“More than 1.5 million heart flutter patients should be on blood-thinning drugs to prevent stroke, study says,” reports The Telegraph. The paper is referring to a condition called atrial fibrillation (AF), which affects around 1 million people in the UK. AF is where the upper chambers of the heart (atria) pulsate in an erratic way,
“Just 4 hours of vigorous exercise each week can boost a woman’s chances of getting pregnant,” reports the Mail Online. A study of 1,214 women, who had previously had 1 or 2 miscarriages, found they were more likely to get pregnant during a 6-month period if they did more than 4 hours of vigorous physical
“HPV vaccine for schoolgirls gets full marks,” reports ITV News. Almost all cases of cervical cancer, which usually takes many years to develop, are caused by the human papilloma virus (HPV). HPV causes the cells in the cervix to slowly go through a series of pre-cancerous changes that can eventually turn into cancer. The HPV
“Supplements can slash the risk of those with high blood pressure having a stroke by almost 75%,” reports the Mail Online. But the evidence presented in the study in question is not as strong as the news website reports. Folic acid can reduce the level of an organic compound called homocysteine in the blood. High
“Women who eat too much junk food are twice as likely to be infertile,” is the deeply misleading headline from the Mail Online. The study it’s reporting on did not look at women who could not get pregnant. In fact, it was a study of nearly 6,000 pregnant women. It questioned what they ate in
“A daily sauna could cut your risk of stroke by as much as 61%,” the Mail Online reports. However, this headline is based on findings from a small subgroup of 197 people who were taking saunas 4 to 7 times a week amongst a study population of 1,628 Finnish people. Few people in the study
“Bath oils used to help treat eczema in children offer no meaningful benefit as part of their care, a trial has found,” reports BBC News. Childhood eczema, also known as atopic eczema, is a common condition that causes redness and soreness of the skin. Treatments include using moisturisers (emollients), which have been shown to work,
“Oily fish could delay the menopause by three years,” reports The Daily Telegraph. A study of 914 UK women aged 40 to 65 found those who ate more oily fish and beans reached the menopause later compared with women who ate more refined carbohydrates, like rice and pasta. The menopause is defined as the end
“People who stick to five healthy habits in adulthood can add more than a decade to their lives,” reports The Guardian. Regular readers of Behind the Headlines, or health news in general, will be unsurprised to learn that the habits are: not smoking maintaining a healthy weight doing at least 30 minutes of moderate exercise
“Garlic can slash the risk of cancer, heart disease and type 2 diabetes,” is the premature claim made in the Mail Online. Researchers looked at a selection of existing studies about the chemical compounds in garlic, and how these might interact with chemical signals between cells in the body. They were particularly interested in the
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