# Other health News, 24 Nov 2008



## Admin (Nov 24, 2008)

*Water straight out of thin air*
A gadget which makes water out of thin air could become the greatest household invention since the microwave. Using the same technology as a de-humidifier, the Water Mill is able to create a ready supply of drinking water by capturing it from an unlimited source  -  the air.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencet...t-makes-water-straight-air-help-millions.html

*Down's births on the rise in a caring Britain*
More babies are being born with Down’s syndrome as parents feel increasingly that society is a more welcoming place for children with the condition. Widespread screening was introduced in 1989, and led to a steady fall in new instances of Down’s syndrome. From 717 babies born with Down’s that year, the total decreased each year, to 594 in 2000.
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/health/article5219174.ece

*Hospitals fail to pass latest superbug hygiene test*
Nine out of ten NHS hospitals in England are still not fully compliant with hygiene standards that came into effect more than two years ago. Despite political pressure to cut the number of infections due to MRSA and Clostridium difficile, some trusts still fail to keep wards consistently clean, or isolate sick patients to prevent infections spreading, the Healthcare Commission said. 
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/health/article5220196.ece

*Arthritis patients win battle for review of drug restriction*
Guidance on the use of three drugs that combat the debilitating effects of rheumatoid arthritis said patients cannot switch to a different medicine in the group if the first did not work for them. Campaigners said it amounted to a "prescription for pain" and launched an appeal to the Nice, the National Institute for health and Clinical Excellence, on a technical point that the organisation had not followed its own process properly.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/health/3...-as-Nice-to-review-restrictions-on-drugs.html

*New model humans*
One Sunday lunchtime in March, Anthony Hollander, professor of tissue engineering at Bristol University, received a call from his colleague Martin Birchall, a professor of surgery. He had an unusual assignment: they were being asked to grow a new windpipe for a patient.
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/science/article5213509.ece

*NHS Direct refers on as many as two-thirds of callers*
Health chiefs have launched a root and branch review of the medical helpline NHS Direct after it emerged up to six in ten patients were referred to other services. 
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/health/3...-patients-it-refers-to-GPs-and-hospitals.html

*Forget the pushchair, sling your baby to sleep*
At first glance it seems to be nothing more than a piece of fabric. But with celebrity endorsements from the likes of Madonna, Nicole Kidman and Gwen Stefani the baby sling is fast becoming a must-have for yummy mummies. 
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-1088463/Why-time-forget-pushchair-sling-baby-sleep.html

*Fit not sick notes  *
Sick notes are to be scrapped and replaced with electronic “fit notes” to separate the work-shy from the genuinely ill and cut the benefits bill. The system of GPs writing sick notes and allowing patients to stay off work for months on end is as old as the NHS and has barely changed in 60 years. However, ministers want to cut numbers claiming long-term sick benefits from 2.6 million to 1.6 million by 2015 and believe ending the sick-note culture is the best place to start. 
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/health/article5233823.ece

*Calories by the pint*
Bottles of wine and beer could soon carry labels warning of their calorie content. Experts believe binge drinkers, not deterred by information about how much alcohol a drink contains, might think again if they knew how fattening it was. 
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/art...LORIE-warning-labels-stop-women-drinking.html

*The billions we waste on health foods*
Gullible shoppers are wasting billions of pounds a year on “quack” health foods that are useless, a medical expert warns today. Products that sound too good to be true by implying they aid weight loss or _*combat diabetes*_ are totally ineffective, claims nutritionist Professor Michael Lean. 
http://www.express.co.uk/posts/view/72916/The-billions-we-waste-on-health-foods

*Sharp rise in heterosexual HIV cases*
The number of people infected with HIV acquired through heterosexual contact in the UK has almost doubled in four years, figures issued yesterday show. There were 960 new diagnoses in 2007 compared with 540 in 2003, the Health Protection Agency said. 
http://www.independent.co.uk/life-s...p-rise-in-heterosexual-hiv-cases-1035161.html

*First NHS gambling clinic opens*
The first NHS clinic to treat gamblers through therapy and financial advice has been opened in Soho in the West End of London. The National Problem Gambling Clinic will be tested for a year, and has sparked interest, the Central and North West London NHS Foundation Trust said. 
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/london/7747554.stm


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