A report published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute late last week shows a potential link between omega-3 fatty acids and the risk of developing prostate cancer. But it may be premature…
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Health – Articles, Analysis, Comment
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An American neuroscientist claims to have solved the problem of free will. Peter Tse, who works at Dartmouth College in New Hampshire, says that the key to free will lies in how neurons can rewire each…
The Australian Competition & Consumer Commission (ACCC) is working with manufacturers and the industry to improve battery safety after the recent death of a toddler who swallowed a lithium button battery…
Alcohol is a serious problem in Australia, both on the weekend streets and more widely behind the closed doors. It’s time we started a conversation about what can be done to help, and we should consider…
Social entrepreneur Daniel Jacobs raised US$50,000 to develop a “placebo” iPhone app that he says will help people make positive changes in their lives for health, joy and love. No deception is involved…
Sport, at both international and local levels, seems to constantly be in a doping crisis. It may be time to consider legalising performance enhancers because zero tolerance is clearly not working. This…
A new type of malaria vaccine that has been shown to be safe in mice is about to start trials in humans. This promising vaccine is different to other approaches to stopping the deadly disease because we…
It used to be said that the difficulty with parenting is that no-one gives you a manual, but you could argue that adage is no longer true. From “tiger mums” to “attachment parents”, countless manifestos…
In Australia, there are approximately 1,200 infants who die every year before their first birthday, most in the first days or weeks of life. But there are no palliative care services available to these…
The National Assembly of Wales has legislated to introduce an “opt-out” system for human organ and tissue transplantation, which will come into effect in 2015. In doing so, Wales joins a host of other…
A poll by Lifeline released earlier this week shows almost two-thirds of Australians reported sleep loss because of stress relating to work or their finances. The findings went largely unremarked, even…
In the past, pregnant women were discouraged from exercise. Pregnancy was seen as a time to put your feet up and take it easy. But this historical view of pregnancy was very much based on cultural and…
A recent article by Jean Hannah Edelstein featured in Fairfax’s Daily Life website examines the impact of loneliness on health. Edelstein is right that loneliness exacerbates ill health and shortens life…
Exercise is said to foster better health and well-being as well as increasing life expectancy. But you can have too much of a good thing, it seems, as evidence shows that there may an optimal level of…
Four years ago, a woman came to speak to my third year psychology class at the University of Auckland. Her story completely changed the way I thought about voice-hearing. Like most people, I associated…
It may come as a surprise but air pollution levels indoors are almost always higher than outside, even in busy city centres. Even more surprising is that indoor plants have the ability to mitigate high…
Why do women hate to have their picture taken? That’s the question Dove, the global beauty brand, asks in its latest advertisement. The video – see below – is part of Dove’s campaign for “real beauty…
Parents are bombarded with information about how best to raise their children, often coupled with the threat of nasties, such as childhood obesity and developing neuroses, if they choose not to follow…
Research about the impact of marriage between first cousins on rates of birth defects garnered much media attention when it was published late last week. Sadly, most of the coverage worked to alarm rather…
Passive pastimes such as watching television and playing video games are often the easy option for parents but not necessarily good for their children. But is the solution “active” video games that the…
We all possess a unique set of personality traits that make us who we are. These are the usual ways we perceive, think, feel, behave and relate to others, and they tend to be consistent across time and…
The launch this week of his new book Battlers and Billionaires: The Story Of Inequality in Australia, by parliamentarian and economist Andrew Leigh, raises a question about whether the issue of growing…
We’ve long known that allergies such as eczema, hay fever and asthma are caused by a combination of genetic and environmental factors. But we’ve been unclear about which genes are responsible. This week…
Medical abortions will finally be easily available to Australian women when the drug RU486 (mifepristone and misoprostol) is listed on the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS) from August 1, 2013. But…
The UK government has announced its intention to draft proposals allowing carriers of mitochondrial disease to have babies using a controversial IVF treatment that’s currently prohibited. The procedure…