Articles (Ecologist)

Want to make sex more sensual and fun? Having difficulty conceiving? Don’t reach for a lubricant to boost your love life, says Pat Thomas, it could harm your health and fertility. Globally we spend around $1.32 billion a year on personal lubricants, and the market is growing.There are literally hundreds of lubricants on the shelves. […]

The media backlash is just beginning. Slowly, almost imperceptibly, global warming is morphing into ‘global boring’ and the potential consequences of such cavalier wordplay are immeasurable. As the reality hits home that we have to stop doing things the ‘normal’ way and abandon our sense of superiority to the rest of the living planet, a […]

Don’t hit the bottle, warns Pat Thomas, else you’ll do more than swallow marketing hype. Without water, we die. Irish hunger strikers lived for around 60 days without food, but would have died within four days if they hadn’t drunk half a litre of liquid a day. We instinctively know we need water, and after […]

Around 15 million Britons endure this three-season affliction. Pat Thomas looks at causes, treatments and drug-free tactics. While most of us may think that the hayfever season ends when summer does, there are, in fact, several hayfever seasons, and for a large proportion of the population each one brings new torment. In spring, tree pollens […]

I’m not a group person. This was made plain from a very early age, when I was kicked out of Brownies for organising a very vocal protest against arbitrary age restrictions on camping trips. The troop leader called my mother in and solemnly suggested that another after-school activity might suit me better. Start as you […]

Wondering how to deal with cuts, grazes and lacerations? Forget everything you’ve been told and keep it moist, says Pat Thomas Your skin is your body’s biggest organ and plays a large role in keeping you healthy. It helps to regulate body temperature and acts as a barrier, keeping body fluids in and bacteria out. […]

It was a classic Ecologist story. A multinational company breaking the law, dumping toxic waste onto the land, threatening the ecosystem and the well-being of those living in the area. We welcomed Douglas Gowan and his evidence, welcomed the chance to cross swords with Monsanto again. We welcomed the opportunity to take on a story […]

Sleep deprivation is a worse malaise than most people realise. Pat Thomas explains some of its causes, effects and remedies In our ‘open all hours’ culture, it’s easy to trivialise the role of sleep in staying healthy. While some people may appear to thrive on a few hours of sleep a night, most of us […]

In an attempt to stave off that bad hair day, you could end up with a bad health day. Pat Thomas reports Jennifer gave us the ‘Rachel’. Madonna made ‘blonde ambition’ a desirable thing – at least for a while. And Britney? Well, she got fed up and shaved all hers off. For women, in […]

What goes on your lips can go into your mouth – and it may be far from palatable. Pat Thomas investigates Go ahead and try to fight it. Lipstick is just iconically female. Big girls use it to enhance their allure; little girls often make their first forays into womanhood by sitting in front of […]