We asked five experts if coconut water is good for you. Four out of five experts said no.
Academic rigour, journalistic flair
Analysis and Comment
Many Aboriginal survivors of sexual abuse find mainstream counselling inappropriate. But there is a way to help them heal that respects a collective culture, with strong community ties.
Drinking guidelines are based on the levels of alcohol consumption the latest research says can be harmful. But these guidelines don't necessarily suit the alcohol industry.
Responding to someone who questions vaccination can be difficult. Before you react, it pays to assess the situation because weighing in can do more harm than good.
Women will experience symptoms in the time leading up to menopause. This period is known as perimenopause.
Swallowing a lot of gum can cause it to stick together or stick to food in your gut.
People with mental illness are at their most vulnerable when they're discharged from hospital. Without the support of family or friends at this time, they're less likely to recover.
One in four Australians is overweight or obese by the time they reach adolescence, but it's difficult to predict who is at risk. These three questions can help.
Curing thousands of Australians with hepatitis C is one of the public health success stories of recent years. We can take lessons from this as we continue in the fight against hepatitis B.
The British Psychological Society is calling for a language change, from 'obese people' to 'people living with obesity'. But using the word obesity can reinforce rather than prevent stigma.
Organs from gay men or injecting drug users, often rejected for transplants, could safely be used, so long as donors test negative for infections such as HIV, and hepatitis B and C.
Women with endometriosis pay an average of $1,200 in out-of-pocket health costs a year. When you add lost wages and productivity, the costs add up to $30,000 per sufferer every year.
Pharmacies are paid a set amount to dispense most medicines, so the more they dispense, the greater their income. But there's a better way to pay pharmacists and improve health care at the same time.
Wondering if that latest study finding is too good to be true, or whether it's as bad as we're told? Here are five questions to ask to help you assess the evidence.
Hives are incredibly common and most people find antihistamines help relieve this itchy skin rash. But for some, hives persist, so they have to try other treatments.
When a manufacturer lists a serving size on their food label, it's based on their expectations of what you'll eat, not what the dietary guidelines recommend.
Oxygen is vital for life, so much so that cells can sense when there isn't enough and adapt almost instantly. So how do they do it? The winners of the 2019 Nobel Prize for Physiology figured it out.
New international research shows one in four physiotherapists provide treatments that aren't based on evidence. These treatments aren't likely to cause harm, but they might waste patients' time.
You no longer have to go to your GP to get your flu shot or catch up on vaccinations you missed earlier in life or have waning immunity to. But they're unlikely to be free.
Australia’s rich diversity is reflected in its older population. It's time our nursing homes do the same.
Puberty can make us behave differently.
The story of how human eggs became an integral part of a multi-billion dollar global fertility industry starts in a unlikely place: the sex lives of farm animals.
New research reveals that routine sparring can have immediate effects on the brain, putting athletes at greater risk of injury when brain-muscle communication is impaired.
The advice is still to limit your red meat intake to a maximum of 500g a week. So why did some headlines tell us otherwise this week?
When codeine became a prescription only drug in 2018, the number of overdoses dropped, our new research shows. But restricting sales of codeine is only one way to reduce harm from opioids.
Contamination with the chemical NDMA means long-term use of ranitidine may increase a person's risk of cancer later in life.
We asked five experts if your mental state can affect how well you recover from illness and disease. Five out of five said yes.
Addiction has multiple causes and just chalking it up to someone's personality probably isn't very helpful in dealing with it.
Loneliness is often triggered by significant life events, and young people have these in abundance. But the solution isn't as simple as joining a group or trying harder to make friends.
People with mental illness are at their most vulnerable when they're discharged from hospital. Without the support of family or friends at this time, they're less likely to recover.
One in four Australians is overweight or obese by the time they reach adolescence, but it's difficult to predict who is at risk. These three questions can help.
Genome-wide association studies are more like genome white association studies.
Climate change and health
When we think about the health impacts of climate change, the effects of rising temperatures on physical health are often front of mind. But climate change affects people's mental health, too.
Average temperatures in Australia are already high by international standards, but what happens when they continue to rise? How much heat can our bodies withstand?
Pharmacy agreement negotiations
Only pharmacists can own a pharmacy and you can't set one up within 1.5km of an existing one. But calls to loosen these rules could give health companies a green light to set up more chemist chains.
You no longer have to go to your GP to get your flu shot or catch up on vaccinations you missed earlier in life or have waning immunity to. But they're unlikely to be free.
The 'turf war' between doctors and pharmacists we see in current debates has a long history.
Vaping
We've still got a lot to learn about the long term health effects of vaping. But based on what we know so far, vaping liquids containing oils, and especially cannabis/THC liquids, should be avoided.
More than 20 countries have banned e-cigarettes.
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From the archives
We're seeing the resurgence of an old lung disease in people who make and install the type of engineered stone product you might find in your kitchen or bathroom.
The World Health Organisation has classified gaming disorder as an addiction. But it involves more than just playing videogames for hours on end. Here's how to spot it and what you can do about it.
Doctors who won't perform abortions on religious grounds may have stronger legal protection and may not be compelled to refer women to an alternative provider. Here's why that's bad news for women.
Almost one in three new mothers report severe problems getting their baby to sleep and settle. Every baby is different but some women are more likely to struggle – here's why.
Understanding of depression has advanced significantly since the first diagnostic criteria were introduced in the 1980s, but we still lack clear consensus on how this mental disorder should be explained.
National drug regulators use evidence from clinical trials to decide whether new cancer drugs will be approved for use. But these studies are often flawed.
The proposed Australian ban of some types of breast implants is too little, too late. It also reveals regulatory failures that need to be fixed if Australian consumers are to be protected.
If NSW decriminalises abortion, women will be able to access a termination up to 22 weeks' gestation. But such cut-offs are arbitrary and should be abandoned.
From the archives
There are health risks associated with cannabis use, but there's no evidence use will increase if it's legalised.
Young people have reason to protest today and call for action on climate change. But they risk anxiety if they feel they are not heard and nothing is done.
Expert looks at latest diet trend which claims 'resetting' your hormones is the key to losing stubborn weight.
The myth that children grow out of autism can prevent parents from seeing and accepting their child as the wonderful human being they are and recognising their strengths.
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