Five priorities for improving children"s mental health | Paul Burstow

The mental health of the nation is built on foundations laid in the early years of our lives. Yet our mental health system is designed and funded to pay the price of our failure to act on the evidence and invest in the right family support in those childhood years.

We go through many life changes and transitions in our childhood and teenage years. It’s why the age of 18 is the wrong time for child and adolescent mental health services (Camhs) to “hand over” to adult services. A joint report by the health and education select committees has turned the spotlight on the role schools can play.

According to a study [pdf] by Martin Knapp at the London School of Economics, the costs of poor mental health land disproportionately in our schools. Over half of the mean cost of addressing emotional and behavioural problems is incurred in frontline education.

Little more than 6p in every pound the NHS spends on mental health is spent on children and young people. Yet as the health and education select committees acknowledge in their report [pdf] on the role of schools in mental health, “50% of adult mental illness starts before age 15 and 75% has started before age 18”.

The select committees have put down important markers for any incoming government. The critical importance of whole-school working to promote the wellbeing of young people and the value of a joined-up approach to delivering mental health support are key recommendations.

When members of the select committees visited Regent High School in Camden to learn about the schools-based work of the Tavistock and Portman NHS foundation trust (of which I am chair), they heard for themselves the value of a joined-up approach. Equipping teachers with knowledge of mental health and making this part of their professional development is a step in the right direction. But a good grounding in child development should be at the heart of teacher training.

The presence in every school in Camden of an experienced clinician who is part of the wider Camhs team makes for a seamless response when there is a need to escalate. This whole-school approach means the clinician is there to see pupils and support staff. This pays dividends in staff resilience and help-seeking among young people who might otherwise go unseen by mental health services.

With the snap general election, the select committees did not have time to look for lessons from overseas. However, earlier this year I took part in an international study visit on mental health leadership to learn about the approach being taken by the education system in Australia. What was striking was the close collaboration [pdf] in New South Wales between the education and health departments.

Hallmarks of the approach are: acting on the best available international and domestic evidence; testing proof of concept; evaluating to ensure robust implementation; and sustained investment at scale. The principle underpinning the schools-based work I learned about could best be summed up as proportionate universalism: using the results of the Australian early development census of children in their first year of full-time schooling to identify the schools where support should be targeted, then offering support to the whole school.

So what should this mean for a green paper and future policy?

First, it’s time to make Camhs services up to age 25 the norm.

Second, mental health and wellbeing should be integral to the life and work of schools, not a bolt on.

Third, a proactive approach to identifying and meeting need could do much to prevent mental distress entrenching into lifelong mental illness, offering timely support to parents to strengthen parenting and reduce parental conflict.

Fourth, embedding mental health expertise in every school as part of a richer Camhs offer ensures there is no wrong door for young people when it comes to getting the right help at the right time.

Fifth, we need to build on the progress already made with the Children and Young People’s Improving Access to Psychological Therapies programme; deliver Camhs services that focus on outcomes; make a reality of shared decision-making; and deliver evidence-based interventions and support.

The mental wealth of the nation is critical to our future, the mental health and wellbeing of children, young people and parents should be a priority. As the select committees rightly say: “Schools and colleges have a frontline role in promoting and protecting children and young people’s mental health and wellbeing.”

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Five priorities for improving children"s mental health | Paul Burstow

Two in five GPs in south-west of England plan to quit, survey finds

About two in five GPs in the south-west of England are planning to quit, exposing a potential doctors’ crisis in the NHS. A survey of more than 2,000 GPs in the region revealed the impending healthcare problems.

Figures published last month showed there had been a drop in the number of GPs working in the NHS despite the government aim of recruiting 5,000 more by 2020.

The survey, carried out by the University of Exeter, also found that seven in 10 GPs intended to change their working patterns in a way that would mean less contact with patients. This included leaving patient care, taking a career break or reducing their hours.

The researchers said the data provided a snapshot of low morale which, if echoed in other regions, could point to a deeper and more imminent crisis than previously anticipated in relation to the worsening shortage of GPs nationwide.

John Campbell, a professor who led the research, which is published in BMJ Open, has called for a move away from “sticking plaster solutions” towards robust, joined-up, action to avert the crisis nationwide.

Campbell, a practising GP, said: “We carried out this survey because of a nationally recognised crisis in the shortage of GPs across the country, and our findings show an even bleaker outlook than expected for GP cover, even in an area which is often considered desirable, and which has many rural communities,.

“If GPs have similar intentions to leave or reduce their hours in other regions, as many are reporting, the country needs to take robust action more swiftly and urgently than previously thought.”

The research team sent surveys to 3,370 GPs across the region and received responses from 2,248, with 54% reporting low morale.

Campbell said: “We know that there’s an ageing workforce in general practice, with 30% of GPs being over 50 years old. Previous research has found that GP morale is low because of workload pressures, and many younger GPs do not want the financial risk and responsibilities of taking on a practice.

“Yet if the GPs we surveyed fulfil their intentions to leave or to cut back their patient contact, and no action is taken to address the issue, the south-west of England will experience a severe shortfall of GPs in the next five years.

“Whilst numerous government-led initiatives are under way to address recruitment, there is a need to address the underlying serious malaise which is behind this data.

“We are in a perilous situation in England, with poor morale of the current GP workforce, and major difficulties with recruitment and retention of GPs reflected in the stark overall reduction in the GP workforce. Reactive, sticking-plaster, approaches are not the answer.”

Campbell said GPs and their teams delivered nine in every 10 patient contacts with the NHS but attracted just seven pence in every pound of NHS spending.

“The government needs to work with the Royal College of General Practitioners, the British Medical Association and universities to obtain evidence on the causes of the problem, to develop and implement relevant strategy, and to effect fundamental change in healthcare resourcing and planning nationwide,” he said.

Two in five GPs in south-west of England plan to quit, survey finds

Italy"s Five Star Movement blamed for surge in measles cases

An Italian health official has blamed an alarming rise in measles cases on the populist Five Star Movement (M5S), which has campaigned on an anti-vaccination platform and has repeated discredited links between vaccinations and autism.

According to the health ministry, more than 700 cases of the highly contagious disease have been registered so far in 2017, compared with 220 for the same period last year and 844 in the whole of 2016.

The surge in the number of cases follows a drop in the proportion of two-year-olds given vaccinations from 88% in 2013 to 86% in 2014 and 85.3% in 2015 – well below the 95% threshold advised by the World Health Organisation.

In 2015, the M5S proposed a law against vaccinations because of “the link between vaccinations and specific illnesses such as leukaemia, poisoning, inflammation, immunodepression, inheritable genetic mutations, cancer, autism and allergies”.

Writing on his blog the same year, the party’s leader, Beppe Grillo, said: “Vaccines have played a fundamental role in eradicating terrible illnesses such as polio, diphtheria and hepatitis. However, they bring a risk associated with side-effects that are usually temporary and surmountable … but in very rare cases, can be as severe as getting the same disease you’re trying to be immune to.”

The outbreak of measles this year has been mostly concentrated in the wealthy regions of Piedmont, Lazio, Tuscany and Lombardy. Some doctors in these areas have been actively encouraging parents not to give their child the injection. Turin in Piedmont and Rome in Lazio both elected M5S mayors last June.

Raniero Guerra, the director general for preventive health at the ministry of health, told the Guardian: “People from the M5S say measles is normal, and that every three years we have a peak, so why is it dangerous? Well, I say it’s not normal to have peaks or outbreaks – we are supposed to be a measles-free country.”

Italy’s health minister, Beatrice Lorenzin, issued a strong defence of vaccinations. Photograph: Emmanuel Dunand/AFP/Getty Images

Last week, Beatrice Lorenzin, Italy’s health minister, issued a strong defence of vaccinations in response to the new figures.“The only weapon we have against serious diseases such as measles is vaccination: enough with the false information. There is no correlation between vaccines and autism,” she said.

Andrea Liberati, an M5s official in the Umbria region, said the nationwide rise in measles cases was the result of confusing information.

“It’s not that we’re entirely against vaccines, but the government needs to send out a clearer message; parents are very confused by the contradictory information,” he said. Liberati also claimed: “There is obviously [also] a commercial element to this, and need for big pharma companies to make money.”

Asked in November last year about some of the less mainstream theories the party has supported, M5S MEP Laura Ferrara denied it opposed vaccinations, but said it wanted to urge parents to be more vigilant about which vaccines they gave their children.

Italians’ perception of the safety of vaccinations was heavily influenced by now-discredited claims of a connection between the combined measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccination and autism. In a high-profile case in 2012, a court in Rimini awarded compensation to the family of an autistic child after ruling that the child’s autism was probably caused by the MMR jab, which played into parents’ fears even though the judgment was quashed on appeal three years later.

These fears, combined with a lack of trust in mainstream politicians, have left many parents agonising over whether to vaccinate their children.

Michele Marchesani and his wife struggled to decide whether or not to inject their daughter, now 15, against measles. They eventually agreed not to, a decision influenced in part by the seven years Marchesani, a physiotherapist, had spent working with an autistic boy.

“His parents believed that the autism was caused by the measles vaccination,” he said. “They campaigned and tried to take it to court, but didn’t get anywhere with it … I would trust the injection more if, say, a friend convinced me it was the right thing to do, but not when it comes from a politician.”

Elettra De Marches, a mother of 16-year-old twins, also shunned the jab. “My children both had measles,” she said. “It’s a manageable disease. There is no need for an injection, it’s just for commercial purposes.”

Initial symptoms of measles include fever, red eyes and sensitivity to light, greyish white spots in the mouth and throat and cold-like symptoms. The measles rash typically appears after two to four days. The disease can be very debilitating, and although most people recover fully, it can have very serious complications, including blindness and death.

The Italian government is striving to address unfounded fears over vaccinations as part of a new strategy focusing on social media.

“The usual institutional lines of communication do not work,” Guerra said. “The value of immunisation needs to be communicated in a language that is easily understood by younger parents, as that is where the biggest concentration of hesitation is right now.

“We’re talking about letting them know what appropriate information they can access, rather than using whatever rubbish is published on the internet – because that’s another issue.”

The government is also looking into ways of prosecuting doctors who actively persuade parents against the jab. “This is unacceptable … it’s close to being a crime,” added Guerra.

Italy"s Five Star Movement blamed for surge in measles cases

NHS data loss scandal has prompted five inquiries, ministers say

The NHS’s loss of more than half a million pieces of confidential medical correspondence is so serious that it has triggered five separate investigations, ministers have admitted.

The disclosure has prompted claims that the scale of the loss of 515,000 test results and doctors’ letters was hidden in “a huge cover-up”. It raises fresh questions for the health secretary, Jeremy Hunt, who has publicly championed openness in the NHS.

The National Audit Office (NAO) and Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) are currently looking into the incident, which the Guardian revealed last month, according to parliamentary questions that the health minister Nicola Blackwood answered on Friday.

Their investigations follow three other inquiries already undertaken by the Department of Health (DH), NHS England and NHS Shared Business Services (SBS), Blackwood said.

SBS is the private firm, co-owned by the DH, which mislaid the highly sensitive correspondence between 2011 and 2016 by putting items in a warehouse and forgetting to send them on to 7,700 GP surgeries across England despite their importance for patients’ health and treatment.

Labour and the Liberal Democrats have intensified their claims that the DH has been highly evasive about the scandal after Blackwood said the DH would not publish the results of any of the three investigations already completed.

“It is totally incredible that the secretary of state failed for so long to identify this catalogue of errors, and it beggars belief that Jeremy Hunt is refusing to publish the advice which he received,” said Jonathan Ashworth, the shadow health secretary. “This is a major scandal, and Jeremy Hunt needs to come clean with the public.”

Tim Farron, the Liberal Democrat leader, criticised the DH for “really disturbing” secrecy. “The fact that five separate investigations have been launched shows that the government and NHS England both knew that this was a monumental blunder,” he said. “But Jeremy Hunt’s attempt to downplay the severity of it, when all this was happening, smacks of a huge cover-up.”

The Guardian’s disclosure forced Hunt to answer an urgent question in the Commons on 27 February, when he downplayed the seriousness of the incident. But the DH’s own permanent secretary, Chris Wormald, confirmed to MPs on the public accounts committee on the same day that doctors were still examining whether more than 500 patients may have come to harm as a result.

Medical investigators are also looking into the possibility that the incident contributed to some patient deaths.

Hunt’s behaviour is under scrutiny after he admitted to MPs that he was first told about the data loss on 23 March 2016, but did not acknowledge it publicly until 21 July. Even then he only did so in a 138-word statement on the last day of parliamentary business, and mentioned neither the huge number of documents involved or the possibility that patients may have been harmed.

The DH’s refusal to publish the results of any of the three inquiries means that Hunt is avoiding scrutiny of what he knew and when, and what he did or did not do as a result of the documents being mislaid..

In the parliamentary questions Blackwood defended the decision not publish. “Given that this national incident is currently subject to an investigation by both the NAO and the ICO, it is not appropriate to publish related documents until these investigations have concluded,” she said.

NHS data loss scandal has prompted five inquiries, ministers say

Children"s sugar intake equals five doughnuts a day, campaigners say

Children and young people are consuming the equivalent of 20 chocolate chip biscuits a day in sugar, according to anti-obesity campaigners.

The calculations by the Obesity Health Alliance have led to renewed calls for food and soft drinks manufacturers to make their products healthier to cut the number of dangerously overweight children. They want urgent action to reduce the amount of “hidden” sugar in many common foodstuffs.

“Most parents would never hand over 20 chocolate biscuits a day to their children, but with so much hidden sugar in our food and drink it can often be hard to know just how much children are consuming,” said Dr Modi Mwatsama, a spokesman for the alliance.

It is urging food firms to replicate the reduction in the amount of salt they put into their products in the 2000s.

Children and young people aged between 11 and 18 typically have an intake of 73.2 grams of sugar a day, far in excess of the 30g – or seven teaspoons – maximum recommended in official health advice, according to the OHA’s estimates. Those 73.2g are the equivalent of 20 chocolate chip or custard cream biscuits, 14.6 jelly babies, 5.4 slices of Victoria sponge cake or 4.8 jam-filled doughnuts.

The alliance’s figures are based on its analysis of Public Health England and the Food Standards Agency’s most recent national diet and nutrition survey, an annual study of what a representative sample of the population is eating and drinking, published last September.

It also found that four- to 10-year-olds are consuming 53.5g of sugar a day, while the figure among 19- to 64-year-olds is 59.9g daily.

Dr Alison Tedstone, Public Health England’s chief nutritionist, said that while some food manufacturers have pledged to cut the amount of sugar in their products, certain kinds of retailers – including coffee chains – need to follow suit.

“Some big industry players have taken positive early steps, but it’s the big coffee shops, pubs and restaurants we need to do the same,” she said.

Producers including Tesco, Waitrose, Nestlé, Lucozade, Ribena and Kellogg’s have announced plans to reduce their use of sugar as part of a reformulation drive ahead of the government’s sugar tax coming into force in 2018. However, many other firms have made no such commitment and may be hit by the tax.

PHE wants all food manufacturers and outlets to strip 20% of all sugar out of a wide range of products by 2020. It plans to issue a report sometime next month setting out in detail for the first time what types of foods contribute the most to people’s sugar intake and where they buy and consume them.

Sarah Toule, head of health information at World Cancer Research Fund, said that overweight or obese children are much more likely to be dangerously overweight in adulthood and thus increase their risk of developing 11 forms of cancer.

Children"s sugar intake equals five doughnuts a day, campaigners say

A veg (or five) too far: why 10 portions a day is way too much to ask | Kathleen Kerridge

Government guidelines have, for some years, held that eating five portions of fruit and vegetables a day is what we should all be aiming for. That’s an achievable target for many, if not most, of us. Some days it might be felt in the purse, to make sure there’s broccoli on a plate, but generally it’s possible to eat five different fruits and vegetables a day even on a strict budget.

Ten, though? When I first read that the guidelines could change, and we should be aiming for 10 portions of fruit and veg a day, I nodded and thought: “Huh, makes sense.” But as I thought about it, while raiding my freezer for a bag of frozen carrots, I realised it was going to be another thing – like buying free range organic, or only buying ethically sound clothing – that will only serve to make the poor feel guilty, again less than good enough.

Most days my family consumes five a day with ease. The veg is in my budget, and there’s always a bag of bananas or satsumas around. I buy frozen vegetables and fresh fruit, and they get vacuumed up by the family as fast as I can serve them. To serve and supply double this, though? When vegetables are sold in 900g bags for the most part, and each member of the family should be having 10 portions a day at 80g a portion – they can’t be the same fruit or vegetable –then for families already struggling, this extra recommendation seems impossible.

Already millions are feeling the pinch of extended austerity. Finding a fiver for the electric meter, or making sure there’s food on the table at all, is a common battle across the country. It’s not unusual for thousands of children to go to school hungry, having not eaten breakfast because the cupboards were bare at home.

Food banks are having a hard time keeping up with the families who, after paying their rent, have no money left for groceries. People who have no real cooking facilities, often relying on a “worktop oven” or a microwave to see them through, will have good reason to roll their eyes and ignore this advice. For some, it’s not even worth aiming for. It’s impossible to afford it, let alone cook it.

‘Just adding half a frozen bag of greens to a meal for four people will cost an extra 50p. And that’s just one portion of veg at dinner.’ Photograph: Garry Weaser for the Guardian

When there is so much disparity in income in this country, and when so many are fighting to live from payday to payday, as Sure Start centres fade into memory, taking food education and their healthy eating plans with them, and school dinners rise in cost, it seems shortsighted to interfere more in what people are putting on their plates. Maybe a little bit cruel. Just adding half a frozen bag of greens to a meal for four people will cost an extra 50p. And that’s just one portion of veg at dinner.

To eat 10 portions a day, there needs to be three or four on a dinner plate if the target is going to be achievable – an extra £2 for one meal, or £14 a week for an evening meal with four portions of cheap frozen veggies each night. Add in a banana during the day, some fruit for breakfast, a snack of beans on toast, an apple before dinner, and then something else for supper? The food bill has got out of control, and the guilt sets in, much as it does when I’m left with no option but to buy cheap clothes I know have been made in a sweatshop overseas.

In an ideal world I would be dressing in Fairtrade cottons and eating produce from my local farmer’s market. In reality, a handful of sprouts and some green beans from the freezer accompany a meal, and my clothes are from the cheapest stores on the high street. In an ideal world, I would make my children smoothies every day for breakfast. I would source only the finest ingredients. I would only buy free range organic produce. I would eat 10 portions of fruit and veg a day.

This, though, isn’t an ideal world. This is Britain, hit by the effects of rising rents and an austerity budget. Many councils are set to raise taxes by 5% this year, adding another £100 at least to my bill for 2017. Tax credits, working benefits, housing benefits and every other benefit that isn’t an old age pension have been frozen for three years. Wages aren’t increasing to match the cost of living. Energy costs are going through the roof. In Britain today, an iceberg lettuce costs 75p, and I can promise you that a portion of lettuce won’t fill a stomach for long.

Ten a day? Maybe not.

A veg (or five) too far: why 10 portions a day is way too much to ask | Kathleen Kerridge

Forget five a day, eat 10 portions of fruit and veg to cut risk of early death

Five portions of fruit and veg a day is good for you, but 10 is much better and could prevent up to 7.8 million premature deaths worldwide every year, say scientists.

The findings of the study led by Imperial College London may dismay the two in three adults who struggle to manage three or four portions – perhaps some tomatoes in a sandwich at lunchtime, an apple and a few spoonfuls of peas at dinner.

All of that is good because a daily intake of even 200g, or two and a half standard 80g portions, is associated with a 16% reduced risk of heart disease, an 18% reduced risk of stroke, a 13% reduced risk of cardiovascular disease, 4% reduced risk of cancer and a 15% reduction in the risk of premature death.

But the study suggests we should be piling up platefuls of vegetables and raiding the fruit bowl every day if we want the best chance of avoiding chronic diseases or an early death.

“We wanted to investigate how much fruit and vegetables you need to eat to gain the maximum protection against disease, and premature death. Our results suggest that although five portions of fruit and vegetables is good, 10 a day is even better,” said Dr Dagfinn Aune, lead author of the research from the School of Public Health at Imperial.

Eating up to 800g of fruit and vegetables – equivalent to 10 portions and double the recommended amount in the UK – was associated with a 24% reduced risk of heart disease, a 33% reduced risk of stroke, a 28% reduced risk of cardiovascular disease, a 13% reduced risk of total cancer, and a 31% reduction in premature deaths.

And not all fruit and veg are created equal. Apples and pears, citrus fruits, salads and green leafy vegetables such as spinach, lettuce and chicory, and cruciferous vegetables such as broccoli, cabbage and cauliflower were found to be best at preventing heart disease and stroke.

To reduce the risk of cancer, however, the menu should include green vegetables, such as green beans; yellow and orange vegetables such as peppers and carrots; and cruciferous vegetables.

The researchers did not find any difference between the protective effects of cooked and raw fruit and vegetables.

“Fruit and vegetables have been shown to reduce cholesterol levels, blood pressure, and to boost the health of our blood vessels and immune system,” said Aune. “This may be due to the complex network of nutrients they hold. For instance they contain many antioxidants, which may reduce DNA damage, and lead to a reduction in cancer risk.”

Compounds called glucosinolates in cruciferous vegetables, such as broccoli, activate enzymes that may help prevent cancer. Fruit and vegetables may also have a beneficial effect on the naturally occurring bacteria in our gut, he said.

Most people struggle to eat three or four portions a day, the study shows. Photograph: Simon Masters/Getty Images/Vetta

And it will not be possible to bottle the effects of fruit and vegetables or put them in a pill, he said. Forget the supplements. “Most likely it is the whole package of beneficial nutrients you obtain by eating fruits and vegetables that is crucial to health,” he said. “This is why it is important to eat whole plant foods to get the benefit, instead of taking antioxidant or vitamin supplements (which have not been shown to reduce disease risk).”

The analysis in the International Journal of Epidemiology pooled the results from 95 different studies involving a total of approximately 2 million people. They assessed up to 43,000 cases of heart disease, 47,000 cases of stroke, 81,000 cases of cardiovascular disease, 112,000 cancer cases and 94,000 deaths.

Aune said more research was needed, but “it is clear from this work that a high intake of fruit and vegetables hold tremendous health benefits, and we should try to increase their intake in our diet”.

Sarah Toule, from the World Cancer Research Fund, said: “This interesting research shows just how incredibly important vegetables and fruit are as part of a healthy diet. In fact, they’re essential for maintaining a healthy weight, which our own evidence has shown reduces the risk of 11 common cancers.

“People should aim to eat at least five portions of vegetables and fruit a day but the more the better. If people find this hard, why not start by adding an extra portion of fruit or veg a day to your lunch or try swapping one of your naughty snacks for a piece of fruit?”

Forget five a day, eat 10 portions of fruit and veg to cut risk of early death

Five ways Britain wrecks young people’s mental health – and how to stop it | Emily Reynolds

A study from the Varkey Foundation has revealed that young people in the UK suffer from some of the “lowest levels of mental wellbeing in the world” – second only to Japan.

This won’t be a shock to anyone familiar with statistics on child and adolescent mental health in Britain. Some 75% of mental illnesses begin before the age of 18, and the charity MQ estimates that on average, there are three children in every classroom with a diagnosable mental illness. This, combined with a continuing crisis in mental healthcare in Britain, means young people are not getting the help they need or deserve. But how exactly are young people being failed?

Slashing NHS budgets

Cuts to the NHS aren’t new – the Conservative government has been slowly dismantling the health service since 2010. And it shows no sign of slowing – a 2016 investigation by the Guardian and 38 Degrees revealed that trusts around England were “drawing up plans for hospital closures and cutbacks” in an attempt to avoid a £20bn shortfall by 2020.

Mental healthcare has suffered disproportionately: unmanageably long waiting lists for secondary care, to take one example. Referrals to therapy or specialist units are hampered by a lack of available staff or by ward closures – which means that diagnosis of more severe conditions are delayed even further.

This is particularly striking when you consider that most young people wait on average 10 years between the onset of illness and an eventual diagnosis – and means that many are slipping through the cracks with neither diagnosis nor adequate care.

Similarly, cuts to community care have meant that more children than ever – 20,000 in 2015 alone – have been seeking emergency mental healthcare in A&E, in wards that are often staffed by stressed, overstretched teams who have no specialist psychiatric support to help them cope.

Treating children miles away from home

Cuts have led to the closure of many child and adolescent mental health wards – which, combined with a severe shortage of beds, has led to children being admitted to adult psychiatric wards and being sent hundreds of miles away in order to receive outpatient care.

A 2014 investigation from Community Care and BBC News found that 350 under-18s were admitted to adult wards in the first nine months of 2013 – a 36% increase from the previous 12 months; 10 out of 18 NHS trusts surveyed had sent children to units more than 150 miles away from their home in 2013-14, making compassionate and consistent care for young people impossible.

Cuts to school budgets

One of the key themes of Theresa May’s speech on mental health was a focus on the prevention of these problems, particularly in young people. Research backs this up – a recent study published in Lancet Psychiatry suggested that early intervention was a significant factor in presentation of depressive symptoms in young people.

What May’s speech didn’t mention, however, was how exactly this would be implemented, beyond a mention of “mental health first aid training”. Unsurprisingly, May also failed to mention the grimly inevitable cuts to school budgets that will make this strategy near to impossible anyway.

Earlier this week, a TES investigation found that a third of secondary schools are planning to “cut back” the mental health support offered to pupils because of what one headteacher described as “budgets at breaking point”. Early intervention is vital, but if teachers are untrained in mental health – because the resources aren’t there – then it simply isn’t going to happen.

There’s a research budget of just £8 per person affected by mental illness – compared with £178 for cancer

Lack of adequate research

Mental health research is, in general, an underfunded area. In 2014, the UK Clinical Research Collaboration found that mental health was only allocated £112m a year – which sounds like a lot, until you consider the nearly 15 million people in the country affected by mental illness. In context, this means a research budget of just £8 per person affected by mental illness – a startlingly low sum, especially when compared to less common conditions like cancer (£178 per person) or dementia (£110 per person).

Less than 30% of this research is focused on young people – meaning we haven’t even started to understand how to tackle mental illness in young people.

Failing to take adolescent mental health seriously

Young people are now pretty used to being the punchline of unfunny jokes made by Telegraph readers and the over-45s. Millennials, eh? We’re stupid! We’re narcissistic! We look at our phones all the time! We’re mollycoddled snowflakes! We expect to be given the moon on a stick! These might be hilarious ideas to people without crushing student debts and who have the means to own property – sure, but it’s all fairly tiring for young people.

It might sound facile – typical millennials, complaining about nothing – but it is an undeniable fact that young people are not being taken seriously and that this, in some cases, is severely impacting on their mental health. While researching my book, I spoke to young people up and down the country who told me they felt consistently let down by parents, teachers and healthcare professionals who wrote off their symptoms or failed to take action to prevent distress.

There was an understandable sense of reticence, caution and disappointment about the behaviour of supposed adults. This conversation has continued to follow me – only last week, a teenager messaged me on Twitter to eloquently and despairingly talk about how they and their friends had been consistently and systematically let down by their school.

It’s a familiar story to me – even as a confident young adult with a medical history full of psychiatric wards and prescriptions for antipsychotics, I’m often questioned by GPs and support workers on the veracity of my own experiences. The difference is that I’m used to overcoming barriers to care – younger people are not, and often fall at these completely unnecessary hurdles.

This isn’t just a social problem, either – failure to acknowledge symptoms is a structural problem too. In 2015, the NSPCC suggested that nearly 40,000 young people were unable to meet the “too strict” criteria for receiving help – so even if teenagers pluck up the courage to ask for help, they still aren’t getting any.

Interactive

Young people are telling us that they’re unhappy. They are asking for help. What they want is simple too. For a start, don’t send them hundreds of miles away from home for treatment. And they don’t want GPs to tell them that their clinical depression is just “being a teenager”. They certainly don’t want to sit down with their neighbour and have a cup of tea, as Theresa May ridiculously suggested on Time to Talk – their focus, on the whole, is not on stigma at all.

What young people really want is actual, actionable, well-funded support. They want to be taken seriously; they want to receive the help that they need in a timely, compassionate, efficient and effective manner. They’re asking for it already – when are we going to start listening?

• Emily Reynolds’ A Beginner’s Guide to Losing Your Mind is out on 23 February

Five ways Britain wrecks young people’s mental health – and how to stop it | Emily Reynolds

The Five New Years Resolutions I Should Have Made Last Year

Am I the only one who laughs myself to tears when I read the meme: “Either my house is clean and I look like a dirty truck driver, or my house is a mess, and I look like JLo. There is nothing in between?” I’m so tired, and I can’t do it all and myself, or my house is generally always in disarray. I am 38 years old and have three small children, who suck the life from me. I’m trenched in tantrums, diapers, laundry and sleepless nights. For these three reasons – I didn’t get to check off any of my New Years resolutions from last year, so is setting resolutions this year even worth it?

Almost half of the people in the United States make New Years Resolutions, and eight percent actually keep their New Years goals. These numbers are a little discouraging, and I admit I am rarely a part of the coveted eight percent, but honestly my conscience would suffer too much if I didn’t at least try to commit to doing better.

So this year I’m going to lower my expectations, and set goals that make more sense for a young mom raising three children under six. I hope the goals will be as good for my kids as they are for me. The following are my 2017 goals in no particular order:

I’ll cut down on Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest usage. During my downtime instead of spending time on social media, I’ll take in the sound of silence. When I am with my kids, I’ll watch them play and interact with them, instead of my iPhone.

It’s too hard to pack up the kids and take them to the daycare at the gym or to your friends. It takes twice the time to do. I used to swear off of at home workouts, but now they seem like the only option that actually makes sense. My little ones might get in the way a little, but most of the time they work out right alongside of me.

When you realize a 300-calorie workout is destroyed with a handful of chocolate chips, you are more particular about what you eat. I won’t walk away from sugar completely this year; I’ll just have one less handful of chocolate a day.

I’m going to leave my house without my kids more often. This year I will go on more dates, I will take more ‘me’ time, go to bed an hour earlier, or whatever else it takes to regain some of the sanity my children robbed me of during the day.

It’s a long-standing tradition of moms to pile on the responsibilities, and I am no exception to this rule. I’m going to set more boundaries in 2017. Take unnecessary things off of my plate. Learn to say ‘no’ more often to friends, family, and co-workers.

Young motherhood is one heck of a season. I never thought I would spend so much time crying over sappy commercials. Or laughing at really goofy things my toddlers says. Or wondering how long it will be before my kids are off to college.

Being an older mother of young children is tough and spare daytime hours are not generally on my side. But when I look at the bigger picture it does make sense to make and keep goals. Right now really is the best time to set New Year’s resolutions. My kids are still young, and I am still their world. Wish me luck this time around, because I hope to make 2017 count for my kids and for me.

The Five New Years Resolutions I Should Have Made Last Year

London breaches annual air pollution limit for 2017 in just five days

London has breached its annual air pollution limits just five days into 2017, a “shameful reminder of the severity of London’s air pollution”, according to campaigners.

By law, hourly levels of toxic nitrogen dioxide must not be more than 200 micrograms per cubic metre more than 18 times in a whole year, but late on Thursday this limit was broken on Brixton Road in Lambeth.

Many other sites across the capital will go on to break the annual limit and Putney High Street exceeded the hourly limit over 1,100 times in 2016. Oxford Street, Kings Road in Chelsea and the Strand are other known pollution hotspots.

NO2 pollution, which is produced largely by diesel vehicles, causes 9,500 early deaths every year in London. Most air quality zones across the country break legal limits and the crisis was called a “public health emergency” by MPs in April. This week scientists said that one in 10 cases of Alzheimer’s in people living near busy roads could be linked to air pollution.

The new mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, has pledged new measures and to double funding to £875m over five years to tackle the problem. But the UK government’s plans have twice been ruled illegal in the past two years and it has been sent back to the drawing board to develop a third strategy.

Alan Andrews, a lawyer at ClientEarth – the group that successfully sued the government – said: “This is another shameful reminder of the severity of London’s air pollution and shows why the mayor has rightly made tackling it a top priority. It is absolutely essential that he now delivers on his promises and that the national government back him to the hilt.”

Andrews, who lives in Brixton, said Khan had promised an expanded ultra-low emission zone in 2019, which limits polluting vehicles, and to deploy the cleanest buses on the most polluted roads.

NO2 pollution in London

How UK citites compare on nitrogen dioxide exceedance

“While these are vital steps in the right direction, we can’t wait another three years for action,” he said. “We need immediate action to cut pollution in the short-term and protect Londoners’ health during these pollution spikes.” In December, Khan issued air pollution alerts at bus stops, tube stations and roadsides due to high levels.

A spokesman for the mayor said: “The Brixton Road [breach] underscores why urgent action is needed to improve air quality across London.” He said Khan would shortly be announcing 10 new low emission bus zones, including one for Brixton Road.

“But this is not enough,” said the spokesman. “The government needs to match the Mayor’s commitment to improving air quality as quickly as possible.”

In December, Paris, Madrid, Athens and Mexico City pledged to ban polluting diesel cars from their centres by 2025 and a number of cities outside the UK have already taken action such as banning cars on specific days or making public transport free.

The government must produce a new national plan by April and ClientEarth said this must include clean air zones in many areas to stop the dirtiest diesel cars entering pollution hotspots. ClientEarth also said the “peverse” financial incentives that encourage people to buy diesel cars rather than cleaner ones must be ended.

Both a national network of clean air zones and tax changes were proposed within government as part of its last plan, but were rejected by the Treasury.

This week new data also revealed that modern diesel cars produce 10 times more NO2 pollution than heavy trucks and buses per litre of fuel, which experts say is due to the much tougher testing faced by heavy vehicles.

London breaches annual air pollution limit for 2017 in just five days

Norovirus cases in England at highest level in five years

More patients have been struck down with vomiting bug norovirus this year compared with the previous five years, according to official figures.

Data from Public Health England shows reports of the bug had reached 2,435 this winter – 12% more than the average for the same period over the last five years. The figure is also 71% higher than the same period last year, although last winter had unusually low levels of norovirus.

In the week ending on Christmas Day, the outbreaks of vomiting and diarrhoea resulted in more bed closures than during the same period last year – rising from an average of 559 beds closed per day to 699. Hospitals reported 20 outbreaks of norovirus in the first two weeks of December, 17 of which led to bay or ward closures and 13 of which were confirmed as the bug.

In total so far this season, there have been 163 hospital outbreaks reported.

Nick Phin, deputy director of the national infection service at PHE, said: “Norovirus is a common cause of illness during winter. Exactly when the peak in activity occurs will be different each winter but levels seen so far this year are not unexpected compared with the previous five years.”

The number of laboratory reports of the bug rotavirus this season is 1,136, which is also 3% higher than the average for the period from 2003 to 2013.

In early November the Mexican restaurant chain Wahaca closed several branches in London after more than 350 customers and staff fell ill with suspected norovirus. PHE and environmental health officers were called in after the suspected outbreak of the winter vomiting bug struck at nine restaurants.

NHS England also released figures showing there were 291,808 calls to the NHS 111 service in the week ending on Christmas Day as temperatures plummeted and a cold weather alert was issued. This was nearly 9% lower than the number of calls to the helpline in the same week last year. Of calls answered, 93.2% were answered within 60 seconds and 1.5% of patients abandoned their calls after waiting 30 seconds.

Norovirus cases in England at highest level in five years

Five Christmas miracles shared by healthcare professionals

The patient who called in tears to say a new kidney had been found

I used to be a clinical nurse specialist in kidney transplantation. Prior to that I had been in charge of home heamodialysis and cared for many patients in remote areas. On Christmas Eve I had been working and went to bed around midnight. At 1am I had a call from a patient of mine whom I had looked after on home dialysis. A kidney had become available and he had been called in for a transplant. He was in tears. He told me he had been waiting for this moment for six years but now that the time had come he felt so sad. He was sad that a family was devastated at the loss of a loved one on Christmas Day but happy to have the chance of a new life. I reassured him that the family who had lost a loved one would be comforted that the kidney was being gifted to such a wonderful man who would use the opportunity to lead a full life.

He then told me that he would remember this Christmas Day for the rest of his life and that, on receiving the call, I was the first and only person he wanted to talk to. He said: “You are an outstanding nurse. Wish me luck. Hopefully this is my last day of needing dialysis. Thank you for always being there. I never thought I would say this but I’ll miss you!” He had a transplant that day and had over a decade of healthy kidney function. That Christmas was one of my best ever.

Director of nursing education, Abu Dhabi

The baby born while a choir sang carols outside

While I’m always a little sad to be away from my family, I’m lucky enough to be part of a wonderful work team. We have our own traditions and put lots of effort into celebrating Christmases spent together. We’ve won the best decorated ward three years running, we all wear Christmas jumpers and eat our NHS Christmas dinners in the canteen together. Our receptionist even comes in on Christmas morning dressed as Santa to deliver our secret Santa gifts. As we work in maternity, anyone who can’t be discharged home to be with family is normally more than happy to be spending their Christmas with us as they’re getting one of the best gifts delivered on Christmas Day. Last year when we started the Christmas Day shift we only had one woman in labour; she needed to be delivered by caesarean section and was taken into theatre. At the same time the brass band and choir had arrived on the ward to sing carols. They stood just outside the theatre and performed When a child is born and Away in a manger while our first baby of that Christmas was born. While all births are wonderful to be a part of, this one was unforgettable; there wasn’t a dry eye in the theatre.

Midwife, London

The Christmas dinner that brought warring colleagues together

This year will be my first Christmas off this century. I’ve spent the last 15 working with people with learning disabilities in residential care homes. It’s always a great day. Life and bodily functions go on, but the Christmas spirit is always wide and the enthusiasm of the people we support is contagious. Being left in an empty London and watching everyone I know make their way back home is strangely liberating. I’ll feel odd moving with the crowds this year.

One year I was managing a home where there had been a lot of issues with staff and staff tension. It was my first Christmas there and I was determined to make it a special day for everyone. We made so much effort to make it work. We were all eating together with Christmas songs in the background; everyone was wearing a paper hat and a colleague and I burst into tears as a result of what we had achieved.

Treat Me Right! manager, London

The girl who survived life-threatening injuries from a car crash

Over 30 years ago on Christmas Eve morning a teenage girl was transferred from a district general hospital to the regional cardio-thoracic intensive care unit where I worked, having sustained serious chest injuries in a car crash. I was in charge of the unit for the late shift on Christmas Day, and looked after her for the shift. She was on a ventilator and heavily sedated. I can remember her parents at her bedside and explaining every procedure I was carrying out to keep them as well informed as possible and to de-mystify an often frightening environment for families. It was touch and go and she had numerous life threatening emergencies over the next few weeks. No one knew whether she was going to make it, but she did and was discharged a few months later. She returned to the hospital where she had originally been admitted to thank the staff for her initial care. We received a letter from the consultant there telling us he couldn’t believe she’d survived her injuries and praising us all to the skies. I bumped into her a few years later; she was doing her nurse training and wanted to specialise in intensive care.

Senior staff nurse, intensive care, London

The elderly woman who shared Christmas lunch with her family for the first time in years

I no longer work over Christmas, but my favourite memory of doing so was learning that one of my clients, who was over 100 years old, had a daughter who lived around the corner from the sheltered scheme. Her daughter was too elderly and unwell to collect her mother, so I arranged to take her to her daughter’s house where she had Christmas lunch with her daughter, grandchildren and great grandchildren. It still makes me happy to think of it.

Sheltered scheme manager, London

Join the Healthcare Professionals Network to read more about issues like this. And follow us on Twitter (@GdnHealthcare) to keep up with the latest healthcare news and views.

Five Christmas miracles shared by healthcare professionals

Five Ways Guided Meditation Improves the Quality of Life

Decades ago, most people saw guided meditation as one of the spiritual fads peculiar to devoted Buddhist. But with time, meditation has gained acceptance into our present world. There is lots of evidence that suggests that the practice of meditation, defined as being aware in the moment can have beneficial impact on our health.

Research evidence now buttresses the fact that meditation as a stress reduction practice has the capacity to add to the grey matter area of the brain. This positively influences learning, memory and retentiveness. Ranging from stopping a wandering mind to upgrading the body’s immune system, there are lots of evidences to support the fact that meditation changes your brain, and improves the quality of your life.

Thus, you have a whole lot to gain from having a guided meditation. We have listed five unique ways meditation improves the quality of your life:

1. 
   

   Guided Meditation helps you sleep better

   
   

Many factors contribute to sleeplessness. However, taking time to meditate can help transform yourself into a peaceful and calm state where you can drift into deep relaxing sleep. If you are having challenges getting quality sleep for whatever reason, guided meditation might be your way out. Forget all those sleeping pills, they might give you a temporary relieve, but you do not want to be addicted. A research study by the JAMA Internal Medicine involved 49 people revealed that having guided meditation for sleep for 20 minutes a day reported improved sleep. The same report also indicate that the meditation session results in less fatigue and depression.

2. Guided Meditation Creates a Deeper Connection With Your Inner Self

The first time anyone gets down to practice meditation might be tedious. This is because it takes real work to get control of your though and prevent your mind from wandering about. However, with time, this is bound to improve.

Since meditation is all about connecting with your inner self, it opens up a link to who you really are. By shutting off the external distractions and myriads of thoughts running through your head, you are able to link up with your inner dialogue. This inner voice reveals who you really are as well as what you should do (your purpose on earth)

Meditation makes you pay attention to your feelings, thoughts as well as whom you are. By connecting with your real sense, you create a life of genuine happiness and know yourself!

3. Guided Meditation Could Help Reduce Stress

The lifestyle of this present generation is not the type that leaves many people stress free. No wonder, many people are resorting to meditation as a means to combat stress. Be it family issue, relationship dramas, job security issues, work anxiety etc, stress is on the increase.

However, studies have revealed that having meditation can be a very potent way to get rid of stress. Since meditation makes you focus on the moment, you are opportune to get rid of unnecessary worries and anxiety. This has resulted in improved productivity, better sleep quality, mood improvement, thus, a better overall life quality

4. Improved Self Confidence

Meditation will change the way you see yourself. Your view of the world will be illuminated, providing a positive perspective about yourself. Since an inner connection with yourself is created, you will love yourself more. Thus, you will not need to pretend to be somebody else for you to be accepted

Meditation will avail you the opportunity to see the world in a positive light. You will see where you fit-in in the world, where you do not need to pretend to gain acceptability. It gives you the consciousness of the fact that you are enough!

5. Guided Meditation Create Positive Vibes Around You

Loving kindness meditation, (also called Metta) generates and sends compassion and positive feeling into the universe. Thus, you create a positive, warm and welcoming atmosphere around yourself in a way that families, friends and strangers will benefit. This positive feeling has a way of creating a positive atmosphere around you.

There is this believe that our actions, energy and activities do backfire. Thus, putting out a positive energy, focusing on it, will reflect in your life. This will create a positive atmosphere making you positive!

As little as five minutes of meditation can have a significant effect on your life in many ways. Your emotions, overall health, sleep, concentrations, mood, well being etc will all improve. To get started with meditation is not difficult. With a quiet place to sit and some private minutes free of disturbance, you can have a meaningful meditation.

Sources

Mindfulness meditation helps fight insomnia

Guided Meditation for sleep

Meditation experience

Author Bio: Mike Dan is a freelance writer with great interest in Tech, Health, Sustainable living, Travelling, and Home Improvement. He is a friend to Irina Logman, the founder of Advanced Holistic Center and one of the top acupuncturist in New York. Mike recently started Stand Up Paddle Boarding as a yoga practice.

Five Ways Guided Meditation Improves the Quality of Life

Five things that everyone should know about sex | Alice Hoyle

What was your sex education like? Did you get any at all past the age of 16? Given that only a quarter to a third of young people have sex before they are 16, but most will have had sex at least once by the age of 19, it seems remiss not to provide high-quality sex education for the 16-25 age range (especially since that is the age group most at risk of contracting STIs such as chlamydia).

Unfortunately, sex education hasn’t moved on much from puberty, plumbing and prevention, and is often reported as being too little, too late and too biological. In the new internet world order where porn and internet hook-ups prevail, and the use of dating apps by perpetrators of sexual violence was reported last week to have increased sharply, it is time we provided sex and relationships education fit for the 21st century, to help us to enjoy our bodies safely.

You might even want to think about introducing safe words into your sexual interactions

So if you missed out on quality sex education, or could do with a top-up, here are five things relating to sex and relationships you might want to think about:

1. Sexuality – We live in a heteronormative world, where gender binary and heterosexual norms prevail. Fixed ideas about sexual identity and sexuality can be limiting. We all need to understand sex as something more than a penis in a vagina and recognise that sex with all sorts of different body parts (or objects) in all sorts of wonderful configurations can be had. That’s not to say you have to experience kinds of sex outside your own comfort levels and boundaries. Be aware of how media, cultural background, gender and power dynamics influence sexuality. Monogamous heterosexuality does not have to be your path.

2) Consent – what it looks like, what it sounds like, what it feels like. Enthusiastic consent should be a baseline expectation, not an aspiration. Without enthusiastic consent then sex is no fun (and quite feasibly rape). If consent is in any doubt at all, you need to stop and check in with your partner. You might even want to think about introducing safe words into your sexual interactions and ensuring you and your partner are confident using them.

‘Taking time to challenge and explore ideas around pleasure will help with your sex education.’ Photograph: Image Broker/Rex Features

3) Pleasure – sex can be one of the most awesomely fun things you do with your body. All sorts of things can affect your ability to give and receive pleasure, including your upbringing, self-confidence, physical and mental health, and communication skills. If sex isn’t pleasurable and fun for you, what needs to change? It is worth noting that male pleasure is generally prioritised over female pleasure. Consider, for example, when you would consider a penis-in-vagina sexual interaction to be finished – at male orgasm or female orgasm?

Taking time to challenge and explore ideas around pleasure as well as deepening your understanding of your own body (in other words, masturbation) will help with your sex education. Always remember, you don’t have to have sex if you don’t want to.

4) Health and wellbeing – Love your body and know what is normal for you. Bodies come in all shapes and sizes. There are all sorts of pressures on us to make our bodies look a certain way, but take some time to appreciate the non-photoshopped, non-pornified variation in our bodies. Your shape and size (of penis, or breasts) do not matter – sex can be the best jigsaw puzzle, and genuine confidence in your body can help you figure out how to use it as an instrument for pleasure.

Knowing what is normal for you is also really important. There are women who continually get treated for thrush bacterial vaginosis and cystitis because they do not understand vaginal flora and the natural discharge variation in their monthly cycle. Nobody told them that having a wee shortly after sex is a good idea.

5) Safety – We are often taught to override our gut feelings. This sometimes stems from childhood, when adults have ignored our bodily autonomy. However it is vital we remember to tune into our gut instincts, especially given the rise in internet dating and internet dating-related crime. Being aware of your own personal safety and sexual boundaries when internet dating is essential.

Remember that no matter how you have been socialised, you do not need to be polite to someone who is making you feel uncomfortable. No is a complete sentence. If someone does not respect your right to bodily autonomy and violates your consent, it is never your fault; the blame lies entirely with them. Always trust your “spidey” sense – if it is tingling, it is trying to tell you something isn’t right, be that a relationship with unhealthy elements, or plans to meet up for a blind date. If a situation doesn’t feel right, think about what needs to change.

Five things that everyone should know about sex | Alice Hoyle

Four in five UK councils struggle to provide older people"s care – survey

Four in five UK local authorities have insufficient care for older people in their area, with the shortage most acute for some of the most vulnerable in society, research suggests.

The Family and Childcare Trust surveyed councils across the country and found they are struggling to meet needs amid a background of growing demand, budget cuts and recruitment difficulties.

The survey is published on the same day as an undercover investigation by BBC Panorama is to be broadcast, exposing shocking neglect at two Cornwall care homes, including vulnerable people being left unattended and a nurse saying she will use morphine to “shut up” a resident.

The deficit identified by the Family and Childcare Trust means more than 6.4 million people aged 65 and over are living in areas that do not have enough older people’s care to meet demand.

Only one in five councils reported having enough older people’s care in their area to meet demand, the survey found.

Just under half (48%) of the 182 councils (out of 211) that responded said they had sufficient availability of home care and a similar proportion (44%) reported having enough places in extra care homes, which allow people to live independently with 24-hour emergency or on-site support.

Only a third of local authorities said they have enough nursing homes with specialist support for dementia, which is predicted to affect one million people in the UK by 2025.

Claire Harding, head of research at the Family and Childcare Trust, which works closely with the government and local authorities, said: “It is inexcusable that vulnerable people are left unable to find the care that they need.

“We urge government to make sure there is enough care for everyone who needs it. In order to do this, we need robust data on where there are gaps in care, a funding system that truly meets the cost of providing care, and clear information for families.

“Without these steps, families will continue to struggle to find care and to meet the numerous care costs on their shoulders.”

The survey also highlighted large regional variations, with just 7% of outer London councils reporting enough older people’s care to meet demand. The only area where more than half of local authorities reported sufficient care was the north-east, where 57% responded positively.

The findings will add to the sense of crisis surrounding social care, with delayed transfers of care – when patients are medically fit to leave hospital but unable to be safely discharged – at record levels.

Council and NHS leaders, as well as the Care Quality Commission, have called for urgent action, with the chancellor, Philip Hammond, facing pressure to increase social funding in Wednesday’s autumn statement.

Inner London councils pay the highest rates for residential care for older people, at £649 a week per place, compared with the lowest rate of £464 in north-west England, according to the survey. The UK average for a residential place was revealed to be £27,113 a year.

A Department of Health spokeswoman said: “This government is committed to making sure older people throughout the country get affordable and dignified care. That is why we are significantly increasing the amount of money local authorities have access to for social care, by up to £3.5bn by 2020.”

Monday’s Panorama sees reporters go undercover at Clinton House in St Austell, and St Theresa’s, in Callington, near Plymouth, both owned by the Morleigh Group.

Hidden camera footage captured one resident left on a bed pan for 40 minutes and an out-of-date prescription supplement relabelled for use by another resident.

Clinton House is being closed as a result of safety concerns and St Theresa’s is under investigation by authorities along with two other Moreleigh Group homes.

Moreleigh Group said it had already removed the staff involved and reviewed its systems and procedures, prior to receiving information from Panorma. Cornwall council apologised for the failings.

Four in five UK councils struggle to provide older people"s care – survey

Five Reasons To Include Fish Oil In Kid’s Diet

The human body produces most of the needed fats, however, the body cannot produce omega-3 fatty acids. Human body usually derives it’s much needed omega-3 fats from foods rich in omega-3 or its supplements. Fish oil is rich in omega-3 fats.

The early stage of a child growth involves a lot of developmental processes. At this stage, they need a lot of nutrients in adequate quantity. They need an adequate amount of vitamins, minerals, fats etc, all of which are essential for a healthy living and development of the organs. Fish oil is one the sources of such essential nutrients needed for kids to enhance their development. It is rich in omega-3 fatty acids which contain nutrients responsible for the development of the brain, eye and also help with the enhancement of memory, vision, and learning. In short, fish oil is essential for kids wellbeing. Here are five reasons for fish oil to be included in kids diet.

1. 
   

   Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)

   
   

Although causes of ADHD still remain unknown, many people believe the deficiency of omega-3 fatty might have a role to play in it. For instance, a number of studies are beginning to show omega-3 fatty acid as a viable mechanism for addressing ADHD. Omega-3 fatty acids deficiency have also been linked with many health problems that involve developmental issues in kids. A study conducted in 2012 involving children (ages 6 to 12 years) with ADHD that were treated with some standard form of behavior therapy for six months is another one pointing in this direction. In the study, the kid’s parent reported no significant improvement in learning and behavior. Researcher introduced a random treatment of omega-3 and omega-6 supplements later in the study. Thereafter, a tremendous improvement for the kids in terms of restlessness, completing work and academic performance were recorded.

2. 
   

   Fish Oil Help Boost Immune Function

   
   

Fish oil, when combined with antioxidant astaxanthin, is known to significantly boost the immune power of the body. This is particularly helpful for kids as they need a strong immune system to tackle diseases and infections. Habitual fish consumption is one way to make this a reality. One good example of fish that contain optimum amount of fish oil and the antioxidant astaxanthin is Salmon. Many fish oil supplements are also rich in astaxanthin which make them good candidates for this purpose.

3. 
   

   Skin and hair

   
   

The body’s largest organ, skin, also benefits greatly from fish oil. Essential fatty acids from fish oil improve the beauty and health of the skin in various ways. It is essentially important for kids, as it will enhance the formation of smooth skin. The skin gets fat-soluble vitamins from fish oil which can help prevent wrinkle and giving them a healthy young and glowing skin.

Skin conditions such as dandruff, thinning hair, psoriasis, and eczema have been linked to EPA and DHA deficiency in diets. The skin could be an indication of the condition of the internal health. Thus, taking fish oil helps keep the skin moisturized, which will give the same effect as applying conventional moisturizer. Besides, fish oil does a good job of reducing inflammation, including the one caused by the sun as well.

4. 
   

   Asthma

   
   

Omega-3 acids contained in fish oil helps reduces inflammation in the airways as well. This is a great benefit for kids with asthma. A study involving 29 kids with asthma revealed that those taking fish oil for 10 months had reduced symptoms, compared to those that did not.

5. 
   

   Reduced Risk of Diabetes

   
   

Fish oil is particularly good for people with diabetes. It also helps in reducing the risk of diabetes in kids. Research revealed that kids whose meal is rich in omega-3 diets were less likely to develop diabetes later in life. Another research study revealed that fish oil reduced the risk of oxidative stress which plays a big part of the development of diabetes complication.

Fish oil is really essential for the normal growth and development of children. More important is the omega-3 acids it contains. In order to access this essential nutrient, kids could take fish oil supplements as an alternative to fish oil. For those that are vegetarian, there are alternatives like vegan omega 3 that are made from algae. In one way or another, including sources of omega-3 fatty acids into the diet of your kid is important. However, please note that kids allergic to fish/shellfish should desist from taking it. It will be important to consult the physician before use in such scenarios.

Author Bio: Mike Dan is a freelance writer with great interest in Tech, Health, Sustainable living, and Home Improvement. He just started using vegan omega 3 supplements as an alternative to fish oil and slim eJuice as well.

Five Reasons To Include Fish Oil In Kid’s Diet

Men Should Grow Beard For These Five Health Reasons

Growing beards have many health benefits. Aside making men appear more attractive, growing beards also saves time and money. Beards makes men look more masculine and gives them the appearance of being healthy. Aside these social and economic reasons, there are several health reasons why men should grow beards. In this article, I have identified five health related reasons why men should grow beards. So, the next time someone tries to bore you with tales of how growing beards harbor germs, you might want to counter them with some of these points:

1. 
   

   Beards help to conserve body temperature

   
   

Beards leave your body protected from extreme coldness during winter. Beards, and facial hairs, because of their extensive coverings generally provide heat protection to the body against cold weathers and other dry particles that come with the wind.

2. 
   

   Protection from the harmful sun rays

   
   

Science has explained to us in details about how harmful radiations are released onto the skin from the sunlight. However, with beard, it is possible to get an extra layer of protection from these harmful elements from the sun rays. Spots and wrinkled skin are now associated with Dermatoheliosis, a chronic condition caused by harmful radiations when the skin is exposed to the sunlight for too long. Skin cancers are also more common nowadays because of exposure to these harmful sun rays. So you are actually protecting yourself from debilitating diseases when you grow beards.

3. 
   

   Protection from bacterial and other infections

   
   

Sore throats are caused by airborne bacteria. Research has shown that beards keep these microbes away from the throat because of their coverings. Apart from this, beards help filter out dirts, dusts, and other toxic substances that trigger attack among asthmatic patients. Beards also cover pores on the skin through which microorganisms enter into the body.

4. 
   

   Beards improve looks and self-esteem

   
   

Men with beards are given more recognition because there is a common believe that beards make them look matured and responsible. It offers an aura of confidence on the bearer and generally improves self-esteem.  It makes men look more attractive and gets them attracted to the opposite sex. This has enormous positive effects on the emotions of such men.

5. 
   

   Improved sexual life

   
   

According to anonymous studies, there is a general correlation between urges for sex and increased beard growth. Testosterone, the male hormone, has been discovered as the missing link between sexual development and beards. The hormone raises sexual urges and causes the beards to grow at higher rates. So it’s no coincidence that men with beards are sexually more active than their counterparts without beards.

There are many other benefits of growing beards. Avoiding the shaving brush means no more nasty rashes. According to Dr. Jon Ward, a dermatology specialist in Florida, shaving is usually the main cause of bacterial infections in the beard area. Shaving have also been known as the main cause of folliculitis, that is, an infection of the hair follicles that causes spots. Growing beards is not only good for physical appearances, when it is well maintained, beards might be good for healthy living as well.

Article References:

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0195670114000905

http://beardoholic.com/5-simple-steps-grow-beard-faster/

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-2280717/Beards-good-From-warding-pollen-slowing-ageing-process.html

Men Should Grow Beard For These Five Health Reasons