Health & Beauty

How online pharmacies are reaching the Devon villages that lost their chemist

There is a particular sort of quiet that has settled over some of Devon's smaller high streets in recent years. The old chemist is boarded up. The prescription counter that three generations of a village used has gone. The nearest replacement is now a fifteen or twenty minute drive along the A30, or a bus that runs twice a day.

Rural Devon has been at the sharp end of a national trend. In the decade to 2024, England lost more than a thousand community pharmacies. Devon lost dozens of them, and the losses were concentrated in the market towns and villages where they were hardest...

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Trust supports ‘Hello My Name Is…’ campaign

THE Northern Devon Healthcare NHS Trust is supporting a national campaign to encourage NHS staff to introduce themselves to patients.

The ‘Hello My Name Is...’ campaign is being led by Dr Kate Granger, a 33-year-old hospital consultant from Yorkshire who is terminally ill with a rare and aggressive form of cancer.

Kate started the campaign on social media three years ago after becoming frustrated with the number of staff who failed to introduce themselves to her when she was in hospital.

She wants to remind staff to go back to basics, build trust and make a vital...

Negative patient-doctor communication could worsen symptoms

Doctors who unintentionally communicate to patients that they do not believe or understand them could actually make their symptoms worse, a new study suggests.

Research by the University of Exeter Medical School, and the psychology departments at the University of Exeter and University of Southampton published in the American Journal of Medicine, indicates that a type of “nocebo” response – where patients perceive a lack of understanding or acceptance from their doctor – could create anger and distress, physiological conditions that could worsen illness.

Lead author Maddy...

Thousands call charity for cancer help

A total of 4,248 people in the South West phoned Macmillan Cancer Support during 2014 seeking help.

New figures from the charity show how many people contacted the Macmillan Support Line during the past 12 months. In Devon, there were 551 callers - of these, 73% of requests were for clinical information and emotional support while the remaining 27% was for welfare or financial guidance queries.

The Macmillan Support Line is for anyone with questions about cancer. It is free to call and staffed by experts who can help with a range of queries - from advice and support with...

'Rotten eggs' gas could help lower blood pressure

A gas that gives rotten eggs their distinctive odour could one day form the basis of new cardiovascular therapies.

Research has indicated that a new compound, called AP39, which generates minute quantities of the gas hydrogen sulfide inside cells, could be beneficial in cases of high blood pressure and diseases of the blood vessels that occur with ageing and diabetes.

In such conditions, the body’s own levels of hydrogen sulfide are depleted, thought to be consumed by oxidants in the tissues and blood. Now, in laboratory tests, studies led by University of Exeter Medical...

Exeter university experts work with Man U

A unique research project to identify the effects of exercise on young hearts has been announced today (Wednesday 28th January 2015).

Manchester United’s Academy players are being put through their paces and having their hearts monitored by the newest imaging technology to give invaluable insights into how young people’s hearts work during exercise.

The project, led by the Bristol Heart Institute at the University of Bristol together with partners Toshiba Medical Systems, Bristol’s Clinical Research and Imaging Centre (CRICBristol), the University of Exeter‘s Children’s...

Strength and balance classes a hit with patients

Strength and balance classes have been launched at Moretonhampstead Hospital and are already proving a hit with patients.

The weekly classes, which started in November, are designed to boost the health, wellbeing and confidence of people who suffer from falls or are afraid of falling.

The sessions run for 12 weeks and include a range of exercises aimed at improving balance and preventing falls, with advice from therapists on how best to manage them when they do happen.

Falls account for over half of hospital admissions for accidental injury, and about a third of...

Stress can affect foetal development

Stress hormones in the mother can affect foetal development, according to a study published today in The Journal of Physiology.

To test whether high stress levels in pregnant mice had an impact on their offspring, pregnant mice received the natural glucocorticoid corticosterone at different times during pregnancy, either from day 11 to 16 (20 females), from day 14-19 (31 females), or not at all (74 control females).

Researchers found that increased levels of glucocorticoid stress hormones in pregnant mice caused the mother to eat more but reduced the ability of the placenta...

Cancer Research UK welcomes action on tobacco packaging

Plain, standardised tobacco packaging is a step closer to being introduced to the UK after the Government announced they will proceed with a vote on the issue.

Cancer Research UK has welcomed the move which now allows a vote in the Commons.

The move would make brightly coloured and slickly designed packs illegal, with all packs becoming uniform in size, shape and design with large picture health warnings.

Initial consultation into standard packs began nearly three years ago in April 2012. Since then, there has been the independent Chantler Review which came out in...

Add years to your life with small changes

Nuffield Health are today calling for the population in the South West to take note of health guidelines and make small changes to their lifestyle in order to reduce their risks of heart attacks and stroke. New figures out today show little understanding and a lack of concern, among people in the region, about the serious health implications of a poor diet – including excess salt and sugar – combined with a lack of exercise. Research from more than 230 people in the South West revealed a massive 85 per cent were unaware of the guideline for daily salt intake – 6 grams. One in three (33 per...

Dementia drop-in centre opens in Topsham

A new information dementia drop in centre has been opened at Topsham Pharmacy and is open on Thursdays between 10am and noon.

Run by volunteers, it is somewhere people to come to find out what support maybe available to them and generally answer any questions they may have on dementia.

Sallie Rutledge who runs The Mede and Seaward House (holiday and day support for people with dementia) in Topsham says: "There's little help at times for the carer and they can feel very isolated.

"We are hoping carers will come to us and tell us what they need....

Health & Beauty

How online pharmacies are reaching the Devon villages that lost their chemist

Trust supports ‘Hello My Name Is…’ campaign

Negative patient-doctor communication could worsen symptoms

Thousands call charity for cancer help

'Rotten eggs' gas could help lower blood pressure

Exeter university experts work with Man U

Strength and balance classes a hit with patients

Stress can affect foetal development

Cancer Research UK welcomes action on tobacco packaging

Add years to your life with small changes

Dementia drop-in centre opens in Topsham

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