Kindly sponsored by 1-stop-health-shop.com

UK Health Radio – Medical News Update on the Hour - Ebola Update

UK Health Radio – Medical News Update on the Hour

Ebola Update

News from the BBC that deaths from the Ebola outbreak in West Africa have passed 3,000, according to the World Health Organization (WHO) says.

The latest figures indicate that more than 6,500 people are believed to have been infected in the region.

Liberia is reported as the worst affected country, having recorded around 1,830 deaths linked to the latest outbreak. The outbreak is the most deadly ever seen and one that US President Barack Obama has said is a "threat to global security".

Some studies have warned that the numbers of infected could rise to more than 20,000 as soon as early November.

The WHO said that two new areas, in Guinea and Liberia, have recorded their first confirmed cases of Ebola in the last seven days that highlights the risk of infection for health workers trying to stem the outbreak.

Of the 375 workers known to have become infected, 211 have died from the virus.

These deaths and sickness have made it even more difficult for the already strained healthcare systems in the affected countries to deal with the outbreak especially in Liberia where there is a massive shortage of hospital beds.

The US is sending some 3,000 troops to help Liberia tackle the disease, and set up emergency medical facilities.

• Symptoms include high fever, bleeding and central nervous system damage
• Spread by body fluids, such as blood and saliva
• Fatality rate can reach 90% - but current outbreak has mortality rates at about 70%
• Incubation period is two to 21 days
• There is no proven vaccine or cure
• Supportive care such as rehydrating patients who have diarrhoea and vomiting can help recovery
• Fruit bats, a delicacy for some West Africans, are considered to be virus's natural host

The three-day curfew that was imposed recently in  Sierra Leone in an attempt to quell the outbreak in the country saw more than a million households surveyed and 130 new cases discovered, the authorities say. The quarantine area has been extended to three new districts, meaning more than a third of the country's six million people cannot move freely.

Amanda Thomas

UK Health Radio – Medical News Update on the Hour

Kindly sponsored by 1-stop-health-shop.com

UK Health Radio – Medical News Update on the Hour - Curry Spice to Repair Brain Cells.

UK Health Radio – Medical News Update on the Hour

Curry Spice to Repair Brain Cells.

The BBC have reported that a spice commonly found in curries may boost the brain's ability to heal itself, according to a report in the journal Stem Cell Research and Therapy.

The German study suggests a compound found in turmeric could encourage the growth of nerve cells thought to be part of the brain's repair kit.

Scientists say this work, based in rats, may pave the way for the development of future drugs for strokes and Alzheimer's disease although more trials are needed to see whether this applies to humans.

Researchers from the Institute of Neuroscience and Medicine in Julich, Germany, studied the effects of aromatic-turmerone - a compound found naturally in turmeric.

Rats were injected with the compound and their brains were then scanned.

Particular parts of the brain, known to be involved in nerve cell growth, were seen to be more active after the aromatic-turmerone infusion.

Turmeric belongs to the same plant family as ginger

The research found the higher the concentration of aromatic-turmerone, the greater the growth of the NSCs. And the cells bathed in the turmeric compound seemed to specialise into certain types of brain cells more rapidly too.

Dr Rueger added: "It is interesting that it might be possible to boost the effectiveness of the stem cells with aromatic-turmerone.

"And it is possible this in turn can help boost repair in the brain."

She is now considering whether human trials may be feasible.

Dr Laura Phipps at the charity, Alzheimer's Research UK, said: "It is not clear whether the results of this research would translate to people, or whether the ability to generate new brain cells in this way would benefit people with Alzheimer's disease.

"We would need to see further studies to fully understand this compound's effects in the context of a complex disease like Alzheimer's, and until then people shouldn't take this as a sign to stock up on supplies of turmeric for the spice rack."

Amanda Thomas

UK Health Radio – Medical News Update on the Hour

Kindly sponsored by 1-stop-health-shop.com

UK Health Radio – Medical News Update on the Hour - Go TV Free to Lose Weight

UK Health Radio – Medical News Update on the Hour

In the constant fight against obesity the BBC have revealed the latest advice is for adults and children to consider having TV-free days or limiting viewing to no more than two hours a day under new proposals to tackle obesity.

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) also recommends avoiding drinks with added sugar and limiting takeaways.

The draft guidance, the first on the subject since 2006, is aimed at helping people maintain a healthy weight as obesity rates have nearly doubled over the past 10 years in England.

Prof Mike Kelly, director of the Centre for Public Health at NICE, said a healthier diet and being more physically active was important for everyone, not just those who were already overweight or obese.

"The general rule for maintaining a healthy weight is that energy intake through food and drink should not exceed energy output from daily activity," he said.

"We all know we should probably take the stairs rather than the lift, cut down on TV time, eat more healthily and drink less alcohol.

"But it can be difficult to know the most useful changes that we can make in terms of our weight."

The guidelines make a number of recommendations along with new recommendations encouraging people to monitor their weight and activity levels, using apps or regular weigh-in sessions.

The draft suggestions include:

• Walking or cycling to school or work
• Reducing TV viewing with strategies such as TV-free days or setting a limit of no more than two hours a day in front of the TV screen
• Cutting down on calorific foods, such as fried food, biscuits, sweets and full-fat cheese
• Adopting a Mediterranean diet high in vegetables, fruit, beans and pulses, whole grains, fish and olive oil
• Avoiding drinks sweetened with sugar, including fizzy drinks, sports drinks and squash
• Limiting the amount of fast food and takeaways
• Limiting the amount of alcohol consumed, as alcoholic drinks are a source of extra calories

Last month, health leaders called for an emergency taskforce to be set up to tackle childhood obesity in England.

In an open letter to the chief medical officer for England, Prof Dame Sally Davies, they said "an entire generation is being destroyed by a diet of junk food and sugary drinks".

And last week, the head of NHS England, Simon Stevens, said obesity was "the new smoking" in terms of the impact on health and the cost to the NHS.

Figures show that a quarter of adults - up from 15% 20 years ago - and one in five schoolchildren in England are obese.

Amanda Thomas

UK Health Radio – Medical News Update on the Hour

Kindly sponsored by 1-stop-health-shop.com

Uk Health Radio Medical News Update on the Hour - Gracie on snake bites

Uk Health Radio Medical News Update on the Hour

Snake Bites

The hot weather this year has been ideal for snakes.  There have been reports of snakebites in the UK although thankfully none this year have proved very serious.  

A snake bites to defend itself if it feels threatened or scared. Snakebites are not as common in the UK as they are in places like Australia and America. Adders are the only venomous snakes living in the wild in the UK.

 If an adder bites you it will leave venom in you that can cause serious symptoms including redness and swelling around the bite, being sick and feeling dizzy.

If a foreign snake bites you it will leave venom in you that might cause you to go into shock and may stop you from moving your muscles. (paralysis)

Sometimes venomous snakes can bite without injecting venom in you. This is called dry bite and only causes mild pain.

Straight after you’ve been bitten it is important that you keep calm and don’t panic. Try to remember the size, colour and markings of the snake,  and keep the part of the body which has been bitten really still. Take off any jewellery like rings that are near the bite in case the area swells and it gets stuck, but don’t take off any clothing. Call 999 to ask for a ambulance or if hyou are abroad, call the emergency services there. 

In hospital they will use anti-venom to treat the bite. To prevent getting bitten you can wear boots and long trousers, if you are walking in areas where snakes may be.  Never pick up a snake, and don’t put your hand down a hole. If you find yourself near a snake stand really still. If it feels that you are no threat, it should move away.

Gracie Timms

Uk Health Radio Medical News Update on the Hour

Kindly sponosred by 1-stop-health–shop.com

UK Health Radio – Medical News Update on the Hour - Ebola Update

UK Health Radio – Medical News Update on the Hour

Ebola Update

With our news update on the Ebola epidemic this week comes the very sad news that eight members of a team that had been trying to raise awareness about Ebola have been killed by villagers using machetes and clubs in Guinea. This comes as medical staff in the UK are being asked to volunteer to help halt the spread of disease.

The BBC reported that some of the bodies of health workers, local officials and journalists involved in the health campaign were found in a septic tank in a village school near the city of Nzerekore.

Correspondents say many villagers are suspicious of official attempts to combat the disease.

The figure of those that have died from Ebola is now 2,600 in West Africa as the world’s worst outbreak of Ebola continues and officials warn that more than 20,000 people could ultimately be infected.

Neighbouring Sierra Leone has begun a controversial three-day curfew to try to stop the spread of the disease.

The BBC looked at the scale of the challenge the Ebola outbreak presents with the news that residents pelted the doomed health team with stones when they arrived at a village in southern Guinea, where the Ebola outbreak was first recorded.

A journalist who managed to escape told reporters that she could hear villagers looking for them while she was hiding.

A government delegation, led by the health minister, had been dispatched to the region but they were unable to reach the village by road because a main bridge had been blocked.

On Thursday night, government spokesman Albert Damantang Camara said the victims had been "killed in cold blood by the villagers". Six people have been arrested and the village is now reportedly deserted.

The motive for the killings has not been confirmed, but the BBC's Makeme Bamba in Guinea's capital, Conakry, says many villagers accuse the health workers of spreading the disease while others still do not believe that the disease even exists.

Last month, riots erupted after rumours that medics who were disinfecting a market were actually contaminating people.

Meanwhile the World Health Organization said that more than 700 new cases of Ebola have emerged in West Africa in just a week, showing that the outbreak is accelerating.

It said there had been more than 5,300 cases in total and that half of those were recorded in the past three weeks.

Amanda Thomas

UK Health Radio – Medical News Update on the Hour

Kindly sponsored by 1-stop-health-shop.com

UK Health Radio – Medical News Update on the Hour A Sugar Company Fights Back

UK Health Radio – Medical News Update on the Hour

A Sugar Company Fights Back

The BBC have reported that a sugar company is fighting back against the perceived demonisation of sugar by the media, saying that it is being disproportionately blamed for causing obesity, writes Tom Heyden.

It is true that it has not been a happy couple of years for anybody selling refined sugar. The American doctor Robert Lustig has caught the attention of the international community by suggesting that too much fructose sugar in the diet equates to "poison".

“Sugar is often portrayed as public enemy number one in newspaper headlines and market researchers Mintel have given the deomonisation of sugar as the main reason for a rise in artificial sweeteners used in drinks. It's been implanted in many people's minds that added sugar is behind the obesity epidemic as well as other health problems.

Now sugar producer AB Sugar is fed up with the media's attack. It has launched a campaign called "Making Sense of Sugar", aiming to improve understanding of its product. "Obesity is a complex issue that has no single cause," writes chief executive Mark Carr in an article in the magazine ‘Grocer’.  Sugar has been given "more than its fair share of the blame", he says, considering other factors such as exercise levels and overall consumption of calories. Carr criticises the media's "alarming headlines and confusing advice".

By sugar, health campaigners don't mean the sugar found naturally in complex carbohydrates or fruits. They mean refined sugars, sometimes known as "free sugars", that are added artificially. And there's no doubt that there is serious and growing concern over consumption levels of this type of sugar. The new target set by the World Health Organisation is that sugars added to food and drink, as well as some natural ones - should account for no more than 5% of energy intake – and that is a figure down from 10%. Some nutrition scientists, however, say that isn't far enough and want to see a figure of less than 3%.  

The 5% figure represents 25g of sugar a day. Bearing in mind that a can of Coca Cola contains 35g and that sugar is added to a host of cereals, breads, sauces and ready meals, such a target means big changes in Western diets.

Amanda Thomas

UK Health Radio – Medical News Update on the Hour

Kindly sponsored by 1-stop-health-shop.com

UK Health Radio – Medical News Update on the Hour The Angelina Jolie Effect

UK Health Radio – Medical News Update on the Hour

 The Angelina Jolie Effect

The BBC have reported that referrals to breast cancer clinics have more than doubled in the UK after Angelina Jolie announced she had had a double mastectomy to prevent breast cancer.

The actress had the surgery, after being told she had an 87% chance of getting the disease because of a high-risk gene. This news encouraged women with genuine concerns about their family history to get advice, a study found. About 5% of breast cancers are thought to be hereditary.

"The Angelina Jolie effect has been long-lasting and global, and appears to have increased referrals to centres appropriately," said a team led by Prof Gareth Evans of the University of Manchester.

The researchers looked at referrals to more than 20 genetic centres and clinics in the UK after the story hit the press in May 2013.

In June and July the number of GP referrals for genetic counselling and DNA tests for breast cancer mutations increased two and a half times compared with the same period in 2012.

The study, published in the journal, Breast Cancer Research found referrals remained at twice the previous year's figure from August to October.

"This may have lessened patients' fears about a loss of sexual identity post-preventative surgery and encouraged those who had not previously engaged with health services to consider getting genetic testing."

Most breast cancers happen by chance but a small number of people diagnosed with breast cancer (5%) have an inherited fault in one of the known breast cancer genes; BRCA1, BRCA2 or TP53 which puts them at higher risk.

Angelina Jolie is not alone in influencing health behaviour.

Attendance for cervical cancer screening rose in 2008 and 2009, when the celebrity Jade Goody was diagnosed with cervical cancer and died.

Women in general have a one in eight chance of developing breast cancer during their lifetime, but genes can put some at higher risk.

In the UK, about one in 1,000 people will have inherited a BRCA1 mutation and a similar proportion will have inherited a BRCA2 mutation.

Women who are tested early can take steps to prevent themselves from developing the disease.

This may mean a risk-reducing mastectomy, cancer preventing drugs, such as tamoxifen, and certain lifestyle changes like a healthy diet and more exercise.

Lester Barr, chairman of Genesis Breast Cancer Prevention told the BBC that "While a woman's risk of developing breast cancer and/or ovarian cancer is greatly increased if she carries the harmful mutation of the BRCA1 or BRCA2 gene, preventative surgery is by no means the answer for everyone.

"Of course, a preventative mastectomy is the most effective way to cut a woman's risk of breast cancer, however other options should also be considered. These include prevention drugs, such as tamoxifen, which has been approved by NICE.

"Alternatively, many women with a mutated BRCA gene opt for annual check-ups which can be arranged through the NHS."

Amanda Thomas

UK Health Radio – Medical News Update on the Hour

Kindly sponsored by 1-stop-health-shop.com

UK Health Radio – Medical News Update on the Hour NHS Deficit at £500m - Just a Few Months Into the New Financial Year.

UK Health Radio – Medical News Update on the Hour

NHS Deficit at £500m - Just a Few Months Into the New Financial Year.

The BBC has reported that just a few months into the new financial year, the NHS in England is already £500m in the red.  Regulators who had studied the official figures said the sums were greater than had been expected - and warned that NHS bosses would have to "get a grip".

One of the key causes seems to be the rising demand for services and regulators said hospitals in particular were struggling to keep up - with signs emerging that hitting key waiting time targets was getting harder.

The figures were published in board papers released by Monitor and the Trust Development Agency, which oversee foundation trusts and non-foundation trusts respectively.

Both sectors posted deficits - the first time foundation trusts have done so.

The figures from Monitor showed a deficit of £167m had been run up in the first quarter of 2014-15 - above the £80m forecast. A total of 86 out of 147 trusts were in the red. This time last year they posted a £27m surplus.

Adam Brimelow, BBC Health correspondent has analysed the information and says that deficits are not just a problem for the accountants. Ultimately they can have a tangible effect on patients. Financial problems often go hand-in-hand with poor performance on waiting times, or low staffing levels which may - in turn - impact on safety and the quality of care.

The biggest problems were seen in hospital trusts - over two thirds have accrued deficits - and this was also illustrated by the difficulties they were experiencing in meeting their waiting time targets.

The four-hour A&E waiting time target was met in the first quarter, but performance did deteriorate during several weeks despite the period covering spring and summer that are traditionally easier times for hospitals.

Rob Webster, chief executive of the NHS Confederation, which represents trusts, said: "We have been warning for some time that NHS trusts will fall further into deficit as they try to balance rising demand for care against flat funding."

He added that trusts were "working tirelessly" to keep standards up.

Amanda Thomas

UK Health Radio – Medical News Update on the Hour

Kindly sponsored by 1-stop-health-shop.com

UK Health Radio Medical News Update -One The Hour - Gracie on Dyslexia

UK Health Radio Medical News Update on the Hour

Dyslexia 

Dyslexia is a common learning difficulty that effects the way people read, write and spell. About 1 in 10 people have it in the UK. My auntie has dyslexia and she had to go to college to relearn maths and English at the age of 27. She also had a private tutor and she now has improved in her writing and reading skills. Some people have different symptoms than others and will also have different strengths and weaknesses. If you have Dyslexia don't worry because your not alone. Even famous successful people have experienced it including: Robbie Williams, Tom Cruise, Richard Branson, Albert Einstein, Walt Disney and Winston Churchill.

Symptoms of dyslexia in children aged 5-12 include: 

• Slow writing
• messy handwriting
• reading slowly 
• struggling to learn the alphabet.  

Identifying dyslexia in younger children can be difficult for parents because the signs are not always obvious. There are Ideas about the causes of dyslexia, but it is normally passed on through families. There are educational inventions and websites that can help children with dyslexia to learn how to read and write. 

Older children with dyslexia use computers and exercise books because they feel more comfortable working with them. Many of the techniques that are used to help children are also used for adults. 

Gracie Timms

UK Health Radio Medical News Update

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