Health
Letters
Just call them Daesh Sir: I was interested to read Sam Leith’s article in which he appears to argue that…
The wrong cuts
Jeremy Hunt is right to fight for NHS reform. But he’s going after the wrong people, on the wrong issue
A trust betrayed
Like many of my fellow junior doctors, I trusted a Conservative government with the NHS. If it’s to stay strong…
Why can’t we get our minds around ME?
Do you ever wake up worried that you have tiny fibres growing beneath your skin, all along your spinal column?…
Barometer
Killer facts The World Health Organisation added processed meats to its list of ‘known’ carcinogens. A few of the other…
Women are still scared to talk about IVF. Let’s change that
Pretty soon, one in ten British babies will begin life in a Petri dish. So why is it still such a taboo subject?
Our drugs cheat
Do you want to see Paula Radcliffe’s blood? If so, you’re not alone. Radcliffe, three-time winner of the London Marathon…
Death watch
If you don’t think legalising ‘assisted dying’ is a slippery slope, you haven’t been paying attention
The dangerous food fad
The ‘clean eating’ revolution is more likely to make you ill than healthy
Your problems solved
Q. How can you tactfully tell someone that the large skin tag or blob they have grown in the centre…
Sick and tired
When the link between tobacco and lung cancer was first established in the early 1950s, one obvious question arose: should…
The green house effect
Buying an eco-home? Expect stifling springs and summers
Real life
The doctor eyed me suspiciously as I walked into her consulting room. ‘Ye-es?’ she said, nervously, eyeing me up and…
Long life
I wrote last week about a swarm of bees that had attached itself to a wall of my house, as…
Woke up late? Don’t blame your genes
‘Oh, I’m an owl,’ said my friend Nick. ‘You’re probably a lark.’ I raised an eyebrow. He explained. Apparently all…
Would you put your life in the care of Dr Droid?
There’s something wrong with the relationship between patients and their GPs. I’ve spent much of this winter in my local…
In praise of Dr Google
There’s something perversely satisfying in discovering that your children have inherited your vices. That’s why I was so quietly pleased…
Liberté, égalité, austérité
How France learned to love cuts
Letters
Why we need a free press Sir: As bereaved parents and (to borrow from some signatories of last week’s advertisement)…
How many times have I told you?
As a sign of the way things have changed, nothing could better this. Hester Vaizey, Cambridge history don and ‘publishing…
Diary
The week leading up to publication is a strange time for any author. You subject yourself to doing everything from…
Would you let parents destroy ‘gay’ embryos?
Because I’d like to have a child, and I’m getting on a bit, my husband and I have spent time…
Diary
My surgery has been calling in all those over 75 for a special session with their doctor — a sort…
Florence Notebook
Florence was in fog the day I arrived. Its buildings were bathed in white cloud, its people moved as though…
Barometer
Fat chances The National Obesity Forum said that Britain is reaching a ‘doomsday scenario’ where half the population is obese.…
