UK - Fears over pro-suicide web pages

(BBC)
People searching the web for information on suicide are more likely to find sites encouraging the act than offering support, a study says. Researchers used four search engines to look for suicide-related sites, the British Medical Journal said. The three most frequently occurring sites were all pro-suicide, prompting researchers to call for anti-suicide web pages to be prioritised.

Labels: Health

Ban junk food advertising on internet, say campaigners

(Guardian)
Food and drink companies should be banned from marketing unhealthy snacks and drinks to young children via new media such as social networking sites and text messaging, a coalition of international consumer groups and health bodies recommends. The group is urging governments to adopt a code that they say would curb the rising obesity rates among children. The code would restrict junk food marketing, including outlawing the use of cartoon characters, celebrity tie-ins, free gifts and competitions aimed at younger audiences.

Labels: Consumer_protection, Health, Protection_of_minors

Mobiles 'not brain cancer risk'

(BBC)
Mobile phone use does not raise the risk of brain tumours, a Japanese study suggests. The research is the first to look at the effects of hand set radiation levels on different parts of the brain. Tokyo Women's Medical University found no increased risk of the three main types of brain cancer among regular mobile phone users. The study, comparing 322 brain cancer patients and 683 healthy people, appears in British Journal of Cancer.

Labels: Health, Mobile_and_wireless

Mobiles linked to disturbed sleep

(BBC)
Using a mobile phone before going to bed could stop you getting a decent night's sleep, research suggests. The study, funded by mobile phone companies, suggests radiation from the handset can cause insomnia, headaches and confusion.

Labels: Health, Mobile_and_wireless

US - Study children and cell phones, experts advise

(Reuters)
Researchers should study more children and pregnant women in trying to figure out if cell phones or other wireless devices could damage health, the U.S. National Research Council advised. A few studies have indicated a possible link between mobile telephone use and brain tumors, although far more show no connection. But because wireless devices have become almost ubiquitous, researchers want to ensure their safety. More study needs to be done on multiple, long-term, low-intensity radio frequency (RF) exposure, the report said.

Labels: Health, Mobile_and_wireless

FR - France warns of health risks from mobile phones

(Reuters)
A French health ministry has issued a warning against excessive mobile-phone use, especially by children, though it recognised cellular technology had not been scientifically proved to be dangerous.

Labels: Health, Mobile_and_wireless

UK - Wi-fi health study gets go ahead

(BBC)
The government is taking another look at the effect that wireless networks have on health. The Health Protection Agency (HPA) has announced it will carry out "systematic" research into how wireless networks are being used. The research will aim to establish average exposure to the low level radiation emitted by wi-fi access points and wireless links on computers. The HPA said it expected the results of the research to be "reassuring". In its statement outlining its intentions, Professor Pat Troop, chief executive of the agency, said there was "no scientific evidence to date" that wi-fi or wireless local networks could have an adverse effect on the health of the general population.

Labels: Health, Mobile_and_wireless

UK - Lawmaker blasts government on Microsoft policy

(CNET News)
A member of Parliament of the United Kingdom has launched a stinging attack on the U.K. government's IT strategy, saying that it has given Microsoft too much control.

Labels: E-government, Health, Information_society_and_Internet_policy

UK - Wi-fi health fears are 'unproven'

(BBC)
Scientists have said there is no evidence to suggest a link between the use of wi-fi and damage to health. BBC programme Panorama found that radiation levels from wi-fi in one school was up to three times the level of mobile phone mast radiation. The readings were 600 times below the government's safety limits but there is ongoing debate about wi-fi use.

Labels: Health, Mobile_and_wireless

UK - Wi-fi laptop fears for children

(BBC)
Computers with wireless internet should not be placed on children's laps, says the head of the government's committee on mobile phone safety research. Professor Lawrie Challis told the Daily Telegraph children using wi-fi networks should be monitored until research into potential health risks is completed. He says children should keep a safe distance from the embedded antennas. The Health Protection Agency has said wi-fi devices are of very low power - much lower than mobile phones.

Labels: Health, Mobile_and_wireless

UK - Pan European medical records system proposed

(OUT-LAW News)
UK patients' medical records could be shared across Europe in a European Commission scheme that could compound controversy over the NHS's patient records system. The Department of Health has faced a barrage of criticism over its handling of the Connecting For Health computer system. "Interoperability and integration of data can improve the care provided to patients, the reduction of medical error, and the human and economic cost savings that can be achieved," said a Commission document "Connected Health: Quality and Safety for European Citizens".

Labels: Data_protection_privacy, Health

Mobiles 'cleared' of cancer risk

(BBC)
Long or short-term mobile phone use is not associated with increased risk of cancer, a major study has found. Mobile phone antennas emit electromagnetic fields that can penetrate the human brain. But a Danish team found no evidence that this was linked to an increased risk of tumours in the head or neck as had been feared."

Labels: Health, Mobile_and_wireless

Google 'aids doctors' diagnoses'

(BBC)
Using internet search engine Google can help doctors diagnose tricky cases, researchers have said. A team of Australian doctors Googled the symptoms of 26 cases for a study in the New England Journal of Medicine. In 15 cases, the web search came up with the right diagnosis, the paper published on the British Medical Journal website reports. he authors say Google can be a 'useful aid', but UK experts said the internet was 'no replacement' for doctors.

Labels: Health

UK - Call to ban pro-suicide websites

(BBC)
The UK government should make it illegal for internet sites to incite or advise people on how to commit suicide, a charity says. Papyrus, set up to tackle young suicide, said the risk posed by pro-suicide websites was not being taken seriously enough. The charity said the 1961 Suicide Act should be amended to make it illegal to publish such material on the web.

Labels: Health

UK - Warning of online drugs 'danger'

(BBC)
People who buy medicines over the internet could be unwittingly putting their health at risk, warn UK doctors. Some drugs are fake and contain ingredients bearing little resemblance to the medicine named on the bottle, the Sunderland team told the Lancet. Even if patients get the right drug, there is a risk of unchecked side effects and dangerous interactions.

Labels: Health

EU - European Commission launches new Health Portal

(Euroap)
In 2005 at least one third of the European adult population, 130 million EU citizens, browsed the web in search of information on health. However, searching for health-related information is not always easy. Researchers can be confronted with thousands of sites, many of them complex, and it can be hard to know which are reliable or up to date. To help European citizens answer their health questions, the Commission has launched the Health-EU Portal. The Health-EU Portal is a gateway to simple and sound information on 47 topics that range from babies' health to bio-terrorism, and from infectious diseases to health insurance.

Labels: Health

UK - Headsets Limit Radiation, Study Says

(Cell Phone News)
Results from a University of York study showed using hands-free headsets reduce cell phone radiation by as much as 47%. The study, part of the UK's Mobile Telecommunications Health Research program, concluded that radiation was cut by nearly half when using a wired hands-free kit running up from the torso, rather than directly talking on a phone against the head.

Labels: Health

Canada considers shutting down Internet prescription drug trade

(AP)
Internet sales of prescription drugs to U.S. consumers could be banned by Canada if a proposal being drafted by health officials is approved. The changes would essentially kill a $700 million industry that has become increasingly popular with underinsured patients in search of cheaper medicine. The issue has become touchy politically for President Bush, whose administration has argued that reimporting U.S.-made drugs from Canada would put consumers at risk because U.S. regulators could not guarantee their safety.

Labels: Health

UK - Dangers of pro-anorexia websites

(BBC)
People who set up pro-anorexia websites which dissuade sufferers from seeking help should be sued, according to a group which helps people overcome eating disorders. There are hundreds of "Pro-ana" websites creating an online community where fellow anorexics encourage each other to starve themselves further.

Labels: Health

UK - Internet pharmacies get go-ahead

(BBC)
he government has given the green-light to internet-only pharmacies in England. The move follows a decision to ease the rules on where new pharmacies can be located. Under the plans, pharmacists opening in large shopping centres or for more than 100 hours a week will find it much easier to get a licence.

Labels: Health

US - Cancer sites could pose health risk

(Reuters)
Web sites are recommending unproven complementary medicines for cancer that could interfere with conventional treatments and be dangerous or deadly, a leading expert said. Prof. Edzard Ernst analyzed 32 Web sites and found many recommended treatments not supported by scientific evidence.

Labels: Health

UK - Ofcom rules out ban on child junk food ads

(Guardian)
The television watchdog, Ofcom, ruled out a ban on advertising junk foods to children yesterday, saying the role of advertising in obesity was small compared to that of other factors such as exercise and family habits. It said any other action would have to wait for the government's public health white paper in the autumn. The decision to kick the issue into the long grass sets Ofcom on collision course with the growing campaign to curb marketing to children.

Labels: Health