HEALTH ADVICE: Brits over 40 are ignoring free blood pressure checks at their local NHS pharmacy
Only two percent of Brits use free blood pressure checks at their local pharmacy, according to a survey.
The vital tests have been available in drugstores for everyone over 40 since October last year.
NHS England launched the initiative to ease the pressure on GP clinics and lower the hidden toll of high blood pressure.
NHS England launched the initiative to ease the pressure on GP clinics and bring down hidden high blood pressure by allowing patients to get the checks at pharmacies (models pictured)
An estimated 4.8 million people in the UK have the disease but don’t know it – putting them at risk of heart attacks and strokes.
But treatments like beta blockers and ACE inhibitors can drastically reduce the chances.
The survey of 2,120 adults, commissioned by the British Heart Foundation in partnership with Tesco, also found that only one in ten had consulted their pharmacist for health advice.
Hair-raising breakthrough
There could soon be a genetic test for a bizarre condition that makes babies’ hair stand on end.
“Uncombable hair syndrome” occurs when hair grows in a curl and tends to disappear in adulthood.
Now scientists at the University of Bonn in Germany have identified the cause of the problem after taking DNA from 107 affected children.
“Uncombable hair syndrome” occurs when hair grows in a curl and tends to disappear in adulthood. Now scientists at the University of Bonn in Germany have identified the cause of the problem after taking DNA from 107 affected children
It’s caused by a mutation in a gene called PAD13, which produces an enzyme that helps make a protein.
The study’s lead author, Buket Masmanav, said the results could be used to develop a genetic test to “reassure parents” that the problem is not indicative of a serious medical condition.
Brain scans can reveal who our closest friends are, according to a study.
The University of Israel asked 26 people to classify friends into five categories based on their proximity.
The participants sat in an MRI scanner to have their brain activity monitored while they sorted the names.
Thoughts of close friends activated three regions of the brain responsible for feelings of empathy. But when they focused on the names of a few close friends, areas related to memory showed much greater activation.
Researchers say this could be because thoughts of close friends evoke emotions, while peripheral friends evoke thoughts of our last interaction with them.
Families are being urged to enroll more people with dementia in drug trials after just 60 patients were tested for treatments last year.
The ‘shockingly low’ figure is 100 times lower than that found in cancer study volunteers, says Alzheimer’s Research UK. And this despite the fact that dementia kills more Britons than any other disease. It affects almost a million people and there are no treatments to slow it down.
Dementia research brings together people with dementia studies in the UK. To join one, visit joindementiaresearch.nihr.ac.uk.
