How the microbiome shapes our health

Scientists have found  another crucial piece of the puzzle in how the microbiome – the ecosystem of bacteria living in our digestive tracts – helps to...

A complete healthcare systems failure

Last week I delivered a keynote lecture at the Public Health Collaboration annual conference in Manchester where I explained to an audience of over 200 made up...

Emergency health surveillance in Uganda

As a public health physician who has previously worked with Medicins Sans Frontieres in Sierra Leone and Turkey, I’ve just finished an assignment setting up...

Altering meal times to beat jet lag

Altering your meal times could be the key to minimising disruption to the body clock caused by shift work or jet lag, according to new...

Magnesium’s role in the heart

Magnesium is one of the electrolytes that plays a role in the heart’s electrical functioning. Research seems to support this conclusion, since studies show that...

Gluten-free trend on the rise

More people than ever are buying into the gluten-free trend – not necessarily because they are suffering from coeliac disease, but because it has achieved...

Weight gain – why me?

Many of us, myself included, struggle to control our weight. Unlike many of the generations that preceded us most of the people in the UK...

Challenging diagnosis of IBS

Doctors often find it challenging to make a positive diagnosis of Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS), which affects at least one in five people at some...