Health Report

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**Health Report**

Covering the health stories that make a difference. Dr Norman Swan and Dr Preeya Alexander dissect the latest and breaking news in the medical world.

Latest Episodes:

The latest research on Long COVID | Healing worms | Talking about weight loss Sep 04, 2023

Show notes

Australia's had probably its first conference on Long COVID.

The idea of a worm infection evokes a visceral response—but there are potential health benefits to worms.

GPs may hesitate to approach a discussion about weight loss because of the risk of body shaming and stigma.

Learning from Mexican food nutrition labels | Perils of sitting | Misleading fertility tests | Which uterine surgery is better? Aug 28, 2023

Show notes

Mexico has implemented labelling of processed foods with large warnings if the unhealthy ingredients exceed globally agreed thresholds.

New research has been looking into why sitting is bad—and how to change that.

Women are being mislead by fertility tests which promote anti-Mullerian hormone—or AMH testing—which are not designed for general screening in the community.

One of the side effects of having had babies and ageing in general is what used to be called prolapse—or uterine descent. Sometimes no treatment is needed but there's been a debate among surgeons about which procedure is best.

New ovarian cancer test | Testosterone | How the PAP test began | A deep look at sleep Aug 21, 2023

Show notes

We heard today about a new test for ovarian cancer. For a long time there's been a search for a way to reliably detect this cancer early on.

Some men are prescribed testosterone-replacement therapy in middle age or older, but there's questions around how safe that is for their heart attack and stroke risk.

In developing the cervical screening program one woman—Mary Papanicolaou—did a test every day, for 21 years—it's what we now call the PAP test.

People tend to think they need seven or eight hours sleep a night. But what counts more is the quality of that sleep.

Polycystic Ovary Syndrome | Vigorous Incidental Lifestyle Physical Activity | Cochlear implants Aug 14, 2023

Show notes

Measuring activity on Cradle Mountain—Norman and Tegan rise to the challenge.

Polycystic Ovary Syndrome—a new guideline for doctors and women.

Vigorous Incidental Lifestyle Physical Activity—micro-bursts of it can decrease the risks of developing various cancers.

Cochlear implants—the latest intel on this transformative tech. As part of National Science Week.

Importance of The Voice for Aboriginal health | Bush tucker and health in Balgo Aug 07, 2023

Show notes

wide health implications.

The remote community of Balgo in the Tanami Desert has many years of hunting for bush tucker. People must leave their Country if they want dialysis care, but that's changing.

Metastatic breast cancer | Free gene analysis for rare cancers | Best exercises to lower blood pressure Jul 31, 2023

Show notes

Metastatic cancer is for the spread of a cancer from a primary site to other parts of the body. There's no nationally consistent way of keeping track of how many of these cancer patients there are.

A consortium of Australian cancer researchers has announced a program called the PrOSPect Initiative. It offers genetic profiling for people with advanced or rare cancers.

Aerobic exercise reduces blood pressure, and resistance training prevents progression to diabetes in people at risk. But the evidence is being updated on which exercise is best for lowering blood pressure.

Various studies show that regular aerobic exercise reduces blood pressure, and resistance training prevents progression to diabetes in people at risk of metabolic disease. But the evidence on which kinds of exercise are best for lowering blood pressure is being updated.

New Australian guidelines for cardio vascular disease | Phone-connected device can collect heart rhythm data | Panel discussion on reducing red and processed meat consumption Jul 24, 2023

Show notes

To assess the heart health and stroke risk factors of the population, Australian GPs and cardiologists have referred to a study from the population of Framingham, Massachusetts, but last week the Heart Foundation replaced it with a tool based on New Zealand and Australian populations.

An abnormal heart rhythm can mean observations by a cardiologist with a cumbersome and expensive Holter monitor. A team at Westmead Hospital and the University of Sydney have compared a simple finger electrode linked to your mobile phone against Holter monitoring.

Red and processed meats have an environmental cost and health implications. The World Health Organisation has flagged that, globally, we need to consume less. We discuss the evidence for cutting back, and what it could mean for Australia—a big producer and consumer of these meats.

Ketamine for depression | Ultrasound instead of X-ray | WHO on Aspartame and dietary guidelines Jul 17, 2023

Show notes

In health news Norman and Tegan discuss changes in the health system for medical termination of pregnancy; and about life span vs life expectancy in Australia.

Alongside MDMA and psilocybin as treatments for mental health issues is ketamine—which shows promise in treatment-resistant depression.

A common fracture in children comes from a fall onto an outstretched arm. Parents instinctively want to get an X-ray but an ultrasound can work just as well for most these cases.

Women and strength training | sports food nutrition and labelling | subjective memory study in twins | opioids not beneficial for back pain Jul 10, 2023

Show notes

Strength training is fundamental to most athletes' regimes, but the guidelines are overwhelmingly based on male data.

An analysis of labelling on sports foods—things like protein shakes and bars—finds that the nutritional claims they make often don’t tally with the ingredients panel.

Worry about memory loss is not uncommon, and not confined to an older age group, but measuring memory accurately needs refinement.

Many Australians are prescribed opioids as relief for back pain, but the a world-first trial led by the University of Sydney found that opioids don't offer significant benefit and guidelines for their use need to be changed.

Improving diagnosis and care in younger onset dementia | Recognising and overcoming breastfeeding aversion Jul 03, 2023

Show notes

If dementia is diagnosed before someone is 65 it's called 'younger onset' dementia, and it can occur while people still have family responsibilities. We talk with people who have been given this news, and to researchers looking to improve diagnosis and care.

We think of breastfeeding as being quite natural, but it doesn't always come easily, and issues such as Breastfeeding Aversion Response (or BAR) are still under-researched.

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