Inside Health

Public Health authorities have written to doctors in the UK to ask them to look out for cases of Ebola following the recent outbreak in West Africa which has killed nearly 500 people. Dr Mark Porter talks to David Heymann, professor of infectious disease epidemiology at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine about the risks of Ebola cases coming to the UK. He is joined by Dr Margaret M...

Dr Mark Porter returns with a new series to address confusion about statins for healthy people rather than patients. Statins have hit the headlines as doctors debate the draft recommendation from NICE to lower the threshold for offering statins, which could mean millions more will be taking them. And Mark Porter turns patient when he is investigated for persistent heartburn. Plus should GPs who mi...

Headlines this week claim that 'thousands of patients die in hospital of thirst' but did the authors of the study actually analyse hydration? Mark Porter investigates the evidence for using Baclofen to treat alcoholism and hears how it helped a listener to stop drinking 6-8 bottles of wine a day. Why did NICE question the use of Paracetamol - the UK's favourite painkiller - in the treatment of ost...

Dr Mark Porter investigates the dramatic increase in testosterone prescribing; low fibre diets - why the traditional advice to eat high fibre is not always recommended. And having a consultation with your GP via a video service such as Skype from your computer - is there any evidence to back up the government's latest answer to increasing access to your doctor.

Tamiflu - the controversial drug - has been stockpiled by the government for use in a flu pandemic and endorsed by regulatory bodies including the WHO. With a new review of the evidence due this week, Inside Health's Margaret McCartney and James Cave, Editor of the Drug and Therapeutics Bulletin have been following the story. Mark Porter gets his body fat checked and finds out how much is hiding i...

With a replacement of the controversial Liverpool Care Pathway expected over the next few months Professor Keri Thomas, National Clinical Lead at the GSF Centre for End of Life Care, debates the need for change and calls for a more personalised care for the dying. And Inside Health examines differences in sex development, when it is unclear if a new born baby is a boy or a girl. Plus, does the env...

Dr Mark Porter finds out why insomnia can often go untreated by the NHS despite there being a treatment that not only works but also doesn't involve drugs. There are nearly 11 million prescriptions for sleeping tablets in the UK every year but their effect isn't long lasting and people can find it hard to come off the tablets. Cognitive behavioural therapy has consistently been shown to be very ef...

A committee advising the Food and Drug Administration in the US has voted to change the way it tests women for cervical cancer by solely using a test that detects Human Papilloma Virus (HPV) rather than also using a standard smear test which looks for abnormal cell changes. The test is likely to become more widely used in the NHS than it is now. What advantages does it offer over smear tests and w...

Is sugar really addictive? As the Chief Medical Officer for England suggests that it is and a 'sugar tax' may have to be introduced, leading experts debate whether the white stuff on our table is really habit forming. How 40 year old research hidden away in a book has thrown new light on a link between iron deficiency and stroke. And why the clue to solving recurrent thrush maybe getting the diagn...

Dr Mark Porter investigates a pioneering research project designed to reduce the psychological trauma experienced by more than half of critically ill patients after a stay in intensive care. Why do treatments on ICU cause hallucinations and post traumatic stress disorder in patients months after they leave hospital? Mark talks to the doctor who believes people over the age of eighty are being over...

Selenium supplements have hit the headlines with reports that men taking them can increase their risk of developing aggressive prostate cancer. Dr Mark Porter talks to leading expert on selenium, Margaret Rayman, Professor of Nutritional Medicine at the University of Surrey, to find the truth behind the story. Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis is a disease that kills more people in the UK than breast...

Dr Mark Porter investigates the health effects of loneliness and why some researchers believe being lonely is worse for your health than obesity. Also in the programme, as proposed new UK guidelines mean as many as 5 million more people could be prescribed statins to lower their cholesterol how do you work out if you are in this new category of being at risk? Are the current calculators that work...

As NICE issues its latest guidelines for treating osteoarthritis, Inside Health looks at the use of paracetamol to relieve pain and is glucosamine a recommended supplement? Also in the programme, Dr Mark Porter investigates how the latest drug treatments for problem drinking work. And how much do doctors use their gut instinct when it comes to diagnosing patients?

Why testosterone prescriptions are on the increase in the UK and growing concern amongst some doctors that these supplements may be linked to heart attack. Do the hours spent on laptops or tablets before bedtime disrupt your sleep? Dr Margaret McCartney reviews the evidence for later school start times for teenagers to match their natural bodyclocks. And a listener's concern about antidepressants...

As the government calls for a ban on the sale of e cigarettes to under 18s, Dr Mark Porter is joined by Martin McKee, Gerard Hastings and Robert West to discuss who is using them and how they are being advertised. The chairman of NICE, David Haslam has suggested patients should demand more NICE approved drugs from their GP. Mark is joined by David and by GP Margaret McCartney to discuss whether pa...

Recent reports say that as many as 2 million people in England could be eligible for bariatric surgery. Dr Mark Porter investigates if a new gastric balloon swallowed in a capsule could be a valuable new tool for weight loss. Targeted for people whose BMI is lower than those who would be eligible for weight loss surgery, Inside Health finds out what the new balloon involves and asks two NHS bariat...

As Germany becomes the first country in Europe to pass a law allowing newborn babies to be registered as being of indeterminate sex - neither male nor female - should the UK follow suit? The incapacitating facial pain that feels like an electric shock - a world expert explains Trigeminal Neuralgia. And recurrent indigestion - should more be done to investigate the millions of people troubled with...

Current recommendations advise that parents should give children under five Vitamin D supplements, but most parents do not follow this, and Vitamin D deficiency is now widespread, leading to a resurgence of rickets. To combat this, England's Chief Medical Officer Professor Dame Sally Davies is now recommending that free supplements be available to all children under five. Following the publication...

With news that actor Tom Hanks has been diagnosed with Type 2 Diabetes, how far in advance can doctors predict the onset of the condition and what can be done to delay it. And is obesity a disease? It has been classified as such in America, so what are the implications and should the UK follow suit? Plus the first ever conference on Lyme Disease - the tick borne infection that can cause serious co...

How would you feel if your child's immunisations were linked to benefits or child care? In Australia, a full set of vaccinations is now a requirement for accessing most types of child care and claiming family tax credit worth around £500 a year. The only exception is if parents ask to be registered as conscientious objectors. Dr Steve Hambleton is President of the Australian Medical Association an...

Margaret McCartney reports on confusion around the new Shingles Vaccine - including how old you have to be to qualify and why there's a lack of supply in some GP surgeries. Why readymade drinks combining caffeine and alcohol have been banned in America. Are the tests GP's use to screen for liver damage falsely reassuring? And a leading authority dispels myths surrounding the causes of anorexia.

New research has found an association between Pandemrix, a swine flu vaccine, and a rare sleep disorder in children. Fears about a pandemic of H1N1 flu, so called "swine flu", over the winter of 2009/2010 led to millions of vulnerable people across the UK, including every child under five, being offered a new vaccine. There has since been a dramatic rise in the number of children diagnosed with na...

Following Billy Connolly's announcement that he has signs of Parkinson's Disease, Inside Health reports from the World Congress of Neurology in Vienna where early diagnosis is top of the agenda. Suncreams and Cancer. After a long hot summer an evidence based look at whether sunscreens really protect against the lethal forms of skin cancer - melanoma. And slimming pills - why have two regulatory bo...

As last year's increase in Whooping Cough looks likely to continue judging from data coming out of America and Europe, Mark Porter finds out why it's on the rise and who should be concerned. Fish oils and Prostate Cancer - Inside Health responds to listeners' worried by this recent study and scrutinises the findings that hit the headlines. And weighing up the risks and benefits of screening for Ao...

Dr Mark Porter reports on NHS Health Checks which are available to everyone between 40 and 74. Public Health England's Professor Kevin Fenton says this could save at least 650 lives, prevent 1600 heart attacks and 4000 cases of diabetes. Inside Health's resident sceptic Dr Margaret McCartney isn't convinced. We examine the truth behind rumours of a blood service sell off. Inside Health visits Adde...