Health & Beauty

Public Health leaders in Devon are supporting a national campaign urging men who spend a lot of time outdoors to protect themselves against the sun, to reduce the risk of skin cancer.

Skin cancer rates are higher than average and rising in the South West, and the NHS “Cover Up, Mate” campaign launched today (Mon 19 June) will target male agricultural and construction workers, gardeners and sportsmen, who often don’t use suncream. The campaign is supported by a range of organisations connected to outdoor work including the Met Office, the Institution of Occupational Safety and...

On 15 June, the streets of Exeter were filled with people spreading the word of ‘ataxia:’ a progressive and debilitating neurological condition that affects 10,000 people in the UK.

Yesterday afternoon in Bedford Square, members of Ataxia UK’s South West Branch held an awareness stall as part of a local awareness campaign, asking the public: ‘I know what ataxia is, do you?’

Ataxia affects mobility, speech and movement. It’s progressive, and there’s no cure. Its symptoms mimic inebriation and only 10% of the population have heard of it. People with ataxia have been asked to...

Parents in Exeter have expressed concern over their children’s sugar consumption.

The results from the Sugar Smart Exeter survey, where almost 700 Exeter residents had their say about sugar in the city, show Exeter residents are concerned about their sugar intake, with 64% of respondents saying they would like help to reduce the amount of sugar they eat. For parents, their children’s sugar consumption was also a significant worry. The survey also highlights the difficulty in reading food labels, with 24% of respondents unsure how much sugar they are consuming.

The findings...

A hay fever map of Britain – with the first ever guide to the location of plants in the UK that can trigger the allergy - has been produced to help sufferers cope, and warn them which ‘hotspots’ to avoid.

Academics at the University of Exeter’s Medical School have produced new, highly-detailed maps http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0048969717309749 of the UK containing the location of key plants and trees known to produce pollen that triggers allergies and asthma.

The maps, produced in collaboration with the Met Office, may help acute hay-fever or asthma...