Psychiatric help to be offered to women too scared to give birth naturally | Mail Online

Overcoming fears: The counselling will try to persuade women to give birth naturally

Women who ask for a caesarean because they are too frightened to give birth naturally will be offered psychiatric counselling under guidelines from the health watchdog.

They will also be informed about all the risks of a c-section– including damage to their organs or even death of the newborn– in an attempt to make them change their mind.

The NHS is trying to curb the soaring rate of caesareans, which now account for nearly a quarter of all births, more than twice as many as 30 years ago.

There are concerns among leading doctors and midwives that many healthy women are choosing to have the procedure because they are worried about the trauma of birth and the physical effect on their bodies. The syndrome has been labelled‘too posh to push’.

Under draft guidelines issued by the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence, expectant mothers who are very worried about labour will be referred to counselling sessions with a psychologist, psychiatrist or doctor.

It is hoped the sessions will help women overcome their fear and decide to try to give birth naturally.

If, despite the counselling, they are  adamant they want the operation they will still be able to have it carried out on the Health Service.

There is some evidence that growing numbers of women are so put off by their experience of giving birth the first time round they decide to have a caesarean when having subsequent children.

 

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Last year, birth trauma clinics offering special counselling sessions reported that the number of expectant mothers using their services had doubled over 12 months.

There are concerns that women afraid of giving birth are increasingly given caesareans when in the past they used to be carried out in emergencies only. The operations account for 23 per cent of all labours compared with just 9 per cent in 1980.

Research shows that they are far riskier than natural births, with some studies showing babies are twice as likely to die.

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Does my bum look big in this? GPs paid extra to tell patients they are fat | Mail Online

Doctors will earn extra cash for telling patients they are fat–in a bid to save the NHS money.

From next year GPs will receive a bonus for every clinically obese patient they advise to lose weight–on top of money for keeping a“fat list” of overweight people in their surgeries.

Critics blasted the plans claiming doctors will get richer from simply telling obese patients the obvious.

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How a jab of gel could be the surgery-free solution to your bad back | Mail Online

• Clinical trials likely to start in three years

Excruciating: Eighty per cent of Britons suffer with back pain at some point in their lives

An injection that could ease the misery of back pain for millions has been invented by British scientists. 

It contains thousands of microscopic sponge-like particles that inflate and gel together inside the body, repairing damaged and worn-away spinal discs.

Almost everyone over the age of 50 has degeneration of the intervertebral discs, which cushion the vertebrae that make up the various sections of the spine.

Eighty per cent of Britons suffer back pain at some point in their lives.

The most badly damaged discs are treated through surgery in a major operation in which vertebrae are fused together, and patients can take months to recover.

In contrast, it is hoped that patients would be back to normal only days or weeks after treatment with the gel.

The injection, which is the result of 25 years of work at Manchester University, contains billions of tiny particles which form a liquid in the syringe. Once inside the body, they turn into a gel. 

Lead researcher Dr Brian Saunders, of the university’s School of Materials, said:‘It is made up of lots of really, really small microgel particles, sponge-like particles, each about one-thousandth the width of a human hair, floating around in water.

‘When we inject them, they expand and push against each other like a boxful of balloons blowing up and pushing against each other.’

As a result, they lock together, creating a strong, load-bearing material, the journal Soft Matter reports.

 

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Dr Saunders said:‘By the time we get to 50 years old, 97 per cent ofus have degeneration in some of our intervertebral discs and it gets progressively worse. It causes a lot of time off work and is a major issue because as a society we are all getting older and heavier.

‘Treatments go from simple ones like physiotherapy to very severe ones like spinal fusion.

‘That’sa major operation which involves lots of time in hospital and lots of time recovering and there’s not really that much in between, so for years we’ve been working on an injectable approach that doesn’t involve surgery.

‘We hope it could be done in the outpatients part of a hospital, rather than going into a surgical theatre and you’d be in and out, rather than spending days in hospital.’

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Organic food 'can help you lose weight... and live longer' | Mail Online

Switching to organic produce could help you live longer as well as keeping you healthier and slimmer, say academics.

Fruit and vegetables grown without artificial  fertilisers have significantly more key nutrients, including vitamin C.

As a result, going organic can extend average lifespans,  typically by 25 days for men and 17 days for women.

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Brave burns boy labelled 'Scarface' by bullies is winning 13-year battle to get a new face | Mail Online

• Lewissuffered horrific burns when he was just four-and-a-half months old
• Brave boy labelled 'Scarface' and 'Alien' by school bullies

Recovering: Lewis Alston was left with terrible burns after an accident when he was a baby. He has had eight operations in the U.S thanks to fundraising

A boy left with horrific burns after a freak accident as a baby is winning his 13-year battle for a new face after enduring years of teasing over his injuries.

Lewis Alston was just four-and-a-half months old when he slid off his mother's bed and became stuck to a hot radiator while his child-minder was downstairs.

Doctors had to amputate his nose and he had burns to his face and chest, requiring reconstructive surgery on his eyes and mouth and months of skin grafts.

But at the time NHS doctors refused to rebuild his nose until he was a teenager.

Instead hundreds of well-wishersresponded to local fundraising drives to send the boy to a specialised burns unit at Shriners hospital in Boston, US.

In the meantime Lewis was mocked at school over his burns with other children running away from him and calling him: 'Alien' and 'Scarface.'

Now 14, with the last visit scheduledfor this year, Lewis' new face is an amazing contrast to the heart-rendingimages 13 years ago.

His cause is also to be boosted with an extra£47,000 raised by a man who has been organising charity events for him since 1998.

Lewis' mother Rachel Alston, a self-employed travel agent, 35, of Morecambe, said: 'Seeing his face transform, get better and better over the years has been amazing. I can't believe how much he's changed over the years.

'He's had about 15 operations but he's always had such an amazing attitude. When he was a baby in the pramI kept him facing me because people were always staring in and asking what had happened.

'Children have run away calling him an alien and some people have been mean at high school. He's come home telling me some boys were calling him Scarface and I told him to say,"Say hello to my little friend"and laugh it off.

'But we've laughed together when someone is staring in the street and they run into something. He's such acharacter and deals with it all so well. I'm very proud of him.'

Lewis was just four and a half months old at the time of the accident. His mother had been out at work and left him with a friend.

But while the child minder was downstairs, Lewis rolled past the pillows meant to keep him in place on her bed and slid off, getting stuck against the radiator.

Rachel said: 'My friend called me in hysterics and when I arrived the paramedics were already seeing to him. His face was really bloated and he was screaming. It was so hard to deal with. I nearly fainted. I remember it now like it was yesterday. I just took a step back when I saw it. I felt like I couldn't do anything. I was in shock.'

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Tory fury at Nick Clegg's latest U-turn on Andrew Lansley's NHS reforms | Mail Online

Opposition: Nick Clegg has announced he will not support the establishment of a regulator to promote competition in the NHS - a key part of health reforms

Nick Clegg has put another obstacle in the path of the Government’s  controversial health reforms.

The Liberal Democrat leader announced that he will oppose the establishment of a regulator to promote competition in the NHS– a key plank of Health Secretary Andrew Lansley’s plans.

But the intervention incensed Tories who yesterday questioned why the Lib Dems were happy to vote for the plans in the Commons, but are now against them following their  disastrous showing in the local elections.

Two weeks ago the Deputy Prime Minister promised a more‘muscular liberalism’– with the Lib Dems not going along with so many Conservative policies.

He has already demanded Mr Lansley change his plans so that hospital doctors and nurses become members of the new GP commissioning boards which will run most of the NHS budget under the reforms.

Now he has signed off a policy document that states the Health Service must not be treated as if  it were a‘utility’ with its‘own economic regulator’.

He has instead called for a  regulator that has a duty to push NHS collaboration rather than competition.

Mr Clegg’s stance directly opposes the one taken by Mr Lansley, who is pushing to increase competition within the NHS to push down prices.

 

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In the blueprint of his Health and Social Care Bill, Mr Lansley has proposed that the watchdog Monitor, which scrutinises hospital finances, is also given the duty of promoting competition.

Hospitals 'run like factories' admits retiring consultant

Aleading surgeon yesterday said red tape, EU directives, paperwork and government targets has meant NHS hospitals are being 'run as factories.'

David Sandilands, 64,hit out as he retired from his post after a 40 year career in medicine -22 years of which he was consultant surgeon at Burnley General Hospital.

'The job is unrecognisable now to when I first started because it's being destroyed by bureaucracy - it's tragic,' he said.

'Hospitals are run more like factories now with patients being rushed through.

'Targetshave become priorities and as such patient care has suffered. Morale among staff has suffered too because of the way they are being treated by management and it has caused a lot of insecurity.

'Ifind it depressing that there's a culture of not saying anything to theoutside world. Everyone working in the NHS feels the same way as me.

Aspokesman for the Burnley General said: 'We cannot say anything as we consider his criticisms to be directed to the broader NHS.'

However, Mr Clegg believes Monitor should instead promote and protect the interests of the patient.

He told Lib Dem MPs and peers on Tuesday night he would‘never let the profit motive get in the way of the essential purposes of the NHS’.

‘No to establishing Monitor as an economic regulator as if health care was just like electricity or the telephone,’ he added.

Mr Clegg’s policy document says:‘We cannot treat the NHS as if it were a utility, and the decision to establish Monitor as an“economic regulator” was clearly a misjudgment, failing to recognise all the unique characteristics of a public health service, and opening us up to accusations that we are trying to subject the NHS to the full rigours of UK and EU competition law.

‘I have come to the conclusion we must not make this change.’

Mr Clegg has vowed to veto the legislation as part of efforts to demonstrate a greater influence by his party in the Tory-led Coalition.

But Conservative Health Minister Simon Burns insisted that no decisions had been made and Mr Clegg’s proposals were merely among a number of ideas.

‘They have come up with some ideas, like a load of other people throughout the NHS,’ he said.‘All these ideas will be considered when the listening process is over and then decisions will be taken.’

Mr Burns insisted that the promotion of competition was an important part of the NHS reforms.

‘If you can get more services for less money through charitable or private sectors, then that is what people want,’ he said.‘It is very  difficult how you could oppose that unless you are sticking up for some sort of state system dinosaur.’

Uneasy alliance: Prime Minister David Cameron (l) and Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg, pictured at a London Olympics site last week, are at odds over the NHS

Shadow Health Secretary John Healey said:‘For the past 12 months, the Deputy Prime Minister has backed the Tory changes to the hilt and Lib Dem MPs have voted for it at every stage in Parliament.

‘It’s only since his party’s disastrous showing at the local elections that Mr Clegg has started back-pedalling. He’s now trying to do a U-turn over the health bill while, in fact, up to his neck in it.’

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Black couple Francis and Arlette Tshibangu have white baby with blond hair | Mail Online

A black couple told yesterday of their shock and  mystification when their son was born with white skin and blond hair.

Francis Tshibangu admitted: ‘My first thought was“Wow, is he really mine?”.’

He and his wife Arlette already have a two-year-old boy, Seth, whose features reflect his African parentage.

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Why having lots of brothers and sisters is bad for your heart | Mail Online

Heart disease is Britain’s biggest killer, with one person in the UK dying of a heart attack every six minutes.

While we all know that smoking, lack of exercise and obesity increase the risk, there are many other, more unexpected factors that could affect whether you’ll experience a heart attack or other heart problems.

Last month, Spanish researchers revealed that patients who had a heart attack between 6am and noon suffered up to a fifth more damage to their heart compared with those whose attack occurred in the afternoon. This was due to a surge in blood pressure upon waking.

Here, we reveal other surprising causes of heart trouble.

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Let them eat pizza: Parenting guru's recipe for bringing up children | Mail Online

Children should be allowed to eat pizza and watch more television, says a parenting guru.

Dr Bryan Caplan believes parents try too hard when bringing up their offspring and advises a more relaxed approach.

He claims‘investment parenting’– music lessons, organised sports and educational games– does not make the slightest difference to children when they become adults.

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Texas school pilots nationwide project to photograph how much students are eating for lunch | Mail Online

• Computer program analyses calorie content
• Project piloted in area where third of children are overweight
  

An inventive - if rather complex - experiment has been introduced to help curb obesity and improve pupils' eating habits.

A $2 million project photographs students' lunch trays before they sit down to eat and then takes a snapshot of the leftovers.

A computer program then analyses the images to identify every piece of food on the plate - right down to how many ounces in a leftover lump of mashed potato - and calculates the calories each student has eaten.

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Forget Atkins... carbs could help you LOSE weight | Mail Online

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An explosive new book claims carb-heavy foods - including potatoes - can actually help you lose weight

For years, dieters have berated themselves for every bite of bread or pasta that has passed their lips.

But tucking into carbs could actually help us lose weight, according to scientists.

An explosive book that claims bread, pasta, pizza and chips are the ingredients for a perfect body is threatening to consign the Atkins diet and other high-protein regimes to history.

The Carb Lover’s Diet, due for release in the UK next month, remained on bestseller lists in the U.S. for six months after it was published in August.

The book claims that resistant starch, found in carb-rich foods such as bananas, oatmeal, brown rice and potatoes, has the power to suppress appetite, boost metabolism, improve mood, reduce stress levels and speed up weight loss.

According to its authors, scientists at the University of Colorado Centre for Human Nutrition in Denver found evidence that certain carb-rich foods speed up metabolism and curb hunger pangs.

In their study of 4,451 volunteers, it emerged that the slimmest ate the most carbs in the form of whole grains, fruits and vegetables, while the fattest consumed the least.

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AIDS vaccine 'could remove all traces of disease from sufferers' | Mail Online

• Vaccine enables immune system to be constantly 'on the alert' for HIV
• More than half of infected monkeys given vaccine showed 'no signs' of virus in tests
• Human trials is next step for vaccine development

An experimental drug helped monkeys with a form of the Aids virus control the infection for more than a year, suggesting it may lead to a vaccine for people, or even a cure.

Researchers said Cytomegalovirus (CMV) works by priming the immune system to quickly attack the HIV virus when it first enters the body, a point at which thevirus is most vulnerable.

Dr Louis Picker of the Oregon National Primate Research Centre, whosestudy appears in the journal Nature, said he thinks it will be possibleto have a vaccine ready to test in people within three years.

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Could five cups of coffee a day protect against breast cancer? | Mail Online

Findings: Studies have claimed that drinking coffee could reduce the overall risk of breast cancer

Women who drink coffee could be protecting themselves against an aggressive form of breast cancer, research suggests.

Those who regularly enjoy the hot drink are far less likely to develop oestrogen-receptor negative breast cancer– particularly if they drink five cups or more a day.

These types of tumours do not react to a wide range of drugs, meaning chemotherapy is often the only option.

In the study, experts from the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm found coffee drinkers had a lower incidence of breast cancer than women who rarely drank the beverage.

They analysed data from almost 6,000 women who were past the menopause.

Those women who drank five or more cups a day had a 57 per cent reduced risk of breast cancer compared with those who drank less than one cup a day.

Writing in the journal Breast Cancer Research, the scientists concluded:‘A high daily intake of coffee was found to be associated with a statistically significant decrease in oestrogen-receptor negative breast cancer among post-menopausal women.’

The authors also found a small reduced risk for all types of breast cancer, although this link was not significant when factors such as age and weight were taken into account.

Previous studies have suggested coffee cuts the risk of other cancers, including those targeting the prostate and liver.

However, experts are divided on the benefits of coffee and some studies have shown it could even promote cancer. Research has suggested coffee may in fact cause cells to proliferate or prevent them from being repaired.

 

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The Karolinska Institute experts said they suspected coffee could contain compounds that affect different types of breast cancer in different ways. It is possible that the drink fuels oestrogen-receptor positive breast cancers but reduces the risk of oestrogen-receptor negative breast cancer, they said.

This would match the finding that drinking coffee could reduce the risk of breast cancer overall, although the experts said further studies were needed.

It comes as a separate U.S. study found that parsley and some fruits and nuts contain a compound which could prevent breast cancer cells multiplying.

Researchers from the Missouri University found that rats with breast cancer given apigenin, which is found in parsley, celery, apples, oranges and nuts,‘developed fewer tumours and experienced significant delays in tumour formation’ compared with rats with breast cancer who were not.

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The average Brit spends more than 5 YEARS of their life with a hangover | Mail Online

• Almost 2,000 days spent hungover in lifetime
  

• Average Brit suffers for 22 days a year until aged 60
  

The average Brit will spend more than five years of their life with a hangover, according to new research.

They will suffer the ill effects for a whole day - usually a Sunday - at least once-a-week between the ages of 21 and 38.

During that period, another 12 days-a-year will be spent retching, sweating and feeling lousy because of weddings, birthdays and office parties.

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How the Battle of Britain 'Guinea Pig Club' helped Daniel recover from burns | Mail Online

Party prank: Daniel Martin's home-made costume went up in flames leaving him with burns to 40 per cent of his body

Daniel Martin's home-made snowman costume was made with cotton wool glued haphazardly to a pair of pyjamas. It was, he felt, just the ticket for a Christmas fancy-dress party. Yet disastrously, that night the 26-year-old became the victim of a prank that would leave him with burns to 40 per cent of his body.

'One minute I was chatting to friends, the next I felt a sensation of intense heat on my back. For a few seconds I couldn't understand what it was, then flames started rushing up towards my face,' says Daniel, from East Sussex, of the incident which occurred last December.

'I remember rolling around on the floor and I think at one point someone used a fire extinguisher. King's College Hospital was just around the corner and, amazingly, I walked to A&E with the help of two friends. At that stage I didn't feel anything much at all. But as soon as I got there, I was surrounded by doctors, and after that everything goes black so I must have been sedated.'

Daniel was transferred overnight to the Queen Victoria Hospital in East Grinstead, where the intensive care unit was equipped to deal with such serious cases. The specialist ward was made famous by pioneering surgeon Sir Archibald McIndoe, who performed reconstructive plastic surgery on horrifically burned Battle of Britain pilots.

Facedwith injuries that surgeons at the time had little experience of, McIndoe came up with innovative ways of treating the airmen who, becauseof the experimental nature of the work being done on them, became knownas Guinea Pigs.

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The little boy who split his lip without realising: Meet the three-year-old who can't feel pain | Mail Online

Not being able to feel pain sounds like a dream... until you imagine the implications.

Oliver Jebson's parents have to watch him extra carefully as he is not able to feel the physical pain that warns toddlers against touching hot or sharp things.

The three-year-old suffers from a rare form of dwarfism which, as well as stunting his growth, means that he doesn't notice when he has hurt himself.

The brave tot is completely oblivious to hurting himself if he takes a tumble.

Brave little boy: Oliver Jebson (right) who cannot feel pain with his parents Hayley, 25, and Dean, 27, and brother Lewis

He has even split his lip open before without shouting out to his worried parents.

His mum, Hayley, 25, and dad, Dean, 27, from Grimsby, Lincs, have to constantly keep an eye out for their little boy - in case he seriously injuries himself without realising.

Hayley said: 'Oliver will be four this year but he is tiny for his age. When people ask how old he is, they never believe me.

 

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'There are so many things he has to endure. He can't feel pain, which is very dangerous.

'The other day, he fell over and his bottom tooth went through his top lip. He didn't even flinch. The only time he ever cries is through temper.'

Oliver was diagnosed with Cornelia de Lange Syndrome (CdLS), which affects just one in 50,000 children, at birth.

The condition, also known as Amsterdam Dwarf Syndrome, causes sufferers to have stunted growth, and occasionally can mean that pain sensors are blocked out.

Doctors who diagnosed Oliver with the syndrome warned his devastated parents that he was unlikely to survive beyond his second birthday.

'In many ways, Oliver is just like any other boy of his age. He loves muck and animals'

But incredibly, Oliver has beaten the odds and is now making incredible progress.

After six operations and dozens of hospital appointments, Oliver has recently taken his first steps and has uttered his first words - years ahead of schedule.

Oliver was born weighing just 4lb 9oz.

Dad Dean, who works for a trailer-fitting company, said: 'When Oliver was born, he was no bigger than a Lucozade bottle and we feared the worst.

'He looked like a little old man, but he has continued to surprise us.

'We still need to be ever so careful with him. If one of us has got a cold, we try to keep well clear.

'Our main aim is to make more people aware of the condition. It is International CdLS Awareness Day next Monday.

'In many ways, Oliver is just like any other boy of his age. He loves muck and animals. We have got some ponies which he absolutely loves and he is always trying to kiss our Jack Russell, Millie, whether she likes it or not!'

Oliver's older brother, Lewis, 6, added: 'I am very proud of my little brother. I know he is poorly but he is getting better.

'I will always look after him.'

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The stroke risk index: Drinking coffee and blowing nose might cause a brain aneurysm | Mail Online

It's the perfect way to persuade your colleague to stop blowing his nose like a trumpet...

Energetic nostril emptying has been revealed as the third biggest trigger for bursting a blood vessel in your brain, following drinking coffee and vigorous exercise.

Sexual intercourse, straining to go to the toilet, being startled and losing your temper are other factors scientists identified that can lead to a brain aneurysm.

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Hearty cocktail: Scientists devise 'perfect blend' of 13 different fruit juices that could lower risk of cardiac problems | Mail Online

You’d have to be a graduate in fruitology to be familiar with all the ingredients.

But if you can track them down then you could have the recipe for a longer, healthier life.

Scientists say they have developed a cocktail of seven fruit juices that boosts health, cuts the risk of heart disease and stroke– and tastes good. The‘super-smoothie’ contains grapes, apples, blueberries and strawberries.

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HIV drug could prevent 'cervical cancer by killing off virus that causes disease' | Mail Online

Threat: The human papilloma virus, which causes cervical cancer, can be eliminated by drugs that tackle HIV

A simple treatment using a widely prescribed HIV drug could prevent cervical cancer, research suggests.

The drug lopinavir kills cells infected by the human papilloma virus (HPV) while leaving healthy cells relatively unharmed, scientists have found.

HPV is the most common cause of cervical cancer, which affects 3,000 women in the UK each year and accounts for more than 900 deaths.

It also triggers significant numbers of mouth and throat cancers in both men and women.

Researchers from the University of Manchester, working with colleagues in Canada, made the discovery after carrying out laboratory tests on cell cultures.

Dr Ian Hampson, from the university's school of cancer and enabling sciences, said:‘This is a very significant finding as these cells are not cancer cells but are the closest thing to being like the cells found in a pre-cancerous HPV infection of the cervix.

‘In addition we were also able to show that lopinavir kills these HPV-infected cells by re-activating a well-known antiviral system that is suppressed by HPV.’

To be effective as a treatment, the drug would have to be administered in doses 10 to 15 times that taken by HIV patients. This would mean applying it as a cream or pessary, rather than swallowing a tablet, said Dr Hampson.

The research is published today in the journal Antiviral Therapy.

Co-author Dr Lynne Hampson said:‘These results are very exciting since they show that the drug not only preferentially kills HPV-infected non-cancerous cells by re-activating known antiviral defence systems, itis also much less toxic to normal non-HPV infected cells.

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Will an injection to oil your dodgy joints save you from a hip op? | Mail Online

'I was really upset when they suddenly said the treatment had been withdrawn,' said osteoarthritis sufferer Valerie Megades of the injections

Every year thousands of people find their world shrinks a little.

Outings and exercise they would previously have welcomed become more and more of a chore, until one day even leaving home becomes an effort.

This is the effect of osteoarthritis, a degenerative joint condition which wears away the hips and knees of more than one million Britons and is the reason for the 120,000 joint replacement operations performed annually— a figure that is rising steadily.

Sometimes surgery to replace the joint can be almost as bad as the arthritis itself, because of the problems associated with recovering from the operation when overall fitness is deteriorating.

Exercise is a vital part of the rehabilitation process, but without someone at your side in case you fall, it can be a frightening prospect. As the arthritis worsens, people become more frail.

Forced immobility creates other health problems, such as potentially fatal chest infections, and for those who live alone there is no one to look after them while they re-learn to walk. Often recovery can take months rather than weeks.

Such are the difficulties affecting Valerie Megades, 64, a widow from Hither Green, South London, who lives alone in a second floor flat and whose only child, Simon, died two years ago from cancer aged 37.

For the past decade Valerie has suffered increasingly with arthritis in both her knees. Sometimes her joints are so stiff, she can barely make it downstairs to go shopping and she is on a constant diet of painkillers.

Although Valerie still manages to struggle out several times a week to visit her daughter-in-law and two young grandsons two bus rides away, the demands of post-surgery recovery seem overwhelming.

She has so far rejected the chance to be put on the NHS waiting list for knee replacement surgery, because of her fears about being able to recover.

Then last year Valerie,  a retired French teacher was offered an alternative - 'lubricating' injections of hyaluronic acid into the joints.

This substance mimics the natural joint lubricant, synovial fluid, which keeps joints moving freely; hyaluronic acid effectively cushions the bones.

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Study into the effect of passive smoking on children shows boys are more likely to suffer high blood pressure more than girls | Mail Online

In the first study of its kind, researchers have found that boys who inhale second-hand tobacco smoke at home may experience significant levels of raised blood pressure.

In later life the study revealed that this could lead to high blood pressure, or hypertension, and an increased risk of heart disease.

However, in girls, passive smoking appeared to be associated with a lowering of blood pressure.

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