From a distance

Surgical training takes place on the job and online on the new Masters course Breast 'regrowth' trial plannedBreast cancer unit wins accoladeFat used in breast reconstruction Surgeons are learning how to perform breast operations online in the first course of its kind in the world.

The University of East Anglia e-learning course qualifies trainee breast surgeons as specialists in breast cancer and breast reconstruction surgery.

Eighty per-cent of the course is e-learning based with just 20% involving practical skills, including surgery.

Students will primarily be taught via online video lectures and seminars. They are also encouraged to discuss cases in chatrooms with other students.

But face-to-face training also has a part to play.

Assessment takes place throughout the length of the two-and-a-half year course and training days at the Royal College of Surgeons are organised, in addition to visits from local trainers who act as mentors.

All those on the course are practising surgeons, and so learn the practicalities of operating in their daily work.

'State of the art'

The Masters in Oncoplastic Breast Surgery has been developed with the support of the Royal College of Surgeons (England), the Association of Breast Surgery and the British Association of Plastic, Reconstructive and Aesthetic Surgeons.

Professor Jerome Pereira, a consultant breast surgeon at James Paget University Hospitals in Great Yarmouth and an honorary professor at UEA, developed the course with Professor Sam Leinster - the pioneer of oncoplastic breast surgery in the 1970s.

Continue reading the main story“Start QuoteSurgery is about ensuring that any surgery on the breast leaves the woman looking as good as possible rather than just chopping the problem out”

End QuoteFiona MacNeill,Association of Breast Surgery Professor Pereira says it is a "state of the art programme" which encourages high levels of clinical reasoning and decision-making through a mix of e-learning, mentoring and assessment.

"At the moment the training of surgeons can be an ad hoc experience. Using this method, surgeons will have to cover the full range of operations," Professor Pereira said.

"It means that in the final three years leading up to them becoming consultants, they will be receiving the highest quality of training in this field anywhere in the world."

Professor Pereira insisted that the practical element of surgical training was not being sacrificed in the online course.

"We are supplementing programmes, not taking anything away."

By learning online, trainee surgeons can do more in their spare time without travelling long distances.

This keeps the costs down and leaves them free to concentrate on their day-to-day NHS work.

'Valuable time'

Simon Hawkins, based at Torbay Hospital in Devon, is a general surgical trainee in the fourth year of his training.

“Start QuoteIt's important to be able to do the coursework when I want to, when I've got the time”

End QuoteSimon Hawkins,Surgical trainee He is one of 17 surgeons who have enrolled on the course.

"It's important to be able to do the coursework when I want to, when I've got the time because there are no prescribed timetables," he says.

The last thing he wants to do, he says, is spend valuable training time travelling to London and back to attend multiple training sessions at the Royal College of Surgeons.

Moreover, the course focuses on a crucial and developing area of interest - breast reconstruction.

"Reconstructive services are becoming more important so this has come at exactly the right time for me as I start to think about consultant positions," he says.

Fiona MacNeill, oncoplastic breast surgeon at the Royal Marsden Hospital in London, who is also chair of the education and training committee for the Association of Breast Surgery, calls it a "unique course".

"Oncoplastic surgery is about ensuring that any surgery on the breast leaves the woman looking as good as possible rather than just chopping the problem out," says Dr MacNeill.

This is true whether the surgeon is removing a small cancer or undertaking a mastectomy, she says.

"It's a highly structured training program for plastic surgery. It is built on the practical aspects of training which trainee surgeons are already getting, thereby maximising the work they do in local hospitals."

War on abortion

Anti-abortion supporters recently staged their annual "march for life" in Washington DC Calls for abortion law reformIrish abortion rights challengedBrazil's women voters campaign to be heard Abortion has long been a lightning rod in American politics. Now, amid hidden video camera stings, bitter argument over the definition of rape, late-night satire and reinvigorated Republicans, the debate is heating up again.

For many years, the abortion debate in the US has remained in a kind of stasis. No compromise seemed possible and each side knew aggressive pushes would provoke an equally fierce response.

Aside from elections - where abortion is invoked to motivate each party's base and presidential candidates must proffer their Republican anti-abortion or Democratic pro-choice credentials to sate primary voters - the issue has rarely gathered steam in recent sessions of Congress.

Until now.

After offering an anti-abortion amendment that almost derailed the entire healthcare reform process last year, anti-abortion members appear emboldened.

Led by Republicans Mike Pence and Chris Smith, two abortion-related measures are headed to the House of Representatives, where Republicans now have sufficient votes to pass them without any support from Democrats.

Mr Pence is aiming to stop Planned Parenthood, a reproductive care organisation, receiving federal funds.

Planned Parenthood offers services including contraception, gynaecological and breast exams, and family planning, but is a favoured target for the anti-abortion lobby because it is America's leading provider of abortions.

It serves about 3 million women each year in its more than 800 clinics, and provided 324,008 abortions in 2008. The organisation says abortions account for only about 3% of its budget.

Anti-abortion activists have long had Planned Parenthood in their sights, keeping an almost constant vigil of protesters outside their clinics.

Their campaign to deny it federal funds has been aided recently by the release of several hidden camera videos showing a man posing as a pimp asking Planned Parenthood workers about services for under-age prostitutes.

Secret videos

Live Action, the anti-abortion group behind the videos, contends that they demonstrate the willingness of Planned Parenthood "to aid and abet in the sexual exploitation of minors and young women".

Parents 'don't recognise obesity'

One in three children in England leave primary school overweight
Childhood obesity is a growing problem, but parents are often surprised, even angry, when told that their child is too heavy.

Do you know whether your child is overweight?

Most of us are aware that obesity is a problem, and we may even know that the UK is in the middle of a child obesity epidemic.

But many parents are unable to tell when their own child is overweight.

A National Opinion Poll involving over 1,000 parents of children aged four to seven showed that only 14% of those with an obese child considered that their child was overweight.

Norm

The problem is that we have all adjusted to overweight as being the norm. Understandably, parents compare their own child with the children around them.

“Start QuoteDid you know that a healthy ten-year old's ribs should be clearly visible? Many parents would consider that such a child was quite underweight.”

End QuoteProfessor Mary RudolfObesity expert Read your comments When one in three children at primary school is overweight, it is not surprising that it is hard to identify when a child has a problem.

Did you know that a healthy 10-year-old's ribs should be clearly visible?

Many parents would consider that such a child was quite underweight.

Parents are not alone in having difficulty recognising when children have an unhealthy weight.

Studies in the US and the UK show that health professionals often underestimate children's weight too.

When shown pictures they invariably mis-categorise children as being a healthier weight than they are, unless the child is exceptionally obese.

In fact, health professionals do not even recognise when they themselves are overweight; a good half of those who were overweight reported that their weight was healthy!

Anger

In 2005, the National Child Measurement Programme was introduced in primary schools.

The programme was introduced to monitor the epidemic in childhood obesity, by weighing and measuring all children as they start primary school and again in their last year.

In many areas, parents receive a letter to let them know the outcome and how healthy their child's weight is.

Some feel surprise and even anger if they are told that their child is overweight.

They have difficulty marrying up the term 'overweight' with the healthy child in front of them.

The lack of recognition is very common.

Media

Another reason for the lack of knowledge may be that the media often portrays and highlights extreme cases of child obesity.

Most children identified by the National Child Measurement Programme do not look obviously overweight.

By comparison to the images shown of very obese children in the media, they look slim.

Yet lesser degrees of being overweight and obesity can be accompanied by health concerns and are a marker for obesity and health problems later in life.

The letter is not intended to make parents feel they have failed in any way.

Information is offered to help them make positive decisions about their child's lifestyle.

Many parents, while not necessarily welcoming the information they receive, have taken it as a 'wake-up call' to ensure that their family become more active and develop healthier attitudes to eating.

Schools have also taken the impetus to make sure that children under their care spend time in a healthier environment with better opportunities for healthy food choices and physical activity.

Lifestyle changes

Once obesity is established, it is extremely difficult to reverse, as most of us know.

Less serious levels of being overweight can more easily be reduced by lifestyle changes.

It is for this reason that it can be so helpful to inform parents when their child's weight is of concern.

Without doubt, the introduction of the National Child Measurement Programme has been controversial, but hopefully most parents will appreciate that it offers the potential for improving children's lives and protecting them from the very real problems that accompany obesity and unhealthy lifestyles.

Biking risk

Many cyclists wear masks to try and minimise the effects of air pollution.
Cycling is a great way to get around cities and become fit at the same time - but do cyclists get enough public health information about the damage air pollution could be doing to their lungs?

Cycling is fantastic exercise. It yields many health benefits and should not be discouraged due to concerns regarding air pollution.

It is critical however that we raise public awareness about the effects that air pollution has on the respiratory system - both in the short and long term.

At the moment, these effects are not well publicised. Giving cyclists more information would enable them to make informed decisions about when and where they cycle.

Breathing difficulties

Air pollution is made up of numerous pollutants that have been reported to have specific effects on the lungs.

The pollution from diesel engines is of particular concern as the small particulates or ultra fine particles which tend to be emitted by diesel engines, can be inhaled further down into the lungs than the larger particles.

In people with existing respiratory disease this can cause significant airway irritation and breathing difficulties.

Pollution also creates gases - sulphur dioxide, carbon monoxide, nitrogen dioxide and ozone. These gases have been reported as having certain effects on the lungs.

Primarily they can cause the airways to become inflamed and therefore narrow, trigger airway irritation, decrease the amount of oxygen that the blood can carry and reduce lung function.

Continue reading the main story“Start QuoteDespite the contradictions, cyclists need to be informed of the potential risks.”

End QuoteAmanda DryerRespiratory Physiotherapist However, hard evidence on the impact of air pollution on the health of the general population is inconclusive.

Some studies have reported a decline in lung function with airway inflammation, whilst others highlight a very weak tenuous link between air pollution and any effects on the respiratory system.

Several studies have specifically investigated the effects of air pollution on lung function in cyclists.

It has been postulated that because cyclists breathe more deeply during the physical exertion of cycling, that they can inhale up to five times more particulates than either car users or those travelling on public transport.

On the other hand, it has also been suggested that passengers travelling in cars or buses are more at risk of being exposed to higher levels of air pollution than cyclists, as they are sitting in an environment of limited circulating ventilation.

Despite the contradictions, cyclists need to be informed of the potential risks.

It is not unusual for health promotion messages to face contradictions and ambiguities when promoting one measure to benefit health - daily cycling - while potentially increasing the risk of an adverse effect - increased exposure to air pollution.

Minimise risk

In the cycling community, there are many ongoing discussions on different cycling web sites that suggest ways to minimise risk.

These include finding alternative routes away from high density commuter traffic and major public transport routes, avoiding congested roads and utilising cycle paths and tracks and finding routes that offer some shielding from air pollution - eg trees.

End QuoteAmanda Dryer Respiratory physiotherapist Also, don't get stuck behind a bus or find yourself travelling downwind of vehicle's exhaust fumes and when stopping at traffic lights or a major junction, move out in front of the stationary motor vehicles so you are not inhaling the plume of exhaust fumes and by monitoring air quality in your area.

Public health is all about investigating and identifying ways to minimise risk but it's also about common sense. It is important that we consider what measures could be adopted to try and protect cyclists' airway function.

One of the main obstacles to promoting a clear public health message is that there is no clear UK guidance as to what are acceptable levels when we consider air pollution reduction figures - it's too vague.

There needs to be closer scrutiny of air quality in particular, within built up urban areas and a firm commitment to continually investigate and evaluate how we can make our environment cleaner. For example investigating cleaner fuels, better emission controlling devices and supporting car manufacturers in developing new technology to investigate electric vehicles.

There also needs to additional funding resources that reflects the need to improving health and allow further research to be conducted to accurately detail the effects of pollution on the respiratory system and to clarify what are the potential toxic effects of air pollution on the lungs.

The government's ongoing strategy should be how we can continually monitor air quality and ensure that we are achieving reductions in pollutant levels that are clear and laid out.

Monitoring air quality in the UK has not been given enough publicity or funding. As a result, often cyclists do not fully appreciate what risks they are imposing upon themselves by cycling in areas where air quality is sub optimal.

We need to make sure people are given informed choices when it comes to deciding what measures they can adopt to protect themselves against air pollution - this can only come about if clear health promotion is delivered to the public.

Looking at body can reduce pain

This won't hurt... much: Patrick Haggard gives science reporter Rebecca Morelle a first-hand look at the pain experiments

Continue reading the main storyRelated StoriesTouching own injury 'cuts pain'Easing pain with virtual realityAction urged on 'pain suffering' What you look at can influence how much pain you feel, a study has revealed.

Contrary to many people's compulsion to look away during a painful event such as an injection, scientists found that looking at your body - in this case the hand - reduces the pain experienced.

The team also showed that magnifying the hand to make it appear larger cut pain levels further still.

The study, published in Psychological Science, is shedding light on how the brain processes pain.

The researchers say that gaining a better understanding of this could lead to new treatments.

Look away?

The University College London (UCL) and University of Milan-Bicocca research, which was funded by the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC), was carried out with the help of 18 volunteers.

The scientists applied a heat probe to each participant's hand, gradually increasing the temperature. As soon as this began to feel painful, the probe was removed and the temperature was recorded.

Patrick Haggard, professor of cognitive neuroscience from UCL, explained: "This gives us a measure of the pain threshold, and it is a safe and reliable way of testing when the brain pathways that underline pain become active."

Personality disorder 'widespread'

Personality disorders are widespread, experts say Continue reading the main storyRelated StoriesWhat is narcissistic personality disorder? We need to be more aware of personality disorders - which are more prevalent than people realise, say experts.

Prof Eddie Kane, of the Institute of Mental Health, said 4% of people have such a condition, with some studies showing rates as high as 13%.

These vary in severity and in personality disorder type.

People with personality disorders are more likely to end up in prison, commit suicide and have mental health problems.

A personality disorder is defined as a pattern of behaviour that deviates markedly from the individual's culture.

Those with personality disorders repeatedly behave in a way that is not acceptable to the community that they live in and cause distress to themselves, or others.

There is a range of different disorders including borderline, anti-social, paranoid and narcissistic.

Continue reading the main story“Start QuoteWe all have personalities and it is difficult for us to change the way we behave if it goes against our personality 'type'”

End QuoteKingsley NortonWest London Mental Health Trust Doctors say that one of the reasons they are so difficult to treat is that the disorder is ingrained in a person's behaviour - in the same way that we all have ingrained personality traits.

Dr Kingsley Norton, personality disorder lead at West London Mental Health Trust, said: "We all have personalities and it is difficult for us to change the way we behave if it goes against our personality 'type'.

"For example, a belief that people with personality disorders often have is, 'people cannot be trusted - they will always let you down.'

"This is a core belief to that person and will govern the way that they interact with everybody."

That can lead to unco-operative behaviour that is threatening or aggressive - and can get the person with the disorder into trouble.

However, for some it significantly contributes to behaviour that gets them involved in the criminal justice system.

About two-thirds of prisoners meet the criteria for at least one type of personality disorder and they have a higher risk of drug abuse.

Staff training

Leading experts say the disorders are under recognised - even though the numbers of people suffering from personality disorders is much higher than those with more well known problems, such as schizophrenia.

Prof Kane, director of the Personality Disorder Institute at the Institute of Mental Health, University of Nottingham, said: "Although 4% is the generally accepted figures for prevalence some international studies have shown prevalence as high as 13%.

"But because personality disorder is not a disease it does not attract the sympathy that conditions such as schizophrenia does."

Experts are now trying to train those who are most likely to come into contact with a personality disorder how to recognise the condition to make the situation easier to manage.

This is crucial because the way in which staff interact with someone who has a personality disorder can affect the patient's condition.

Dr Norton said: "If the relationship with a patient is not right, it will affect the condition adversely but relationships can also be a cure. It is therefore very important that staff are trained properly."

Prof Kane has developed a training programme for staff that are most likely to come into contact with those who have personality disorders.

It uses video reconstructions to show the types of situations where staff may encounter someone with a personality disorder and what they can do to keep the situation in control.

So far, the programme has been rolled out to a variety of staff including prison officers, police officers, GP receptionists and nurses.

About 5,000 people will have been trained by 2012. In the future professionals working in education and with younger people are likely to get training.

Prof Kane said it could stop difficult situations escalating: "This training helps people to understand personality disorders.

"It is delivered by a trainer and a person with a personality disorder. Feedback from those with personality disorders has shown that it makes a big difference to their experiences in those situations."

Patient-run epidurals 'are safer'

Self-administration of pain relief may be more effective Continue reading the main storyRelated StoriesEpidurals 'protect in childbirth' Giving women control over their own epidurals during labour could reduce the need for medical intervention, say researchers.

The spinal pain relief is normally given at a steady rate, but some women are offered a button to push when they feel they need an extra dose.

The study, presented at a US conference, suggested that women using the devices used a less anaesthetic, with fewer forceps deliveries.

In the UK, the system is available in approximately one fifth of hospitals.

Approximately 40% of women giving birth in the UK have an epidural - which uses anaesthetic delivered directly into the spine to numb the lower half of the body.

One of the downsides is a higher rate of "instrumental deliveries" - in which doctors need to use forceps or a ventouse to help deliver the baby's head.

The study at the Long Beach Memorial Medical Center in California compared the experience of 270 women, two-thirds of whom received a steady infusion of drugs, which the other third was given a hand-held controller so drugs could be delivered when needed.

Continue reading the main story“Start QuoteThe technique reduces the need for anaesthetic which in turn reduces the need for forceps delivery - and it gives women a feeling of control”

End QuoteDr Elizabeth McGradyGlasgow University The women could not keep requesting extra pain relief, as each press of the button delivered a dose, then "locked out" further presses for a set period.

While there were no differences in the duration of labour, those using "patient-controlled epidural analgesia" (PCEA) used approximately 30% less anaesthetic.

Patient satisfaction was roughly the same, although women self-administering drugs did report more pain during the final stage of labour.

In addition, there was some evidence that instrumental deliveries were fewer in the PCEA group.

Cost a factor

Dr Michael Haydon, one of the authors of the research, said that attention should now turn to offering extra doses in the final stages of labour, or even developing technology which could automate the process and detect increasing pain levels.

Dr Elizabeth McGrady, a honorary clinical lecturer in anaesthetics at Glasgow University, said that the financial cost of buying new anaesthetic pumps were one reason it was not available in every hospital.

She said: "The technique reduces the need for anaesthetic which in turn reduces the need for forceps delivery - and it gives women a feeling of control.

"The question is whether the small clinical advantages are enough to justify the cost of new equipment and staff training."

Patrick O'Brien, a consultant obstetrician and spokesman for the Royal College of Obstetricians, said that while the move to "mobile" epidurals - offering similar pain relief with fewer complications - had "revolutionised" maternity care, it was less clear whether there was a need for the patient-driven pumps.

He said: "Most women seem to be very happy with the 'mobile' epidurals, and while I do like the principle that the woman is placed in control, I'm not sure it would make a huge difference to the experience."

No new charges for GP over deaths

Dr Martin was struck off by the General Medical Council last year Continue reading the main storyRelated StoriesGP 'hastened deaths for dignity'End-of-life dilemmas GPs faceSon's story: 'No reason to die' A GP who admitted hastening the deaths of people in his care will not face a new prosecution.

Former County Durham doctor Howard Martin, 76, was cleared six years ago of the murders of three patients.

The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) was investigating over comments he made in an interview with a national newspaper and families demanded action.

It said it had considered the material but said there was not sufficient new evidence for action.

Dr Martin was cleared of the murders of Frank Moss, 59, Stanley Weldon and Harry Gittins, both 74, following a trial at Teesside Crown Court in 2005.

He was stuck off by the General Medical Council in June last year for giving excessive morphine doses to 18 dying patients.

In an interview with The Daily Telegraph he reportedly said: "I twice helped people die, not because they wanted to die but because they had such dreadful suffering."

'Distressing time'

The case was reopened by Durham Police after patients' families complained.

Durham's Chief Crown Prosecutor Chris Enzor said: "After careful consideration of this material, including discussion with leading counsel who prosecuted in the 2005 murder trial, I have decided that in these circumstances there is not sufficient new evidence, as the law requires, to warrant the conduct of an investigation which must be authorised by the DPP (Director of Public Prosecutions)."

He said he appreciated it was a distressing time for families involved and had offered to meet them to explain the decision.

He said: "I have also looked to see whether there is any new evidence which might support a prosecution relating to certain other patients.

"These cases were looked at previously and it was decided at the time there was insufficient evidence for a realistic prospect of conviction.

"In all these cases, I have concluded that there is no new evidence to allow us to start criminal proceedings."

Hormone 'interferes with empathy'

Autism is more common among boys Continue reading the main storyRelated Stories'People-person' brain area foundAutism limit on 'self-awareness' Giving women a small dose of the male sex hormone testosterone makes them less able to empathise with others, say UK and Dutch researchers.

Their findings, in journal PNAS, add weight to the theory that the hormone is significant in the development of autism.

Sixteen volunteers given testosterone were less able to judge the mood of facial expressions they were shown.

Exposure to the hormone in the womb may be key, it is suggested.

Environmental factors

Autism is a disorder which, to varying degrees, affects the ability of children and adults to communicate and interact socially.

While various genes linked to the condition have been found, the precise combination of genetics and other environmental factors which produce autism is still unclear.

The latest study, from the universities of Cambridge and Utrecht, tests the idea that the disorder may be the result of an "extreme male brain", perhaps compromised by exposure to male sex hormones during brain development in the womb.

The rate of autism is much higher among boys than it is among girls.

Women, on average, have lower levels of the male sex hormone testosterone than men, and 16 volunteers were given a dose of the hormone to see if this affected one of the key areas linked to autism - the ability to empathise.

Continue reading the main story“Start QuoteThis contributes to our knowledge of how small hormonal differences can have far-reaching effects on the mind”

End QuoteProfessor Simon Baron-Cohen In standard tests of "mind-reading", in which subjects look at pictures of faces and try to guess the mood of the person pictured, women tend to do better than men.

However, the testosterone dose caused a significant reduction in this "mind-reading" advantage amongst the women.

The findings also hinted at the significance of testosterone exposure in the womb.

In men and women, the relative length of the index and fourth finger is different - in men, the index finger tends to be shorter than the ring finger, while in women, it is more likely that the fingers are similarly long, or the index finger longer.

These differences are thought to be generated by differing levels of testosterone exposure before birth.

Caution urged

However, the women who did worst at the "mind-reading" test after a dose of the male sex hormone were those whose finger lengths were the most "man-like" in the first place.

Professor Jack van Honk, one of the researchers, said: "We are excited by this finding because it suggests testosterone levels prenatally prime later testosterone effects on the mind."

Fellow researcher Professor Simon Baron-Cohen added: "This contributes to our knowledge of how small hormonal differences can have far-reaching effects on the mind."

Professor Uta Frith, an autism researcher at University College London, said the findings needed to be treated with caution.

She said: "The testosterone theory is interesting, but it is still just one of many theories about the origins of autism.

"I hope these results can be reproduced by other research teams, as the number of women involved are quite small."

Richard Mills, from the National Autistic Society, said that the study was "another piece of the jigsaw", but while it increased understanding, it did not provide all the answers.

He said: "This is an important piece of research from a reputable team, but it's not a defining moment, and what concerns us is that there are people who will seek to make capital out of this.

"We have heard of one group in the US who are using the testosterone theory to justify 'treating' children with what is effectively chemical castration, which is plainly wrong."

NHS staff 'sicker in poor areas'

Ambulance workers have among the highest sick leave levels in the NHS Continue reading the main storyRelated StoriesWould a free car stop people taking sickies?NHS sickness 'higher than in public sector'NHS urged to curb staff sickness More NHS staff take sick leave in areas of high deprivation in England, Audit Commission figures suggest.

The report looked at data collected between July 2009 and June 2010.

It also found junior staff were more likely to take time off than senior colleagues: healthcare assistants had the highest average absence rate, followed by ambulance staff.

Professor Dame Carol Black, national director for health and work, said the findings would "prompt reflection".

There are wide variations around the country when it comes to NHS sickness absence, with some organisations having a rate of 1.6% and others reporting 6.8%.

Healthcare assistants have the highest average rate of absence taking off 6.5% of their working time, followed by ambulance staff at 6.3%, and nurses, midwives and health visitors at 5.2%.

Overall, the North East has the highest sickness rate on average, with the lowest seen in London.

'Unsustainable demand'

Mental health and learning disability trusts, as well as ambulance trusts have some of the highest rates, according to the study from the Audit Commission.

Child 'slow development' warning

Children are expected to be able to concentrate and share by five Continue reading the main storyRelated StoriesPoorest 'die seven years earlier'Warning over health inequalitiesCall for health inequalities push Nearly half of children in England are not reaching what teachers consider a good level of development by the age of five, public health experts say.

Achieving a good level of development by five is considered to be a guide to future health prospects.

The Marmot Review team examined local authority data and found inequalities in life expectancy, how long people lived disability-free and unemployment.

The government said it wanted to improve the health of the vulnerable.

Regular bedtimes

The report's authors, who last year published a groundbreaking study of health inequalities in the UK, looked at five key indicators that are used to predict future health: life expectancy, disability-free life expectancy, child development at five, young people out of work and households on means-tested benefits.

The assessment of children's development at the age of five is based on their behaviour and understanding.

Children should be able to share, self-motivate, co-operate and concentrate by the time they start school.

But the research, led by British Medical Association president Sir Michael Marmot, found 44% of all five-year-olds in England are not considered by their teachers to have reached that level.

Slaughterhouses are More Sanitary when Sanitized

By Christopher Mims

Oprah sent an "investigative" reporter into a Cargill slaughterhouse, and the resulting video is, frankly, amazing. If you're the least curious about how cows make the journey from feedlot to your plate, it's worth watching the whole thing.

But why would ag giant Cargill, a company with a record nearly as tainted as the nearly million pounds of beef it was recently forced to recall, allow a reporter into one of its slaughterhouses?

Watch the video and you'll find out. From the almost-quaint feed lot at the beginning of the clip -- which is nothing like the truly gigantic feedlots that are typical of such operations -- to the conscientious Cargill employees interviewed during the segment, it's clear that this is a highly orchestrated visit with a Cargill-friendly moral.

The meat-industry approved "investigative" "report" "uncovers" that unless you've got a problem with mechanization or the ethics of meat eating itself, there's nothing wrong with how the overwhelming majority of America's beef is produced.

It's not like they put bows on the cows, but this is obviously as good as a slaughterhouse gets.

inside the slaughterhouse

With Huffington Post Sold to AOL, NaturalNews Invites top Alternative Health Authors to Join Truly Independent News Network

By Mike Adams

The Huffington Post was sold to AOL for $315 million yesterday, meaning the site, which was once the darling of independent media, is now clearly positioned as institutionalized media. As the editor of NaturalNews, I have, over the last several months, received several concerning emails from credentialed medical writers and natural health authors whose stories were dropped from consideration for publication at Huffington Post. There was a rising sense of frustration long before this sale that seemed to indicate HuffPost was headed in the direction of conventional media.

Yesterday's sale to AOL merely confirms this. AOL, of course, is the recent spin-off of Time Warner, which also owns CNN, Warner Bros., TIME, HBO, Fortune, People, and a long list of other mainstream media giants (http://www.cjr.org/resources/index....). There is a tremendous amount of concern reverberating across the 'net that the HuffPost acquisition by AOL will turn the site into just another conformist, watered-down corporate mouthpiece.

Many of the site's best writers are wondering where they can go to get their alternative medicine stories published. It certainly isn't WebMD, which even the New York Times just called out as being a mouthpiece for the pharmaceutical industry, saying "WebMD is synonymous with Big Pharma Shilling". (http://www.nytimes.com/2011/02/06/m...) 

It's a good time to be truly independent

As it happens, NaturalNews is, just this month, launching a format change that will make NaturalNews.com more like what the Huffington Post used to be: A collection of stories from independent thinkers, grassroots authors and people who challenge the status quo. A site where intelligence takes precedence over conformity, and where authors and writers who question the status quo are welcomed... and even featured!

Beginning today, NaturalNews is actively welcoming credentialed writers and op-ed authors who wish to be featured on NaturalNews.com as part of our new format which places more emphasis on featured contributing writers. We especially welcome former Huffington Post writers who want to be part of a truly independent, yet well-established health news site that already reaches millions of readers each month.

Partial Deregulation of GM Sugar Beets Appealed

By Dan Flynn

When you've been running the board in a San Francisco courtroom and you are on the verge of having genetically modified (GM) sugar beets torn up by their roots, do you care if USDA tries to do a little something on its own?

Probably not all that much.

USDA on Feb. 4 said that it was partially deregulating GM sugar beets, allowing plantings in 2011, under certain conditions.

"After conducting an environmental assessment, accepting and reviewing public comments and conducting a plant pest risk assessment, APHIS has determined that the Roundup Ready sugar beet root crop, when grown under APHIS imposed conditions, can be partially deregulated without posing a plant pest risk or having a significant effect on the environment," a top USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) official said.

But that decision is just one more item for Earthjustice and the Center for Food Safety to appeal, probably in U.S. District Judge Jeffrey White's courtroom. That is the same venue where the challengers have been racking up wins.

It is White who has ordered those GM sugar beets pulled out by the roots, an action now on its own appeal. Those plantings would provide seed for the 2012 growing season.

Challengers to the Round-Up Ready sugar beets fear their pollen might contaminate organic and other non-GM crops.  Monsanto's GM sugar beets are resistant to its own Round-Up brand of herbicide.

Before White ordered USDA to do a full-blown environmental impact statement on Monsanto's Round-Up Ready GM sugar beets, 95 percent of the growers in the dozen states where they are planted had adopted them.

The final EIS is not due until May 2012.  USDA issued the draft last November and it included at option, requested by Monsanto, for a planting option in the interim under certain conditions.

Why Does Clarence Thomas Get Away With Breaking the Law, As His Wife Shills for Wealthy Right-Wingers?

By Nancy Goldstein

When it comes to the financial and ethical improprieties of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas and his wife, Ginni, there is only bad news and worse news. That's true not only in terms of what they've done but because there's so little reason to believe they'll ever be held accountable for their active role in tainting our judiciary with the money and influence of their wealthy, conservative GOP patrons.

The latest outrage is that Ginni Thomas is embarking on a new career: lobbyist for right-wing causes. But that's just the most recent in a string of recent news items concerning the Thomases' fast-and-loose ways with the law. It begins with a January 22 Los Angeles Times piece that reported Justice Thomas' failure to include his wife's source of income on his financial disclosure forms for the past two decades. These forms are essential to assessing whether a justice might face a potential conflict of interest when causes or individuals associated with his/her spouse come before the court. Thomas hastily amended his reports after Common Cause brought attention to the years between 2003-2007 when Ginni Thomas earned $680,000 working for the Heritage Foundation, a conservative think-tank funded by, among others, the foundations of the Koch brothers, the Coors family and Richard Mellon Scaife.

Exposure to Pesticides in Womb Linked to Learning Disabilities

By Liz Szabo

Babies exposed to high levels of pesticides while in the womb may suffer from learning problems, a new study suggests.

The study focused on a chemical called permethrin, one of the pyrethroid pesticides, commonly used in agriculture and to kill termites, fleas and household bugs, says lead author Megan Horton of the Columbia Center for Children's Environmental Health. Most of the pregnant women in this New York-based study were exposed by spraying for cockroaches.

Permethrin - among the most commonly detected pesticides in homes - is being used more often today as older organophosphorous pesticides are phased out because of concerns that they harm brain development, says Horton, whose study is being published today in Pediatrics.

Researchers measured 348 pregnant women's exposures by asking them to wear backpack air monitors, Horton says. Researchers followed the women and their children for three years.

Children exposed to the highest pesticide levels before birth were three times as likely to have a mental delay compared to children with lower levels, the study says. Children with the highest prenatal exposures also scored about 4 points lower on an intelligence test, the Bayley Mental Developmental Index. That test has a mean score of 100, with most people's scores falling within 15 points of that range.

Junk Food Diet Hits a Child's IQ, Reveals Major UK Study

By Jenny Hope

Toddlers fed a diet of junk food can suffer lasting damage to their brainpower, researchers warn.

Children who eat more chips, crisps, biscuits and pizza before the age of three have a lower IQ five years later, a study showed.

The difference could be as much as five IQ points compared with children given healthier diets with fruit, vegetables and home-cooked food.

But even if their diet improves, it could be too late as the ill-effects can persist for a lifetime.

This is the first study to suggest a direct link between the diet of young children and their brainpower in later life.

The project at Bristol University took account of factors such as social class, breastfeeding and maternal education and age.

Researchers also allowed for the influence of the home environment, for example a child's access to toys and books.

They said good nutrition was crucial in the first three years of life when the brain grows at its fastest rate.

Young children eating a diet packed with fats, sugar and processed foods consume too few vitamins and nutrients, which means their brains never grow to optimal levels.

Neotame Receives FDA Approval But is Not Widely Used Yet

By Dr.Mercola

Since 2002 an artificial sweetener called neotame has been approved for use in food and drink products around the world, although so far its use appears to be very limited.

Neotame is a chemical derivative of aspartame, and judging by the chemicals used in its manufacturing, it appears even more toxic than aspartame, although the proponents of neotame claim that increased toxicity is not a concern, because less of it is needed to achieve the desired effect.

Neotame is bad science brought to you by the Monsanto Company.

If Monsano truly had nothing to fear with either of these artificial chemical sweeteners, they would have funded rigorous independent testing for safety. To date they have not, and they won't, because virtually every independent analysis of aspartame not conducted by Monsanto partners has revealed a long list of disturbing side effects, mostly neurological in nature.

Monsanto also has now sold the NutraSweet Company to someone else, but the approval of neotame came under Monsanto's ownership, and was most likely a result of Monsanto's cozy relationship with the FDA. More about that in a minute.

Sweatshops at Sea: Most of Our Goods Arrive Via Ships Where Seafarers Labor in Unfair and Dangerous Conditions

By Stan Cox

Late last year, the Danish shipping giant AP Moller Maersk announced robust third-quarter profits of $2.25 billion. To get the good word out, the company's chief operating officer sent a message to his crews aboard ships around the world, inviting them to join him in celebration by having a piece of traditional Danish lagkage, a kind of cream cake.

Mark Dickinson, head of the Nautilus International seafarers' union, scoffed at the boss's invitation, comparing it to French monarch Marie Antoinette's infamous "let them eat cake" comment. Noted Dickinson, "The profits have been achieved on the back of job losses for highly skilled and experienced personnel, and cuts in operating costs that have left some ships with food budgets that would barely run to covering the costs of cooking cream cakes."

The United States is no longer a major seafaring nation, but we have become increasingly dependent on the volatile global shipping industry. Cargo vessels registered in the United States and Canada account for only 1 percent of global shipping capacity; however, a far larger share of world cargo traffic moves to or from our ports. North America laps up 27 percent of all oil traded internationally, and one of every five filled shipping containers worldwide is headed either away from or (more often) toward the United States. And to help reduce our trade deficit, 44 percent of all grain entering international trade is shipped from a U.S. port.

Honey Made Near Monsanto GM Maize May Face EU Limits

By Stephanie Bodoni

Beekeepers with hives close to fields of Monsanto Co. genetically modified maize can't sell their honey in the European Union without regulatory approval, an adviser to the EU's highest court said.

The unintentional presence in honey "even of a minute quantity of pollen" from the maize is sufficient reason to restrict its sale, Advocate General Yves Bot of the European Court of Justice said in a non-binding opinion today.

"Food containing material from a genetically modified plant, whether that material is included intentionally or not, must always be regarded as food produced" from modified plants, said Bot. The Luxembourg-based EU tribunal follows such advice most of the time. Rulings normally follow within six months of an opinion.

EU rules require prior authorization before genetically modified goods can be put on the market. The bloc's 27 nations are split over the safety of food produced from genetically modified crops. This is slowing EU permission to grow them and has prompted complaints by the U.S. and other trade partners.

Beekeepers "have a real problem," said Achim Willand, the lawyer for the group of producers that brought the case. 

How to Form a Truth-in-Labeling Chapter for Your Congressional District

The Organic Consumers Association needs 435 volunteers, who will each create an OCA Truth-in-Labeling Chapter for each U.S. Congressional District and to coordinate a drive to gather 2300 petition signatures on our Truth-in-Labeling petition in order to strengthen our national network and to mobilize 1,000,000 people against Monsanto.

After looking into some different options, OCA has decided that the easiest way to organize this campaign into chapters in each congressional district is by using Facebook. Specifically, the Facebook Causes Function, because it provides an easy way for OCA to communicate with all of you, a way to easily create and attach petitions, and Cause/chapter members can communicate with each other directly, without OCA getting in your way. All of these features will help you get the ball rolling on this campaign in your area and get OCA closer to our goal of 2300 petition signers in each congressional district.

Farmworkers Bear the Brunt of New Mexico Chile Crisis

By Kent Paterson

For centuries the chile trade bound together the remote Hispano villages of northern New Mexico and southern Colorado, provided the culinary glue for fall family get-togethers and gave linguistic flavor to countless conversations on the topic of chile across the state.

In the late 20th Century, a large commercial chile industry boomed in the southern part of the state near the Mexican border, drawing in thousands of immigrant farmworkers who earned a seasonal if precarious living from hand-picking the spicy pods that delighted connoisuers everywhere.

Nowadays, the fortunes of New Mexico's cherished chile crop are on the downside. Just ask Jose Rocha. A veteran farmworker with nearly four decades of experience in the fields of New Mexico and the US, Rocha says he once worked "first class fields" in a wide swath of the borderland chile-growing belt.

Today's  farm is very different than the one before, according to Rocha. "Sometimes the land gives, sometimes it doesn't," the Mexico-born worker says. "There are bad (chile) rows and and good rows." Nowadays, Rocha encounters slimmer pickings, job-killing machines that methodically pluck rows of ripe chile where humans once treaded and fewer dollars in his pocket.

Whole Foods - Major Betrayal of Organic Food Movement- Dr. Mercola Interviews Ronnie Cummins

If You Eat Organic Food, You Have Just Been Betrayed
By Dr. Joseph Mercola
Organic consumers and producers in the U.S. are facing betrayal. A self-appointed group of "Organic Elites", including Whole Foods Market, Organic Valley, and Stonyfield Farm, are surrendering to Monsanto.

Top executives from these companies publicly stated several weeks ago that they support the so-called "coexistence" of organics with genetically modified (GM) crops.

Whole Foods sent a misleading e-mail to its customers on Jan. 21in which they gave the green light to USDA bureaucrats to approve the "conditional deregulation" of Monsanto's genetically engineered, herbicide-resistant alfalfa. However, after sharp criticisms from the OCA and their customers, and in the wake of USDA's unrestricted approval of GE alfalfa and sugar beets, the leaders of the organic industry seem to have changed their tune, issuing strong statements against the USDA approval last week.

According to the Organic Consumers Association:

    "The main reason ... why Whole Foods is pleading for coexistence with Monsanto, Dow, Bayer, Syngenta, BASF and the rest of the biotech bullies, is that they desperately want the controversy surrounding genetically engineered foods and crops to go away. Why? Because they know, just as we do.

GM and Organic Co-Existence: Why We Really Just Can't Get Along

By Paula Crossfield

Last Friday, the USDA announced the partial deregulation of genetically modified sugar beets, defying a court order to complete an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) in advance of a decision. This move follows on the heels of the full deregulation late last month of genetically modified (GM) alfalfa, the fourth most common row crop in the United States, which is most often used as feed for cattle.

If you eat beef, or take milk and sugar in your coffee (and even if you don't), here is why you should care: The move could put organic foods at risk for contamination and make it more expensive.

Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack has attempted to stave off further litigation and quell the mounting antagonism between farmers growing GM seed and organic farmers by proposing "co-existence" between the two.

Part of Vilsack's plan for co-existence includes using buffers between organic and GM fields and even placing geographic restrictions on the growth of GM seeds. This is the first time such a discussion had been broached by the USDA. New York University professor and food movement leader Marion Nestle called the move a "breakthrough," and we also ran an op-ed pushing for co-existence as the lesser of two evils here on Civil Eats.

But Vilsack's co-existence plan seemed to put President Obama's pro-business agenda at risk. In fact, David Axelrod put the kibosh on the idea with a bad pun, encouraging "everyone to 'plow forward' on a plan for genetically produced alfalfa," according to Maureen Dowd.

Raging Debate in Australia as Monsanto's GE Crops Contaminate Organic Farms

By Elizabeth Farrelly

The West Australian Minister for Agriculture, Terry Redman, wants to redefine "organic" to accommodate genetic engineering. Well he might wish it, since the legal battle brewing there over contamination of organic crops by genetically modified ones could easily blow right back onto his turf. Far scarier, though, is the environmental blowback, which could knock all these little old floods and cyclones into a cocked hat.

Steve Marsh is an organic farmer in Kojonup, four hours south-east of Perth. Or that's what he thought he was. So did the certifiers. Then, last December, the nightmare came true. Marsh's wheat and oats began testing 70 per cent positive for novel DNA and he was stripped of certification. A year earlier, following approval by the Gene Technology Regulator, the WA government approved commercialisation of GM, or ''Roundup Ready'', canola - although their own fact sheet at the time cited a United Nations report that "since the advent of GM canola in Canada farmers can no longer grow organic canola in western Canada."

They also admitted that GM canola can cross-pollinate with a number of other species, and eating such resulting crops would decertify organic livestock as well. Yet they broke their promise to publish a list of GM farmers so that non-GM growers could take evasive action. Their official advice? That "farmers discuss . . . this remote possibility

Clorox Comes Clean: Company Discloses All Ingredients in All Products

By Susan Carpenter

The maker of bleach, Pine-Sol and other popular cleaning products announced Tuesday that it will disclose the specific preservatives, dyes and fragrances it uses in its cleaning, disinfecting and laundry products sold in the U.S. and Canada.

The Clorox Co. announcement builds on the ingredient communications program the corporation launched in January 2008, which disclosed the active ingredients in its natural Green Works line on a dedicated Clorox website. In 2009, Clorox also began listing the active ingredients of its more traditional products.

The new disclosures mark the first time a mainstream cleaning product manufacturer has disclosed all the ingredients used in all of its products -- about 200 items.

"This additional information about our products is a natural next step to take ... as we continue to drive transparency and industry leadership in the area of product ingredient communication," Clorox Chairman and CEO Don Knauss said in a statement.

 

WikiLeaks Peak Oil Bombshell: Saudi Arabian Reserves Overstated by 40%, Global Production Plateau Immiment

The US fears that Saudi Arabia, the world's largest crude oil exporter, may not have enough reserves to prevent oil prices escalating, confidential cables from its embassy in Riyadh show.

 The cables, released by WikiLeaks, urge Washington to take seriously a warning from a senior Saudi government oil executive that the kingdom's crude oil reserves may have been overstated by as much as 300bn barrels - nearly 40%.

That we are close to a peak in global oil production should not be a surprise to anyone (see World's top energy economist warns peak oil threatens recovery, urges immediate action: "We have to leave oil before oil leaves us" and German military study warns of peak oil crisis and Peak oil production coming sooner than expected).

The bombshell is that the U.S. Embassy in Riyadh understands this and that it "now questions how much the Saudis can now substantively influence the crude markets over the long term."  Who persuaded them of this is equally remarkable - Sadad al-Husseini, "a geologist and former head of exploration at the Saudi oil monopoly Aramco," who says he isn't in the peak oil camp but sounds on awful lot like those of us who are.

Consider the first cable, from December 2007:

 On November 20, 2007, CG and Econoff met with Dr. Sadad al-Husseini, former Executive Vice President for Exploration and Production at Saudi Aramco. Al-Husseini, who maintains close ties to Aramco executives, believes that the Saudi oil company has oversold its ability to increase production and will be unable to reach the stated goal of 12.5 million b/d of sustainable capacity by 2009. While stating that he does not subscribe to the theory of "peak oil," the former Aramco board member does believe that a global output plateau will be reached in the next 5 to 10 years and will last some 15 years, until world oil production begins to decline. Additionally, al-Husseini expressed the view that the recent surge in oil prices reflects the underlying reality that global demand has met supply, and is not due to artificial market distortions.