Public health

Public health

Crossing a mountain pass in my 1984 Toyota Tercel, it was a beautiful, sunny winter day, but coming around a bend I hit an ice patch and immediately started sliding off the road. It was next to a cliff, with no guardrail, and it was a slow-motion freak out. The car came to a stop just before going over. My girlfriend didn't even have room to get out on her side.

The head of the Swiss right-to-die organisation Dignitas chose to end his life through an assisted death, the group has said. Ludwig Minelli, who founded the group in 1998, died on Saturday, days before his 93rd birthday, Dignitas said. Dignitas said it would continue to manage and develop the association in the spirit of its founder as a professional and combative international organisation for self-determination and freedom of choice in life and at the end of life.

We partnered with the National Safety Council to create a substance-use cost calculator. Take for example, an employer with 45,000 employees. They will lose $50 million annually in turnover, absenteeism, and healthcare costs related to substance use disorder. And for every employee who's in recovery, that same company can save about $8,500 annually. We need coworkers and managers to be equipped to step in and have productive, compassionate conversations that prioritize employee mental health. Addiction isn't a failure of character. It's a challenge of our culture.

Consumer enthusiasm is growing for drinks infused with cannabis, primarily Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC). The cannabis products are marketed as "better for you," without hangovers, with fewer calories or less intoxication (depending on dosage). As I have noted earlier, Gen Z and millennials are using less alcohol and more cannabis, often edibles. Some commentators describe this cultural shift as the adoption of the "California sober" mindset-consuming cannabis or THC-infused beverages rather than alcohol.

"Perimenopause" is the term for the years leading up to menopause, a time when women may experience symptoms like changes in their menstrual cycles, moods, sleep, and more, symptoms that, traditionally, haven't been widely spoken about (and can vary considerably from person to person). I know I brought up Labubus, but that doesn't mean I think perimenopause is a trend-its existence is a scientific fact, not something that can be switched out for another keychain.

Retatrutide, which has not yet completed clinical trials, is an experimental injection developed by the US drugmaker Eli Lilly that targets three gut hormones: GLP-1, GIP and glucagon. Early studies suggest it could help patients lose up to a quarter of their body weight, leading to it being hailed online as the next Ozempic. Ozempic is not licensed in the UK as a weight-loss drug. Buying Retatrutide illegally, however, carries serious risks.

Like all friends, the Friends of Grace nonprofit smooths out the rough edges of life. The San Jose group accomplishes this through a combination of classes, community and hot, healthy meals - a program known as Grace Art & Wellness that's held six days a week at the city-owned Northside Community Center. "Breakfast and lunch aren't just meals - they're a point of entry into healing and connection," said Shawna Scarpitti, president of the nonprofit.

From beetles to flies, moths and spiders, firs can be magnets for creepy crawlies. 'We've seen significantly higher insect numbers throughout 2025 due to the warm weather,' she said. 'There's a good chance your Christmas tree could be carrying some unexpected passengers.' Despite the potential for more insects this year, there's no need to skip the real tree tradition, she explained. It only takes a few extra precautions to ensure your celebrations remain pest-free.

For Bethany Clarke, poison tasted like nothing. There was no bitter aftertaste, no astringent sting at the back of the tongue. If anything, she thought in passing, the free shots she and her friends were drinking at a hostel bar in Laos had probably been watered down she wasn't detecting a strong vodka flavour through the veil of Sprite she had mixed it with.

But only 33% of people with Medicare used the Internet at all to explore their options, according to a recent U-M study. That's even though the choices can be dizzying: many people have dozens of options. Nearly all people have more than 10 Medicare Advantage plans to choose from, as well as multiple Part D prescription drug and Medigap supplemental plans

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

A significant new court filing claims Facebook and Instagram owner Meta had a 17x policy allowing sex traffickers to post content related to sexual solicitation or prostitution 16 times before their accounts were suspended on the 17th strike. The allegation is one of many in the filing claiming Meta chose profit and user engagement over the safety and well-being of children.

Technology has impacted every area of our lives, and its influence on families is undeniable. The modern parenting conversation around technology focuses on concerns like excessive screen time and overexposure through social media (Overuse of Devices and Social Media Top Parent Concerns, 2023). However, there's a hidden crisis within the modern family that we risk overlooking in our discussions about technology: parental and caregiver substance use disorder (SUD).

Hundreds of thousands of times each year in California, farmers and their contractors spray pesticides on fields and orchards in the state's agricultural heartlands. Farmworkers young and old can be exposed to dangerous concentrations of toxic chemicals if they are not properly trained, left uninformed about when they can safely enter sprayed fields or exposed to pesticide applications - because of factors such as wind drift or operator error.

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging. At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground.

Paan chewing is rife in parts of Brent particularly around Wembley where a blood-red mix of saliva and tobacco can be seen spattered across the area, including on telephone boxes, pavements, and in flower beds. Paan is made up of a mixture of ingredients including betel nut and leaf, herbs, and tobacco which, when chewed together, gives the user a stimulant or narcotic effect.

The US navy knew of potentially dangerous levels of airborne plutonium in San Francisco for almost a year before it alerted city officials after it carried out testing that detected radioactive material in November last year, public health advocates allege. The plutonium levels exceeded the federal action threshold at the navy's highly contaminated, 866-acre Hunters Point Naval Shipyard. It was detected in an area adjacent to a residential neighborhood filled with condos, and which includes a public park.

In Argentina, the maximum permitted level of arsenic in drinking water is 0.01 milligrams per litre, as established by the Argentinian Food Code, in line with World Health Organization recommendations. Yet according to an official report, the levels in the departments of Copo, Alberdi and some areas of Banda and Robles range between 0.4mg/l and 0.6mg/l. The most recent tests on her hair Cuellar underwent indicated she had a concentration of 2.24 micrograms per gram or 224 times the legal level.

An NHS trust has been fined 200,000 for failing to provide "safe care and treatment" for a 16-year-old girl who died on hospital grounds after fleeing her ward. Ellame Ford-Dunn, from Upper Beeding, West Sussex, died at Worthing Hospital in March 2022 where she had been admitted as a mental health inpatient. She ran into the grounds of the hospital and was not immediately followed by a nurse because of "confusion" and a lack of appropriate procedure in place, the court heard.

A new study from the Law Offices of James A. Welcome highlights a concerning and uneven trend in U.S. roadway safety: fatal hit-and-run crashes are rising disproportionately in certain states, particularly those with large metropolitan areas and dense traffic networks. Using National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) data from 2019 to 2023, the analysis reviewed more than 186,000 fatal crashes nationwide. Of these, 13,001 involved a driver who fled the scene, meaning 7% of all fatal U.S. crashes now involve hit-and-runs.

From June 2027 any vitamin B6 product containing more than 50mg in each recommended daily dose will be moved behind the pharmacy counter. The recommended dietary intake of vitamin B6 for a healthy adult is just 1.3mg to 1.7mg a day. The decision follows a Therapeutic Goods Administration review and public consultation process identifying 250 reports of peripheral neuropathy or damage to the nerves outside of the brain and spinal cord and related conditions, with most of those reports made since 2023.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, excessive alcohol consumption is a technical term that includes both binge drinking and heavy drinking. Binge drinking is defined as four or more standard drinks on a single occasion for women and five or more drinks for men. Heavy drinking is eight or more drinks in a one-week period for women and 15 or more drinks for men. Any alcohol consumed by pregnant women or individuals under the legal age is also considered excessive drinking.

"In every assignment, Regina brought unmatched dedication, enthusiasm, and a commitment to excellence that strengthened our department," Boston EMS said. "A gifted mentor, she helped shape a generation of EMTs and left an impact that will carry forward for years to come." "Regina will also be remembered for her wicked sense of humor, her kindness, and her exceptional strength - a true warrior spirit," the post continues.

Today, with AI transforming virtually every professional field, my team and I have discovered that the technology-if used in partnership with our own experience and skills-can enhance our creativity, efficiency and strategic insight. We're using AI to drive the client coverage and impressions we're known for, as well as to help us reach new potential partners and build the business.