Health Report

Latest Episodes:

Are they natty, or are they taking steroids to get buff? Dec 14, 2024

Show notes

Performance and image-enhancing drugs are more common than you might expect, especially if you're not enmeshed in gym culture.

Experts are worried the medical community has fallen behind the rise in steroid use, leaving users physically and mentally vulnerable.

Also, at-home testing kits promise to diagnose a range of illnesses from vitamin deficiency to cancers. Are they accurate?

And motor neurone disease (MND) is affecting more Australians. With the environment likely to blame, researchers are trying to pin down the culprits.

Why these fertility experts are worried about plastic Dec 07, 2024

Show notes

There's already a lot to think about when you're trying to get pregnant. Should plastic be one of them?

Some fertility experts think that yes, cutting down your exposure to bisphenol A (BPA), a synthetic chemical used to make plastics, could help.

Also, the mission to come up with consistent guidelines for the testing of gestational diabetes. As early as possible, or wait until 24 to 28 weeks?

And why rethinking dementia could improve our experiences of the condition.

Chair yoga: as good as the real thing? Nov 30, 2024

Show notes

Sore back from sitting all day? A new study suggest virtual yoga — much of which can be done from a chair — could help relieve low back pain.

AI-generated deepfakes of health professionals are promoting a supplement, and concerning new data on Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT).

Two stroke survivors challenge Minister for the National Disability Insurance Scheme, Bill Shorten, on NDIS accessibility and funding.

And a pilot program examining how music therapy can help those affected by early onset dementia.

Why Australia's called the 'allergy capital of the world' Nov 23, 2024

Show notes

Some describe Australia as the allergy capital of the world, noting high rates of food allergies — what can parents do to help kids early?

Why the term 'Munchausen by Proxy' is making headlines, and how to spot Factitious Disorder Imposed on Another (FDIA).

The global impact of Donald Trump's re-election on abortion access and funding.

And a new study shows screening of parents can help identify couples with a higher chance of passing on genetic disorders to children.

Can your noisy knees predict the future? Nov 16, 2024

Show notes

Our joints are capable of making a cacophony of sounds, even more so as we get older. Is it ever a cause for concern?

Research shows once more that vaccination protects against long COVID, but the timing of the jab may be important.

Generations of teenagers have found a way to smoke weed — legal or not. So what do we know about the effects on the brain?

And the Declaration of Helsinki has turned 60 years old. Are these ethical principles that guide clinical research up to scratch?

Another Trump presidency could give kids more cavities Nov 09, 2024

Show notes

Donald Trump's re-election could spell big health policy changes for the United States, including the rolling back of a 20th century intervention.

Also, a major review into how health professionals operate in Australia, and how we can do better.

How checking blood pressure in childhood could prevent heart disease down the line.

Concerns about a common heart procedure. And, the last word on asthma treatment?

Inside the lab growing sheets of replacement skin Nov 02, 2024

Show notes

Spray-on skin already helps many burns patients, but what about those with deeper burns? Meet the team trialling a technique to grow sheets of replacement skin.

Takeaways from the inquiry into Australia's COVID-19 pandemic response, and a dip in childhood vaccination rates.

A new gene variant among some First Nations peoples in Oceania that could explain susceptibility to some diseases.

And how physiotherapists are helping women who experience pain during or after sex.

The parkrun phenomenon — and which runners keep coming back Oct 26, 2024

Show notes

What keeps some people running while others drop off? New data from parkrun groups shows why some keep coming back to jogging.

New draft limits on 'forever chemicals' PFAS in Australia's drinking water from national medical research body.

Type 2 diabetes incidence seems to be edging down in Australian adults — but this decline isn't the same across all ethnic groups.

And juvenile arthritis is as common as type 1 diabetes among children, but diagnosis is much slower and there are vastly fewer specialists to treat this autoimmune disease.

Why are thousands of bags of blood being binned instead of donated? Oct 19, 2024

Show notes

The ancient practice of blood letting is still a vitally important treatment for some people. But for years that blood was being discarded.

The viruses behind the recent burst of infections this Spring, and why your recent blood pressure reading might have been incorrect.

Self-harm is on the rise among for young people, a major new report recommends addressing social and cultural contributors to halt this rise.

And meet the 'breech whisperer' helping deliver babies in the breech position — bottom first instead of head first. He wants to preserve the delicate art of this manoeuvre.

Not all screens are equal — some help kids with mental health conditions Oct 12, 2024

Show notes

There are plenty of app games on the market claiming to help kids with ADHD, depression or anxiety, a review examines if they do.

MicroRNA researchers have won the 2024 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine. What's the big deal with these tiny molecules?

Despite being common, there are few treatments for functional seizures and functional neurological disorder (FND). A new program is changing that.

The rate of skin infections in Aboriginal children living in remote communities has halved over the course of a major five-year study, and this could prevent more severe life-threatening illnesses.

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