More than 50,000 alive due to organ transplants, NHS says
In a report released by NHS Blood and Transplant this week, it is claimed that over 50,000 patients are alive today because of organ transplants. Transplants since 2014 include 36,300 kidneys, 9,800 livers, 1,900 pancreas and 1,000 intestines. In addition to this, the number of organ donors have increased from 30% of the population to 36%. This means that 23.6 million are now on the register.
In England and Northern Ireland, people can register to become an organ donor, or on death, a close friend or family member can decide. In contrast to this, Scotland and Wales have adopted the 'opt out' system, where a citizen is automatically an organ donor unless they decide not to be.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-40564329
Dove pulls breastfeeding ad after consumer outcry
The skincare brand Dove has pulled the plug on a controversial advertisement this month after criticisms that it perpetuates a negative image of breastfeeding in public. The advert said: "75% say breastfeeding in public is fine, 25% say put them away. What's your way?", whilst another read "36% are for feeding him when he cries, 64% are passionately against it. What's your way?" The Advertising Standards Authority has received 378 complaints about the campaign, with consumers believing it attempts to justify those who object to breastfeeding in public. Brand owner Unilever has released a statement claiming that this was not their intention, and that the ad aims to celebrate different parenting styles.
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http://www.campaignlive.co.uk/article/dove-pulls-b...
'It has had a real social impact': readers on the smoking ban 10 years on
This week marks the 10 year anniversary since it became illegal to smoke within enclosed public spaces and shared workspaces in the UK. The Guardian has been asking it's readers to relay their personal stories of how the ban has affected their lives. There is a broad spectrum of responses to the ban, perspectives have changed, some people still disagree with the ban whilst others have used it to quit smoking altogether. We'd love to hear your thoughts and experiences with the smoking ban in the comment section below!
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https://www.theguardian.com/society/2017/jul/01/it...
How Step Count Data Can Predict Obesity
A recent study published in Nature, conducted by the University of Stanford, has suggested smartphones could be used to predict growing obesity levels around the world. The study involved monitoring people's daily steps via the step tracking application and weighing the results against age, gender, weight, height and location. Over 700,000 anonymous people were tracked across 111 countries, resulting in 68million days of data recorded. The results concluded that not only does a person's daily steps directly correlate with a country's obesity levels, but it also revealed that in these countries the activity inequality linked to gender as well. Countries with high obesity levels, such as the USA, revealed a greater difference in the number of steps women took as opposed to men, whereas countries like Japan with low obesity levels revealed the gap to be much smaller.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-40570442
Meningitis vaccine may also cut risk of 'untreatable' gonorrhoea, study says
It has emerged that a new vaccine against meningitis unexpectedly reduced the risk of people contracting gonorrhoea. As the UK's second most common sexually transmitted infected, some strains of which are untreatable, affects over 78 million people world wide, mainly men and women under 25. The revelation of this cross prevention vaccine came as a shock to many, as the two illnesses are completely different, although studies have found they share much of the same genetic code. Further studies into the vaccine are to be conducted to provide a conclusion result of it's effectiveness in fighting gonorrhoea.
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