meat eater

Giant 'meat-eating' plant found

Matt Walker Editor, Earth News

The newly discovered giant pitcher (Nepenthes attenboroughii)

A new species of giant carnivorous plant has been discovered in the highlands of the central Philippines.

The pitcher plant is among the largest of all pitchers and is so big that it can catch rats as well as insects in its leafy trap.

During the same expedition, botanists also came across strange pink ferns and blue mushrooms they could not identify.

The botanists have named the pitcher plant after British natural history broadcaster David Attenborough.

They published details of the discovery in the Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society earlier this year.

The plant is among the largest of all carnivorous plant species and produces spectacular traps Co-discoverer Stewart McPherson

Word that this new species of pitcher plant existed initially came from two Christian missionaries who in 2000 attempted to scale Mount Victoria, a rarely visited peak in central Palawan in the Philippines.

With little preparation, the missionaries attempted to climb the mountain but became lost for 13 days before being rescued from the slopes.

On their return, they described seeing a large carnivorous pitcher plant.

That pricked the interest of natural history explorer Stewart McPherson of Red Fern Natural History Productions based in Poole, Dorset, UK and independent botanist Alastair Robinson, formerly of the University of Cambridge, UK and Volker Heinrich, of Bukidnon Province, the Philippines.

Big enough to drown a rat

All three are pitcher plant experts, having travelled to remote locations in the search for new species.

So in 2007, they set off on a two-month expedition to the Philippines, which included an attempt at scaling Mount Victoria to find this exotic new plant.

Accompanied by three guides, the team hiked through lowland forest, finding large stands of a pitcher plant known to science called Nepenthes philippinensis, as well as strange pink ferns and blue mushrooms which they could not identify.

As they closed in on the summit, the forest thinned until eventually they were walking among scrub and large boulders

"At around 1,600 metres above sea level, we suddenly saw one great pitcher plant, then a second, then many more," McPherson recounts.

"It was immediately apparent that the plant we had found was not a known species."

The summit of Mount Victoria appears through the clouds

Pitcher plants are carnivorous. Carnivorous plants come in many forms, and are known to have independently evolved at least six separate times. While some have sticky surfaces that act like flypaper, others like the Venus fly trap are snap traps, closing their leaves around their prey.

Pitchers create tube-like leaf structures into which insects and other small animals tumble and become trapped.

The team has placed type specimens of the new species in the herbarium of the Palawan State University, and have named the plant Nepenthes attenboroughii after broadcaster and natural historian David Attenborough.

"The plant is among the largest of all carnivorous plant species and produces spectacular traps as large as other species which catch not only insects, but also rodents as large as rats," says McPherson.

Unidentified blue fungi

The pitcher plant does not appear to grow in large numbers, but McPherson hopes the remote, inaccessible mountain-top location, which has only been climbed a handful of times, will help prevent poachers from reaching it.

During the expedition, the team also encountered another pitcher, Nepenthes deaniana, which had not been seen in the wild for 100 years. The only known existing specimens of the species were lost in a herbarium fire in 1945.

On the way down the mountain, the team also came across a striking new species of sundew, a type of sticky trap plant, which they are in the process of formally describing.

Thought to be a member of the genus Drosera, the sundew produces striking large, semi-erect leaves which form a globe of blood red foliage

space food no1

High food costs 'a global burden'

The Philippines is one of the countries hardest hit by higher food prices

Almost two-thirds of people - 60% - in 26 countries say higher food and energy prices this year have affected them "a great deal", a BBC report has found.

The BBC World Service global study said that while all nations had felt the burden of the higher costs, the problem was most acute in poorer countries.

The Philippines was one of the worst hit of those nations questioned.

Elsewhere, the aid agency Oxfam said, more than 900 million people faced starvation because of soaring prices.

A report by the UK-based charity also found that spiralling inflation in the cost of basic foods such as rice and cereals had pushed an extra 119 million people into hunger this year.

The cost of food: In depth World Service food price index Global Hunger Index in full

Since the BBC survey was conducted between 8 July and 15 September, energy prices have fallen back from record highs.

Food costs are also now expected to start to decline, as lower oil and petrol prices mean cheaper fertiliser and reduced distribution costs, among other contributory factors.

Eating less

The study found that many people in the developing world have simply been forced to eat less this year owing to the higher cost of food.

While governments around the world are now preoccupied with the financial crisis, it is clear that many of their citizens feel they aren't doing enough to relieve the burden of high food prices Doug Miller, chairman of polling firm GlobeScan Send us your comments

This situation was most acute in the Philippines and Panama, where 63% of respondents said they had cut back on what they ate.

Kenya was the next most affected, with 61% saying they were eating less, followed by Nigeria, at 58%.

Across all 26 countries, 43% of people said they had altered their diet.

This was most apparent in Panama, with 71% switching to cheaper foods, followed by Egypt, 67%, Kenya, 64%, and again, the Philippines, 63%.

'Unhappy'

Elsewhere, 27% of those questioned in Australia said they were now cutting back on what they eat due to higher prices, compared with 25% in the UK, and 10% in Germany.

Cost of food: Australia's drought crisis

The survey also showed that 70% of people across the world were "unhappy with what their national government is doing to keep food prices affordable".

Dissatisfaction at a perceived lack of government action to tackle food prices was most apparent in Egypt, where 88% of those questioned said they were unhappy with their leaders, followed by the Philippines, on 86%, and Lebanon, on 85%.

In the developed world, the French respondents were the most dissatisfied with their government, with 79% saying they were unhappy.

Energy woes

Respondents were equally unhappy at higher energy costs, which increased sharply in the first half of this year, but are now falling back. Some 60% of people across the 26 nations said they were being affected "a great deal", exactly the same percentage as for higher food costs.

The Philippines was again the worst-hit nation, with 96% saying they were being hit a great deal, followed by Egypt on 93%, Indonesia on 84%, Kenya on 83%, and Mexico on 81%.

Majorities in several developed countries also said they were being affected a great deal by higher energy costs - 61% in Italy, 59% in France, and 58% in the US.

Doug Miller, chairman of polling firm GlobeScan, which helped carry out the survey for the BBC, said the problem of higher food and energy bills was being overshadowed by the continuing crisis in the financial sector.

"While governments around the world are now preoccupied with the financial crisis, it is clear that many of their citizens feel they aren't doing enough to relieve the burden of high food prices, which is falling on those who can least afford it," he said.

The Philippines has been particularly affected by higher food prices this year, as with its rapidly growing population and shortage of suitable land for crops, it is the world's largest importer of rice.

Rice prices soared to record highs in the first half of 2008 due to a series of poor harvests that saw major exporters such as Vietnam and India put limits on exports to ensure sufficient supplies for their own populations.

The BBC's economics correspondent, Andrew Walker, said that there were reasons to suppose the food crisis may have eased somewhat.

But for many people it was still the case that food was painfully, even dangerously, expensive, said our correspondent.

The survey spoke to 27,319 adults in the following countries - Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, Costa Rica, Egypt, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Kenya, Lebanon, Mexico, Nigeria, Pakistan, Panama, Philippines, Poland, Russia, South Korea, Spain, Turkey, UAE, US, and the UK.

The Programme on International Policy Attitudes also worked on the study

food space

UK food research 'needs a boost'

By Pallab Ghosh Science correspondent, BBC News

Some scientists favour a genetically modified solution

The world's food production needs to double by 2050 to feed the world's growing population.

But over this period, climate change, reduced access to water and changing land use are likely to make growing crops harder rather than easier.

Scientists are trying to find new ways of using fewer resources to produce more food.

Dr Chris Atkinson, head of science at East Malling Research in Kent, UK, said that in the next few years the UK would not be able to rely on imports of cheap food.

"A number of places where the UK sources food, like southern Spain, Greece and Italy, are going to find it very difficult in the next 50 years to continue to produce the levels of food they currently do," he said.

"That's in part due to the predictions of the scarcity of water in those parts of Europe."

The work at East Malling Research has focused on refining traditional agricultural techniques. But Dr Atkinson believes that GM technology will eventually be needed to produce enough food to feed the world.

"The concept of using tools like GM to improve water use efficiency are a reality. It is a matter of whether people want to accept that technology," he explained

pirates tif

Clashes rock Somali pirate port

Pirates say they fear the clan conflict may affect their activities at sea

Overnight gun-battles between rival clans in a pirate stronghold on the coast of Somalia have left at least 17 dead and 30 injured, reports say.

Local residents in Haradheere fled as fighting, reportedly over land and the alleged rape of a woman, intensified.

Pirates who operate in the area, a port off the shipping lanes linking Europe to Asia, said they were worried the conflict could affect their activities.

Somalia, torn by civil war since 1991, lacks an effective central government.

"The two clans are fighting over land and a girl who was raped in the forest," a local man, Farah Aden, told Reuters news agency.

"Unfortunately, the battles spread into town. Fighting is going on fiercely."

A pirate, who gave his name as Mohammed, told Reuters that those involved in piracy around the port were concerned that their activities would be damaged.

"We are all members of these two clans, and we are worried that this fight might end up being taken out on to the ocean," he said

lack of space= extinction

Extinction hits 'whole families'

By Victoria Gill Science reporter, BBC News

The fossil record of marine bivalves dates back to the Jurassic period

Whole "chunks of life" are lost in extinction events, as related species vanish together, say scientists.

A study in the journal Science shows that extinctions tend to "cluster" on evolutionary lineages - wiping out species with a common ancestor.

The finding is based on an examination of past extinctions, but could help current conservation efforts.

Researchers say that this phenomenon can result in the loss of an entire branch of the "tree of life".

The message for modern conservation, say the authors, is that some groups are more vulnerable to extinction than others, and the focus should be on the lineages most at risk.

Lead researcher Kaustuv Roy, a biologist from the University of California, San Diego, focused on marine bivalves - including clams, oysters and mussels. The fossil record for these creatures dates back almost 200 million years.

By tracing this documented timeline of evolution and extinction, the team was able to see the effects of "background extinctions" as well as the mass extinctions, such as the one around 65 million years ago during which the dinosaurs finally died out.

It's like a casino of extinctions, with the odds rigged against certain groups Richard Grenyer, Imperial College London

Many species have become extinct during the relatively stable periods between those global calamities.

But even during such quiet periods, the team found that extinctions tended to cluster into evolutionary families - with closely-related species of clams vanishing together more often than would be predicted by chance.

Richard Grenyer, a biologist from Imperial College London, who was not involved in the study, told BBC News that by going "way back into the fossil record" this study provided important evidence of the patterns of extinction.

"Big groups of organisms tend to be similar to one another," he explained. "Look at the large cats for example."

But genetic similarities also mean, said Dr Grenyer, that "a bad effect that affects one of them, will likely affect all of them".

"It's like a casino of extinctions, with the odds rigged against certain groups."

Life's library

According to this pattern, the study's authors point out, extinctions are likely to eliminate entire branches of the evolutionary tree.

Professor Roy said: "If you have whole lineages more vulnerable than others, then very soon, even with relatively moderate levels of extinction, you start to lose a lot of evolutionary history."

Conservation of one endangered species could help its close relatives

Julie Lockwood, an ecologist from Rutgers University in New Jersey, US, who did not take part in this study, explained that because extinction events "hit certain lineages extremely hard... we lose whole chunks of life."

"There are examples of modern species where the same thing is happening," she told BBC News.

"In seabirds for example, the same drivers - climatic change and habitat loss - are threatening whole groups of species."

Richard Greyner likened this loss to a fire in a library.

"Because whole sections are lost - the whole of the physics section, or all of the romantic fiction, the overall loss is much worse than if you randomly burned every 400th book."

But Dr Grenyer said that this evidence could help to drive more focused, and therefore more effective conservation efforts.

"We can use this information," he said.

"It doesn't make the conservation of individual species any easier, but if we know the sorts of things that affect tigers, we can infer conservation biology about the tiger's close relatives."

population of world

The raw data is from the U.S. Census Bureau, and is not uncontroversial. For instance, the UN, with its data, considered 1999 October 12 to be the "day of six billion", but the approximation here (which I for one have more faith in) puts it at 1999 June 18 or 19 (depending on what time zone you're in), nearly four months earlier

2009 now check population

West’s stampede for cashmere

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Green grass of steppes falls victim to West’s stampede for cashmere - Times Online

Fly over Mongolia in summer and the steppes look as green as they must have done when Genghis Khan and his armies galloped across the land — but the switch is startling as the flight crosses the border into China’s Inner Mongolian region. The ground suddenly turns brown.

The danger facing Mongolia is that its steppes may be transformed into a desert similar to the one eating away at neighbouring China. The culprit is the humble goat — and the fascination of fashionistas for cashmere.

On the Mongolian steppes, the emptiness and the silence inspire awe. From time to time a huge, tawny eagle drifts on the breeze, watching for small animals to snatch amid the grasses. The only movement on the ground comes from the flocks of sheep and goats, yaks and cattle that roam, heads down, as they munch their way across the grasslands.

Here and there white yurts – the portable dwellings used by the nomadic people — stand out on the endless sea of grass. At one cluster of four yurts, a mother gathers her teenage children, slings a metal bucket over each arm and sets out to milk the horses, a hundred of which graze with their foals near by. The fermented milk is turned into airag, the national drink.

The family’s other animals have been moved for the summer to a more remote area where the grass is greener. The total flock numbers several hundred beasts; nothing too large by Mongolian standards, the mother explains. It is virtually a subsistence living. However, the goats and their fine, downy cashmere brings in cash that enables the family to buy such luxuries as a satellite dish or a motorcycle.

Most flocks now include as many goats as they do sheep. This represents a huge shift, officials say, from the days when the latter outnumbered the former two to one.

The money to be earned from “diamond fibre” cashmere, so prized among wealthy shoppers in Europe and the US, has resulted in Mongolia’s population of cashmere goats soaring to 40 million in 2007 from 25 million in 1993.

The World Bank warned of grave consequences for the environment and for farmers. “Mongolian herds will be at greater risk of severe weather conditions if growing livestock populations and deteriorating pastureland is not reversed,” it said in a report. A combination of the sharp hooves of the goats and their voracious consumption of all greenery — including roots — is harming the steppes. Sheep graze more lightly, skimming the leaves and grasses.

The Ministry of Nature and Environment has estimated that the grassland is thinning out across 75 per cent of this vast country, two thirds the size of Western Europe, while 7 per cent is already desert. This increases the risks posed by the devastating storms, or dzuds, that can wipe out entire flocks, while falling cashmere prices, as a result of the global financial crisis, could wreak havoc.

David Sheehy, of the US-based International Centre for the Advancement of Pastoral Systems, said in the World Bank report: “The decline in the quality of pastureland in Mongolia is of great concern. If the current trend continues, pastureland and herds may be more vulnerable to dzud and drought.”

He was clear about the cause. “The growing number of goats has been a major reason behind this but there is also the general problem of too many livestock and the added impact of climate warming.”

In China, where the problem of desertification and loss of pastureland is far more advanced, the authorities have decimated goat flocks and ordered more rotational farming. That means cashmere buyers have turned to Mongolia for supplies, pushing up the price in recent years. The prestigious Italian textile group Loro Piana, for example, sells its own-label cardigans for more than £1,000 each but also supplies more mainstream brands with cashmere sourced from Mongolia.

The financial crisis has taken its toll but there may be a silver lining to what herders regard as a dark cloud looming over their living standards. Wholesale prices have almost halved in the past year — but that could, in fact, be good news for the environment, according to the analyst Dalkhaijav Damiran, from the University of Saskatchewan in Canada. “The drop in cashmere prices might make it a good time to reduce the number of goats in a herd,” he said.

The UN Development Fund last year began a four-year project to combat desertification and improve land management, but Mongolian officials remain anxious. They have warned that as much as 96 per cent of the country could become desert if more is not done to stem the seemingly inexorable advance of the sands.

Green grass of steppes falls victim to West’s stampede for cashmere - Times Online

cancer gene form oe leukemia

Cancer gene complexity revealed

Leukaemia targets cells in bone marrow which form blood

Scientists have shown just how mind-bogglingly complex are the genetics underpinning the development of cancer.

For the second time a team from Washington University has decoded the complete DNA of a patient with a form of leukaemia.

But the suite of key genetic mutations they found were completely different from those uncovered following analysis of their first patient last year.

The study appears in the New England Journal of Medicine.

What we find may lead us to completely restructure the way we define tumour types Dr Elaine Mardis Washington University

The latest study does reveal some potentially significant findings.

One of the new mutations found in the second patient was also found in samples taken from 15 other patients with the same disease, acute myeloid leukaemia (AML).

The same mutation is also thought to play a role in the development of a type of brain tumour called a glioma.

A second new mutation was also found in another AML patient.

By using a state-of-art gene sequencing technique, the Washington team became the first to decode the entire genome of a cancer patient last year.

Once they have the full menu of DNA from cancer cells, the researchers can compare it with DNA from healthy cells to pinpoint genetic mutations which probably play a key role in the development of the disease.

The hope is that armed with this information scientists will be able to develop new drugs to target cancer.

Much work to do

But lead researcher Dr Elaine Mardis said: "Only by sequencing thousands of cancer genomes are we going to find and make sense of the complex web of genetic mutations and the altered molecular pathways in this disease.

"What we find may lead us to completely restructure the way we define tumour types and subtypes."

Her colleague Dr Timothy Ley said: "Currently, we don't have great information about how patients with this particular subtype of AML will respond to treatment, so most of them are treated similarly up front.

"By defining the mutations that cause AML in different people, we hope to determine which patients need aggressive treatment, and which can be treated effectively with less intense therapies."

The patient in the latest study was a 38-year-old man who had been in remission for three years.

Analysis revealed 64 genetic mutations which were most likely to play a role in cancer development.

Of these 52 were found in long stretches of DNA that do not contain genes, but which potentially affect how and when neighbouring genes become active.

The researchers compared the results with samples from 187 other AML patients.

They found the same mutation linked to brain tumours in 15 samples, making it one of the most common mutations yet linked to AML.

None of the mutations uncovered from analysis of the first patient was subsequently found in any other AML patient.

Dr Jodie Moffat, Cancer Research UK's senior health information officer, said: "It's exciting that these detailed studies to understand the genetic basis of cancer are now possible due to advances in technology.

"The genetic factors involved in leukaemia are particularly complex, so anything new we can learn is very welcome.

"But further research will be needed before scientists can reveal which parts of the genetic puzzle can actually be used to improve the lives of cancer patients."

blood pressure

Beetroot 'may cut blood pressure'

Root vegetable, and potential lifesaver?

Drinking 500ml of beetroot juice a day can significantly reduce blood pressure, UK research suggests.

The key beneficial ingredient appears to be nitrate, which is also found in green, leafy vegetables.

The researchers found that in healthy volunteers blood pressure was reduced within an hour of drinking the juice.

The study, by Barts and the London School of Medicine and the Peninsula Medical School, could suggest a low-cost way to treat hypertension.

Drinking beetroot juice, or consuming other nitrate-rich vegetables, might be a simple way to maintain a healthy cardiovascular system Professor Amrita Ahluwalia Barts and The London School of Medicine

Previously the protective effects of vegetable-rich diets have been attributed to their antioxidant vitamin content.

While it took less than an hour to note a reduction in blood pressure in the beetroot juice tests, it was more pronounced after three to four hours and a degree of reduction continued to be observed for up to 24 hours, the report published on the online journal Hypertension said.

Saliva breakdown

The researchers showed that nitrate in the juice is converted in saliva, by bacteria on the tongue, into nitrite.

This nitrite-containing saliva is swallowed, and in the acidic environment of the stomach is either converted into nitric oxide or re-enters the circulation as nitrite.

The peak time of reduction in blood pressure correlated with the appearance and peak levels of nitrite in the circulation.

No such drop in blood pressure was recorded in a second group of volunteers, who did not swallow their saliva while drinking beetroot juice, or for three hours afterwards.

More than 25% of the world's adult population are hypertensive, and it has been estimated that this figure will increase to 29% by 2025.

Hypertension causes around 50% of coronary heart disease, and approximately 75% of strokes.

In total, cardiovascular disease kills over 110,000 people in England every year.

Researcher Professor Amrita Ahluwalia said: "Our research suggests that drinking beetroot juice, or consuming other nitrate-rich vegetables, might be a simple way to maintain a healthy cardiovascular system, and might also be an additional approach that one could take in the modern day battle against rising blood pressure."

Professor Graham McGregor, of the British Hypertension Society, described the research as "interesting".

He said: "This shows that beetroot juice lowers blood pressure in the short term in volunteers with normal blood pressure.

"What we need now is research to see whether it has an effect on people with high blood pressure over a much longer period of time."

Professor McGregor said there was a growing body of work showing that a diet rich in fruit and vegetables had a beneficial impact on hypertension.

But he said previous research had suggested that potassium may be the key mineral.

Victoria Taylor, of the British Heart Foundation, said: "Whilst beetroot juice was used in this study, it is unlikely that people will be able to - or wish to - consume it in the quantities used in the research.

"Although we know that eating a diet rich in fruit and vegetables as part of a well balanced diet is beneficial to heart health, we do not know yet whether there are certain fruits or vegetables that are more helpful than others and so for now, people should continue to choose a wide variety in achieving their five a day."

astral projection

1 astral projection easy

,when strife hits and things become intolerable

move up above and imagine you are above earth looking down

everything on the planet is occurring at this moment

the war that is raging , the lion is eating a zebra , a banker is sitting in their office , anything that comes to

mind , doing this quietly in times of despair will allow you to isolate yourself from all the things that trouble

you and seek solace from trouble in the mind

you are not flying , but allowing your mind to be in a different place

accept all that occurs , you may be vegetarian , accept that meat eaters are butchering their supper

it is not you it may be you eat meat you will decide the meaning of the word primitivve while you are looking.

teachers

spirit
"Your teachers are doubtless learned men. But why do they
strive to force their beliefs on us without first learning what our beliefs
are?...To show you how ignorant they are I shall tell you what we teach the
Common Man...We teach that he has a body; that within that body is a soul;
and within the soul is a spark or portion of something we call Itongo, which
the Common Man interprets as the Universal Spirit of the Tribe...

Go natural

Older people on 'drugs cocktail'

People were taking a combination of presrciption, OTC and herbal drugs

Nearly half of over 65s are taking five or more drugs, and without regular reviews this may be both dangerous and costly to the NHS, pharmacists say.

The Royal Pharmaceutical Society (RPSGB) says not only are lots of older people taking a "cocktail" of drugs, many are not taking them as prescribed.

Over 60% of 500 polled believed they may be suffering side-effects from the drugs, but many did not tell a doctor.

Older people account for about half of the NHS's £4bn drug bill.

Many of these drugs are on repeat prescriptions, the society notes, and could have been prescribed for conditions the patient no longer has.

GPs are excellent at prescribing, but they are not always so good at knowing when to stop, and they may not always have the time to conduct a through review. Jonathan Silcock University of Leeds

The RPSGB polled 457 people aged 65 and above on their medications - which included prescriptions, drugs bought over the counter and herbal medications.

The society is urging all older people to request a medication review from their pharmacist. Regular monitoring of drugs regimens was a recommendation of the 2001 national service framework for older people, with the aim of maximising the benefits and minimising harm.

According to the RPSGB research one in five are not taking medications as prescribed, and one in seven do not take their pills at the recommended time.

Mixed reactions

The medication of older people has long been an area of concern: the combination of ageing bodies less able to cope with drugs, treatment by multiple doctors for multiple conditions, and known problems in adhering to the instructions, all raise the risk of adverse reactions.

Statistics show that the over-65s are three times more likely to be admitted to hospital because of such reactions, which can lead to falls, delirium and gastrointestinal bleeds among others.

This is something that all primary care health professionals need to engage with Dr Finbarr Martin Consultant in geriatric medicine

As many as 17% of hospital admission are due to these adverse reactions, and it is estimated that over three-quarters of these "are predictable and preventable", the RPSGB says.

Jonathan Silcock, lecturer in pharmacy at the University of Leeds, said research painted a mixed picture as to the effectiveness of regular reviews by pharmacists in reducing hospital admissions, but a well-trained professional could potentially pick up problems.

"Inevitably people do get put on more drugs when they get older because they suffer from more chronic conditions - this is often the right thing to do, but the problem is we don't necessarily know how these drugs are going to work in combination.

"GPs are excellent at prescribing, but they are not always so good at knowing when to stop, and they may not always have the time to conduct a through review. That's where the well-trained pharmacist could have a key role."

Dr Finbarr Martin, consultant in general and geriatric medicine at Guy's & St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust, said while pharmacists had an important role, "this is something that all primary care health professionals need to engage with.

"Some older people will be fine on a variety of medications - some will not - and there's not been enough research. We have to really look into constructing a model that makes sure the needs of the frail at the primary care level are met and regularly reviewed - involving GPs, pharmacists and community matrons."

Michelle Mitchell, charity director for Age Concern and Help the Aged said: "When people are buying over-the-counter medicines it is vital they inform the pharmacist of any other prescription drugs and medicines they are taking.

"Getting the correct advice and reassurance could very well be the best medicine of all."

cream as well

'No doubt' sunbeds cause cancer

Sunbeds emit ultra violet radiation

There is no doubt using a sunbed or sunlamp will raise the risk of skin cancer, say international experts.

Previously, the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) assessed sunbeds and sunlamps as "probably carcinogenic to humans".

But it now says their use is definitively "carcinogenic to humans".

Campaigners believe the move, announced in the journal Lancet Oncology, will increase pressure for tighter industry regulation of sunbed use.

The link between sunbeds and skin cancer has been convincingly shown in a number of scientific studies Jessica Harris Cancer Research UK

The new assessment puts sunbed use on a par with smoking or exposure to asbestos.

However, the Sunbed Association in the UK said there was no proven link between the responsible use of sunbeds and skin cancer.

The IARC is an expert committee that makes recommendations to the World Health Organization.

It made its decision following a review of research which concluded that the risk of melanoma - the most deadly form of skin cancer - was increased by 75% in people who started using sunbeds regularly before the age of 30.

In addition, several studies have linked sunbed use to a raised risk of melanoma of the eye.

The charity Cancer Research UK warned earlier this year that heavy use of sunbeds was largely responsible for the number of Britons being diagnosed with melanoma topping 10,000 a year for the first time.

In the last 30 years, rates of the cancer have more than quadrupled, from 3.4 cases per 100,000 people in 1977 to 14.7 per 100,000 in 2006.

Age limits

Proposals to ban people under the age of 18 from using sunbeds are under consideration by the government in England.

FROM THE TODAY PROGRAMME More from Today programme

A similar ban has already been approved in Scotland.

The Sunbed Association (TSA) supports a ban on under-16s, but argues there is no scientific evidence for a ban on young people aged 17 or 18.

Jessica Harris, Cancer Research UK's health information officer said: "The link between sunbeds and skin cancer has been convincingly shown in a number of scientific studies now and so we are very pleased that IARC have upgraded sunbeds to the highest risk category.

"This backs up Cancer Research UK's advice to avoid sunbeds completely for cosmetic purposes. They have no health benefits and we know that they increase the risk of cancer."

Ms Harris called for ministers to implement a ban on under-18s using sunbeds immediately, and to close salons that are not supervised by trained staff.

Kathy Banks, chief executive of the Sunbed Association, said: "The relationship between ultraviolet exposure and an increased risk of developing skin cancer is only likely to arise where over-exposure - burning - has taken place.

"However, research has shown that over 80% of sunbed users are very knowledgeable about the risks associated with over-exposure to ultraviolet and the majority of sunbed users take 20 or less sunbed sessions a year."

A Department of Health spokesperson said: "Sunbeds can be dangerous - we must ensure that people who use them do so safely. If necessary we will look at new laws to protect young people."

nhs again

'Services fail' on Parkinson's

Parkinson's is a degenerative condition that affects the brain Some Parkinson's disease patients are going for years without seeing a specialist doctor or nurse, according to a parliamentary report. The All Party Parliamentary Group for Parkinson's Disease heard from hundreds of patients and care organisations. Its inquiry found inequalities in access to care and discrepancies across the country - with serious shortfalls in Wales and Northern Ireland. It urged a thorough review of services to ensure patients get what they need. Parkinson's disease is a chronic neurological condition which affects around 120,000 people in the UK. It disturbs the way the brain co-ordinates body movements, including walking, talking and writing. RECOMMENDATIONS: Parkinson's 'tsar' in government Monitoring of Parkinson’s services Ensuring enough qualified staff in place Access to specialist doctors has been a problem across the country, but the inquiry heard that in Northern Ireland there is not a single consultant with expertise in Parkinson's. Appointments with specialists were crucial, experts warned, particularly given the high rate of misdiagnosis and the subsequent implications for treatment. Many people with Parkinson's and their carers told the panel of MPs and peers how much they valued the services of specialist nurses. But despite research suggesting these nurses saved the NHS money by cutting down hospital visits and providing support in the home, there were "sizable shortfalls". Some people in Wales, for example, had no access at all to a nurse, while others had to travel to Liverpool for help. Capped therapy Meanwhile treatments were restricted in some areas. Deep Brain Stimulation (DBS) is seen as an effective way of improving physical ability and reducing tremors, but the inquiry reported examples of trusts with no, or very limited funding for the procedure. Provision of speech and language therapy was also found to be seriously wanting, particularly for those living away from major hospital centres. Again there were significant regional variations. In the north west of England, the proportion of people who had never had an assessment or course of therapy - be it diet, physio, or speech and language - was higher than in the rest of the country. Carers also reported a lack of support, with many describing a "feeling of abandonment and loneliness". Steve Ford, Chief Executive of the Parkinson's Disease Society said: "The report uncovers just how bad services are for so many people with Parkinson's. This needs to change. "We want to see effective monitoring of Parkinson's services to ensure they meet national guidelines and standards, an urgent review of the health and social care workforce, and stronger national and local leadership by government. "Why is it that some conditions have these - for example a 'tsar' within government - and other conditions like Parkinson's don't?" Baroness Gale, chair of the APPG for Parkinson's Disease said: "We hope that the APPG Inquiry report released today will provide the boost to the UK government and the devolved administrations in Wales and Northern Ireland to reprioritise Parkinson's and to deliver against the report's recommendations." Health Minister Ann Keen said medical staff in the field of neurology had increased by more than 50% since 1997 and that guidelines on how to establish multi-disciplinary neurological teams had been published by the Department of Health. "These measures, along with the continual work we are doing with local health and social care communities and the third and voluntary sector, will help people with Parkinson's disease to manage their condition and maintain their independence and quality of life.