 Harvesting seaweed must be handled carefully and transported with environmentally friendly non-motorized fishing boats. |
 Sea vegetables have been consumed regularly by all coastal peoples since the first days. |
 Japan has the highest per capita dietary sea vegetable consumption (and, correspondingly, the highest per capita dietary iodine consumption, and, an extremely low incidence of breast cancer). |
A cancer diagnosis means a lot of changes in your life. This group offers support and a safe place for you
to talk about your experience.
It is a confidential and supportive group where you can voice your hopes, fears and frustrations; share ideas and experiences with others, and learn ways to manage the emotional strain of living with cancer.
We offer you a free introductory appointment with the group facilitator. This gives you an opportunity to visit and find out more about the support group and how you could benefit. In addition we can tell you about other services on offer.
The next groups starts 19 March 2009 and will run until 15th July 2009. The group costs £5 per session (donation rate is available).
The support group takes place at Penny Brohn Cancer Care, Chapel Pill Lane, Pill, Bristol BS20 0HH.
If you are interested in finding out more, please contact Bookings on 01275 370 111 or email bookings@pennybrohn.org to book a FREE introductory appointment with a group facilitator.
 The number of homeless is expected to rise this year |
Homeless people need more help to deal with mental health problems, leading charities are warning.
Experts have already predicted that the recession could lead to a rise in homeless people.
And now Crisis and St Mungo's have called for improved access to specialist services because of the high rates of problems being reported.
Research shows that a third of people in hostels have severe mental health problems such as personality disorders.
Once other conditions, including depression and anxiety, are taken into account as many as eight in 10 are affected.
 |  The link between homelessness and mental health problems is well known  Leslie Morphy, of Crisis |
But the charities, which run homelessness services including hostels, said most are given no help.
One of the key reasons why homeless people struggle to access services when they want to is that they are often not registered with a local GP.
The campaigners called for mental health specialists to run outreach clinics in hostels as well as greater access to drop-in centres.
They are now planning to hold discussions over the next 10 weeks with other homeless services, NHS experts and social services to see what can be achieved, before publishing a full report in the summer.
While the number of rough sleepers has been falling in recent years, there are still estimated to be about 800 people on the streets of the UK at any one time.
On top of that there are more than 40,000 people living temporarily in shelters and hostels.
Rise
And many believe these figures will rise in the coming months as people struggle to cope in the current financial climate.
St Mungo's chief executive Charles Fraser said: "These are often the individuals with the most intractable problems, who need the most determined help and it is reprehensible they are not getting it."
And Leslie Morphy, the head of Crisis, added: "The link between homelessness and mental health problems is well known.
"Yet, despite all the evidence, we still do not have the right services and support in place to address what is both such a common cause and consequence of homelessness."
But the Department of Health said funding for mental health services had been increasing and local health bosses were investing some of this into care for homeless people.
"Many trusts now have successful community outreach teams that work with hard to reach people such as the homeless."
 The price of pork sausages has gone up 51% in the past year |
A crisis is unfolding in the UK as people in poverty struggle with rising food prices and the recession, the Save the Children charity has warned.
It comes as new figures from The Grocer magazine show food prices rose by more than 18% over the last year.
On Monday, the charity will launch a crisis grant scheme to help families.
The government says it believes food prices have peaked and it is tackling child poverty through increased child benefits and child tax credits.
'More unequal'
Colette Marshall, of Save the Children, said: "We are facing a crisis. Benefits simply haven't been enough and with rising food costs it means that families cannot afford to give children proper decent food.
"We think we are heading towards malnutrition here in the UK."
Pensioner on her struggle with food costs
She is calling on the government to meet its target of halving child poverty by 2010 by putting £3bn in the Budget.
Penny Greenhough, a single mother of two young children, said the family was struggling on a food budget of £3 per head per day.
"I am having to compromise on a daily basis on quality and quantity. I used to manage, but it's getting harder and harder," she told BBC News.
"Once you get into the supermarket then you have got to start looking for the cheapest of everything, every type of commodity you want, whether it is soap powder, some meat or bread or anything else, it's always the cheapest variety," said pensioner Rita Young.
"We have to go for the cheapest of everything and it's just not doing us any good. Too much salt, too much fat, too much sugar - cheap, cheap, cheap, just isn't good enough."
| ANNUAL FOOD PRICE RISES Rice - up 81% Pork sausages - up 51% Mince - up 22% Milk - up 14% Source: The Grocer |
Kate Green, of the Child Poverty Action Group, said that many families were buying less fresh fruit, vegetables, meat and fish, and consuming more affordable tinned and packet food that was often higher in sugar, salt and fat.
Government efforts had lifted 600,000 children out of poverty in the last 10 years, but one in three still lived below the poverty line, she said.
"Part of the problem is... many people have seen their prosperity improve over the last 10 years, so we have become a much more unequal country," she said.
"That is very damaging for the people who just haven't kept up, and it really is quite wrong morally, and it's economically very stupid actually, not to make sure that we share the resources more equally and protect those who have least."
According to The Grocer, a typical basket of 33 items of food cost £48 a year ago. That has now risen to £57.50.
Seasonal produce has caused a small drop in monthly figures, but the cost of basic essentials remains high.
Extra benefits
James Ball, from the magazine, told the BBC: "It is the staples that have really gone up and that's tough for people who buy the cheapest food.
"Rice costs double what it did last year, baked beans are up more than a third. Lots of everyday items cost a lot more than they used to."
As the UK imports about 40% of its food, the weak pound has driven up prices. Unpredictable world harvests and a spike in oil prices last year have also played a part.
However, as British produce comes into season, prices are expected to drop.
Treasury minister Stephen Timms said a raft of benefits due to come in on Monday would help struggling families.
"Extra help on child benefit, child tax credit, the state pension, and pension credits is going to assist children, families and older people who are feeling the pinch at the moment.
"Of course we always look at the time of the budget to see if there is more that can be done but I think people will appreciate the help that is being provided."
 The polypill has been hailed as the magic bullet to heart problems |
A cheap five-in-one pill can guard against heart attacks and stroke, research suggests.
The concept of a polypill for everyone over 55 to cut heart disease by up to 80% was mooted over five years ago, but slow progress has been made since.
Now a trial in India shows such a pill has the desired effects and is safe and well-tolerated by those who take it.
Although The Lancet study is proof of concept, experts still question the ethics of a pill for lifestyle issues.
| There is a danger that lifestyle factors could be overlooked in favour of 'popping a pill' Mike Rich of UK charity the Blood Pressure Association  Q&A: The Polypill |
Critics say the problems of high blood pressure and cholesterol should be tackled with diet and exercise rather than by popping a pill.
The polypill used in the latest study combines five active pharmacological ingredients widely available separately - aspirin, a statin to lower cholesterol and three blood pressure-lowering drugs - as well as folic acid.
Does what it says on the tin
Trials on 2,053 healthy individuals free of cardiovascular disease, but with a risk factor such as high blood pressure or a long-term smoker, showed combining the drugs into one tablet delivered a similar effect to each drug separately.
Reductions were seen in both blood pressure and cholesterol without any major side effects.
| WHAT'S IN IT? Aspirin to thin the blood A statin drug to lower cholesterol Three blood pressure-lowering drugs: ACE inhibitor Diuretic Beta-blocker Folic acid to reduce the level of homocysteine in the blood which is another risk factor for heart disease |
The researchers believe that the combined action of all the components in their "Polycap" capsule made by Cadila Pharmaceuticals, could potentially halve strokes and heart attacks in average, middle-aged people.
On a global scale, this would save tens of millions of lives.
The study, led by Dr Salim Yusuf, from McMaster University in Ontario, Canada, took in people at 50 centres across India.
A spokeswoman for the British Heart Foundation said: "The results suggest that the polypill has the potential to reduce the incidence of cardiovascular disease.
| The polypill does exactly what it should, but no more UK researcher Professor Simon Thom |
"We now need further research to examine whether the polypill actually reduces mortality."
A UK team led by Professor Simon Thom of Imperial College London is hoping to do just this.
They have been testing a four-in-one polypill called the Red Heart Pill, with the backing of the Wellcome Trust and the British Heart Foundation, which could cost as little as 15 euros per person per year.
Professor Thom said it would be at least five years before there was enough data to convince drug regulators to approve a polypill.
"Mounting evidence shows the polypill does exactly what it should, but no more, whereas exercise has wide reaching effects on health and wellbeing. So a polypill is an addition rather than a replacement for lifestyle interventions."
| FROM THE TODAY PROGRAMME More from Today programme |
Mike Rich of UK charity the Blood Pressure Association said: "This study further stimulates the debate over whether a 'magic bullet' is the answer to the prevention of heart disease and strokes.
"Eating healthily and taking regular exercise are proven ways to lower high blood pressure - and have many other health benefits too - and there is a danger that these lifestyle factors could be overlooked in favour of 'popping a pill'."
Joanne Murphy of The Stroke Association said: "By combining these medications in one pill, it will make it easier for people to take their medication. However, it is important that more research and investigation is done into this pill to ensure its safety."
One GP, Dr Sarah Jarvis, said the pill should not be viewed as an alternative to improving lifestyles through diet and exercise.
"What we need to bear in mind is that this may well cut the likelihood of dying of heart disease dramatically. Fantastic. But it's not going to stop you getting arthritis, it's not going to stop you get lung disease," she said
 Common infections may trigger cancer cell growth |
Scientists have shown how common infections might trigger childhood leukaemia.
They have identified a molecule, TGF, produced by the body in response to infection that stimulates development of the disease.
It triggers multiplication of pre-cancerous stem cells at the expense of healthy counterparts.
The Institute of Cancer Research study appears in the Journal of Clinical Investigation.
| While infection is clearly only one factor in triggering progression, this study greatly increases the strength of evidence for its role in the commonest form of childhood leukaemia Dr Shabih Syed Leukaemia Research |
Leukaemia occurs when large numbers of white blood cells take over the bone marrow, leaving the body unable to produce enough normal blood cells.
The researchers had already identified a genetic mutation - a fusion of two genes - occurring in the womb that creates pre-leukaemic cells.
These cells then grow in the bone marrow, effectively acting as a silent time bomb that can stay in the body for up to 15 years.
Evidence suggests the mutation may be present in as many as one in 100 newborn babies, but only about one in 100 of these children then go on to develop leukaemia.
This suggests that the cells will only complete the transformation to fully-fledged cancer cells if they exposed to an independent trigger.
The latest study suggests production of TGF in response to an infection could be that trigger.
Because the molecule hugely increases the rate at which the pre-leukaemic cells multiply, this significantly raises the the chance that some will become even further damaged in a way that results in the child developing leukaemia.
Preventative measures
Researcher Professor Mel Greaves said: "Identifying this step means we can determine how an unusual immune response to infection may trigger the development of the full leukaemia and eventually perhaps develop preventative measures such as a vaccine."
Dr Shabih Syed, scientific director at the charity Leukaemia Research, said: "Before this study, there had been only circumstantial evidence to implicate infections in the progression from a child carrying pre-leukaemic cells to actually having leukaemia.
"There was no evidence of the mechanism by which this might happen.
"While infection is clearly only one factor in triggering progression, this study greatly increases the strength of evidence for its role in the commonest form of childhood leukaemia."
 Sex and the City character Carrie Bradshaw loves to shop |
Women may be able to blame impulse buys and extravagant shopping on their time of the month, research suggests.
In the 10 days before their periods began women were more likely to go on a spending spree, a study found.
Psychologists believe shopping could be a way for premenstrual women to deal with the negative emotions created by their hormonal changes.
Professor Karen Pine will present her work to a British Psychological Society meeting in Brighton later this week.
She asked 443 women aged 18 to 50 about their spending habits.
| The spending behaviour tends to be a reaction to intense emotions Professor Pine |
Almost two-thirds of the 153 women studied who were in the later stages of their menstrual cycle - known as the luteal phase - admitted they had bought something on an impulse and more than half said they had overspent by more than £25.
A handful of the women said they had overspent by more than £250.
And many felt remorse later.
Professor Pine, of the University of Hertfordshire, said: "Spending was less controlled, more impulsive and more excessive for women in the luteal phase.
"The spending behaviour tends to be a reaction to intense emotions. They are feeling stressed or depressed and are more likely to go shopping to cheer themselves up and using it to regulate their emotions."
Hormonal
She said much of this could be explained by hormonal changes during the menstrual cycle. And the findings were exaggerated in the women with severe PMT.
"We are getting surges and fluctuations in hormones which affect the part of the brain linked to emotions and inhibitory control. So the behaviour we found is not surprising."
Another explanation might be that women are buying items to make themselves feel more attractive - coinciding with the time of the month when they are most fertile.
Most of the purchases made by the women were for adornment, including jewellery, make-up and high heels.
Professor Pine said: "Other researchers have found there is an ornamental effect around the time of ovulation."
Researchers have found women tend to dress to impress during their fertile days.
Professor Pine, author of the book Sheconomics, said if women were worried about their spending behaviour they might avoid going shopping in the week before their period was due.
 The rise in cancer is a consequence of people living longer |
NHS and social services in England are failing to meet the health needs of people with learning disabilities, investigators say.
The Health Service and Local Government Ombudsmen said the standard of care was an "indictment of our society" after reviewing the deaths of six people.
They found one man died as a result of failings in his care, while a second death could have been avoided.
The government said it was taking steps to address the problems.
The ombudsmen investigated the cases after they were highlighted by the charity Mencap.
| CARE LINKED TO DEATH Mark Cannon - The 30-year-old died eight weeks after being admitted to hospital with a broken leg. He waited three days to see a pain team and developed an infection. Complaints were upheld against the hospital and council - he was in a care home when he was first injured. The ombudsmen ruled care contributed to death. Martin Ryan - Died several weeks after having stroke. While in hospital, the 43-year-old went 26 days without being fed. The hospital was criticised: death could have been avoided if care had been better. |
They looked into complaints made by the families of the six people who died between 2003 and 2005.
The report found failings by hospitals, local health bosses, the official NHS regulator and social care services provided by councils, although none of the complaints against GPs were upheld.
It linked the care of two of the six - Mark Cannon, 30, from Romford, east London, and Martin Ryan, 43, from Richmond, west London - to their eventual deaths.
It also said the failings in the care of two more - Tom Wakefield, 20, from Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, and Ted Hughes, 61, from High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire - was partly due to the fact that they had learning disabilities.
In the final two cases - those of Emma Kemp, 26, from Newbury, Berkshire, and Warren Cox, 30, from St Leonards, East Sussex - the complaints were not upheld, although some aspects of their care were criticised.
The ombudsmen also ruled that investigation of their complaints was flawed, although at different stages in the process.
The investigtors said there was enough evidence to suggest problems were endemic across the services.
'Inadequate care'
Ann Abraham, the Health Service Ombudsman, said: "The recurrence of complaints across different agencies leads us to believe that the quality of care in the NHS and social services for people with learning disabilities is at best patchy and at worst an indictment of our society."
Allan Cannon, father of Mark, said the family had to push at every stage to try to get better treatment.
He said no proper checks were done following Mark's surgery, and it was later discovered he had lost 40% of his blood.
"After the surgery, he was in an awful lot of pain and it just continued. He was being neglected by staff, we were calling for help."
In total, the role played by 20 different bodies in the cases was investigated.
Hospitals were criticised for the inadequate care and treatment given to people with learning disabilities as well as the way they looked into complaints.
| POOR CARE BECAUSE OF DISABILITY Tom Wakefield - The 20-year-old had long history of stomach problems before dying of pneumonia and reflux problems. The council and the NHS were criticised for not planning and providing adequate care. The Healthcare Commission complaint handling was also found at fault. Ted Hughes - After spending most of his life in care homes, the 61-year-old died the day after being released from hospital after an operation. Discharge arrangements by the hospital were found to be inadequate. |
Councils were attacked for failing to provide or secure adequate levels of health care, while local health managers working for primary care trusts were said to be struggling to plan services properly.
The Healthcare Commission, the NHS regulator, was even ruled to have not handled complaints properly in some of the cases.
The ombudsmen said there was sufficient policy and guidance available, but agencies were not following it and, as a result, were in breach of human rights and disability discrimination laws.
They recommended all agencies review the systems they have in place for making sure the needs of people with learning disabilities were met.
Communication
In particular, they said staff needed to improve communication with the patients and their families, and social care and NHS teams had to work together better to ensure discharge arrangements were good enough.
The ombudsmen's report comes after the government has already promised to improve training and carry out a full inquiry into premature deaths among people with learning disabilities.
| POOR INVESTIGATION OF COMPLAINT Emma Kemp - The 26-year-old died shortly after being diagnosed with cancer. Her mother complained she should have been diagnosed earlier and given chemotherapy treatment. The complaint not upheld, but the way it was handled was criticised Warren Cox - Died 90 minutes after being admitted to hospital with stomach pains. The hospital was found to have acted correctly, but the Healthcare Commission failed to offer them proper review of case |
Ministers made the announcements earlier this year after an independent inquiry last year into the deaths found significant failings.
Care services minister Phil Hope said: "Preventable deaths of people with learning disabilities are absolutely unacceptable.
"We are taking action to ensure that people with learning disabilities get the equal access to the health care that they deserve."
But Mencap chief executive Mark Goldring said the findings were "damning".
He said: "We would have liked to see individuals held accountable where they have not met required standards.
"We will continue to fight for justice for the families and, with them, consider referring the individual doctors who failed in their duty of care to the General Medical Council."
A typical day on the diet included:
The researchers said the findings suggested the combination diet may be as effective as statins.
"For us, the main feature now is to move this forward into longer-term studies."
Care homes need to improve their approach to people with dementia, a report by a firm of health and social care analysts has concluded.
The survey of 6,000 UK care homes also questioned the care provided.
The number of people in Britain with dementia is expected to more than double to 1.7m by 2051.
| |
"The national dementia strategy will improve the quality of care in care homes."
More patients in Scotland given antidepressants 13 October 2015 From the section Scotland Image copyright Thinkstock Image ca...
There is hope for a drug-free treatment for some people with high cholesterol
