Health news

• Four key changes could save the NDIS, Grattan report says, but advocates worried children will be left out

  30-06-2025 07:36
  Firmer boundaries, better claim management, foundational supports and a new national agreement among recommendationsFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastThe National Disability Insurance Scheme has grown too big too fast, but four key changes could “save” it while ensuring disabled Australians get the help they need, according to a new report from the Grattan Institute.It comes as federal and state government
  
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• Australia news live: Pocock calls for more targeted Israel sanctions ‘starting with Netanyahu’; NSW police threaten court action to block pro-Palestine march

  29-07-2025 09:26
  
  Follow today’s news live‘Beyond comprehension’ for Israel to claim there is no starvation crisis in Gaza, PM saysGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastNationals net zero debate ‘total madness’: PocockWe can’t seem to stop talking about net zero in parliament, and independent senator (and known longtime climate action advocate) David Pocock says it’s “total madness” to see the path the Coalition is taking on the issue.I th
  
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• I had no idea where to find help for my eating disorder. Then Australia’s new e-clinic changed everything | Lucinda Price

  29-07-2025 05:17
  
  Too many are still stuck in silence, still waiting, still falling through the cracks. It’s time we moved the dialIn 2020, I decided to get help for an eating disorder.Up until that point, I’d had some variation of one for years. It all started when I decided to go on my first diet, aged 21. What followed was a half decade of cycling through maddening patterns of restriction. From bingeing to purging, starving to hardcore exercising, my mind was constantly overrun by thoughts of food.
  
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• Becoming a paramedic changed me. But not in the ways I expected

  28-07-2025 17:00
  
  From trampolines to smartwatches, the job has changed how I see everyday life. It’s a kind of hyper-awareness that doesn’t switch offGet our weekend culture and lifestyle emailBefore I became a paramedic, I didn’t expect the job would change how I load a dishwasher. Or eat a sandwich. Or look at trampolines. I knew it would change how I see others – watching people die tends to do that. But nearly 10 years in, I’ve realised how much it’s quietly altered my day
  
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• Hanging up the car keys for good: the decision to stop driving is complicated, but are age-based restrictions the answer?

  28-07-2025 04:00
  With rules for elderly drivers under scrutiny in Victoria, experts disagree on mandatory assessmentsFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastHiding car keys and deflating the car’s tyres were some of the steps Melbourne woman Beth Nielsen took to prevent her grandfather from getting behind the wheel in the final years of his life.Nielsen’s grandfather had been diagnosed with vascular dementia in 2016 but remained
  
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• What is vitamin B6 toxicity and what are the symptoms of taking too much?

  27-07-2025 02:00
  Consuming too much in supplements or fortified foods such as energy drinks can damage peripheral nerves and, in extreme cases, impair motor functionGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastIn January Guardian Australia told the story of Simon Bogemann who developed a nerve condition known as peripheral neuropathy after consuming excessive vitamin B6 from multivitamin and magnesium supplements.Since then, the potential of these over-the-counter supplements to cause harm has attr
  
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• Annabelle’s journey to having her pain taken seriously wasn’t easy. A new health service has brought relief

  27-07-2025 02:00
  Free Victorian government-funded virtual women’s health clinic aims to fill the gap in access to vital servicesFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastAnnabelle says she didn’t realise how much pain she was in until something as simple as laughing hurt.“We were in the car and Mum made a joke,” she says. “I laughed, then turned to her and said, ‘Can you not do that? It hurts to breathe.&rs
  
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• ‘Ignoring hot flushes is wrong’: study challenges assumptions about perimenopause symptoms

  26-07-2025 00:30
  Research notes lack of interventions for perimenopausal women despite finding that hot flushes and night sweats can be as severe as for those of menopauseGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastAlmost 40% of women going through perimenopause experience moderate to severe hot flushes and night sweats but have no treatment options, new research has found.The study, published in the Lancet Diabetes & Endocrinology, explored differences in symptom prevalence by menopausal stag
  
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• Labor MP says Australia should move to recognise Palestinian statehood – as it happened

  25-07-2025 09:29
  This blog is now closedGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastIndependent MP Allegra Spender will hold what’s being referred to as a tax reform roundtable today. She told RN Breakfast this morning reforming the tax system would help Australia “solve some of its biggest problems” like sluggish productivity and the cost of living crisis affecting young people, as well as fund the climate transition.The goal for this roundtable is to both contribute to the trea
  
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• Senator calls out ‘incredibly childish stunts’ – as it happened

  24-07-2025 09:48
  This blog is now closedAustralia warned it could face legal action over ‘wrongful’ fossil fuel actions after landmark climate ruling from world’s top courtGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastCoalition demands biosecurity reassurances after US beef trade deal newsThe opposition is a little less welcoming of the decision to lift restrictions on US beef.The prime minister himself has said that we couldn’t relax the restrictions on the importation of US
  
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• Australia’s largest private hospital operator to close majority of psychology clinics to be ‘flexible, sustainable’

  24-07-2025 09:26
  Seventeen of Ramsay Health Care’s 20 clinics will close by the end of August, with only Cairns, Charlestown and Joondalup to remain operatingFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastRamsay Health Care, Australia’s largest private hospital operator, has announced it will be closing the majority of its psychology clinics, described by the peak body as “very sad news” for those needing mental health care
  
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• ‘Slip, slop, slap for brain health’: Australia needs a major prevention campaign for dementia, doctor says

  23-07-2025 06:39
  Prof Henry Brodaty of UNSW says managing risk factors such as diet and anxiety is a cost-effective way of curbing the diseaseFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastA “slip, slap, slop”-style preventative campaign is needed for dementia, as new research shows cases of the disease could be delayed with no added cost, a leading doctor has told the National Press Club on Wednesday.In the speech titled “Hope B
  
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• Is ‘office air’ to blame for your limp hair and spotty, flaky skin? | Antiviral

  22-07-2025 17:00
  Air conditioning, heating and poor ventilation in the office can contribute to drier skin and greasier hair, but other factors such as the commute may play a part tooRead more in the Antiviral seriesStill-life paintings known as vanitas, popular in the 17th century, served as reminders of the transient nature of everything on earth, doomed to wither and fade. It’s a lesson most of us get when we catch our reflection in the office mirror and are shocked to find our neatly groomed appearance
  
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• Teenage vaping has ‘turned a corner’ in Australia, says Mark Butler, as data shows falling rates

  15-07-2025 17:00
  Report finds vaping rate among children aged 14-17 years has declined, with some describing embarrassment about being a ‘vaper’Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastThe federal government believes dangerous vaping rates among younger Australians may have turned a corner after years of rapid growth, with new research showing take-up could have peaked among teenagers and high school-age children.Data released by
  
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• Indigenous midwife referred to by racist slur on staff whiteboard at Sydney’s RPA hospital

  13-07-2025 17:00
  Exclusive: Renee Bani quit hospital’s Aboriginal midwifery group practice due to a number of factors which she said ‘came down to, basically, racism’Warning: This article contains outdated offensive languageFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesRead more from our investigation into the maternal health and infant removal crisis facing First Nations women in AustraliaGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastA former midwife at one of Sydney&rsquo
  
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• RBA deputy warns of Brexit-scale impact as Trump threatens 200% tariffs on foreign pharmaceuticals

  09-07-2025 07:25
  Andrew Hauser says it is ‘puzzling’ investors not more concerned by tectonic economic shifts emanating from WashingtonFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastLabor is making urgent representations to the White House about Donald Trump’s threat to impose 200% tariffs on drug imports to the US, amid growing warnings the US president’s growing trade war will seriously damage the global economy.Trump sai
  
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• What is hair and scalp oiling, and will it make my locks long like Rapunzel? | Antiviral

  08-07-2025 17:00
  While some people are just genetically blessed, many popular hair hacks are simply commonsense, say experts• Read more in the Antiviral seriesMythical representations of women, whether Botticelli’s Venus, the Hindu goddess Lakshmi or the pre-Raphaellites’ women of the Arthurian legends are often united by a common trait: their long flowing hair. You might think such lengths are confined to the realm of myth untouched by the realities of split ends, but if you look on social medi
  
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• News live: RBA interest rate decision due; PM says Australians want ‘action’ not national cabinet after alleged antisemitic attacks

  08-07-2025 04:00
  
  Follow today’s news liveGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastQueensland zoo to reopen two days after woman loses arm to lionessA woman has lost her arm after being attacked on Sunday at a Queensland zoo by a lioness, which the zoo insists “was not hungry” or maltreated.We can confirm that she was attacked by a lioness. She was not in its enclosure.As a result the Darling Downs zoo will reopen at 9am tomorrow [Tuesday] morning. Continue reading...
  
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• US lobby groups urge tariff retaliation against Australia’s ‘socialised medicine’

  07-07-2025 17:00
  
  US trade representative has been collecting evidence of countries ‘freeloading’ as part of Donald Trump’s tariff campaignFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastSome of the most influential lobby groups in Washington are pushing the US to retaliate against Australia’s treatment of American exporters, pointing to drug approvals and domestic manufacturing incentives as proof of unfair “freeloadin
  
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• Australian doctors call for clampdown on social media influencers allegedly glamorising poker machines

  06-07-2025 17:00
  Doctors’ warning comes after report reveals the social cost of gambling in Victoria had doubled to $14bnFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastThe peak body for Australian doctors has urged politicians and social media companies to restrict “shocking” content of influencers allegedly glamorising poker machines on social media, in what it called an incredibly new phenomenon.The warning comes after a report
  
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• Patterson jury deliberations to continue into a sixth day – as it happened

  04-07-2025 10:13
  Follow the latest updates liveGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastSmoke coming from Sydney tram causes to be suspended on Randwick lineLight rail services on the Randwick line have stopped due to smoke coming from the roof of a tram.The man managed to get back into his car and drive a short distance before being overcome by his injuries. Continue reading...
  
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• As this week’s weather headlines prove, one term offers media the biggest bang for their buck: bomb cyclone | Weekly Beast

  04-07-2025 05:35
  ‘Very, very old’ meteorological term garners 8,500 mentions in a week. Plus: the ABC announces Toxic, a primetime seriesWant to get this in your inbox every Friday? Sign up for the Weekly Beast media newsletter hereThe extreme weather in New South Wales this week generated some dramatic headlines. “NSW about to get absolutely obliterated” from news.com.au is a personal favourite – and pretty much summed up the tone of much of the coverage.One term popped up repeated
  
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• Royal Prince Alfred hospital management pauses cuts across women and babies unit after protests

  03-07-2025 12:24
  Exclusive: One midwife said staff were ‘so relieved that the cuts had been paused’ and that they hoped a fair roster could be negotiatedFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastManagement at Royal Prince Alfred hospital (RPA) in Sydney will pause its cuts to staffing levels across its women and babies unit, just days after staff protested against the changes.Dozens of midwives and other clinical staff held a snap
  
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• Weatherill to lead Victorian childcare review – as it happened

  03-07-2025 09:45
  This blog is now closedConcerns Melbourne childcare worker charged with sexual abuse offences had wider work history than initially disclosedGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastPower continues to be restored in NSWAbout 5,800 customers remained without power at 7am Thursday, according to network operators Ausgrid, Endeavour Energy and Essential Energy. Continue reading...
  
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• A man has died after contracting the first NSW case of Australian bat lyssavirus. Here’s everything you need to know about the deadly infection

  03-07-2025 09:40
  The rabies-like virus is extremely rare with no effective treatment after symptoms beginFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastA man from northern New South Wales has died after contracting the state’s first recorded case of Australian bat lyssavirus, a close relative of the rabies virus.The man, in his 50s, was bitten by a bat “several” months ago and received treatment at the time, NSW Health said. Cont
  
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• Man in critical condition with lyssavirus after bat bite – as it happened

  02-07-2025 10:03
  This blog is now closedKhaled Sabsabi reinstated as Venice Biennale representative after independent review into dumpingGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastNSW wild weather: ‘Conditions can become dangerous quickly’Wild weather has brought down trees, damaged properties and flooded roads on the NSW coast, NSW SES says.These incidents are a timely reminder that roads are slippery, and conditions can become dangerous quickly.Please, never drive, walk or play in f
  
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• When the time comes to die, what end-of-life care would doctors choose for themselves? | Ranjana Srivastava

  01-07-2025 17:00
  Palliative care decisions are sensitive and complex, but the desire for a good death is as universal as the fact of dyingThe uncustomary quiet of a Sunday morning in the emergency department is broken by a universally relevant question.“And if your heart were to suddenly stop beating, what would you like us to do?” Continue reading...
  
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• Australia’s life expectancy gap narrows but men in disadvantaged areas dying almost seven years earlier

  01-07-2025 17:00
  Major causes of death contributing to inequality are lung cancer, respiratory illness and heart disease, ANU researchers sayFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastAustralia has made progress in reducing socioeconomic inequalities in life expectancy but men living in disadvantaged areas are still dying almost seven years earlier, a new report from the Australian National University has found.The study’s lead author an
  
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• Midwives and supporters protest cuts to staffing at Sydney's Royal Prince Alfred hospital – video

  01-07-2025 08:26
  Midwives and supporters rallied outside the Royal Prince Alfred hospital in Camperdown on Tuesday, protesting against cuts to the number of staff deployed across the birth and delivery unit. The NSW Nurses and Midwives' Association says the reductions will mean the hospital won't be able to provide one midwife to each woman. O'Bray Smith, the association's president, said nine beds in the maternity ward would be cut, warning that 'women will be pushed out faster than they already are'. Ryan Park
  
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• Women and babies could die due to midwife cuts at Sydney’s RPA hospital, staff warn

  01-07-2025 08:21
  Midwives’ union president warns women giving birth at one of the city’s largest hospitals will not receive a level of care considered safeFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastMidwives at one of Sydney’s largest hospitals have warned women and babies could die in light of cuts to the number of midwives staff deployed across the birth and delivery unit.Hospital staff say 20 full-time equivalent roles have
  
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