• How giving up sugar can help cure anxiety, according to woman who tried it
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    The Independent

    How giving up sugar can help cure anxiety, according to woman who tried it

    In 2017, researchers in Ireland decided to explore whether the gut microbiome could be linked with anxiety disorders, coming to the conclusion that there may in fact be an association between the two. When New York Times bestselling author Sarah Wilson decided to try eliminating sugar from her diet, she hoped that it would help alleviate the inflammation in her thyroid caused by Hashimoto’s disease, an autoimmune condition that left Wilson severely unwell on a daily basis. “We now know that inflammation causes all of the contemporary metabolic diseases.

  • Are you a functioning alcoholic? Know the signs
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    The Independent

    Are you a functioning alcoholic? Know the signs

    We all know that as a society, we drink too much. There’s always a reason to drink and there are always people encouraging you to do so.

  • New research finds 'light moderate drinkers' at least risk of dying early or developing cancer
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    Marie Claire Dorking

    New research finds 'light moderate drinkers' at least risk of dying early or developing cancer

    These results will surprise you

  • New parents get less than five hours sleep per night, study claims
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    The Independent

    New parents get less than five hours sleep per night, study claims

    New parents will get just four hours and 44 minutes of sleep in an average night during the first year of their baby's life, it has emerged. The study also found sleep deprivation can take an emotional toll on relationships, with the average new-born waking three times a night when they first arrive home. More than two thirds of British parents believe they have got into arguments with their partner purely as a result of their baby’s poor sleep habits.

  • Living in a fast-paced city is key to happiness, research claims
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    The Independent

    Living in a fast-paced city is key to happiness, research claims

    While urban environments are sometimes associated with greater levels of stress and anxiety, keeping yourself occupied on a daily basis has also been linked to greater levels of life satisfaction, as chartered mediator Dr Jeanette Bicknell explained. “Among individuals in a society, busyness - or the feeling of busyness - seems to be an important factor in wellbeing,” she wrote in a blog post on Nautil. Dr Bicknell cited a study undertaken by Robert Levine from California State University Fresno and a team of researchers that investigated the pace of large cities from 31 different countries.

  • Children could face social media curfew enforced by government
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    The Independent

    Children could face social media curfew enforced by government

    Children growing up in today’s digital age have grown accustomed to being surrounded by all sorts of digital devices on a daily basis. With one in four children under the age of six owning a smartphone, it’s easier said than done for parents to monitor the amount of time their children spend glued to a screen. Elizabeth Denham, information commissioner, is going to be overseeing the introduction of a new code that could force social media platforms to alter their settings for their younger users.

  • Fitness influencer criticised for promoting 'extremely dangerous' weight loss pills
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    The Independent

    Fitness influencer criticised for promoting 'extremely dangerous' weight loss pills

    A fitness influencer with 13 million followers has been criticised for promoting “extremely dangerous” weight loss pills that claim to “allow you to cheat on your diet.”

  • Pollen count set to reach 12-year high: Here's how to deal with hay fever
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    The Independent

    Pollen count set to reach 12-year high: Here's how to deal with hay fever

    Pollen levels are set to reach a 12-year high this week, according to the Met Office. The unusually high pollen count has not reached this level since 2006. One in five people in the UK suffers from hay fever, 95 per cent of whom are affected by grass pollen.

  • Expectant mother reveals dismay as no-one turns up to gender reveal party
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    The Independent

    Expectant mother reveals dismay as no-one turns up to gender reveal party

    An expectant mother has revealed her devastation after preparing a gender reveal party, only for none of her guests to turn up. The popularity of “gender reveal parties” to announce the sex of a baby is an American trend that’s been gaining traction in the UK in recent years. While some people view the notion of a gender reveal party as a strange phenomenon, others enjoy taking the opportunity to celebrate their pregnancies in a slightly eccentric way.

  • Woman told she’s pregnant while having surgery to find out why she’s ‘infertile’
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    The Independent

    Woman told she’s pregnant while having surgery to find out why she’s ‘infertile’

    Doctors were shocked after discovering that a woman was five-weeks pregnant - just after they'd put her under general anaesthetic and were preparing to perform keyhole surgery to discover why she couldn't conceive. Tia Reed, a 19-year-old from Birmingham, was diagnosed with endometriosis in August 2017 having suffered from painful periods throughout her adolescence and thought she was infertile. When someone has endometriosis, cells similar to the ones found in the lining of the uterus also appear in other places around the body, breaking down and bleeding on a monthly basis.

  • How living in violent communities can affect children’s behaviour
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    The Independent

    How living in violent communities can affect children’s behaviour

    How does seeing violence and destruction on that scale affect children’s mental health – and the risk of them becoming violent themselves? Although riots are an extreme form of public disorder, exposure to community violence is a common experience for many children. In the most high-risk areas – urban areas with high levels of poverty – up to 90 per cent of children have been exposed to some level of community violence.

  • Hay fever: How to combat the symptoms
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    The Independent

    Hay fever: How to combat the symptoms

    With pollen levels set to reach a 12-year high this week, hay fever sufferers may struggle to spend time outdoors without their symptoms flaring up. As lovely as the weather may seem as spring comes to an end, the approach of summer means one thing and one thing only - hay fever season has officially arrived.

  • Mother reveals struggle of having 15-year-old son diagnosed with ‘gaming disorder’
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    The Independent

    Mother reveals struggle of having 15-year-old son diagnosed with ‘gaming disorder’

    A mother has spoken out about her teenage son’s debilitating addiction to video games, after spending three years trying to have his condition officially recognised by the NHS. Kendal Parmar, a mother of five from North London, revealed that watching her 15-year-old son gradually become more reliant on gaming during his adolescence has been a huge struggle. “Every moment he’s awake, he wants to be on a game,” Ms Parmar told The Telegraph.

  • Women who wake up early less likely to develop depression, study claims
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    The Independent

    Women who wake up early less likely to develop depression, study claims

    Women who describe themselves as “early risers” are less likely to develop depression, new research claims. A study of more than 32,000 women published in the Journal of Psychiatric Research found that those who are naturally inclined to wake up early are at a lower risk of the mental illness due to greater daylight exposure. Researchers at the University of Colorado at Boulder and Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston examined the links between mood disorders and chronotype i.e.

  • All babies should be given Hepatitis B vaccination at birth, expert says
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    Marie Claire Dorking

    All babies should be given Hepatitis B vaccination at birth, expert says

    Currently the UK vaccinates all babies at 8 weeks.

  • Pollen levels to reach extreme highs on Father's Day, Met Office warns
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    The Independent

    Pollen levels to reach extreme highs on Father's Day, Met Office warns

    Anyone who’s planning on spending this year’s Father’s Day outside in the sunshine might want to reconsider if they or a family member has hay fever. Pollen levels are expected to reach extreme highs over the coming days in some parts of the UK, which will likely affect some people’s plans to make the most of the great outdoors. The Met Office has released a forecast of the pollen count over the coming days, which warns that people living in the east and south-east will be most affected.

  • Too much or too little sleep can damage your health, study finds
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    The Independent

    Too much or too little sleep can damage your health, study finds

    When a person is suffering from sleep deprivation, indulging in a lengthy lie in at the weekend may seem like a logical course of action to catch up on some zzzs. A recent study published in the journal BMC Public Health has found that having both too much or too little sleep could lead to a variety of health conditions, such as high blood pressure or elevated cholesterol levels. The team who conducted the research, from the Seoul National University College of Medicine, analysed the data of 133,608 Korean men and women aged between 40 and 69 years old.

  • Spin classes can cause injuries similar to car crashes
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    The Independent

    Spin classes can cause injuries similar to car crashes

    Stationary cycling classes may offer an effective workout - but they could also be increasing the risk of kidney damage, according to medical reports. The popularity of spin classes has grown exponentially in recent years, as the classes are relatively fun, have a high-calorie burn, and work out your lower body. Rhabdomyolysis occurs when severe muscle trauma, due to a lack of oxygen, causes muscles to break down and release their contents into the bloodstream - which can lead to serious complications such as kidney failure.

  • Why you shouldn’t work out on hangover, according to a personal trainer
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    The Independent

    Why you shouldn’t work out on hangover, according to a personal trainer

    Exercising on a hangover might seem like a foreign concept to many, whose ideal way to spend the morning after is to do nothing but watch Netflix from under the covers, but it’s not as rare as we might think. Drinking and exercising is obviously an unlikely pairing, but one 2014 study found that on days when people exercise more - typically weekends - they also drink more alcohol, making a hungover workout all the more likely for many of us. “Unfortunately the old adage of ‘sweating out a hangover’ physiologically doesn’t seem to happen,” explains Ian Streetz, personal trainer at boutique boxing gym Kobox in London.

  • Father’s Day 2018: Seven fun activities to do with your dad
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    The Independent

    Father’s Day 2018: Seven fun activities to do with your dad

    Father’s Day is a great opportunity to spend quality time with your dad, who you may have missed out on over the course of the year so far. There are so many fun activities that you can do with your dad to show him just how much you appreciate him. Challenge your culinary skills by taking your dad to a culinary class on Father’s Day.

  • The truth about what soya does to men’s bodies
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    The Independent

    The truth about what soya does to men’s bodies

    While some dietitians and scientists laud the humble soya bean for its vegan-friendly, fat-free, protein-rich composition, others argue that it inhibits male reproductive hormones. One study carried out by the Harvard School of Public Health in 2008 found that this was true for men who ate an average of half a serving of soya foods a day, with the effect being particularly prevalent in participants who were overweight and obese. Meanwhile, another study from 2011 examined the effects of soya on one 19-year-old man who consumed large quantities of soya as part of a vegan diet.

  • Man shares struggles of ‘being fat’ in emotional Twitter thread
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    The Independent

    Man shares struggles of ‘being fat’ in emotional Twitter thread

    A man has written a lengthy thread on Twitter detailing the judgement that he faces every day for “being fat”. As he explained on Twitter, a snide look from a stranger or a lack of understanding from your friends can be absolutely devastating.

  • Left untreated, stress can affect kids' health for a lifetime. Here's how to help them cope
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    The Independent

    Left untreated, stress can affect kids' health for a lifetime. Here's how to help them cope

    I woke up in an ambulance.

  • Do you have children? And if not, why not?
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    The Independent

    Do you have children? And if not, why not?

    There are the intrusive questions you get before you have children. Then there are the intrusive questions you get while you’re pregnant. There are the intrusive questions you get after the baby is born.

  • The truth about applying after-sun on sunburnt skin, according to the experts
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    The Independent

    The truth about applying after-sun on sunburnt skin, according to the experts

    Aloe vera has been highly regarded for a very long time due to its remedial properties as Lorraine Shrivener, director of Eden Skin Clinics, explains. “Aloe vera has been a trusted skin saviour for many years,” she says. According to Ms Shrivener, aloe vera is most potent when attained as a pure, clear gel.