Health Report

A new review brings together data from studies worldwide and shows that the impact of alcohol has been underestimated, but that changing drinking habits can reverse and slow down damage.

Should gyms turn the volume down on the loud music they play while patrons are working out?

The donated brains of Parkinson's patients are analysed, showing that the original clinical diagnoses are incorrect in up to twenty percent of cases.

And a study shows survivors of Ebola can experience longer term neurological symptoms, including memory loss.

References:

• Neurological Manifestations in Adult Survivors of Ebola Virus Disease
• Internet Searches for Leucovorin, Folate, and Acetaminophen After a White House Autism Announcement
• Assignment of benefit changes delayed
• Ongoing access to Zoladex monthly implant in Australia - AstraZeneca
• A review of the relationship between dimensions of alcohol consumption and the burden of disease
• Pathology and Genetics in a Global Cohort of Parkinsonian Disorders
• Lower Music Volume Levels in Fitness Class and Perceived Exercise Intensity

Genomic testing is cheaper than ever and can pick up a risk of disease in people with no family history. Should we expand it nation-wide?

IUDs are a highly effective form of contraception, but some women are concerned about pain. A new study looks at how commonly women experience pain on insertion and why.

Researchers have criticised the current state of peer review for scientific grants in Australia, arguing the process lacks transparency and opportunities for appeal.

And the TGA is cracking down on unregulated peptides, saying they're a safety risk for consumers.

Statement from the Department of Health, Disability and Ageing in response to the Health Report.

For more on peptides, listen to our recent story Who's using peptides, and do we know what's in them?

References

• Diabetes society apologizes after removal of Trump protesters from conference sparks outrage
• Diabetes Association in uproar after members expelled from annual meeting over protest of NIH cuts
• Egg Allergy Prevalence Before and After Guidelines for Earlier Egg Introduction
• TGA strengthens compliance focus on unapproved peptide products as part of evolving risk response
• TGA cracks down on unregulated peptides, says increased imports are posing a risk to consumer safety
• Feasibility and outcomes of the DNA Screen nationwide adult genomic screening pilot
• Factors Associated With Pain Related to Insertion of a Contraceptive Intrauterine Device: Findings of a National Survey
• Australia’s erosion of peer review - Science

Australia's specialist medical college for obstetrics and gynaecology is raising the alarm over proposed changes to abortion access in three Australian states.

How physical activity influences your 'biological clock' - and whether it can help you feel younger than you actually are.

Changes to how bulk billing is administered and what that could mean for community-run Aboriginal health services in remote parts of Australia.

And the withdrawal of a drug for breast cancer and endometriosis from Australia - why has it happened and what does it mean for patients?

References:

• Ebola Outbreak: Current Situation (US CDC).
• AI Chatbot Use and Disclosure for Mental Health Among US Adolescents and Young Adults
• AstraZeneca pulls critical breast cancer and endometriosis drug Zoladex from shelves
• Abortion Access Under Attack Again in Two Australian States - RANZCOG
• Physical activity and biological age measured by DNA methylation clocks: a systematic review and meta-analysis

This week, an update on the diphtheria outbreak across multiple Australian states. What's changed to allow the spread to occur?

How to build healthier housing for remote communities - and it starts with maintenance.

A new trial shows some everyday steps people can take to protect themselves against depression.

And reviewing the evidence on calcium and vitamin D when it comes to fractures and falls.

References:

• Ebola outbreak outpacing health response, WHO chief says
• Ebola-hit DR Congo faces 'catastrophic collision' of disease and conflict, WHO warns
• Ebola disease caused by Bundibugyo virus, Democratic Republic of the Congo & Uganda
• Ebola Outbreak: Current Situation (CDC)
• Calcium, vitamin D, or combined supplementation to prevent fractures and falls: systematic review and meta-analysis
• Diphtheria in Australia – Epidemiological update – 18 May 2026
• Impact of Restriction-Resumption Protocols on Mood and Anxiety in Healthy Adults: Randomized Controlled Trial

The popularity of peptides appears to be growing in Australia - what do we know about who is using them, what's in them and the risks?

A large study of Australians with Parkinson's disease finds links to certain pesticides and high-risk occupations.

For people with heart failure, there's a procedure that you can avoid with no ill-effect.

And an outbreak of diptheria across multiple states in Australia - how did this happen?

References

• Obesity and cardiovascular disease: A clinical consensus statement from the National Heart Foundation of Australia
• Impact and Effectiveness of Australia's 2025 Hybrid RSV Immunisation Program: Results from the PAEDS-FluCAN Network
• Diphtheria outbreak could be 'contained within months' but response criticised as too slow
• Responding to injectable synthetic peptide use among young people: priorities for clinicians and public health
• Insights from a cross-sectional population-based study of 10,929 Australians living with Parkinson's disease: risk factors, comorbidities, and sex differences
• Cardiac resynchronization therapy with or without atrioventricular node ablation in atrial fibrillation: the CAAN-AF trial

The World Health Organization has declared a public health emergency of international concern over an outbreak of Ebola in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda.

How does the disease spread, how can it be treated and how concerned should we be?

Further Information:

• Why is there no vaccine for this Ebola outbreak?
• Ebola vaccine could take nine months as death toll rises further, WHO warns.
• Ebola disease in DRC and Uganda.
• Epidemic of Ebola Disease caused by Bundibugyo virus in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Uganda determined a public health emergency of international concern.
• Absence of USAID likely slowed Ebola detection and response, former officials say

ACL injuries are very common in Australia - and the common thinking has been that if you tear your ACL, you'll need surgery. Researchers are arguing the best evidence says we should be looking to rehab first, and that for many people they will recover without surgery.

Microplastics in our food supply - from processing and production - mean all of us are ingesting some level of plastic into our bodies. A new study out of Western Australia shows that it is possible to reduce your exposure, but it takes a lot of work.

There's a growing evidence base for the use of digital interventions for people with some categories of eating disorder. And they might have spillover benefits for mental health conditions like anxiety and depression, which can co-occur with an eating disorder. But how do you find one that you can trust?

Plus, the renaming of polycystic ovary syndrome and the implications for people with the condition.

References:

• Low-plastic diet and urinary levels of plastic-associated phthalates and bisphenols: the randomized controlled PERTH Trial
• Treatment of Anterior Cruciate Ligament Rupture
• Acute, Longer-Term, and Transdiagnostic Outcomes After Digital Interventions for Eating Disorders
• Aluminium adjuvants in vaccines and potential health effects: systematic review
• Polycystic ovary syndrome renamed polyendocrine metabolic ovarian syndrome
• Thriving Kids - Services Australia

Urgent care clinics are getting $1.8 billion in this year's federal budget to make them a permanent part of Australia's health system. We speak to the Health Minister Mark Butler about the decision.

'Fitspo' content that sometimes glamourises a ripped bod or restrictive ways of eating could be flooding your social feed - what do we know about its effect on our mental health?

And 'phage therapy' - a novel form of treatment aimed at providing an alternative to antibiotics. What are bacteriophages, how does this therapy work and how far off is it from showtime?

Plus, success for Australia in eliminating trachoma - an infectious eye disease - as a public health issue. 

References:

• Australia becomes the 30th country to eliminate trachoma as a public health problem
• Mpox disease epidemiology, vaccine uptake and vaccination coverage in Australia 2022–2024: a descriptive study
• Hantavirus-hit cruise ship leaves Cape Verde after three evacuated
• Major budget boost means Medicare Urgent Care Clinics are here to stay
• Lifting the Screen on Fitspiration: A Meta-Analysis
• Cross-reactive anti-prophage antibodies and bacterial heteroresistance implicated in phage therapeutic failure

A new review suggests there may be biomarkers linked to irritable bowel syndrome, typically a diagnosis of exclusion.

How you get followed up after going to the doctor with symptoms of bowel cancer is shaped in part by where you live.

People can now access their diagnostic and pathology results digitally, and for one woman in Brisbane that meant spotting a breast cancer finding that might otherwise have been missed. 

References:

• Serological and faecal markers of irritable bowel syndrome: a systematic review and meta-analysis
• Variations in the investigation of colorectal cancer-related symptoms in Australian primary care: a retrospective cohort study
• Outbreak of diptheria in the Kimberley.
• Nine-Valent Human Papillomavirus Vaccination and Related Cancers in Males
• An estimated 450,000 diabetics will miss out on subsidised Mounjaro after negotiations stalled

Two thirds of women report concerns over memory loss, concentration or other cognitive symptoms during menopause. What do we understand about what's going on, and how can it be managed?

A new plan for improving asthma outcomes in Australia and ending that reliance on the blue puffer.

Understanding how the genes we're born with could shape our risk of some cancers in childhood - with implications for adults too.

And the links between home cooking and dementia - with studies suggesting slicing and dicing at home (instead of eating out more often) could have a protective effect for your cognition.

References

• RSV Vaccine - Department of Health
• Home cooking, cooking skills and dementia requiring long-term care: a population-based cohort study in Japan
• Typology of out-of-home eaters: a description of sociodemographic, lifestyle, nutritional and environmental characteristics in the NutriNet-Santé cohort
• Gender and age differences in weekend eating habits: associations with fat mass percentage in a cross-sectional study
• Glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists and risk of substance use disorders among US veterans with type 2 diabetes: cohort study
• Heart-nosed bat alphacoronaviruses use human CEACAM6 to enter cells
• Advances in understanding of cognitive symptoms during menopause
• A Bold Blueprint for Asthma Reform in Australia
• Integrated germline and somatic molecular profiling to detect cancer predisposition has a high clinical impact in poor-prognosis paediatric cancer