The Guardian Health

Lindsay Clancy’s ex-husband testifies about the day she killed their three children

Lawyers for Massachusetts mother say she was in the throes of postpartum psychosis amid January 2023 tragedyMore than three years after a Massachusetts mother strangled her three young children, her former husband described returning home to the aftermath and a jury listened on Wednesday to his frantic 911 call, as her lawyers seek to prove she was in the grip of post-pregnancy psychosis.Lindsay Clancy, 35, admits she killed her children in January 2023 while her then husband was ⁠on an errand a

health  Jul 29, 2026

The Guardian Health

‘You have to sit quietly until you die’: The families failed by England’s social care system

Carers tell of their struggles to get loved ones the support they need, and the emotional and financial toll caring takes on their own livesAndy Burnham has vowed to fast-track the Casey Commission, an independent review of adult social care in England, with final recommendations expected to be released by summer 2027.“I think social care in England is as unfair as American healthcare,” Burnham said in a speech outlining his pledge for reform on Wednesday. “The vulnerable pay with everything and

health  Jul 29, 2026

The Guardian Health

Assisted dying debate should come after end-of-life care reform, says Burnham

Introducing legislation would be ‘very challenging’ before improvement of care system, says prime ministerUK politics live – latest updatesAndy Burnham has said the assisted dying debate needs to wait until palliative care and social care are fixed, as he delivered a speech to set out his path to resolving one of the most intractable problems in British politics.The prime minister said he was not opposed to having the debate on assisted dying, but told reporters it would be “very challenging” to

health  Jul 29, 2026

The Guardian Health

Deep breathing: the asthma clinic buried 250 metres into an Armenian salt mine

Underground clinic’s fate hangs in the balance after government withdrew state funding For most people, spending hours deep underground in darkness would seem an odd prescription for better health.Yet every morning, a handful of Armenians descend 250 metres beneath the earth into an active salt mine where they spend six hours in cavernous chambers carved from rock salt, hoping the air below ground will help them breathe more easily. Continue reading...

health  Jul 29, 2026

The Guardian Health

‘Prioritising profit’: Australians regularly prescribed medicinal cannabis with very high THC levels

Exclusive: Of more than 1,000 medicinal cannabis products available, only two have been evaluated by the drugs regulatorGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastDoctors are commonly prescribing high-dose medicinal cannabis containing up to four times the concentration of THC tested in clinical trials, a review has found.Researchers from Monash University evaluated the available evidence for the efficacy and safety of higher THC potency medicinal cannabis products, in line with

health  Jul 29, 2026

The Guardian Health

Trump reportedly pushing RFK Jr to cut vaccines more aggressively

White House has halted changing vaccine schedule as it is unpopular, but anti-vaxx Trump set on ‘alleviating autism’Donald Trump is pushing longtime vaccine opponent and current health secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr to be more aggressive on cutting vaccines in the US, according to reporting from the Wall Street Journal.Trump has a long record of anti-vaccine statements, but the White House recently put a hold on vaccine changes after polling indicated they were a losing issue in the midterm elec

health  Jul 28, 2026

The Guardian Health

The Guardian view on noise pollution: keep it down | Editorial

New research linking the issue to Parkinson’s disease adds to the evidence of serious health repercussions from traffic volume and other sourcesThe roar of late-night traffic is not just annoying for those trying to sleep. It can also have profound effects on their health. A pioneering new study, published this month, has found a clear link between road noise and Parkinson’s disease. The research, which followed more than 3 million Danish participants, found a modest but consistent effect: for e

health  Jul 28, 2026

The Guardian Health

California’s largest ICE facility neglected detainees’ medical needs, monitor finds

Court-appointed investigator finds California City facility failed to comply with judge’s order to provide adequate healthcareCalifornia’s largest immigration detention center has failed to comply with a judge’s orders to provide adequate healthcare, according to a court-appointed monitor who found the facility was struggling to meet a wide range of medical standards.The California City detention center, located north-east of Los Angeles, was found to have major flaws in the care it provides res

health  Jul 28, 2026

The Guardian Health

Why migraines are often undiagnosed | Letters

Dr Sally Cheseldine reflects on the experience of people who cannot articulate their pain and the significance of cravingsDuring my clinical career, I noticed that migraine was rarely diagnosed in individuals with severe intellectual disabilities or autism who were non-verbal and therefore unable to say that they had a sore head (Letters, 24 July). Instead, there was a high level of damaging head-banging, something that others say they feel tempted to do if they don’t have access to rapid pain r

health  Jul 28, 2026

The Guardian Health

Black people’s risk factors for stroke ‘rising faster than for white people’

Exclusive: King’s College London analysis finds diabetes and hypertension are more common in Black African and Caribbean peopleStroke risk factors including high blood pressure and diabetes are rising faster among people from Black African and Caribbean backgrounds compared with their white counterparts, according to analysis.Researchers at King’s College London analysed data from more than 8,500 adults over a 30-year period from the South London Stroke Register, one of the longest-running popul

health  Jul 28, 2026

The Guardian Health

I had my first alcoholic drink at 16. By 26, I was given six months to live

Holly Dyson’s addiction led to extreme pain, hospital trips and thousands of pounds’ worth of debt. Here is how she recoveredHolly Dyson’s last alcoholic drink was a can of cider to manage her withdrawal symptoms, which she had in her dad’s car on the way to rehab on 2 May 2023. She’d barely eaten in two weeks. Instead, she spent her last few days at home in the north-west of England vomiting blood into the toilet bowl and lying in bed twitching, feeling unbearably nauseous. Her hand hovered ove

health  Jul 28, 2026

The Guardian Health

Johnson & Johnson to pay $5.5bn settlement in talc cancer lawsuit

Landmark deal covers about 76,000 claims and could end contentious, decade-long legal battleJohnson & Johnson said it would pay an estimated $5.5bn to resolve tens of thousands of lawsuits alleging its baby ⁠powder and other talc products caused ⁠ovarian cancer, in a landmark ​deal that could end a contentious, decade-long legal battle.Johnson & Johnson on Monday said the settlement covers about 76,000 claims, including ones consolidated in a federal court in New Jersey, and related case

health  Jul 28, 2026

The Guardian Health

Andy Burnham has made a bold start – but convincing people that change is possible will take much more | Frances Ryan

The new PM’s greatest task has long weighed down the left: convincing voters there are actually better days aheadThis is the danger zone. The period when one prime minister leaves office and the next takes over can inspire either dread or delight: a few days in which the country forms a gut reaction to the new government.One week on, Andy Burnham has well and truly ditched the slow fatalism that marked Keir Starmer’s early days in power, in favour of the message that help is on the way: from cos

health  Jul 28, 2026

The Guardian Health

Machine could make more donated lungs suitable for transplant

Nice backs wider use of system that keeps organs alive outside the body, to help improve low transplantation rates A machine that keeps organs alive outside the body could save four in every five donated lungs that currently go to waste in England and Wales.The UK has one of the poorest lung transplantation rates in the world. The latest figures from NHS Blood and Transplant show that 170 patients in the UK, including six children, are waiting for new lungs. Continue reading...

health  Jul 27, 2026

The Guardian Health

Industrial chicken farming accelerating spread of diarrhoea bacteria, study finds

Intensive nature of modern chicken farming creates ideal conditions for campylobacter, allowing bacteria to evolveIndustrial chicken farming is accelerating the spread of the world’s most common bacterial cause of diarrhoea, scientists have found.The study found a dramatic increase in the exchange of campylobacter strains between wild birds and chickens as farming has intensified, creating the ideal conditions for the bacteria to mix, spread and acquire new traits. There has also been a rise in

health  Jul 27, 2026

WHO News

WHO: Integration, innovation and community leadership key to ending HIV, hepatitis and STIs

The World Health Organization (WHO) today launched a new report assessing progress in implementing the Global Health Sector Strategies (GHSS) on HIV, viral hepatitis and sexually transmitted infections (STIs) for 2022–2030. Released during the 26th International AIDS Conference (AIDS 2026) and ahead of World Hepatitis Day (28 July), the report highlights significant achievements and persistent challenges in the global response to these epidemics.

health  Jul 27, 2026

The Guardian Health

The patient who loves buying lettuce for his daughter-in-law – and what his case teaches us about shared decision-making in medicine | Ranjana Srivastava

Doctors should recommend treatment accompanied by conversations about the pros and cons for the individuals who are in front of themWeeks before major surgery, a patient cancels his appointment with our geriatric oncology service, declaring it unnecessary. An astute nurse convinces him otherwise.In his mid-80s, the patient has been diagnosed with an early cancer. The surgeon advises that surgery would be the only cure but, noting the lack of urgency, sends him to see me. I can see why. The propo

health  Jul 27, 2026

The Guardian Health

Carly Simon shares Parkinson’s disease diagnosis and says music has ‘rescued’ her

Singer-songwriter also had surgery to treat carcinoma on her face, leading her to ‘withdraw from public view’The musician Carly Simon has revealed that she has Parkinson’s disease in a statement shared today.“So many people have written to me, kindly wondering about my relative silence, asking how I am and what I have been doing,” Simon said. “The truth is, I’ve been learning how to live with Parkinson’s disease.” Continue reading...

health  Jul 27, 2026

The Guardian Health

Alarm over NHS patients records being placed in hands of US private equity firm

Doctors and MPs urge more scrutiny of £300m deal for company behind system used by most GPs in EnglandA US private equity firm will take control of NHS patient records in a deal experts say should “ring alarm bells” amid concerns sensitive health data is increasingly being handed to private companies.The investment firm TPG has bought Optum UK, the healthcare technology business behind the electronic patient record system used by most GP practices in England, in a deal worth about $400m (£300m).

health  Jul 27, 2026

The Guardian Health

Amid the social and political panic about falling birthrates, why not ask new mothers what they think? | Lucy Jones

New research reveals deep anxieties. Medals and cash bonuses have been mooted as incentives, but the real need is for women to have their feelings valuedIt seems as though every week brings another news story on declining global birthrates. A number of political leaders have been panicking for a while, of course, instructing citizens to reproduce in tones so beguiling, who could possibly resist? JD Vance: “I want more babies”; Jacob Rees-Mogg: “We need more babies”. While in France this year, a

health  Jul 27, 2026