Health News
12/5/2024

Why it matters that weight loss drugs are one of Oprah Winfrey's new favorite things



A cheaper weight loss drug, more heat-related deaths and new restrictions on tobacco sales: Here's what happened in health this week



Do you still need to tell people if you have COVID?



5 takeaways from Dr. Anthony Fauci's new memoir



The Biden administration is planning to eliminate medical debt from credit reports of millions of Americans. What could this mean for you?



The benefits of 'body doubling' when you have ADHD, according to experts


'Body doubling' is a strategy people with ADHD can use to accomplish more than they would alone. Here's how to do it.

If you think you can't focus for long, you're right


Your attention span has shrunk by nearly two minutes in the past 20 years, driven in part by technology's hold over your work and home life, experts say. Here's how to stay focused so you can get things done.

What you should know if there's no sexual attraction for your partner, according to a therapist


Why would a person pick a potential life partner without feeling the spark of sexual attraction? And can these relationships survive and thrive? Can sexual attraction be cultivated later? Therapist Ian Kerner shares what he's learned in his practice.

8 activewear brands you should add to your workout wardrobe


The increasing popularity of stylish, trendy athletic wear has made über-comfortable clothing something that's not just for the gym. It's infiltrated all corners of culture, from high fashion runways to the offices of Silicon Valley executives — and really, it's appropriate for any occasion when you just want to be comfortable.

The best coupons at CVS Pharmacy



The planet is getting hotter fast. This is what happens to your body in extreme heat


Human-caused climate change has already made heat waves around the world more frequent and intense.

What a medication abortion is like, according to a doctor


An expert in medication abortion describes how mifepristone and misoprostol work and what to expect after using these medications known as the "abortion pill."

How to cool down without AC


No air conditioning? Here are 14 methods for cooling your body and buffering your house from the outside heat.

This bat fossil could fill in a piece of the evolutionary puzzle


Two 52 million-year-old bat skeletons discovered in an ancient lake bed in Wyoming are the oldest bat fossils ever found — and they reveal a new species.

How long you can use vintage Tupperware


Since Tupperware, the iconic kitchen brand that's been a household name for decades, signaled recently that it might be going out of business, you might be wondering how long your stash of its food storage containers is safe to use — especially if it's vintage.

Why we have nightmares and how to stop them


We leave behind our fears of monsters under the bed as we say goodbye to our childhoods, but one can follow us into adulthood and loom over our heads.

Your guide to finding the right Theragun massage gun for you



US gets D+ grade for rising preterm birth rates, new report finds


The rate of premature birth in the United States is climbing, according to the infant and maternal health nonprofit March of Dimes.

Desperate for heart surgery for their baby, a family feels the effects of pediatric hospital shortages


Even before their daughter was born in June, Aaron and Helen Chavez knew she would need heart surgery. Doctors expected her to have an operation around 6 months of age.

Fuzzy first photo of a black hole gets a sharp makeover


The first photo ever taken of a black hole looks a little sharper now.

Paper airplane breaks a world distance record


It's a bird... It's a plane... It's a paper airplane!

RSV hospitalization rate for seniors is 10 times higher than usual for this point in the season


The respiratory virus season has started early in kids this year and flooded children's hospitals in many parts of the country -- especially with respiratory syncytial virus, known as RSV.

Covid-19 boosters could keep thousands of kids out of hospitals, but uptake remains low


Higher Covid-19 vaccination rates among US children could prevent thousands of pediatric hospitalizations and millions of missed school days, according to an analysis published Tuesday by the Commonwealth Fund and the Yale School of Public Health.

Experimental therapy gantenerumab fails to slow or improve Alzheimer's memory loss in clinical trials


An experimental treatment, gantenerumab, failed to help people at high risk of memory loss from Alzheimer's or those who were in the early phases of the disease, the manufacturer said Monday.

Paris: Grassroots to Glory


The Rugby 7s player has struggled with body image in the past, but says sport has helped

Paris: Grassroots to Glory


The Paralympic Rowing Cox will compete a year after getting the all clear from cancer.

How Dame Deborah James helped save a mum's life


A mother-of-three shared her story with Dame Deborah's mother Heather on BBC Breakfast.

Can health secretary name NHS trusts performing well?


Victoria Atkins is challenged to name some health trusts meeting their targets to cut waiting lists.

'I embrace my alopecia, but I’d love my old hair back’


People living with alopecia could have access to treatment on the NHS in Scotland for the first time.

'There are loads of people that vape at school'


A group of teenagers in Fife have been making a documentary about the impact of disposable vapes.

The junior doctors' strikes may be over. But is trouble ahead?


The end of the pay dispute sounded too good to be true. And now some are wondering if it might be.

Why we might never know the truth about ultra-processed foods


Experts can’t agree how exactly they affect us and it’s not clear that science will give us an answer.

Are weight-loss injections the answer to obesity?


The appeal is clear - but should we be turning to appetite-suppressing injections?

What is assisted dying and how could the law change?


A proposed law would let terminally ill people in England and Wales choose to end their life.

Is the system letting down people who were harmed by Covid vaccines?


People affected by rare blood clots say they feel they have been airbrushed out of the pandemic.

How will weight-loss drugs change our relationship with food?


The rise of these treatments has major implications for how we think about obesity, says James Gallagher.

NHS needs better plan around weight loss jabs, warn experts


Experts call for an urgent review of obesity treatment services amid booming demand for weight loss jabs.

How many of us will end up being diagnosed with ADHD?


Experts suggest that the number of people with ADHD is actually going to remain steady.

What is the UK Covid inquiry and how does it work?


The next public hearings will consider how the pandemic affected healthcare systems across the UK.

Covid inquiry: The UK pandemic in numbers


Explore the data on how the coronavirus pandemic unfolded in the UK.

Assisted dying bill: What is in proposed law?


The proposed law would allow some terminally ill adults to end their own lives. But there are requirements.

How are the vaping rules changing?


Marketing rules will be stricter, nicotine vapes will be taxed and disposable vapes will be banned.

Nurses bore the brunt of Covid, ex-chief nurse says


Dame Ruth May tells the Covid inquiry nurses struggled with low staffing levels and difficulties accessing protective equipment.

‘I grieve for the person I was before' - Covid inquiry to begin new phase


The Covid inquiry opens its next set of hearings on Monday, looking at the impact on healthcare and the NHS.

Corruption review finds 'red flags' in more than 130 Covid contracts


An anti-corruption charity finds significant concerns in £15.3bn worth of contracts awarded during the pandemic.

How the UK planned for the wrong pandemic


Over-confidence, wasted opportunities and muddled-thinking left UK sleep-walking into Covid.

Covid was like a daily terror attack, doctor tells inquiry


Covid inquiry hears harrowing testimony from ex-adviser in emergency preparedness at NHS England.

Covid inquiry rejects clinicians’ anonymity plea


The UK Health Security Agency argued naming the junior officials could put them at risk of abuse.

Warning tax rises could force care homes to close


Social care providers say the sector is in "unprecedented danger" without more funding.

High-grade masks evidence weak, Covid inquiry told


UKHSA's Prof Susan Hopkins said respirator masks may have worked no better than thin surgical masks.

How close were hospitals to collapse in Covid?


The Covid inquiry restarts its live hearings this week, after senior staff in the NHS revealed just how close some hospitals were to collapse

Covid inquiry told of trust do-not-resuscitate rule


Patients' families were “horrified but not surprised” when told the blanket policy had been in place.

We were not treated as parents, Covid inquiry told


Mum of premature twins says rigid restrictions on birthing wards during Covid were traumatic.

Covid ambulance crews faced 'crucial PPE delays'


Crews say they faced crucial delays trying to save dying patients because of the time it took to put on equipment.

What is assisted dying and how could the law change?


A proposed law would let terminally ill people in England and Wales choose to end their life.

NHS hours from PPE running out in Covid - Hancock


Former health secretary tells inquiry some healthcare settings did run out - "and it was awful".

Covid inquiry told Treasury blocked NHS bed request


NHS England chief executive Amanda Pritchard says the decision, in July 2020, was very disappointing.

Covid inquiry told top NHS doctor was terrified


Sir Stephen Powis says points-based tool was drawn up should need to prioritise patients have arisen.

£30,000 limit on disabled adaptions grants reviewed


A court challenge means the government will look again at the cap on the Disabled Facilities Grant.

NHS will not fund new drug to slow Alzheimer’s


A new drug that slows the pace of Alzheimer's disease is too expensive for too little benefit to be used on the NHS, the watchdog says.

How do weight loss drugs like Mounjaro and Wegovy work?


NHS experts report unprecedented demand for the new generation of obesity treatments.

Trump picks vaccine sceptic RFK Jr for health secretary


Robert F Kennedy Jr has a history of spreading health information scientists say is false.

NHS to review prostate cancer testing after Chris Hoy call for change


The Olympic cycling champion, who has terminal cancer, wants more younger men to get checked.

How many people still smoke in the UK?


The government wants to create a smoke-free generation, and restrict the sale and marketing of vapes.

What are the symptoms of prostate cancer?


One in eight men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer in their lifetime.

'I can't afford a child on £53,000 salary' - why fertility rate is falling


From 'fruitless' dating to financial pressures, people share their views on falling fertility rates.

Contraceptive pills recalled in South Africa after mix-up


A faulty batch of Yaz Plus means some packs contain only four active pills rendering them ineffective.

Can RFK Jr make America's diet healthy again?


Kennedy's plans to ban dyes in cereals and fluoride in water could get major pushback from the food industry.

Women plan UK legal action over talc cancer claims


Hundreds of women in the UK are taking legal action against Johnson and Johnson.

What does an unheated room do to your body?


The BBC's health and science correspondent undergoes an experiment to find out how a cold home affects him.

Assisted dying bill dangerous, says Archbishop


His comments came ahead of an assisted dying bill being introduced to Parliament.

Why are doctors wary of wearables?


Wearable tech claims to help monitor our health, but many doctors remain sceptical.

What is methanol and how does it affect the body?


Travellers are being warned of the dangers after six tourists in Laos died from methanol poisoning.

'I might be dead before a decision is made': Terminally ill people on assisted dying


Nik is worried assisted dying could lead to coercion - but Elise, who has cancer, wants the choice.

'Focus on palliative care not assisted dying'


Doctor Mike Blabin tells the BBC the sector is desperately underfunded despite facing huge demand.

Rantzen did not expect to see assisted dying bill


Dame Esther says she thought she would be "long gone" by the time MPs debated assisted dying.

Assisted dying bill about right to choose - minister


Labour’s cabinet remains divided on how to vote on Friday’s bill to legalise assisted dying.

Assisted dying bill: What is in proposed law?


The proposed law would allow some terminally ill adults to end their own lives. But there are requirements.

What is assisted dying and how could the law change?


A proposed law would let terminally ill people in England and Wales choose to end their life.

Hope, fear, faith and love: Four people on why assisted dying vote matters


For the first time in nearly a decade, MPs will debate and vote on the issue of assisted suicide.

How assisted dying has spread across the world and how laws differ


About 300 million people have access to some form of assisted dying - what are the policies of other countries?

'Controversial brain surgery stopped my migraines'


A woman who defied mainstream advice to have risky brain surgery says her symptoms have gone.

Fix palliative care before assisted dying is introduced, doctors urge


Leading end-of-life doctors warn system is struggling, and changing law could make situation worse.

Terminally ill people on both sides of assisted dying debate react to vote


BBC News speaks to two terminally ill people with opposing views on the impact of assisted dying.

What happens next to the bill on assisted dying?


MPs have backed a change in the law, but the measure still faces many hurdles before coming into force.

'A hospital worker WhatsApped my mental breakdown'


Julie Trafford says she feels "dirty and angry" after the video was shared in an online group.

I was told I couldn't have an Afro wig after chemo


Anastasia Cameron makes wigs for cancer patients after her own poor experiences.

Only adverts showing junk food covered by TV ban


Adverts that do not show viewers unhealthy food will not be restricted by a new 9pm watershed.

Hospice leaders warn hundreds of beds out of use


A lack of funding and staff are blamed as hospices close beds permanently or take them out of use.

Letby interviewed in prison over more baby deaths


The serial killer nurse has been interviewed over more deaths and collapses at two hospitals.

Families of disgraced child surgeon hit out at ‘whitewash’


Families of children operated on by Yaser Jabbar say independent reports into their care are a "whitewash".

Flu cases make NHS busier than ever with 95% of beds full


NHS England medical director warns hospitals under strain after sharp rise in flu cases.

NHS gets 12 years to roll out new weight-loss drug Mounjaro


Fears that giving 3.4 million people immediate access to new weight-loss drug could overwhelm NHS.

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