Health

[SteveH]

Could ultra-processed foods be harmful for us?

Twenty years ago, no-one had heard of the term ultra-processed foods - or UPF - but about half the things we now eat in the UK are made that way.

From sliced brown bread to ready meals and ice cream, it is a group of foods made with varying - but often substantial - levels of industrial processing. Ingredients used, such as preservatives, artificial sweeteners and emulsifiers, do not typically feature in home cooking.

"Ultra-processed foods are among the most profitable foods companies can make," says Prof Marion Nestle, a food politics expert and professor of nutrition at New York University.

As our consumption of ultra-processed foods go up - the UK is one of the biggest consumers per head in Europe - so have rates of diabetes and cancer.

Some academics think the link is not coincidental.

Prof Tim Spector, is a professor of epidemiology at King's College London, who studies trends in disease.

He told BBC Panorama: "In the last decade, the evidence has been slowly growing that ultra-processed food is harmful for us in ways we hadn't thought.

"We're talking about a whole variety of cancers, heart disease, strokes, dementia."

Ultra-Processed Food: A Recipe For Ill-Health?

Ultra-processed convenience foods contain chemicals that UK regulators say are safe, but Panorama investigates emerging scientific evidence of a link between some of these chemicals and cancer, diabetes and strokes.

Watch on BBC iPlayer now, or on BBC One at 20:00 BST on Monday 5 June (20:30 in Northern Ireland and 23:10 in Wales)

cont https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-65754290

[Ian]

There's been a lot of disquiet about ultra-processed foods for some time, and one major worry is that they make a big play of low calorie counts, yet seem to add weight.  It's a major reason why there's a growing tide of people questioning if artificial sweeteners, as as those used in 'no cal' fizzy drinks, cause the body to add weight. 

[SteveH]

Scientists say salt intake could be linked to risk of dementia - how you can reduce your likelihood
The development of dementia is closely associated with changes in blood flow, making high salt intake a potential risk factor for this disease, reporting by Ellen Jenne

https://www.inyourarea.co.uk/news/scientists-say-salt-intake-could-be-linked-to-risk-of-dementia-how-you-can-reduce-your-likelihood/

[SteveH]

More than 122,650 people visited the NHS website seeking hay-fever advice last week, as the pollen count hit some of its highest levels this year.

Weekly visitors to the site's hay-fever advice pages have tripled in the past five weeks, NHS England says, with one visit every three seconds on Sunday.

The allergy usually strikes from late March to September, when it is warm, windy and humid and pollen counts high.

There is no cure but over-the-counter medication can manage most symptoms.

cont https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-65881737

[SteveH]

With temperatures rising and the increase of idiotic behaviour, this will become  a major problem, as experienced in North America recently.....

Concerns over health risks of wildfire smoke

Smoke and ash from wildfires in Wales is being studied by scientists who are trying to determine the health risks.

Researchers from Swansea University are developing a wildfire danger rating system for the UK which will predict fires further in advance.

Prof Stefan Doerr, who is leading the project, said smoke from wildfires can affect people's health and contaminate water supplies.

There have been 494 wildfires so far this year in Wales, with the added risk that the ash can contain higher than usual levels of heavy metals.

One fire at Rhigos mountain in Rhondda Cynon Taf burned for seven days and damaged more than 100 acres of land.

It was one of five major incidents that South Wales Fire and Rescue Service was dealing with at the time, meanwhile Mid and West Wales Fire and Rescue Service had six.

The smoke and ash left behind is now the focus of a team of scientists at the Centre for Wildfire Research, who have been taking water samples at Rhigos to check the impact on drinking water quality.

cont https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c4ne41ple1ko

[SteveH]

Supermarket trolleys with a special sensor fitted to the handles can help spot a hidden heart-rhythm condition that increases the risk of stroke, a trial has found.

Researchers in Liverpool asked local stores to stock the modified trolleys, which scan customers' grip pulses for any irregularities while they shop.

More than 2,000 shoppers used them.

During the two months of the study, 39 people were newly identified as having atrial fibrillation (AF).

They were referred on to see a heart doctor for advice.

cont https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-65983627

[SteveH]

The times they are a changing.............

Mosquito-borne diseases becoming increasing risk in Europe

Mosquitoes that carry viruses like dengue and chikungunya have moved into new parts of Europe, increasing the risk of illness, top experts warn.

European scientists say more frequent heatwaves and flooding, and longer, warmer summers, have created more favourable conditions for the bugs.

They are calling for better measures to control and protect against mosquitoes.

Without these, more illness and deaths from mosquito-borne diseases are likely, they say.

The report, by the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC), tracks the spread of different species of mosquitoes that can carry and transmit a number different of viruses to humans.

These include dengue and Zika - which can cause a range of symptoms such as fevers and muscle aches, and in the worst cases make people extremely ill.

The ECDC report suggests this year, the Aedes albopictus mosquito (known to carry dengue and chikungunya) "established" itself in 13 countries in Europe - meaning it has developed a self-sustaining population that is reproducing - compared with eight European countries a decade ago.

Meanwhile, last year, Aedes aegypti, which can spread diseases such as yellow fever, Zika and West Nile virus, became established in Cyprus, and scientists warn it may continue to spread to other countries.

cont https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-65985838

[SteveH]

A woman who became addicted to vaping at the age of 16 has warned of the struggles she has faced, claiming e-cigarettes have ruined her life.

Belle Moore, now 19, from Bickerstaffe, Lancashire, said she felt she has "no control over it" and now needed to vape every couple of hours.

"I start to get shaky and it's almost all I can think of," she said.

She has revealed her story after public health bosses called on the government to do more to stop young people vaping.

Belle said she started vaping through peer-pressure from some of her college friends, and used to hide it from her mother.

She has since made two unsuccessful attempts to stop vaping but says she has now also become addicted to cigarettes.

"It honestly feels like I have no control over it," she told BBC North West Tonight.

She said she was able to buy vapes at 16 at a shop, which did not ask for identification even though she looked much younger than her age.

It is currently illegal to sell vapes to anyone under the age of 18.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-lancashire-66003264

[SteveH]

BBC Panorama programme on Ultra Processed Foods
The UK is facing a chronic illness epidemic, with diabetes rates at record levels and cancers in young people rising steeply. Now, there?s growing evidence suggesting this could be linked to the food we eat. Ultra-processed convenience foods contain chemicals that UK regulators say are safe, but Panorama investigates emerging scientific evidence of a link between some of these chemicals and cancer, diabetes and strokes.

Video Duration29 mins First shown5 Jun 2023Available for 11 months  https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/m001mp67/panorama-ultraprocessed-food-a-recipe-for-ill-health

What?s the deal with UPFs?
UPFs typically contain lots of added salt, sugar, fat, and industrial chemical additives (those strange-looking ingredients listed on the back) ? think crisps, breakfast cereals, and reconstituted meats.

They contain fewer healthy nutrients, like fibre and polyphenols (a ground of compounds that occur naturally in plants). 

They tend to be eaten very quickly, 50% more quickly than unprocessed foods, which means that we tend to overeat them (research shows by about 500kcal/d!). Overconsumption of UPFs is linked to obesity, cardiovascular disease, diabetes and some cancers.

[SteveH]

Common sweetener 'to be listed as possible cancer risk' by WHO
Reports suggest the sweetener will be listed as ?possibly carcinogenic to humans?

An artificial sweetener commonly used in thousands of products including diet fizzy drinks, ice cream and chewing gum is to be listed as posing a possible cancer risk to humans, according to reports. Aspartame will be listed as ?possibly carcinogenic to humans? from next month based on the findings of the World Health Organisation?s (WHO) International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC).

The IARC is preparing to label the sweetener as ?possibly carcinogenic to humans?, Reuters reported based on ?two sources with knowledge of the process?. This would mean that there is some evidence linking aspartame to cancer, but that it is limited. The IARC has two more serious categories, ?probably carcinogenic to humans? and ?carcinogenic to humans?.

cont https://www.dailypost.co.uk/news/north-wales-news/common-sweetener-to-listed-possible-27229932

[SteveH]

London could see tens of thousands of measles cases due to low levels of vaccination, the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) has warned.

Mathematical calculations suggest an outbreak could affect between 40,000 and 160,000 people.

Higher levels of immunisation in the rest of the UK means there is a "low risk" of a large epidemic elsewhere.

But the UKHSA said there was an "urgent" need to vaccinate children, teenagers and young adults.

Levels of measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccinations in the UK are at their lowest level in a decade, with around one in ten children not protected by the time they start primary school.

Immunisations also took a significant dip in the early 2000s after claims of a link between the MMR jab and autism. This has been completely discredited and the doctor who pushed the idea, Andrew Wakefield, was struck off the medical register.

But measles is one of the most contagious diseases around, and growing numbers of people are without protection. Scientists at the UKHSA and the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine have run the numbers to reach those predictions of tens of thousands of cases in the capital.

This is a theoretical risk, rather than saying we are already at the start of a huge measles outbreak. There have been 128 cases so far this year, compared with 54 in the whole of 2022.

But the latest risk assessment suggests the R number - if you remember from Covid that's the number of people an infected person gives the virus to - has exceeded, or is close to 1.0, which is the point where a virus can take off.

The assessment also highlights 19 to 25-year-olds - who would have missed out at the peak of the autism scare - as being the most susceptible. There is heightened concern around university students.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-66200444

[SteveH]

Health chiefs list six bird flu symptoms as two more people catch virus which is sweeping Europe
There have been four confirmed cases in the UK as outbreak is 'largest ever observed'

Two more people in the UK have been diagnosed with H5N1A bird flu bringing the total to four. Government health chiefs have warned that the virus can be difficult to spot in humans.

The four cases in the UK have been confirmed since March, according to the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA), reports the Mirror. Bird flu has reportedly been recorded in record levels across Europe, with the European Food Safety Authority warning back in December that the ongoing epidemic was the "largest ever observed in Europe".

But British health advisors said it would react quickly if there was any detection of a bird flu epidemic in the UK.

Bird flu symptoms in humans
A person infected with bird flu will likely develop symptoms very quickly, according to the NHS.

The six earliest signs of infection include:
Diarrhoea
Sickness
Stomach pain
Chest pain
Bleeding from the nose and gums
Conjunctivitis

Full story  https://www.dailypost.co.uk/news/north-wales-news/health-chiefs-list-six-bird-27337766

[SteveH]

Wales weather: No such thing as a healthy tan - dermatologist

There is no such thing as a healthy tan, according to a dermatologist who treats hundreds of cases of skin cancer every year.

One in four men and one in five women in the UK will be diagnosed with skin cancer during their lifetime.

In Wales, it makes up 47% of all cancers - the highest rate of all UK nations.

The damage is caused by overexposure to ultraviolet radiation, or UV, produced by the sun.

Dr Rachel Abbott, consultant dermatologist at the University Hospital of Wales in Cardiff, said: "There is such thing as a healthy fake tan. But unfortunately, to induce tanning in the skin, you have to induce damage to the DNA in your skin cells.

"So there's no way of getting a healthy tan from the sun or from a sunbed."

cont https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-66245310

[SteveH]

One breakfast change can cut diabetes risk by 59% and it's easy
Scientists say the secret isn't down to changing what you eat

Having a late breakfast increases your risk of developing type 2 diabetes by nearly two thirds. Those who breakfasted after 9am were 59 per cent more likely to develop the condition than those who were done by 8am.

A late dinner, after 10pm, also increased the risk, while eating five times a day reduced it. Researchers looked at more than 100,000 people in France over a period of seven years.

cont https://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/uk-news/one-breakfast-change-can-cut-27366373?IYA-reg=49560bcd-5a9c-47f0-8fc5-ba2e71710589

[SteveH]

People struggle to estimate portion sizes for food such as chocolate, crisps and cheese, a survey of 1,265 Which? subscribers suggests.

They may need more help to assess how healthy products are, the consumer group says.

A third guessed a 185g (6.5oz) tube of Pringles contained two to four portions. But the packaging says it has six to seven - some 13 crisps each.

On a 220g box of Quality Street, the label suggests a portion is two sweets.

Unrealistic recommended serving sizes can mislead people into thinking they are consuming fewer calories, and less fat, sugar or salt, than they actually are, Which? says.

cont https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-66325444