Brain and Behaviour
Post-natal depression (depression after the birth of a child) is something that has broad recognition within the medical profession and even many parts of the community. In recent times, there has been growing awareness too that depression can commonly come on during the pregnancy itself. Depression that comes on during or up to 12 months […]
Children's Health
Short-sightedness (the medical term for which is ‘myopia’) is a common condition in industrialised countries. This condition probably has many potential underlying causes. Some of these were reviewed in a recent paper published in the journal Optometry and Vision Science [1]. One quite clear finding from this review was that spending time outdoors is linked […]
Brain and Behaviour
There are a lot of different theories about what causes autism, but not much consensus of opinion. In recent years, vaccination has been mooted as a potential cause of this condition, but so have lots of other things including pre-natal ultrasounds, wireless technology and certain environmental toxins. This week another potential cause of autism was […]
Children's Health
While not all dietary approaches are applicable or beneficial to everyone, there are some, I think, that generally hold true. Here’s one: if you want a long and healthy life, do what you can to ensure stability in blood sugar and insulin levels. What this means usually means in practice is the regular eating of […]
Brain and Behaviour
I don’t have a brilliant memory, but occasionally something someone tells me does somehow stick in my mind. One such memory I have concerns a patient I saw some years ago. He had had a brain tumour (I forget what sort) removed, and was interested in supporting his convalescence and general health through nutrition. During […]
Brain and Behaviour
Late last month one of my posts focused on the eating of fish during pregnancy. On the one hand this may be a good idea on the basis that the omega-3 fats certain fish can supply may have benefits for the developing foetus. On the other hand, fish (particularly tuna, marlin and swordfish) can be […]
Brain and Behaviour
This blog is about the safety of MMR and the science and politics surrounding this issue. I didn’t have any intention of writing about this until very recently. Let me say up front I have no special interest in this area, other than having met a significant number of people who believe their children have […]
Brain and Behaviour
Many of you will have noticed that nutritional information and advice can sometimes be widely contradictory and therefore very confusing. I usually mention this at the start of any talk I may give. One of examples I often cite is the general recommendation to eat a low-fat, high-carb diet, though on the other hand some […]
Brain and Behaviour
Back in September of last year I reported on a study which found that certain food additives (specific colourings and the food preservative sodium benzoate) had been found to have a statistically significant adverse effect on children’s behaviour and attention [1]. This study (sometimes referred to as the ‘Southampton study’) was actually performed in ‘normal’ […]
Children's Health
When working with nutritionally-based medicine, one gets a feel over the years for what tends to work and what doesn’t. One thing I’ve learned to be fairly certain of is that when an diabetic individual who is eating the mounds of carb so often recommended to them switches to a diet with less carb in […]