Publisher Health

A push to get more children learning to cook is one of the recommendations of an independent review of the food we eat – something that’s supported by teacher Andrew Hartsthorn.But he says that parents, schools and staff must be supported.England’s National Food Strategy also says that sugar and salt should be taxed, and vegetables prescribed by the NHS to encourage healthy eating.

Sugar and salt should be taxed and vegetables prescribed by the NHS, an independent review of the food we eat has suggested.The report, led by businessman Henry Dimbleby, says taxes raised could extend free school meal provision and support better diets among the poorest.The review describes the Covid-19 pandemic as a “painful reality check” that has revealed the scale of food-related ill-health.

SharecloseShare pageCopy linkAbout sharingimage copyrightGetty ImagesThe Australian state of Victoria – home to its second largest city, Melbourne – is set to enter a snap lockdown late on Thursday, after it recorded two more local cases of the virus. The latest outbreak brings the total number of virus cases there to 18. This is the fifth lockdown Victoria has experienced since the pandemic began. It will last until Tuesday. The decision by Victoria means that about 40% of Australia’s population is now under a stay-at-home order.”You only get one chance to go hard and go fast. If you wait, if you hesitate, if you doubt, then you will always be looking back wishing you had done more earlier,” Victoria Premier Daniel Andrews said. “I am not prepared to avoid a five-day lockdown now only to find ourselves in a five-week or a five-month lockdown. That is why we are making this very difficult decision.”Residents in the state of 6.6 million people will have to stay home except for grocery shopping, essential work, exercise and getting vaccinated. Melbourne had largely avoided new cases despite an outbreak in the neighbouring state of New South Wales, home to the country’s largest city Sydney. But earlier this week, a team of Sydney furniture movers travelled to Melbourne, leading to a spread in cases. New South Wales is also in a five-week lockdown which will last until the end of the month. Authorities say it’s unclear if the lockdown will definitely end then as cases have surged in recent days. The city now has about 1,000 cases, primarily caused by the highly infectious Delta variant. How is Australia’s vaccine rollout going?Only around 12% of Australia’s adult population have been fully vaccinated so far. A lack of supplies, specifically of the Pfizer vaccine, means many Australians will not be able to get a jab until the final months of the year.The country’s rollout has also been affected by widespread vaccine hesitancy around the AstraZeneca vaccine – following cases of rare blood clots linked to the jab.One professor, Nicholas Biddle, said just over 50% of people who said they wouldn’t take a vaccine “said their decision was based on recent news about the AstraZeneca vaccine and blood clotting.”Covid vaccines and rare clots – what do we know?Australia has recorded 911 deaths and more than 31,000 cases since the pandemic began.Earlier this week, it saw its first local Covid death this year, a woman in her 90s who contracted the virus in a family setting. Australia has used lockdowns and swift contact tracing to combat outbreaks of the virus when it has breached the nation’s strict border defences.

SharecloseShare pageCopy linkAbout sharingimage copyrightGetty ImagesThe government has confirmed nearly all remaining Covid-19 restrictions in England will be lifted on 19 July.It means all legal restrictions on social contact will be removed. The legal requirement to wear face masks in some public spaces will be dropped, nightclubs will be allowed to reopen, and limits on how many people can meet will be ditched.Several countries around the world have already tried easing their coronavirus restrictions this year – with mixed results.So what has happened in places where rules have been relaxed?IsraelAs it raced ahead in its vaccine programme, Israel began to lift restrictions in February. By mid-June – when well over half the population had been double-jabbed – Israelis stopped wearing masks and pre-pandemic life returned, with shops, restaurants, hotels and cinemas all fully open.image copyrightGetty ImagesSince then confirmed daily cases – driven by the more infectious Delta variant – have risen steadily, reaching a four-month peak of 754 on Tuesday. Though officials say serious cases, including the number of people being hospitalised, remain relatively low.The surge in cases, however, has prompted new Prime Minister Naftali Bennett’s government into a partial rethink. Under what it calls a “soft suppression” approach, Israelis will be asked to learn to live with Covid.Curbs being reinstated include the mandatory wearing of face masks indoors and quarantine for all people arriving in Israel.The NetherlandsWith vaccinations rising and cases dropping, the Netherlands pushed ahead with its reopening in late June. Face masks were abandoned in almost all places and young people were encouraged to go out again.Since then, cases have soared, jumping to their highest levels since December – although the relaxation has not led to a notable rise in hospital admissions.image copyrightGetty ImagesAs criticism from health officials grew louder, Prime Minister Mark Rutte was forced into an embarrassing U-turn on Friday and re-imposed many restrictions, just two weeks after the measures were lifted.Restaurants and bars were forced to close from midnight, while nightclubs were shut again, as Mr Rutte apologised for his “poor judgement”.”What we thought would be possible, turned out not to be possible in practice,” he admitted.The Dutch government’s website says the measures will remain in place until at least 13 August.South KoreaHailed as a success story in its handling of Covid-19, South Korea was one of the first East Asian countries to chart a path out of the pandemic.In June it announced plans to allow vaccinated people to go mask-free outdoors, permit small private gatherings and relax restaurant opening times.But experts warned South Korea was dropping its guard against the coronavirus too soon, with the majority of the population still unvaccinated.Now it is facing its worst-ever coronavirus outbreak. image copyrightGetty ImagesA record-breaking daily tally of cases has forced the government to tighten social-distancing rules across most of the country. In the capital, Seoul, residents have been banned from meeting more than one other person after 18:00.With the Delta variant spreading fast and its vaccination rate slowing, public confidence in South Korea’s ability to cope with coronavirus has taken a knock.SwedenUnlike most countries, Sweden has relied mainly on voluntary measures to stem the spread of infections, though curbs on opening hours for restaurants and limits on crowds at venues have also been implemented.Some of those restrictions have already been loosened, with 3,000 seated spectators allowed at sports stadiums and the rules on opening hours scrapped on 1 July. More restrictions are being dropped on 15 July.Since the spring, cases have continued to fall steeply, something credited to rising vaccinations and warmer weather, meaning people are spending more time outdoors. But amid worries about the rise of the Delta variant, most travellers returning to Sweden will need to be tested for Covid-19.AustraliaFor most of the past year, Australians had enjoyed life with few restrictions. Face masks weren’t required as the country consistently recorded days when no Covid cases were found at all.When there were outbreaks, authorities launched snap lockdowns to bring case rates back to zero. For example, Perth shut down for five days in January over the detection of a single case. But an outbreak of the Delta strain in Sydney mid-June has plunged the nation’s largest city back into lockdown. That is expected to last until the end of July at least. How Delta burst Australia’s Covid bubbleWhat’s gone wrong with Australia’s vaccine rollout?The city is currently fighting more than 100 cases a day. The virus spread quickly – even in the first weeks of lockdown – in a city unused to restrictions. Officials said people were exploiting stay-at-home rules. These have been tightened since.But with more than 90% of the population unvaccinated, officials say a return to normality will take some time. A lack of vaccine supplies, specifically of Pfizer, mean many Australians won’t be able to get a jab until the final months of the year.USAs the Joe Biden administration forged ahead in its vaccine drive, many states began lifting restrictions, ditching mask mandates and allowing businesses to reopen. In June, California – the US’s most populous state – announced its “grand reopening”, while New York lifted nearly all restrictions as its vaccination rate passed 70%.Overall, cases have remained low. New infections are less than one-tenth of the average daily rate at the height of the pandemic in January, even as they have doubled in the last two weeks.But there are growing concerns about the Delta variant that has been surging in some under-vaccinated states. As the vaccine rate slows, some states are recommending residents keep wearing masks because of worries over the more infectious strain.Covid vaccines: How fast is worldwide progress?In New York City, cases have jumped by almost a third in a week, with some of the highest rises in neighbourhoods with the lowest vaccine rates. Deaths are creeping up, but not as sharply as cases. State officials say the overwhelming majority of people now hospitalised with Covid-19 are unvaccinated.

SharecloseShare pageCopy linkAbout sharingimage copyrightGetty ImagesA surge in flu and other respiratory viruses could put pressure on people’s health and the NHS this winter, warns a report by leading medics.They say testing for flu, Covid and a respiratory virus common in children and the elderly – called RSV – may help doctors treat cases more quickly.The Academy of Medical Sciences report calls for people with any symptoms to isolate and stay at home.This will help protect against all respiratory viruses this winter.The report, by 29 leading experts and requested by the government, says there is great uncertainty about what the next few months will hold across the UK, but it urges policymakers to prepare for a challenging winter.Comeback of winter virusesDuring lockdown last winter, the UK population was hardly exposed to the viruses which normally circulate. But they are now set to make a comeback as restrictions lift and society opens up.Already this summer, there has been a rise in winter viruses in children coming to A&E.Report author Prof Azra Ghani, from Imperial College London, says their modelling suggests a summer peak of Covid-19 infections “with subsequent local outbreaks over winter”.But “we can’t completely rule out another winter wave”, she said.”Whilst we expect the peak in deaths to be considerably lower than last winter, under some scenarios we could see hospital admissions rise to similar levels.”Will 19 July unlocking gamble pay off or backfire?How many people have been vaccinated so far?Where will I have to carry on wearing a mask?In a worst-case scenario this could mean around twice the levels of flu and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) as a normal autumn and winter, the report says.There are between 10,000 and 30,000 deaths from flu in a normal winter, and about 20,000 children under five are admitted to hospital each year with RSV, which can cause a lung infection called bronchiolitis.Triple testsThe authors say these viruses often produce similar symptoms, so testing for all three at once would help distinguish between them.This could be done through Test and Trace or in GP practices, but the turnaround would need to be very fast so that anti-virals could be used to treat flu in the most vulnerable.Dr Alexander Edwards, from the University of Reading, said the “triple tests” had “great appeal”, but the logistics could be a challenge.”Whether there will be enough instruments and testing capacity available for this to be available widely in primary care remains to be seen,” he said.The report also recommends booster Covid vaccines alongside flu vaccines this autumn to reduce the spread of the virus, which is already being planned by the NHS for the over-50s, and improving infection control in hospitals.Stay at home adviceIt says all adults need to be vaccinated against Covid by September. Currently, two-thirds of UK adults have received two doses and 87% have had one dose.But the number one way to reduce transmission is for people to have a test when they have symptoms and stay at home if they are ill, says Prof Dame Anne Johnson, president of the Academy of Medical Sciences.”We are calling on the government to urgently strengthen the financial and practical support that will allow all people to self-isolate if they need to, whatever their circumstances,” she said.The medics also emphasise the importance of face coverings, social distancing and meeting friends outdoors – to protect against Covid as well as other respiratory viruses, as society opens up.Related Internet LinksImproving Health Through Research – The Academy of Medical SciencesThe BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites.

The major medical center’s rejection of the new Alzheimer’s drug is one of the starkest signs of concern over its effectiveness.In a striking reflection of concern over the approval of the controversial new Alzheimer’s drug Aduhelm, the Cleveland Clinic said Wednesday evening that it would not administer it to patients.The clinic, one of the largest and most respected medical centers in the country, said in a statement that a panel of its experts had “reviewed all available scientific evidence on this medication,” which is also called aducanumab.“Based on the current data regarding its safety and efficacy, we have decided not to carry aducanumab at this time,” the statement said.A spokeswoman for the clinic said that individual physicians there could prescribe Aduhelm to patients, but those patients would have to go elsewhere to receive the drug, which is administered as a monthly intravenous infusion.The stance by the major medical center is the latest fallout from the Food and Drug Administration’s approval of the drug on June 7, a decision that has also spurred congressional investigations.Many Alzheimer’s experts and other scientists have said that it is unclear that the drug works to help slow cognitive decline and that in the best-case scenario, the evidence suggested only a slight slowing while also showing that Aduhelm could cause brain swelling or brain bleeding.The F.D.A. recently approved Aduhelm despite scant evidence that it helps patients.Biogen, via Associated PressThe drug is also expensive. Biogen, the maker, has set its price at $56,000 a year.In a recent survey of nearly 200 neurologists and primary care doctors, most said they disagreed with the F.D.A. decision and did not plan to prescribe the drug to their patients.Last week, in response to growing criticism, Dr. Janet Woodcock, the acting F.D.A. commissioner, called for an independent federal investigation into the agency’s approval process, writing that “to the extent these concerns could undermine the public’s confidence in F.D.A.’s decision, I believe it is critical that the events at issue be reviewed by an independent body.”Two nearly identical clinical trials of Aduhelm were stopped early because an independent data monitoring committee concluded that the drug didn’t appear to be helping patients. A later analysis by Biogen found that participants receiving the high dose of the drug in one trial had experienced a very slight slowing of cognitive decline — 0.39 on an 18-point scale — but that participants in the other trial had not benefited at all.About 40 percent of trial participants developed brain bleeding or brain swelling, and while most of those cases were mild or manageable, about 6 percent of participants dropped out of the trials because of serious adverse effects from those conditions.After evaluating the data late last year, an F.D.A. advisory committee of outside experts strongly recommended against approval, and three of its members resigned in protest last month when the agency bucked the advisory committee’s advice. The American Geriatrics Society had also urged the agency not to approve the drug, saying it would be “premature given the lack of sufficient evidence.”Last week, in response to widespread criticism that it had approved Aduhelm for anyone with Alzheimer’s, the F.D.A. sharply narrowed the drug’s recommended use, saying it should be used only for people with mild memory or thinking problems because there was no data on Aduhelm’s use in later stages of Alzheimer’s.

A higher intake of ultra-processed food is associated with higher risk of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), finds a study published by The BMJ today.
Ultra-processed foods include packaged baked goods and snacks, fizzy drinks, sugary cereals, ready meals containing food additives, and reconstituted meat and fish products — often containing high levels of added sugar, fat and salt, but lacking in vitamins and fibre.
Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is more common in industrialised nations and it is thought that dietary factors might play a role, but data linking ultra-processed food intake with IBD are limited.
To explore this further, an international team of researchers drew on detailed dietary information from 116,087 adults aged 35-70 years living in 21 low, middle, and high income countries who were taking part in the Prospective Urban Rural Epidemiology (PURE) study.
PURE is examining the impact of societal influences on chronic diseases in different countries around the world.
Participants were enrolled in the study between 2003 and 2016 and were assessed at least every three years. Over an average follow-up of 9.7 years, new diagnoses of IBD, including Crohn’s disease or ulcerative colitis, were recorded.

Statins are associated with a small increased risk of side effects in patients without a history of heart disease, but these effects are mild compared with the potential benefits of treatment in preventing major cardiovascular events, say researchers in The BMJ today.
They say their findings suggest that the benefit-to-harm balance of statins for adults without heart disease is generally favourable.
Statins are widely used to prevent heart disease, and severe side effects are rare, but many people are reluctant to take them because of the potential for milder effects such as muscle weakness and stiffness.
For people with existing heart disease, the benefits of statins far outweigh the risk of these effects, but when statins are used by people without a history of heart disease (known as primary prevention) the benefit-to-harm balance of treatment might be less favourable.
Yet recent guidelines have recommended wider use of statins for primary prevention.
So, a team of UK and US researchers set out to examine the associations between statins and adverse events in adults without a history of heart disease, and how they vary by type and dose of statins.

Would you be able to spot the signs of menopause?Hot flushes, night sweats and low mood are common symptoms of “the change”, which happens to women in the UK at an average age of 51.Campaigners are encouraging women to talk more about the menopause and calling for more training for medical professionals.Swansea East MP Carolyn Harris is launching an inquiry in Parliament, hoping to help GPs and individuals better recognise symptoms of the menopause. BBC Wales Westminster correspondent Ione Wells asks should we change how we talk about “the change”?The Royal College of GPs said: “Women’s health is a priority for the RCGP and we have worked with partners, including the British Menopause Society and Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists to develop educational resources for GPs on women’s health.”Video by Nick Hartley

Researchers at UC San Francisco have successfully developed a “speech neuroprosthesis” that has enabled a man with severe paralysis to communicate in sentences, translating signals from his brain to the vocal tract directly into words that appear as text on a screen.
The achievement, which was developed in collaboration with the first participant of a clinical research trial, builds on more than a decade of effort by UCSF neurosurgeon Edward Chang, MD, to develop a technology that allows people with paralysis to communicate even if they are unable to speak on their own. The study appears July 15 in the New England Journal of Medicine.
“To our knowledge, this is the first successful demonstration of direct decoding of full words from the brain activity of someone who is paralyzed and cannot speak,” said Chang, the Joan and Sanford Weill Chair of Neurological Surgery at UCSF, Jeanne Robertson Distinguished Professor, and senior author on the study. “It shows strong promise to restore communication by tapping into the brain’s natural speech machinery.”
Each year, thousands of people lose the ability to speak due to stroke, accident, or disease. With further development, the approach described in this study could one day enable these people to fully communicate.
Translating Brain Signals into Speech
Previously, work in the field of communication neuroprosthetics has focused on restoring communication through spelling-based approaches to type out letters one-by-one in text. Chang’s study differs from these efforts in a critical way: his team is translating signals intended to control muscles of the vocal system for speaking words, rather than signals to move the arm or hand to enable typing. Chang said this approach taps into the natural and fluid aspects of speech and promises more rapid and organic communication.