Studies show that marriage and divorce can cause major fluctuations in body weight, particularly in women. The American Sociological Association carried out research on 10,071 individuals, over a period of time from 1986 to 2008, to determine any changes in body weight throughout this timescale. In order to see if marriage and divorce were factors read more »

A group of international researchers have released a series of articles in the Lancet on the catastrophic effects that high levels of obesity are having on the state system. It has been well documented in the press that the levels of obesity are continuing to rise, and if the government does not take some action read more »

Shocking figures which have been released by the Office for National Statistics, show that the number of females who are dying through drug poisoning, has taken a sharp rise. In 2009, there were 780 drug related deaths, but by 2010 this figure had increased to 857. This is an overall increase of 9%. Even more read more »

On the 30th March 2011, the Alcohol Marketing Bill, which was proposed by MP, Dr Sarah Wollaston, had its first reading at the House of Commons. It was introduced under the Ten Minute Rule and is, what is known as, a Private Member’s Bill. This Bill looks at alcohol marketing, the ways in which it read more »

There are a host of health problems associated with smoking, and one of the hardest to treat is problems with the lungs. If you smoke, you instantly increase the risk of getting lung cancer. Statistics from Cancer Research UK show that 40,800 people were diagnosed with lung cancer in the UK in 2008, and 35,260 read more »

Obesity in the UK is becoming a more common problem than ever before. In 2009, it was reported by the NHS that almost a quarter of adults in England were diagnosed as obese, and the number of recorded admissions to hospital due to obesity rose by more than 30% last year. It also reported that read more »

Often, when we picture an alcoholic, we usually conjure up an image of a middle aged person who drinks every day and all day. However, this is not always the case. Many people have an alcohol addiction, without even recognising it. Startling figures from the UK wide charity Drinkaware, show that an estimated 1 in read more »

According to a US study published in health journal The Lancet, the risk of heart disease caused by smoking is 25% higher among females than it is among males. The study, which was conducted by experts from the University of Minnesota and the University of Maryland involved pooling data on approximately 4 million individuals from read more »

A US study recently published in the journal Cancer has revealed that individuals who light up first thing in the morning stand a higher risk of developing cancer than those who have their first cigarette later on in the day. The study in question looked at 7,610 smokers, 4,776 of whom had lung cancer and read more »

When we feel low, a common reaction is to reach into the fridge and pull out a bar of our favourite chocolate, order take-out or pig out on junk food, but what really is it about comfort eating which makes us feel better? We have all been guilty of comfort eating at one point or read more »