Health Check

Many people have struggled with their mental health during the pandemic, but still don’t always feel free to discuss it, especially at work. Stigma remains a problem and discussing your difficulties at all is off-limits. For many years in England a campaign called Time To Change tried to change attitudes and the evidence from that and other initiatives was used to launch campaigns in India, Ghana, Nigeria, Kenya and Uganda in 2019. Sue Baker, Mind’s International Health Advisor, and Rosemary Gathara, Director of Basic Needs, Basic Rights in Kenya discuss the findings of the campaigns with Claudia Hammond.

Matt Fox, Professor of Global Epidemiology at Boston University in the US, joins Claudia to talk about the latest global picture of Covid, mask wearing at basketball games in the US and the Kindness Test. And they look at research that suggests too much free time is bad for us.

Presenter: Claudia Hammond

(Picture: A woman sitting in a room. Photo credit: Jasmin Merdan/Getty Images.)

In 2020 Vietnam ran a successful track and trace system, with very few coronavirus infections and for a long time no deaths at all, while other countries had thousands. In 2021 things haven’t gone so well and since July strict stay at home orders have been in place in some cities. Nga Pham, a journalist from BBC World News, and software engineer Kevin Vu talk about what life is like in Hanoi and Ho Chi Min City.

Dr Monica Lakhanpaul, Professor of Integrated Community Child Health at University College London, talks to Claudia Hammond about a mystery disease outbreak in the state of Uttar Pradesh in India. The symptoms are fever, joint pains, headaches and nausea.

People born premature can have an increased risk of developing heart problems later in life. For the first time researchers have shown that breast milk can improve heart performance in premature babies. The new study was done by Afif El-Khuffash who looks after premature babies and is Clinical Professor of Paediatrics at the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland.

And Monica and Claudia discuss the latest research into long Covid in children.

Presenter: Claudia Hammond

(Picture: A resident rides her bicycle near a make-shift barricade in Hanoi during the lockdown to stop the spread of Covid-19. Photo credit: Nhac Nguyen/AFP/Getty Images.)

How art and gardening has saved some people’s mental health during the pandemic. Claudia visits the most wonderful allotment to find out how one community in the UK has benefited.

Nightmares and how people with psychosis can be plagued and even traumatised by bad dreams, but that there is a way of dealing with them.

Plus, can kindness help you live a long life and evidence on whether dogs feel jealous!

Presenter: Claudia Hammond

(Picture: Close up of women planting salad seedlings. Photo credit: Betsie Van der Meer/Getty Images.)

When was the last time you did something really kind for someone or someone else did something really kind for you?

Claudia Hammond and guests are looking at the place of kindness in today’s world, asking what it really means, what happens in our brains when we act kindly and whether there can ever be a role for it in the cut-throat worlds of business and politics. She hears what kindness means to people in Kenya, Chile and in the UK. And with many aspects of kindness remaining under-researched, with your help Claudia and Robin Banerjee, Professor of Social Psychology at the University of Sussex, are asking you to fill in the gaps by taking part in the Kindness Test.

Presenter: Claudia Hammond

Trials have shown that cocktails of antibodies are effective against Covid, and one called Ronapreve has just been approved for use in the UK, following in the footsteps of Japan and the US. Claudia Hammond talks to Penny Ward, Professor of Pharmaceutical Medicine at Kings College, London, about how these monoclonal antibodies work and where they are best used, given that they are very expensive.

The UN Refugee Agency and the International Organisation for Migration have called on governments to ensure that everyone is included in vaccination plans, including refugees and internally displaced people. Samara Linton reports on how undocumented migrants, in South East Asia and in the UK, are getting vaccinated against Covid.

The increased heat we are experiencing with climate change is causing deaths in people with underlying health conditions. Professor Kristie Ebi of the University of Washington tells Claudia about what we can do to keep cool, in particular in places without air conditioning.

And family doctor Graham Easton comments on these stories and discusses the relationship between Covid and heat.

Presenter: Claudia Hammond

(Picture: Computer illustration of the release of monoclonal antibodies. Credit: Nanoclustering/Science Photo Library/Getty Images.)

The adventurer and ultra-runner Alex Staniforth talks about his survival on Everest following the devastating Nepalese earthquake in 2015. Rachel Manning from Buckingham University considers why we do or don’t intervene in risky situations and in everyday life. And Patrick Tissington from Warwick University draws on the stories behind those awarded the Victoria or George Cross for bravery to suggest some of the best ways to manage our fear in allowing us to be more courageous. The programme is presented by Claudia Hammond and recorded at the Cheltenham Science Festival in June 2021.

Image: Rock climber clinging to a cliff

Presenter: Claudia Hammond

Claudia Hammond and her studio guest global health journalist Sarah Boseley discuss the health impact of the fires that are raging in many places including Southern Europe and the US. Lizzie Crouch reports on the longer term physical and mental effects of fires on people who experienced them in Colorado last year.

Two reports, from the Netherlands and the US, are published this week that highlight the lack of women in drug trials for heart disease. Heart disease is often thought to be more common in men than women but that isn’t the case and new drugs need to be tested on women as well as on men.

As the Olympics comes to an end Claudia talks to Adrian Bauman, Emeritus Professor of Global Health at the University of Sydney, about if there is any legacy for the general public in terms of increased exercise and fitness. He has just published a paper in The Lancet exploring this question – and the answer is a no.

And Sarah Boseley and Claudia discuss the case of Marburg Disease in Guinea, the first to be reported in West Africa.

Presenter: Claudia Hammond

(Picture: People run away from a forest fire in the Milas district of Muğla province, Turkey on 3rd August 2021. Photo credit: Ali Balli/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images.)

USA gymnast Simone Biles won Olympic bronze but withdrew from earlier events due to ‘The twisties’ and resulting mental health issues. Family Doctor Graham Easton looks at the evidence for what causes this condition.

Childhood myopia: A new study finds an increase in childhood short-sightedness during the pandemic. Lead author Jason C. S. Yam explains the potential impact of lockdowns on eye health by increasing close work on screens and decreasing outside activity.

Cannabis and vomiting: Alison van Diggelen reports on an under recognised condition, Cannabinoid Hyperemesis Syndrome [CHS] where users of marijuana get bouts of vomiting, nausea, and severe abdominal pain that can need hospitalisation. It mostly impacts long term users though some younger people who smoke concentrates only a few times a week have had it too. Severe weight loss and the dehydration caused by vomiting can have long term impacts on the heart, liver and kidneys even causing death in extreme cases.

Oxygen monitoring: Updated guidance showing that pulse oximeters – a device designed to measure early signs of a dangerous drop in oxygen - works less well in people with darker skin.

Presenter: Claudia Hammond

(Picture: Simone Biles of Team United States competes in the Women's Balance Beam Final on day eleven of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at Ariake Gymnastics Centre in Tokyo, Japan. Photo credit: Jamie Squire/Getty Images.)

New research on Covid vaccination in prisons. Plus can financial incentives like free tuition or free cruises encourage people to get the jab? Samara Linton reports on some surprising examples, while Professor Stephen Higgins reviews the evidence. And does the use of words like "provider" or "customer" subtly change healthcare? Claudia's guest is Matt Fox, Professor of Global Health Epidemiology at Boston University.

Presenter: Claudia Hammond

(Picture: Prisoners at the La Modelo Correctional Facility wait to receive a Covid-19 vaccination administered by medical workers in Bogota, Colombia in July 2021. Photo credit: Juancho Torres/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images.)

A really intriguing finding on flu vaccines - that they might offer some protection not just against flu, but against the most serious effects of Covid-19 – even though it is of course a completely different virus. Claudia Hammond talks to Dr Devinder Singh who led the research using anonymous medical records from countries including Singapore, Germany, Italy and Israel, which medical researchers can use.

Summer viruses

Downs Syndrome and Covid-19

Image: Vaccine bottles in a row

Presenter: Claudia Hammond