Children who watch three hours of TV a day could be left 'educationally stunted and prone to bullying

• Study found that after two hours of viewing, every extra hour of TV has the potential to harm a child's development, both physically and socially
• They have poorer vocabulary, maths skills and attention span
• Too much TV also leaves them physically weaker, researchers warn
• But up to 2 hours 52 minutes doesn't appear to do any harm, they say

Toddlers who watch three hours of TV a day may end up educationally stunted, physically weak and prone to bullying, a study has revealed. Researchers have found that after two hours of viewing, every extra hour of TV has the potential to harm a child's development, both physically and socially. This includes poorer vocabulary, maths skills and attention in class, victimisation by classmates and poor physical prowess at nursery. Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-2559336/Children-watch-three-hours-TV-day-left-educationally-stunted-prone-bullying.html

Arguing with your partner is bad for your HEART

• People who think their partner is often unsupportive are more likely to develop heart disease 
• Being unsupportive is actually more damaging to the arteries than overall marriage quality, say researchers

Arguing with a partner isn't just upsetting - it's also bad for your heart. People who think their partner is unsupportive are more likely to develop heart disease, a study has found. 

Scientists at the University of Utah found people who say their spouse is sometimes supportive but also sometimes upsetting have higher levels of artery calcification.

This suggests their arteries are diseased and they are at greater risk of premature death. Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-2553850/Arguing-partner-bad-HEART-Couples-war-thicker-arteries.html

Epidurals can make labour last two hours LONGER than without pain relief

• It was already known that the second stage of labour can take longer after an epidural - but new research suggests it extends it even further 
• Without an epidural, most first time mothers deliver within 3 hours 20 mins
• With an epidural, it can take up to 5 hours 40 minutes, say researchers 
• In the UK, this stage of labour is not allowed continue for more than three hours - so doctors start to consider intervening after two hours

It is known that having an epidural increases the time it takes for a woman to deliver her baby.

But new research suggests it may prolong the birth for longer than originally believed.

U.S. researchers found some women who are given an epidural during labour take more than two hours longer to deliver their child than women who don’t get the pain relief.

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Having an epidural can increase the amount of time it takes a woman to push out her baby by up to two hours

‘The effect of epidural can be longer than we think and as long as the baby looks good and the women are making progress, we don't necessarily have to intervene [and perform a Caesarean section] based on the passage of time,’ lead author Dr Yvonne Cheng, from the University of California, San Francisco, said. Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-2553880/Epidurals-make-labour-two-hours-LONGER-without-pain-relief.html

Pill that can help to reduce the misery of shingles pain by 30%

• Trials of experimental drug EMA401 found it cut pain levels for half sufferers
• Pain relief was experienced after just four weeks of taking two pills a day
• Shingles is caused by reactivation of the virus that causes chickenpox 
• It affects 190,000 Britons each year, most of them aged over 50

A new treatment could bring hope to thousands of shingles sufferers with long-term pain. Trials of the experimental drug EMA401 found it cut pain levels by at least 30 per cent for more than half of sufferers - some of whom had been in agony for years. Pain relief was experienced after just four weeks of taking two pills a day, according to a study published in The Lancet medical journal.

A bout of shingles puts you at higher risk of having a stroke or heart attack years later, a study shows

British researchers behind the study hope the breakthrough will benefit patients with post-shingles pain, and many more with other intractable pain conditions. Because the drug works in a different way to conventional painkillers, it may be able to treat chronic nerve pain from diabetes, HIV, nerve injury and cancer chemotherapy. Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-2551956/Pill-help-reduce-misery-shingles-pain-30-New-treatment-bring-relief-thousands-sufferers-just-four-weeks.html

First British women to have £1,000 'no-frills' IVF: Budget procedure inspired by Alka-Seltzer to be available within weeks

A ‘no-frills’ IVF treatment costing under £1,000 should be available to British women within weeks. The budget procedure, which was developed last year, economises on expensive drugs and incubators. Instead, it uses a cheap test-tube set and a chemical reaction inspired by Alka-Seltzer hangover tablets. Despite its low-tech approach, a pilot study showed the treatment to be at least as effective as the conventional equivalent, which costs up to £15,000.
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-2549095/First-British-women-1-000-no-frills-IVF-Budget-procedure-inspired-Alka-Seltzer-available-weeks.html