We're unsure if e-cigarettes are harmful, but it still makes sense to restrict them

Mar 04, 2016 17:08 pm UTC| Health

E-cigarettes have rapidly risen in popularity in recent years and are now the subject of heated debate as to whether they are effective in helping smokers quit tobacco or whether they are actually making smoking attractive...

A bit of claustrophobia is normal – stop treating it as a disease

Mar 04, 2016 15:22 pm UTC| Health

Claustrophobia is generally described as an irrational fear of confined spaces, and it has been estimated to affect some 5-7% of the world population. Clearly, some people are more distressed than others when they are in...

There's no such thing as an 'addictive personality' – here's why

Mar 04, 2016 11:22 am UTC| Health

Life is a series of addictions and without them we die. This is my favourite quote in academic addiction literature and was made back in 1990 in the British Journal of Addiction by Isaac Marks. This deliberately...

Why do some 11-year-olds drink alcohol? (Hint: it's to do with their parents)

Mar 04, 2016 09:43 am UTC| Health Law

Official guidelines from the Department of Health are clear: children aged 15 or under should not drink alcohol. But they do. While the number of young people who say they drink alcohol has recently fallen, the teenage...

Doctors must be taught how to be better counsellors on lifestyle choices

Mar 04, 2016 06:07 am UTC| Health

People who smoke and drink too much, dont exercise and eat unhealthily are likely to suffer from non-communicable diseases such as heart disease and diabetes. They are also likely to die early. More than most, they need...

The genetic 'switch' that makes many animals look alike as embryos

Mar 04, 2016 04:14 am UTC| Health

An international team of researchers, led by Dr Ozren Bogdanovic and Professor Ryan Lister from the University of Western Australia, have found the genetic switch that causes one species of animal to look similar to...

Wake up sleepy head: why we fall asleep when we don’t want to

Mar 04, 2016 00:34 am UTC| Health

During my first lecture to third-year psychology students, I noticed one of the students was asleep for the whole hour-long lecture. I immediately thought is the lecture boring? Am I speaking in a monotone voice? Is the...