Why Do GP Surgeries Get Busier After the Clocks Go Back? Do clocks going back affect health? The short answer from the largest English study of the question is yes, but not in the direction most people expect. In the week after the autumn clock change, recorded health events for anxiety, depression, acute cardiovascular disease, […]
Why is polio vaccination still important? Polio is 99 per cent gone but not eradicated. A GP explains the UK’s 2022 sewage incident and why the vaccine still matters.
Should You Get the COVID Booster This Autumn? The 2026 Eligibility Guide Short answer: You should take up the autumn 2026 COVID booster if you are 75 or over, live in a care home for older adults, or are aged 6 months and over with a weakened immune system as defined in the Green Book […]
Who is eligible for free flu jab? The full 2026/27 NHS eligibility list, booking routes, and private-jab prices for everyone else.
Poor sleep sends people down many rabbit holes, from blue light to blackout blinds, and a blood test is rarely on the list. Yet one of the most fixable causes of broken nights sits quietly in the blood: low iron. The link is not folklore. The NHS lists restless legs syndrome, one of the classic […]
Night shifts are the part of the rota junior doctors dread most, and the research says that dread is well founded. Sleep loss changes how the brain works long before you feel unsafe, and the way shifts are sequenced changes the damage by a wide margin. So what is the healthiest shift work schedule? The […]
If you work night shifts, you still need the same amount of sleep as everyone else: 7 to 9 hours in every 24-hour period. That is the figure the NHS gives for healthy adults, and the joint consensus statement of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine and the Sleep Research Society sets the floor at […]
Does working night shift affect lifespan? A 22-year study of 74,862 nurses found rotating nights for 5+ years linked to 11% higher mortality. The honest evidence for junior doctors.
What Helps Menopause Joint Pain? HRT, Exercise and When to See a GP If menopause has brought stiff, aching joints, you are far from alone. A 2026 meta-analysis of 93,021 women found that 57% of perimenopausal women reported muscle or joint pain, compared with 40% before menopause. The honest evidence says the most effective treatments […]
Dense Breasts and Supplemental Screening: What Does the Guidance Actually Say? During Breast Cancer Awareness Month, one question reaches clinics and helplines more than almost any other in breast screening: “My mammogram report says I have dense breasts. Do I need more tests?” The answer is less simple than many women expect, and it depends […]