Health news

• Playing mahjong protects against dementia

  01-01-2026 21:08 via dailymail.co.uk
  
  It spread internationally in the 1920s after being introduced to the US, and its popularity has continued to grow worldwide. Now, experts believe it may help to prevent dementia.
  
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• Oprah Winfrey makes shocking claim about what GLP-1 weight loss drug did to her... 'I don't recognize myself'

  01-01-2026 21:08 via dailymail.co.uk
  
  Media mogul Oprah Winfrey, 71, has revealed in a new interview the unexpected effects she experienced after going on blockbuster weight loss drugs to maintain her weight.
  
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• Ancient board game loved by Julia Roberts and Meghan Markle protects against dementia

  01-01-2026 19:50 via dailymail.co.uk
  
  It spread internationally in the 1920s after being introduced to the US, and its popularity has continued to grow worldwide. Now, experts believe it may help to prevent dementia.
  
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• The Guardian view on mRNA vaccines: they are the future – with or without Donald Trump | Editorial

  01-01-2026 18:30 via theguardian.com
  Over the holiday period, the Guardian leader column is looking ahead at the themes of 2026. Today we examine how the White House’s war on vaccines has left the future of a key technology uncertain and up for grabsThe late scientist and thinker Donald Braben argued that 20th-century breakthroughs arose from scientists being free to pursue bold ideas without pressure for quick results or rigid peer review. The rapid development of Covid-19 vaccines seemed to validate his claim: emergency con
  
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• The reason for Italy’s ‘demographic winter’ | Letters

  01-01-2026 18:07 via theguardian.com
  Peter Foreshaw Brookes says worry about falling sperm counts is misplacedThe Italian “demographic winter” has a number of causes, but rising male biological infertility is not one (A child is born: Italians celebrate village’s first baby in 30 years, 26 December).A lot of worry about falling sperm counts has been generated by some studies, but a more recent meta‑analysis found, through inclusion of regional controls, an increase in US sperm counts between 1970 and 20
  
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• US hits grim measles milestone as world's most infectious disease spreads uncontrollably

  01-01-2026 17:57 via dailymail.co.uk
  
  The US has passed a grim milestone in the measles outbreak that has been plaguing the country, as cases of the world's most infectious disease near record highs.
  
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• What women of different ages find the most attractive in men, according to science - so, do you agree with the findings?

  01-01-2026 17:04 via dailymail.co.uk
  
  If you've ever wondered why older women hanker after Pierce Brosnan while younger ladies prefer Henry Cavill, scientists now have the answer.
  
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• High blood pressure: who is at risk and why UK children are getting it

  01-01-2026 16:01 via theguardian.com
  Why it is so dangerous, how it is diagnosed and how to help prevent itHigh blood pressure was long considered a health problem of middle age, but rates are increasing in children and adolescents, with doctors reporting a surge in strokes among people of working age. Continue reading...
  
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• Call for routine high blood pressure testing of UK children as cases almost double

  01-01-2026 16:00 via theguardian.com
  Exclusive: Identifying teenagers at risk could help prevent organ damage, strokes and heart attacks in early adulthood, doctors sayLeading doctors have called for a national UK programme to monitor schoolchildren for high blood pressure amid concerns that rising rates in adolescents will increase cases of organ damage, strokes and heart attacks.Rates of high blood pressure have nearly doubled among children in the past 20 years, but no routine testing is performed in the UK, leaving doctors in t
  
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• The surprising facial feature that can reveal if you will get dementia

  01-01-2026 15:54 via dailymail.co.uk
  
  Doctors revealed a surprising facial feature that showed strong links to dementia in a massive UK study. They found that people's faces can reflect internal age-related damage.
  
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• At 51, I’m about to start work as a junior doctor. It’s been a wild ride to get here | Ben Collins

  01-01-2026 15:00 via theguardian.com
  My transformation was most apparent the day I realised that a digital rectal examination can be life-savingFor the last four years I’ve been breaking every rule of appropriate, normal behaviour. I’ve poked, probed, inserted, stabbed and cut people in their most intimate body parts. I’ve examined dissected bodies and riffled through a bucket of human hearts. I’ve been baptised in every bodily fluid known; dodged spurting blood, spilt oozing pus and been caught out by the f
  
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• 'Eternal Sunshine' therapy could 'wipe' bad memories and replace them with better ones, according to top neuroscientist

  01-01-2026 14:27 via dailymail.co.uk
  
  Memories of past trauma could soon be 'dialed down' in the brain so they no longer haunt us. The same techniques could reclaim memories lost to Alzheimer's.
  
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• I was a top athlete but ballooned to 300lbs by eating my feelings. Here's my secret to losing 120lbs and getting washboard abs without Ozempic

  01-01-2026 14:19 via dailymail.co.uk
  
  Tre Hubbard was a star athlete who never thought he'd have to worry about his weight. But then, it all came piling on.
  
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• Ancient grain hailed 'world's healthiest carb' beats brown rice and quinoa

  01-01-2026 13:36 via express.co.uk
  Cultivated by the Aztecs for thousands of years, one food hailed by experts as one of the most nutrient-rich grains with more protein than quinoa and brown rice.
  
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• Working from home is fuelling a concerning rise in 'secret drinking', new survey reveals

  01-01-2026 13:19 via dailymail.co.uk
  
  Not going into the office and working from home is fuelling a rise in hidden drinking, concerning new research has suggested.
  
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• I thought I had cancer but my recurring, agonising UTIs were caused by a far more common problem that affects all women... and this is the simple fix doctors rarely offer

  01-01-2026 13:02 via dailymail.co.uk
  
  It was in November, when I developed my ninth UTI n four months, that I began to wonder if I had some awful disease. Could I have kidney disease - or even bladder cancer?
  
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• At the turn of the year, I’m facing a pivot point. Midlife crisis? No thanks | Emma Brockes

  01-01-2026 13:00 via theguardian.com
  At 50, I find myself in a gazing-up-at-trees phase. What does it all mean? It’s not completely clear – but it’s certainly bothering my kidsAccording to research undertaken by Stanford Medicine in 2024, adult human beings are subject to two “massive biomolecular shifts” – spikes in ageing, in other words – one at 44 and another at 60, confirming what most of us instinctively know to be true: that we get older in jagged bursts – not with gentle, stea
  
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• Give men HRT: Millions could benefit from hormone drug that boosts sex drive, bedroom performance and muscle growth, study finds

  01-01-2026 12:55 via dailymail.co.uk
  
  Scientists say testosterone replacement therapy, known as TRT, could provide 'rapid and sustained' improvements in men's sexual performance, energy, and mood.
  
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• Shock as mother delivers GIANT 'bowling ball' baby who weighs 13lbs and is the same size as a THREE MONTH old

  01-01-2026 12:21 via dailymail.co.uk
  
  A mother has shared her shock at giving birth to a baby who weighs the same as a bowling ball.
  
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• The perfect day for parents: how to keep kids healthy and happy – without neglecting yourself

  01-01-2026 12:00 via theguardian.com
  Having a routine but not overplanning, getting them involved with chores and making sure you have time just for you can all help you stop being overwhelmed• Sign up here to get the whole series straight to your inboxMy four-year-old is in the living room playing with a dinosaur, a pig and Jessie the cowgirl from Toy Story. I’m trying to cook dinner. “Mama, mama, pllleeease can you play with me?” I hear a pot lid rattle. The broccoli is starting to smell burned; I dash back
  
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• You can eat MORE and still lose weight: Experts explain how 'volume eating' can totally transform your health (and waistline) in 2026

  01-01-2026 11:36 via dailymail.co.uk
  
  The problem with traditional dieting is that it is largely focused on restricting calories, meaning we are often left feeling hungry, unfulfilled and ultimately unmotivated to keep going.
  
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• Childhood vaccines to be delivered at home in £2m bid to boost uptake

  01-01-2026 09:20 via dailymail.co.uk
  
  Under the scheme, health visiting teams will be able to vaccinate children as part of routine visits, rather than requiring families to attend GP surgeries.
  
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• Month by month, exactly what a year of sobriety does to the body, revealed by experts - as one in four of us plan to quit booze for Dry January

  01-01-2026 08:00 via dailymail.co.uk
  
  If you're one of the 17 million people expected to kickstart the year with a month-long break from booze, you might be inspired to extend it
  
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• Ethnic minorities in England less likely to have access to diabetes tech – study

  01-01-2026 08:00 via theguardian.com
  ‘Concerning’ disparities in access to continuous glucose monitors despite black and south Asian people being more likely to live with conditionPeople from ethnic minority backgrounds in England are less likely to have access to the latest diabetes technology, despite being more likely to live with the condition, according to analysis.Devices such as a continuous glucose monitor (CGM) can help people check their blood glucose levels in order to better manage the disease. Continue read
  
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• Save your new year resolutions until the spring weather arrives

  01-01-2026 07:00 via theguardian.com
  Feelings of overwhelm decrease as days lengthen meaning resolutions will be more successful in MarchNew year; new you; new year’s resolutions. It’s that time of year when we commit ourselves to all sorts of ambitious targets, around 80% of which have petered out by the end of February. That’s because the middle of winter is a really bad time to tackle new challenges.Although humans don’t hibernate, our bodies do slow down when nights are long and the weather is colder. Le
  
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• Revisited: the real science of weight loss – podcast

  01-01-2026 06:00 via theguardian.com
  Kevin Hall spent 21 years at the US National Institutes of Health and became known globally for his pioneering work on ultra-processed foods. In April he unexpectedly took early retirement, citing censorship under the Trump administration.Now he has co-authored a book with the journalist Julia Belluz that aims to bust myths and challenge wellness orthodoxy on everything from weight loss and metabolism to supplements and wearables. In this episode from October, Hall tells Ian Sample what he wants
  
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• NHS issues warning to anyone taking levothyroxine for their thyroid

  01-01-2026 04:46 via express.co.uk
  Levothyroxine is one of the most commonly prescribed medicines in the UK, with around 33 million prescriptions being handed out each year
  
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• 'I'm a doctor and these are the signs you have a vitamin D deficiency'

  01-01-2026 04:01 via express.co.uk
  It is very common to have lower levels of vitamin D, especially in the winter, here are the symptoms to look out for.
  
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• I got rid of my back and shoulder pain overnight by making 1 swap

  01-01-2026 04:01 via express.co.uk
  I used to suffer from cramps and soreness in my back, shoulders and neck, but it disappeared almost instantly with one quick change.
  
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• The Birth Keepers: Building an empire – episode four

  01-01-2026 04:00 via theguardian.com
  Within months of the death of Lorren’s baby, Journey Moon, and the public backlash against the Free Birth Society (FBS) that followed, Emilee Saldaya took FBS membership private, turning the business into a global multimillion-dollar empire. This is episode four of a year-long investigation by Guardian journalists Sirin Kale and Lucy Osborne Continue reading...
  
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• A 10-minute workout could help halt bowel cancer before it takes hold, say scientists

  01-01-2026 02:24 via dailymail.co.uk
  
  Even a short bout of exercise can trigger a rapid molecular change in the blood that helps stave off tumour progression, say scientists.
  
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• Children in England to be offered vaccines in their own homes

  01-01-2026 01:01 via theguardian.com
  Exclusive: Pilot scheme launches as one in five start primary school with no protection against deadly diseasesHealth visitors will be sent door-to-door to deliver vaccines to children in England amid alarm that one in five start primary school with no protection against deadly diseases, the Guardian can reveal.The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends that at least 95% of children should receive vaccine doses for each illness to achieve herd immunity. However, not a single one of the main
  
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