Health Report

Latest Episodes:

Helping pregnant women stop smoking — safely Apr 05, 2025

Show notes

Quitting smoking can be tough, and for many women who've fallen pregnant their only option has been to go cold turkey.

Researchers are trying to figure out whether medications to help are safe for mum and bub.

Also, a condition that causes breathlessness that's often mistaken for asthma. These are the symptoms of vocal cord dysfunction.

And a study suggests we've been majorly underestimating the burden of diabetes in Australia.

The key to creativity? You might be overthinking it Mar 29, 2025

Show notes

A study of people with neurodegenerative disease has discovered that bursts of creativity can happen when the brain is shutting down.

Also, there's a lot of misinformation out there about back pain and how to treat it. Here's where the evidence isn't.

And the questions women should ask before undergoing vaginal surgery if their sexual function is important to them.

Why there's no quick fix for osteoarthritis Mar 22, 2025

Show notes

A new resource has launched to provide information to the millions of Australians living with osteoarthritis.

It pushes back against the idea that an injection or surgery will fix all your woes when it comes to this degenerative disease.

Also, what climate change is doing to our hearts, and how a simple check in at school is helping students manage their mental health.

Dr Google could be making your health anxiety worse Mar 15, 2025

Show notes

What used to be called hypochondria is now health anxiety — an excessive worry about developing a serious illness.

While experiences of health anxiety vary, for some people it can take over their lives and even lead to physical symptoms.

Also, a link between conditions like endometriosis and heart disease.

And local scientists help make a big discovery about how cells recycle waste.

Early dementia signs from the body not the brain Mar 08, 2025

Show notes

When you have dementia, being diagnosed early can help you and your loved ones manage the condition. It could also aid in treatment.

A new study has found that in some cases, weight loss and lipid changes happened up to a decade before dementia was diagnosed.

Also, concerns that people of a higher weight with restrictive eating disorders could access GLP-1s if doctors aren’t screening patients appropriately.

And why type 1 diabetes is more commonly being diagnosed in adults, not just children and adolescents.

Listening to influencers could give you an incidentaloma Mar 01, 2025

Show notes

On social media, an influencer's job is to influence you — to get you to strive for a particular lifestyle or buy a specific product.

In some cases they're pushing medical tests, telling people to take charge of their health with full body MRI scans and cancer detection tools that have very little, or no evidence to support them.

Also, we take a comprehensive look at GLP-1s like Ozempic and Wegovy for weight loss. And who should be substituting table salt for potassium salt?

Why some women are in the dark about breast density Feb 22, 2025

Show notes

Victoria is starting to notify women when they have dense breasts on their mammogram, following Western Australia and South Australia.

So what does this information mean? And what should you be doing with it?

Also, the concerning state of health policy in the United States.

A correction on adolescent mental health. And what western medicine can learn from First Nations communities about autonomy and traditional living.

Bowel cancer is happening younger — so why aren't people getting screened? Feb 15, 2025

Show notes

Australia has been highlighted in an international report on the rising incidence of bowel cancer in young people.

Our screening age was dropped last year to 45, however the overall uptake of bowel cancer screening remains at about 40 per cent.

Also, a private hospital opening in Melbourne is promising to cut the cost to its patients down to zero.

And what can be done to prevent depression and anxiety in adolescents?

As bird flu mutates, are eggs still safe to eat? Feb 08, 2025

Show notes

There's a shortage of eggs in Australia, and it might not let up as we brace for the arrival of the H5N1 strain of bird flu.

That strain has shown is can make the jump into humans. But how does it manage?

Also, menopause hormone therapy is in high demand. What are the benefits and the risks?

And with kids spending less time outside, short-sightedness is on the rise. But treatments are improving.

How an online coach can keep your brain young Feb 01, 2025

Show notes

There are some things you can do to guard against cognitive decline, and a study has found a hands-on approach is best.

Also, rates of vaccination in pregnancy are falling in New South Wales.

Should Australia follow Italy's lead and screen everyone for coeliac disease?

And we hear from two friends who've had strokes 20 years apart.

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