The Guardian Health

Two people have died amid US cyclosporiasis outbreak, Michigan officials say

US sees first fatalities due to intestinal illness, though both had significant ​underlying health conditionsTwo people have died from cyclosporiasis in Michigan, the state’s health department said on Monday, marking the first fatalities in the largest US outbreak ⁠of the intestinal illness.Both ⁠individuals had significant ​underlying health conditions that may have been affected by cyclosporiasis and dehydration, according to medical records. Continue reading...

health  Aug 3, 2026

The Guardian Health

The best way to protect NHS patients’ data | Letter

A genuinely competitive market would prevent any single company’s decisions from putting the system at risk, says Prof Erika DentonYour article on the TPG/Optum UK deal, over the patient record system used by most GP practices in England, highlights a specific issue that is symptomatic of a much bigger problem (Alarm at NHS patient records being put under control of US private equity firm, 27 July). I’ve spent years working across the NHS, both in clinical radiology and in national policy roles,

health  Aug 3, 2026

The Guardian Health

‘Just cruel’: Medicaid halt in California and Minnesota plunges caregivers and disabled people into uncertainty

Shock and fury as Trump administration holds back Medicaid funding to states over alleged caregiving fraudBy now, when Shannon Rosa hears about cuts to Medicaid and misinformation from the Trump administration about disabled people and their families, her predominant feeling isn’t fear or sadness.It’s fury. Continue reading...

health  Aug 3, 2026

The Guardian Health

The one change that worked: I learned to love my arms – after decades of hating and hiding them

It took a heatwave to get me to shed my shame and my sleeves, but now there’s no stopping me. Life is cooler in every way‘Aren’t you hot in that?” was the question that plagued my summers as a teenager. I would never bare my arms; instead, I would cover up with a trusty black cardigan. Even T-shirts felt too revealing, too tight on the arm, too clinging to the body. I needed layers to feel comfortable. Well, comfortable isn’t the right word. I was never comfortable, despite telling everyone: “No

health  Aug 3, 2026

The Guardian Health

‘I spent a week crying. I’ve never had an injury in my life!’ Why do so many fitness fans end up needing surgery?

From the 47-year-old runner who needs a double hip replacement to the 27-year-old CrossFitter with a ruptured ACL, those who push their bodies too hard often regret it. What are the lessons for the rest of us?Jonathan Price has always been active and exercise-focused. Growing up in south Wales, rugby was his first love. Through school, university and beyond, he also surfed, rowed, played squash and ran competitively – on track, in 10k races and cross-country. Career and family demands meant that

health  Aug 3, 2026

The Guardian Health

Liechtenstein’s archaic abortion laws need to be modernised. But a prince is standing in the way | Gabriella Alvarez-Hummel

The hurdles for women who have to travel abroad to access abortion are considerable, but Hereditary Prince Alois says he will veto any changesThe first person Maria* called when she found out she was pregnant was her doctor. The second person was a lawyer. The single mother of one was in shock, and considering terminating the pregnancy. But she first had to make sure that she wasn’t about to do something illegal, because all she knew was that abortions were forbidden where she lived. “On top of

health  Aug 3, 2026

The Guardian Health

RFK Jr tells US families to vaccinate children against measles amid outbreak

Health secretary, longtime vaccination skeptic, spent years boosting misinformation about vaccines including MMRRobert F Kennedy Jr, the US health secretary, on Sunday told American parents that they should get their children vaccinated against measles, as the surge in infections has reached numbers not seen in the past 35 years.Kennedy, a leading vaccination skeptic who has spent years amplifying misinformation about vaccines, including the shot that protects against measles, mumps and rubella

health  Aug 2, 2026

The Guardian Health

Traffic, mobiles, music … let’s turn the volume down | Letters

Readers respond to an editorial on the health impact of noise pollution Your editorial is right that noise pollution deserves to be treated as a public-health issue rather than a mere irritation (The Guardian view on noise pollution: keep it down, 28 July). Yet one obvious source of urban noise receives little attention: modified cars and motorbikes whose exhausts and engines have been made far louder than manufacturers intended.Anyone living in a city or town knows the difference between the ba

health  Aug 2, 2026

The Guardian Health

Annie thought perimenopause symptoms were keeping her awake. Alcohol was playing a role too | Diane Young

Hot flushes, anxiety, poor sleep and mood swings are common during perimenopause. But the very thing Annie was using to manage her symptoms had become an even bigger problemThe modern mind is a column where experts discuss mental health issues they are seeing in their workWhen Annie* started pacing around her house at 3am and struggling to find words during work meetings, she put it down to stress and perimenopause. She wasn’t entirely wrong. But it wasn’t the whole story.At 43, she was juggling

health  Aug 2, 2026

The Guardian Health

A mystery virus started killing horses. Then humans. Was this the moment our coronavirus era began?

In the 1990s, scientists in Australia began searching for the origins of a new disease showing up in places hundreds of kilometres apart. They discovered the origin: bats. And found a way to reduce the risk of bat disease spilloversThe virus could have appeared in many places on the east coast, but it is a strange coincidence, in the light of later scientific discoveries, that it first became known in the Brisbane suburb of Hendra. The high school is named Aviation High, and the streets are bord

health  Aug 2, 2026

The Guardian Health

Could a couch-to-5k for books get you back into reading?

With smartphones stealing our attention, we’re picking up fewer books than ever. A novelist shares her eight-week scheme to get you back into the habitDo you feel that it’s harder to read than it used to be? Not harder to read emails, texts and social media posts, of course. We’re reading those all day long. Harder to sit down and lose yourself in a book? How long is it since you even sat down with a weekend newspaper and read it cover to cover? Do you feel that you used to have a life-sustainin

health  Aug 2, 2026

The Guardian Health

Ultra-processed food companies hindering health drives by suing countries, says WHO

Exclusive: Director general accuses corporations of obstructing efforts to tackle obesity crisis after investigation by Guardian and othersThe world’s biggest ultra-processed food corporations are hindering global efforts to tackle the obesity crisis by suing governments that try to promote healthier diets, the head of the World Health Organization has said.Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the WHO director general, accused global food companies of obstructing the adoption of vital public health measu

health  Aug 1, 2026

The Guardian Health

Biohacker Bryan Johnson is keeping his girlfriend’s menstrual blood in his freezer | Arwa Mahdawi

The longevity influencer and his girlfriend, Kate Tolo, say they’re studying women’s health – a worthy goal, but perhaps some skepticism is in orderThe tech entrepreneur Bryan Johnson has devoted his life to dodging death. The 48-year-old is obsessed with becoming the healthiest person in the world and is on a quixotic quest to reverse his biological age and live forever. As such, Johnson is disciplined about what he eats, takes dozens of supplements a day, and measures every single biomarker po

health  Aug 1, 2026

The Guardian Health

Brazil’s HIV advocates say they predicted USAID funding cuts: ‘We would see the trends’

At the Aids 2026 conference, Brazilian advocates said health systems need to be more independent from foreign fundingHIV advocates from Brazil, whose health system operates independently from foreign aid, say they predicted a dramatic reduction in donor funding for HIV and wish other countries had prioritized independence sooner.While the dissolution of USAID might “feel like a rupture”, it’s something advocates at the Brazilian HIV NGO Gestos have seen coming for a long time, Juliana Cesar, Ges

health  Aug 1, 2026

The Guardian Health

The great British switch-off: how floating retreats, mobile-free pubs and sauna book groups are freeing people from their smartphones

Sick of doomscrolling? From venues with smartphone swear jars to cabins with absolutely no signal, here are the fun and freeing ways to ditch your deviceThere’s a ritual at the start of every event hosted by the Offline Project. Run by Pelé Zachariah, the activities vary – it could be a group walk, a collage‑making class or a supper club – but each one begins in the same way, *with an invitation to hand over your phone. Devices go in a lockbox. Once they’re all in, Zachariah closes the door

health  Aug 1, 2026

The Guardian Health

‘I felt sick that he was near my mum’: a top amputation surgeon had his own legs removed due to a fetish. Were his patients safe?

Neil Hopper was celebrated for continuing to do his job despite the loss of his lower limbs. But what the people he was treating didn’t know was that his injuries were self-inflicted. Now they and their families are asking questionsWarning: this story contains graphic descriptions of bodily mutilation that some readers may find upsettingOf all the things that happened in the fraught days after 72-year-old Liz Spooner had her leg amputated at the Royal Cornwall hospital in Truro in 2022, one memo

health  Aug 1, 2026

The Guardian Health

Is the cyclosporiasis outbreak slowing? Test-makers are hopeful

Data by one test-maker shows a positivity drop, but rate could be influenced by number of people taking testSign up for the Breaking News US newsletter emailThe maker of a popular laboratory test said the cyclosporiasis outbreak in the US may be slowing. An outbreak of infections from the single-celled parasite has grown to more than 18,000 suspected and confirmed cases in late July, the nation’s largest on record.The midwest has been hit particularly hard in the outbreak, where public health of

health  Jul 31, 2026

The Guardian Health

HIV prevention drug could reduce number of cases globally but USAID cuts prevent access, say experts

Injectable PrEP drug holds promise but investment in HIV prevention has declined dramatically worldwideSign up for the Breaking News US newsletter email New innovations in HIV prevention could dramatically reduce the number of new HIV cases around the globe, but US foreign aid cuts will mean that those that most need the new medication will be unable to access it, according to experts at the Aids 2026 Conference in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.One year ago, the World Health Organization recommended th

health  Jul 31, 2026

The Guardian Health

Hobbies can improve your health – here are four tips for choosing one

From sea swimming to painting, doctors are ‘prescribing’ hobbies – but you don’t need a doctor’s note to get startedIn 2020, the year Amanda lost her mother, husband, job and pre-pandemic normalcy, she was diagnosed with major depressive disorder. “My life was just spiraling down and down and down,” she says.To help with her symptoms, in addition to an antidepressant prescription, Amanda was given a “social prescription”: a referral to a non-medical, community-based activity, typically involving

health  Jul 31, 2026

The Guardian Health

The dead doctor and a dicey diet: how a ban made a hero of Egypt’s rogue medic

Diaa al-Awadi claimed insulin was a fraud, smoking was safe and chemotherapy useless. But despite losing his medical licence and dying at early age, his reach continues to grow It had been a struggle with conventional treatments. For Fatima Adel, a 50-year-old author living in Cairo’s upmarket Sheikh Zayed neighbourhood, the misdiagnoses and medical errors she had experienced had began to erode her confidence in doctors.But when the videos of Diaa al-Awadi began circulating – an Egyptian doctor

health  Jul 31, 2026