Mental health is a complex, interactive dance of nature and nurture
A rich mix of genes and experience goes into the sum of us, from childhood into adulthood.
UK
United Kingdom
Academic rigour, journalistic flair
Analysis and Comment
Daily diary reveals how cannabis use affects people with bipolar
People with bipolar use more cannabis than others with mental health problems, but what do they think about its effects?
In praise of the humble fruit fly, leading the way on cancer research
Sarah Palin hated them and they've helped win Nobel prizes, so what is it about fruit flies that we should value so much?
The trouble with the floundering flagship that is Barts Health
Britain's biggest hospital trust also has the largest financial black hole in the NHS. How did it get there?
Cachexia: the hidden illness driving loved ones apart
Condition that affects appetite of terminally ill means difficulties for those who want to show their love through food.
Why you should never assume anything about people with autism
There are many successful people with autism yet it's still thought of as an inevitable disability.
Puerto Rico debates whether to fine parents with obese children
A third of children in Puerto Rico are obese but fining parents would just add to the burden.
So much has changed since the first HIV test was approved 30 years ago
The technology HIV testing has evolved since 1985. And so too have our perceptions about what a positive HIV test means.
Manchester’s devolution revolution: what will make the NHS a success?
The United Kingdom's second city will finally take control of its own health, but it's a risky venture.
Blue is the colour: why do we see #TheDress so differently?
The dress that broke the internet – but what colour is it?
Why we never learn: abuse, complaints and inquiries in the NHS
The health service has a long history both of abuse and the failure to do anything about it.
Cancer charter shows patients can demand their rights – and be heard
Patients don't always get their say, but a bill of rights for cancer shows that differences can be made.
UKIP manifesto pledges for the NHS don’t add up
UKIP have made some ambitious pledges for health but how do they look under the microscope?
Here’s a better alternative to food banks – subsidised national kitchens
Community kitchens that grew out of proud working class communities offer a way of feeding those struggling.
Five things that would improve things for people with dementia – and the rest of us too
David Cameron's new dementia strategy is ambitious but how far have we got in some key areas?
Will the law strike a knockout blow on concussion in rugby?
The Six Nations tournament has put the sport's handling of head injuries into an uncomfortable spotlight.
If health is a key battleground, then Labour is right to ‘weaponise’ the NHS
Given Ed Miliband lacks a defining mission, it may have been better to embrace the idea of fighting with the NHS.
Six lessons from the initial failed international response to Ebola
Response to the Ebola outbreak was slow but there are things we can take from it.
In pursuit of happiness: why some pain helps us feel pleasure
Confessions of a torture investigator: ‘a stabbing or mass murder is the same to me’
We’re all mammals – so why do we look so different?
How a simple vitamin B prescription could help people with Alzheimer’s
We’re so indoctrinated that saturated fat is bad that we don’t listen to the science
Research and News
It’s just not cricket! Only two neutral umpires can eliminate bias in favour of home team
When it comes to LBW decisions, it makes a difference where the umpires come from.
Infographic: how UK health spending compares to other countries
How UK health expenditure, access to care and health outcomes compare with seven other OECD countries.
End to HIV no closer as early treatment fails to cure baby
The virus' return in a second case of a baby who was ostensibly cured.
Ebola
Ebola outbreak: where we are now and what happens next
Ten months after the first cases of Ebola appeared in Guinea, the virus is still claiming many lives.
Do our genes determine whether we survive Ebola?
Lab-bred mice don’t get symptoms when infected with Ebola. Knowing why might help find new treatments.
Why people without symptoms aren’t going to give you Ebola
We’re told it’s not easy to catch Ebola – here’s why.
High hopes rest on 800 vials of experimental Ebola vaccine shipped from Canada
Canada donates its most advanced Ebola vaccine to the World Health Organisation for use in trials.
Brain matters
The real crisis in psychiatry is that there isn’t enough of it
Psychiatry is apparently in crisis – again.
Food and Nutrition
Official healthy food guide hasn’t changed in 20 years: five things that need updating
Despite two decades of nutritional research, official recommendations are only now being updated. It’s a rare opportunity.
Children know family budgets dictate how healthy their food is
From celebrity chef Jamie Oliver’s Money Saving Meals to blogging mum Jack Monroe’s 100 Delicious Budget Recipes to the NHS Eat4Cheap campaign, eating well on a budget is now a national pastime.
Columnists
Editors’ Picks
Sex and relationships
Lips are the most exposed erogenous zone, which makes kissing feel very good
Scientists in the Netherlands have reported that we share about 80m bacteria during a passionate ten-second kiss; a finding that makes puckering up seem cringe-worthy – and downright unsanitary at the…
Red wine
The compound behind all those stories about red wine being good for you
If you’re a teetotaller, your friends have likely tried to convince you to taste red wine by swearing on its multiple health benefits. These benefits have been credited to a compound found in red wine…
PMS
Prozac and PMS – how antidepressants could help with that painful time of the month
Already widely prescribed as antidepressants, SSRIs such as fluoxetine (the non-brand name for Prozac) have gained increasing acceptance over the past 20 years in the treatment of premenstrual syndrome…
Forensics
Nine blows to the head and then he was dead: forensics shed light on killing of Richard III
The discovery of Richard III’s skeletal remains under a car park in Leicester revealed the final resting place of the last English monarch to die in battle. We know that he was killed at the Battle of…
Africa
Producing medicines in Africa will only work if they can be distributed properly
A parliamentary bill proposing that the UK allocate 0.7% of its GDP for international aid has led to the usual criticism levelled against international aid: that in times of austerity, the country can’t…
Pregnancy
Couvade syndrome: why some men develop signs of pregnancy
Harry Ashby, the 29-year-old security guard who was signed off work with morning sickness, cravings, a growing stomach and breasts during his girlfriend’s pregnancy, was told he had Couvade syndrome. Couvade…
Events
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Was autism part of human evolutionary success? — University of York
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Seminar: Canadian Constitution-making in the British World, 1864 — UCL
How we are different
10 reasons
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