Health news

• Five lifestyle factors could keep brain 'eight years younger'

  04-01-2026 05:00 via express.co.uk
  A new study pinpointed some vital lifestyle habits to keep your brain healthy.
  
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• Health officials slash number of childhood vaccines

  05-01-2026 21:07 via dailymail.co.uk
  
  US officials on Monday said they were revising the nation's childhood immunization schedule to recommend four fewer vaccines.
  
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• US to slash routine vaccine recommendations for children in major change experts say creates doubt

  05-01-2026 20:45
  Jabs to prevent influenza, rotavirus, respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) and other vaccines are no longer fully recommendedThe Trump administration will slash routine vaccine recommendations during childhood from 17 to 11 jabs – the biggest change to vaccines yet under the purview of longtime vaccine critic Robert F Kennedy Jr.The changes, which US health officials announced on Monday afternoon and are effective immediately, will erode trust and reduce access to vaccines while allowing infe
  
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• Health officials slash childhood vaccines, recommending four fewer shots

  05-01-2026 20:32 via dailymail.co.uk
  
  US officials on Monday said they were revising the nation's childhood immunization schedule to recommend four fewer vaccines.
  
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• The Guardian view on the junk food advertising ban: shaping tastes is a job for government | Editorial

  05-01-2026 20:04
  Weight-loss drugs cannot solve the problem of poor diet. Ministers are right to demand healthier food and promotionsAfter years of wrangling, from this week new rules shield children in the UK from junk food advertisements. Those featuring processed food and drink products in 13 categories – including soft drinks with added sugar, crisps, chocolate and sweets – are now banned online, and can only be shown on broadcast TV after 9pm. In a month already strongly associated with the givi
  
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• Shortage of NHS stroke specialists resulting in thousands dead or disabled, say doctors

  05-01-2026 19:00
  Exclusive: Lack of consultants in UK health service means patients do not get drugs or surgery in time, say senior medicsThousands of people who have had a stroke are ending up severely disabled or dying because the NHS has too few specialists to treat them quickly enough, senior doctors are warning.A chronic shortage of stroke consultants across the NHS means that patients are suffering horrendous consequences because of delays in getting clot-busting drugs and surgery, they said.70% of stroke
  
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• Shortage of NHS stroke specialists leaving thousands dead or disabled, say doctors

  05-01-2026 19:00
  Exclusive: Chronic lack of consultants across UK health service means patients do not get drugs or surgery in timeThousands of people who have had a stroke are ending up severely disabled or dying because the NHS has too few specialists to treat them quickly enough, senior doctors are warning.A chronic shortage of stroke consultants across the NHS means that patients are suffering horrendous consequences because of delays in getting clot-busting drugs and surgery, they said.70% of stroke units a
  
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• Simple finger-prick blood test could soon diagnose dementia

  05-01-2026 18:09 via dailymail.co.uk
  
  At home blood tests could soon be used to diagnose dementia, revolutionising dementia care and treatment access.
  
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• Do you suffer from crippling knee pain? This is the simple five-minute trick that ANYONE can try to ease soreness - and delay the need for joint replacement

  05-01-2026 17:51 via dailymail.co.uk
  
  Nine million people in the UK have osteoarthritis, where the protective cartilage within a joint breaks down, causing pain and problems moving the joint.
  
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• People who are most active in the afternoon could be at increased risk of dementia, study finds

  05-01-2026 17:43 via dailymail.co.uk
  
  Scientists in the US found that older adults who were most productive after 2pm were more likely to develop the memory-robbing disease than those who peaked earlier.
  
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• Experts reveal when to go to the emergency department and when to go to urgent care

  05-01-2026 16:18 via dailymail.co.uk
  
  Knowing the difference between the ED and urgent care is crucial. This guide cuts through the confusion, outlining red flags that require the ER and the issues best handled by urgent care.
  
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• Chronic neck pain ended my marriage and made sleep impossible. After doctors left me thinking opioids were the only answer, a little-known treatment gave me my life back

  05-01-2026 13:34 via dailymail.co.uk
  
  After trying a treatment she was initially sceptical of, Mel's neck pain went away within two sessions.
  
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• Beware the hidden health damage of Veganuary: How plant milks could be secretly harming our IQ

  05-01-2026 13:10 via dailymail.co.uk
  
  You've probably never been concerned about iodine deficiency. And why would you? Up until 15 years ago, it was a thing of the past in this country.
  
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• All the foods now classed as 'junk' by advertising chiefs as new law comes into force tonight... including snacks and drinks regarded as healthy

  05-01-2026 13:08 via dailymail.co.uk
  
  A ban on TV junk food advertising before the watershed and a blanket ban online will come into force this evening in a bid to tackle the childhood obesity crisis.
  
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• The chatbot will see you now: how AI is being trained to spot mental health issues in any language

  05-01-2026 13:00
  Calls to a clinic in Uganda are helping create a therapy algorithm that works in local languages, as specialists look to technology to address the global mental health crisisWhen patients telephone Butabika hospital in Kampala, Uganda, seeking help with mental health problems, they are themselves assisting future patients by helping to create a therapy chatbot.Calls to the clinic helpline are being used to train an AI algorithm that researchers hope will eventually power a chatbot offering thera
  
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• Chronic neck pain ended my marriage and made sleep impossible. After doctors said opioids were the only answer, a little-known treatment gave me my life back

  05-01-2026 12:53 via dailymail.co.uk
  
  After trying a treatment she was initially sceptical of, Mel's neck pain went away within two sessions.
  
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• Heartbreaking truth about the devastating muscle disease that's hit Jesy Nelson's twins - and the warning signs every parent should know

  05-01-2026 12:48 via dailymail.co.uk
  
  In an emotional Instagram video posted on Sunday, Ms Nelson revealed the girls had been diagnosed with spinal muscular atrophy type 1 (SMA-1).
  
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• The best workout and fitness buys in the January sales to kick-start your road to better health in 2026

  05-01-2026 12:45 via dailymail.co.uk
  
  Improving health and fitness is a top New Year's resolution for most Britons, and there are plenty of great discounts across January you can take advantage of to help you reach your goal.
  
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• Deaths set to outnumber births in the UK: 'Hard questions for the future'

  05-01-2026 12:34 via dailymail.co.uk
  
  Experts have worryingly predicted that the death rate in the UK will surpass the birth rate.
  
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• Tofu unpressed: Why the fermented soybean block is the most misunderstood protein in the supermarket… and how to use it to make moreish dishes even meat eaters will enjoy

  05-01-2026 12:13 via dailymail.co.uk
  
  Let's begin by debunking two massive myths about tofu: It tastes as beige as it looks, and it's just for vegans.
  
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• The perfect way to do nothing: how to embrace the art of idling

  05-01-2026 12:00
  We are often so busy and yet when the opportunity arises to do nothing, we can find it uncomfortable. Here’s how to lean into boredom – and unlock the imagination• Sign up here to get the whole series straight to your inboxOn a rainy afternoon last weekend, plans got cancelled and I found myself at a loose end. Given that I’m someone who likes to have backup plans for my backup plans, my initial response was panic. Now what? I wandered aimlessly from room to room, grumpily
  
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• Is it true that … going out when it is chilly can make you catch a cold?

  05-01-2026 09:00
  Respiratory infections are more common in winter, but it’s largely because we spend more time indoors in close contact with other peopleIs spending too much time outside on chilly days to blame for coughs and runny noses? Not exactly. “Colds are more common in the winter, but it’s almost certainly correlation, not causation,” says John Tregoning, a professor in vaccine immunology at Imperial College London.One marginal factor is that UV light can kill viruses. S
  
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• ‘Women have to fight for what they want’: UK campaigner’s 60-year unfinished battle for abortion rights

  05-01-2026 08:00
  Diane Munday helped secure legal terminations in 1967 and, aged 94, is still calling for wider reproductive rightsWhen the 1967 Abortion Act cleared parliament, marking one of the most significant steps forward for women’s rights in history, Diane Munday was among the campaigners raising a glass of champagne on the terrace of the House of Commons.“I’m only drinking a half a glass,” she told her colleagues at the time, “because the job is only half done.” Conti
  
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• My mental health was suffering because I was using my phone for EIGHT HOURS a day... this simple hack transformed my life

  05-01-2026 08:00 via dailymail.co.uk
  
  A woman who was glued to her phone for eight hours a day has revealed the simple hack that helped her drastically cut down her screen time.
  
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• UK arts groups offer therapeutic support to performers as they refute myth of tortured artist

  05-01-2026 06:00
  ‘You don’t have to be tortured to make great art,’ says founder of mental health support organisation Artist WellbeingFrom Vincent van Gogh to Virginia Woolf, from Nina Simone to Amy Winehouse, the tortured-artist archetype looms large: private torment fuelling public brilliance.But across opera, theatre, film and television, a growing movement is pushing back against what many now insist is a corrosive myth – the romanticised necessity of creative martyrdom. Continue rea
  
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• UK arts groups offer therapeutic support to performers as they challenge myth of tortured artist

  05-01-2026 06:00
  ‘You don’t have to be tortured to make great art,’ says founder of mental health support organisation Artist WellbeingFrom Vincent van Gogh to Virginia Woolf, from Nina Simone to Amy Winehouse, the tortured-artist archetype looms large: private torment fuelling public brilliance.But across opera, theatre, film and television, a growing movement is pushing back against what many now insist is a corrosive myth – the romanticised necessity of creative martyrdom. Continue rea
  
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• Over 70 per cent of Britons unable to identify ingredients in the supermarket bread they buy and eat daily

  05-01-2026 01:34 via dailymail.co.uk
  
  Nearly three quarters of Britons are unable to identify the ingredients in the bread they buy and eat, new research has revealed.
  
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• The REAL reason you bite your nails, procrastinate and self-sabotage, according to a clinical psychologist

  05-01-2026 01:26 via dailymail.co.uk
  
  A clinical psychologist has explained why so many people succumb to self-sabotaging behaviours such as procrastination, skin-picking and ghosting people.
  
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• Waist-to-height ratio 'is better than BMI for predicting health', new research suggests

  04-01-2026 23:48 via dailymail.co.uk
  
  Using a tape measure may help pinpoint those who have more fat stored around their vital organs, which can increase the risk of conditions such as heart disease and stroke.
  
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• The NHS is still a priceless resource | Brief letters

  04-01-2026 18:33
  Healthcare and humanity | Too many celebrities | Aid agencies in Gaza | Size matters | Neither Twixtmas nor TwixmasHaving watched as my seriously ill husband was nursed back to health from near death, I absolutely agree with Anne Perkins (I knew all about the NHS’s challenges and flaws. But then as a patient, I saw the love and the magic, 29 December). When we don’t need the NHS, it is quietly working in the background. When we do, the care, love and support is beyond words and is pr
  
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