Articles

Throughout the world, folic acid has now become the sacred cow of preconceptual health advice because of its apparent ability to reduce the rate of neural tube defects. But is this faith justified? In one sense, yes, as it does appear to help prevent neural tube defects. When the Medical Research Council conducted a trial […]

An Aladdin’s cave of products now exists in our healthfood shops, on the Internet and through specialist suppliers, all claiming to be a key to good health. Books and magazines all give advice about how to live. Every generation has its health fads, and every new guru has a new, improved health regime, claiming to […]

The glossy images we’re fed by the media hide a dangerous secret: most of our toiletries, even the “natural variety”, are made up of the same harsh, toxic chemicals used for industry. What could be more healthy than a refreshing body wash, a nourishing shampoo, a minty fresh toothpaste and a moisturising facial cream? Commercials, […]

In the body, no area presents more of a problem to doctors than the back. Second only to head pain, disabling low back pain strikes 80 per cent of us during our lifetimes, causes millions of lost work days and accounts for a steady stream of presentations to general practitioners. In spite of endless research […]

Most of us never think about death until it is upon us. Even then, we can become absorbed by the minutia the funeral arrangements, coffin selection and flowers instead of the bigger picture of how we die. Although death is mostly a family affair, it is increasingly hidden from public view. As people become less […]

The most under diagnosed health problem in the West, parasites may be responsible for a multitude of conditions from joint pain and chronic fatigue to many general disorders of the gut and immune system Few of our doctors in civilised Western nations are trained to recognise the signs of parasitic infestation. Yet parasites do live […]

How often do you think about your kidneys? Probably never. For most of us, the kidneys are yet another set of organs which quietly do their job day after day without incidence. Yet if the kidneys malfunction or fail for any reason, our health is profoundly affected. Kidneys are involved with several vital bodily functions. […]

We, like many of our readers, support the many issues surrounding a vegetarian lifestyle. There are many important health and moral issues here, and there is no doubt that an increasing number of studies being performed prove the extraordinary health supporting nature of plant foods. However, what never gets asked is the simple question: is […]

The climacteric is generally used to describe the 15-year period during which menstruation eventually ceases. Around this fulcrum will be a number of physical and psychological symptoms. In much the same way that there is rarely a precise beginning to menstruation – many young girls have light spotting and erratic bleeding for years – and […]

Laser eye surgery, the so called miracle solution to myopia, has many hidden dangers, including the possibility that it may make your eyesight worse. The advertisements are persuasive. “Do away with glasses forever”; “revolutionary treatment permanently corrects short sightedness”; “experience the life enhancing effect”. To the casual observer, laser surgery has all the hallmarks of […]