This week I took a few days off to go on a walking trip in the west of Ireland. Luckily the weather was fantastic. The most enjoyable achievement was the climb to the top of Croagh Patrick. This is a 2500 foot mountain which has been regarded as a sacred site since prechristian times. There [...]

There are reports in the media at the moment about the possible beneficial effect of eating curry.
The Alzheimer Society in the UK say that “Indian communities that regularly eat curcumin have a surprisingly  low incidence of Alzheimer’s disease but we don’t yet know why”. Curcumin is found in the spice Turmeric which is an ingredient [...]

A couple of years ago researchers in Queens University in Belfast undertook a study on homeopathy.
Basically the idea behind homeopathy is that like cures like. This is a belief that illness can be cured by small doses of a substance that causes the same symptoms as the illness itself. Homeopaths dilute these substances to the [...]

This is a phenomenon that many people are familiar with. Basically what happens is that people who are initially successful on a diet go on to regain all the weight they have lost. Not only does this happen, but you may also gain extra weight so you end up heavier than when you started. This [...]

Because my mother suffers from Parkinsons Disease I have a personal interest in the treatment options being developed for these patients. In Parkinsons disease there is a significant loss of brain cells and these cells cannot be replaced. Treatment consists largely of minimising the result of this loss. Up to now the greatest hope for [...]

Unless you have been avoiding all media over the last few days you will undoubtedly be aware of the swine flu outbreak in Mexico and the possibility of an international epidemic. You can learn all the up to date information  by visiting the Center for Disease Control website here.
I have listened to radio and tv [...]