HEALTH COMMENTS: Hay fever is twice as severe for city dwellers, study suggests
You don’t have to be surrounded by grass to struggle with hay fever, as urban dwellers suffer from worse symptoms, a study suggests.
Scientists at the University of Manchester analyzed 35,000 reports of symptoms from 700 people over five years.
Participants recorded how often they experienced a runny nose, sore eyes and wheezing on an app, along with where they lived.
The researchers found that all three of these symptoms were twice as severe in urban areas as in rural areas.
Increasing pollution may be to blame, says study co-author Professor Sheena Cruickshank.
You don’t have to be surrounded by grass to struggle with hay fever, as urbanites suffer from worse symptoms, a study suggests (stock photo)
Cannabis use a ‘time bomb’ for teens
Rising cannabis use among British teenagers is a ‘ticking time bomb’ for mental health services, warned one of the UK’s most senior psychiatrists.
According to the ONS, one in five 16- to 19-year-olds regularly uses the class B drug.
Dr. Shubulade Smith, the new president of the Royal College of Psychiatrists, tells the BMJ: ‘If you start smoking cannabis regularly, your risk of developing a psychotic illness is five times higher by the time you are 25.
“The government should see this as a potential ticking time bomb.”
Studies have linked frequent use to psychosis and schizophrenia. Dr. Smith has called for a public campaign to educate young people about the dangers of cannabis. She says, “We have a lot of education about alcohol, so we know what it does. But that’s not the same for cannabis.’
One in five 16- to 19-year-olds regularly uses the class B drug, according to the ONS (stock photo)
Two thirds of people in the UK have avoided the dentist in the past year due to financial concerns.
Older adults were most affected: 81 percent of those over 65 said they had wavered from dental checkups because of the high cost.
A survey of 2,000 Britons also shows an 83 per cent increase in childhood tooth extractions over the past year, which dentists say is linked to a lack of checkups.
Meanwhile, the survey, conducted by medical advocates Patient Claim Line, found that half of respondents shunned opticians and a third did not buy prescription drugs.
A spokesperson for the law firm advised those with financial concerns to visit the NHS website for advice and support in covering medical costs.
The Covid-19 pandemic slowed the development of new diabetes and cancer drugs for eight of the world’s ten largest pharmaceutical companies.
The focus on making tests and jabs for the virus caused the delay, according to a poll of 100 pharmaceutical chiefs by medical company LogiPharma.
Only one in five say they are still on track to launch every drug in the pipeline this year. Senior executives at the companies say safety trials of new drugs have stalled to help beat the virus.
A 2021 analysis found that Covid-19 had disrupted 1,200 clinical trials of medical treatments worldwide.