"More tea vicar?"

It may be slightly anti-social (and certainly more noticeable now that smoking is banned in England's pubs) but it seems that smelly farts help to lower one's blood pressure. I apologise in advance but I've gotta think of my health!

1,000 reasons John McCain shouldn't be President

Number 40: Flip flops are bad for your health and given The Aged One's age that's the last thing he needs!

Do you want the good news or the bad news?

The good news is that they have found something that cuts the odds of developing rheumatoid arthritis by about 50%. The bad news is that, as it is drinking alcohol, it is unlikely to make walking any easier.

Are we allowed to mention this?

Long term use of the birth control pill leads to a material reduction in the risk of contracting ovarian cancer. Is it OK to mention this to young women or will we just be encouraging them to go out and shag their socks off?

If my walks down the pub count as exercise*...

...I may just qualify as healthy

*Note: the walks to the pub are taken at an extremely brisk pace; the walks home less so..

Perhaps they could start with proof that it works!

Finally, the British government plans to bring some measure of regulation to those chosen careers for charlatans and fakes homeopathy and aromatherapy. Wouldn't it be simpler to outlaw them or would that upset Prince Chuck too much? Why not though? One can't go about pedalling pills as medicine without some clinical proof that it works. Why so these be any different?

My cursed fingers

Just because my ring finger is longer than my fore finger it is believed that I am more prone to depression than if it were not. OK - so this turns out to be true. And now I know why I am more prone to depression. I am also more prone to osteoarthritis because of my finger length ratio. Again this also happens to be true.

What next I wonder.

No mention of onanism and cecity though

medical myths debunked including turkey makes you sleepy, reading in poor light ruins your eyes and shaved hair grows back faster.

In passing

Today's Guardian features an opinion piece from one Rustum Roy, of Arizona State University, that I wouldn't normally mention as it is about "homeopathy" which I don't believe I should waste my time with. It is full of the usual "memory of water, blah, blah, blah, I'm a scientist, blah, blah, blah" and, as usual, neglects to mention even one peer reviewed study that shows that homeopathy has any measurable impact. The piece is notable for Mr. Roy's invention of a new word, "homeophobia".

I am disappointed however that Mr. Roy fails to suggest that "homeophobia" be including in any future hate crimes bill.

Eat less - skip Micky D's - live longer

In what can only be deemed bad news for a huge swathe of America's (and to a lesser extent Britain's) population we learn that body fat is linked to at least six different types of cancer. One of the key recommendations in the report from the American Institute for Cancer Research and the World Cancer Research Fund, in addition to the obvious "lose some bloody weight", is that red meat consumption be kept below 18 ounces (510 grams) per week.

The entire and entirely depressing report, all 500+ pages of it, can be found here.

Bad medicine

Herbalist shops, primarily Chinese, are ubiquitous in Britain. They have a turnover in excess of £190 million per annum. They are also at best useless and at worst dangerous. Two scientists from the Peninsula Medical School at the University of Exeter are now calling for them to be banned unless they can prove that they are effective.

I expect Chuck Saxe-Coburg-Gotha to weigh in on the subject tomorrow.

Not so Innocent

Manufacturer of smoothies, Innocent, has been found guilty by the Advertising Standards Authority over its claims that its drinks detoxified the body. (Not so) Innocent has pledged not to repeat the offending adverts or to use the claims again.