Health Advice
- Weight Management
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- Acne
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- Aneurysm, abdominal aortic
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- First aid
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- Leukaemia, acute lymphoblastic
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- Addiction
- Addison's disease
- Adenoids and adenoidectomy
- Frozen shoulder
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- Alcohol misuse
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- Alexander technique
- Rhinitis, allergic
- Indoor allergy
- Mountain sickness
- Alzheimer's disease
- Lazy eye
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- Amniocentesis
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- Steroid misuse
- Iron deficiency anaemia
- Vitamin B12 or folate deficiency anaemia
- Anaesthesia
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- Brain aneurysm
- Angelman syndrome
- Anger management
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- Arteriography
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- Dog bites
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- Anorexia nervosa
- Smell sense, loss of
- Antacid medicines
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- Antisocial personality disorder
- Hypochondria
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- Stress
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- Wrist, broken
- Arterial thrombosis
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- Atrial fibrillation
- Hearing tests
- Bird flu
- B12 vitamin deficiency
- Skin rashes in babies
- Weaning
- Lumbago (low back pain)
- Septic arthritis
- Halitosis (bad breath)
- Weight loss surgery
- Barium enema
- Bartholin's cyst
- Pressure ulcers
- Bedbugs
- Nocturnal enuresis
- Behçet’s disease
- Facial paralysis
- Tongue pain or soreness
- Prostate enlargement
- Beta-blockers
- Bicarbonate test
- Binge eating
- Biopsy
- Bipolar disorder
- Spider bite
- Eye, black
- Bladder cancer
- Cystitis
- Bladder stones
- Blisters
- Blood donation
- Blood gases test
- Blood groups
- Coughing up blood
- Semen, bloody
- Urine, blood in the
- Vomiting blood
- Septicaemia
- Hypertension
- Low blood pressure
- Blood tests
- Blood transfusion
- Blushing
- Bromhidrosis (body odour)
- Bone cyst
- DXA scan
- Bone marrow donation
- Stem cell transplant
- Borderline personality disorder
- Bottle feeding
- Botulism
- Rectal cancer
- Polyps, bowel
- Leaky gut syndrome
- Orthodontics
- Brain abscess
- Head injury, severe
- Brain tumour, benign (non-cancerous)
- Brain tumour, malignant (cancerous)
- Brain tumours
- Breast abscess
- Breast cancer
- Male breast cancer
- Screening for breast cancer
- Nipple discharge
- Mastitis
- Breast lump
- Breastfeeding
- Shortness of breath
- Osteoporosis
- Fractured collarbone
- Hip fracture
- Leg, broken
- Fractured nose
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- Toe, broken
- Tooth, broken or knocked out
- Smelly feet (bromodosis)
- Bronchitis
- Teeth grinding
- Thyroid eye disease
- Bulimia
- Burns and scalds
- Heart bypass
- Caesarean section
- Food poisoning
- Cancer
- Thrush
- Thrush, men
- Thrush, oral - adults
- Thrush, oral - babies
- Carbon monoxide poisoning
- Cardiovascular disease
- Cartilage damage
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- Rib, cervical
- Smear test
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- Chemotherapy
- Chest infection, adult
- Chest pain
- Herpes zoster virus
- Statins
- Kidney disease, chronic
- Leukaemia, chronic lymphocytic
- Leukaemia, chronic myeloid
- Cirrhosis
- Claustrophobia
- Cluster headaches
- White coated tongue
- Gluten intolerance
- Herpes simplex virus
- Cold
- Colic
- Colostomy
- Coma
- Combined contraceptive pill
- Pneumonia
- CT scan
- Concussion
- Hole in the heart
- Heart failure
- Conjunctivitis
- Constipation
- Contact dermatitis
- Corns and calluses
- Coronary heart disease
- Vegetative state
- Topical corticosteroids
- Steroid medication
- Cosmetic surgery
- Cough
- Counselling
- Leg cramps
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- Undescended testicles
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- Cystic fibrosis
- Psoriatic arthritis
- Dandruff
- Date rape drugs
- Thyroiditis
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- Dehydration
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- Teething
- Tooth decay
- Fluoride
- False teeth (dentures)
- Depression
- Dyspraxia in children
- Diabetes insipidus
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- Dialysis
- Traveller's diarrhoea
- Nutrition
- Rectal examination
- Double vision
- Nummular eczema
- Shoulder dislocation
- Diverticular disease and diverticulitis
- Lightheadedness
- Down's syndrome
- Dry eye syndrome
- Thirst
- Dyslexia
- Periods, painful
- Indigestion
- Swallowing problems
- Dyspraxia (adults)
- Swimmer's ear
- Earache
- Earwax
- Eating disorders
- Ebola virus disease
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- Endoscopy
- Threadworms
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- Epidural
- Epilepsy
- Watering eyes
- Nosebleed
- Impotence
- Tremor (essential)
- Ocular cancer
- Eye injuries
- Red eye
- Falls
- Family planning
- Fever, childhood
- Fibromyalgia
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- Wind
- Seasonal flu
- Nail patella syndrome
- Food allergy
- Foot pain
- Frostbite
- Gallstones
- Stomach removal surgery
- Gastroenteritis
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- General anaesthetic
- Genetics
- Herpes, genital
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- Gestational diabetes
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- Recurrent limb pain in children
- Iron overload disorder
- Haemophilia
- Haemophilus influenzae type b
- Piles (haemorrhoids)
- Ingrown hairs
- Leukaemia, hairy cell
- Hallucinations
- Hamstring injury
- Hand pain
- Tendon repair, hand
- Hand, foot and mouth disease
- Hangover
- Seasonal allergic rhinitis
- Head and neck cancer
- Head injury, minor
- Nits
- Headaches
- Hearing and vision tests for children
- Myocardial infarction
- Heart block
- Palpitations
- Heart transplant
- Heart-lung transplant
- Heat exhaustion and heatstroke
- Sweat rash
- Periods, heavy
- Hepatitis A
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- Hepatitis C
- Hepatitis
- Herbal medicines
- Hernia, femoral
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- Herpes simplex eye infections
- Hip pain in adults
- Hip replacement
- HIV and AIDS
- Welts
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- Homeopathy
- Hormone replacement therapy (HRT)
- Huntington's disease
- Rabies
- Hyperglycaemia
- Sweating, excessive (hyperhidrosis)
- Joint hypermobility
- Sleepiness in the day (severe and unexplained)
- Thyroid, overactive
- Hypnotherapy
- Testosterone deficiency (hypogonadism)
- Underactive thyroid
- Irritable bowel syndrome
- Painkillers, ibuprofen
- Shoulder tendon, trapped
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- Infertility
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- Ingrown toenail
- Inquest
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- knee-pain
- Knee replacement
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- Laxatives
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- Lung cancer
- Lung transplant
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- Magnesium test
- MRI scan
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- Male contraceptive pill
- Malnutrition
- Mastectomy
- Rubeola
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- Menopause
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- Moles
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- Multiple system atrophy
- Mumps
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- Selective mutism
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- Nose and sinus cancer
- Polyps, nose
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- Natural family planning
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- Nightmares
- Rhinitis, non-allergic
- Type 2 diabetes
- Winter vomiting disease
- Obesity
- OCD (obsessive compulsive disorder)
- Sleep apnoea
- Occupational therapy
- Swollen ankles
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- Periods, irregular
- Organ donation
- Orthopaedics (orthopaedic surgery)
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- Paracetamol
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- Panic disorder
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- Periods
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- Physiotherapy
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- Poisoning
- Reflux in babies
- Potassium test
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- Radiation
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- Roundworm
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- Scoliosis
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- Self-harm
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- Sexual health clinics
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- Social anxiety disorder (social phobia)
- Vomiting in children and babies
- Sinus headache
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- Sleep paralysis
- Sleepwalking
- Urine, smelly
- Snake bites
- Snoring
- Spina bifida
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- Squint
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- Stroke
- Stye
- Suicide
- Sunburn
- Swollen glands
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- Tuberculosis (TB)
- Tension-type headaches
- Testicular cancer
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- Thyroid cancer
- Tics
- Tinnitus
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- Total iron-binding capacity (TIBC or transferrin) test
- Total protein test
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- Traction
- Travel vaccines
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- Urinary tract infection, children
- Urinary tract infection
- Vaginitis
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- Varicose eczema
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- Vitamins, minerals and supplements
- Vomiting in adults
- Warfarin
- Weight loss (unexpected and unplanned)
- Whiplash
- Wisdom tooth removal
- X-ray
- Yellow fever
- Bowel cancer screening
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Read moreNHS Choices - 'When I looked in the mirror, a mound of blubber stared back'
(09/10/2014)
Katie Metcalfe, 21, is starting a creative writing degree at Cumbria University, but seven years ago her life was very different.
"My battle with anorexia started when I was 14. My situation at the time was unusual: I was at a Rudolf Steiner school in Botton Village, near Whitby, in a class with three other boys. The pressure of being the only girl with hormone-raging teenagers was enormous. I had no self-confidence, and my body became a focus of paranoia.
"Stress in my life multiplied when my parents told me there was trouble in their marriage. In addition, we were about to move house.
"Nothing in my life seemed to be right. I started to think that perhaps if I lost some weight and improved my fitness, things would change for the better. I assumed that thin people had fantastic lives and I could too.
"I made a New Year's resolution to go on a diet, so I began to restrict my eating. I cut out fats, carbs and dairy, and lived on rice cakes, apples and lettuce.
"As I began to lose weight I started to feel that life was worth living. At last I seemed to be achieving something. A voice began to whisper in my ear and as I lost more weight, it became louder. Eventually, it was all I could hear. Nothing mattered more than satisfying the voice's need for weight loss and, ultimately, perfection.
"My weight dropped from 8.5st to under 5st. My hair fell out, my skin cracked and bled, my bones ached and my periods stopped. I was also cycling between 13km (8 miles) and 24km (15 miles) a day to satisfy anorexia's need for exercise. But I still didn't believe I was thin enough. When I looked in the mirror, a mound of blubber stared back.
"My mum took me to the GP when my periods stopped, but they sent me home with a diet sheet, which said I must try to eat more.
"Eventually, I collapsed and ended up in hospital after having a minor heart attack while riding my bike. I was kept on a heart monitor for two days. I was sent home with another diet plan and the simple instruction: 'eat'.
"Eventually, my GP realised I needed help. I was admitted to a psychiatric ward in a hospital in Middlesbrough, where I stayed for the next nine months.
"I was put on bed rest for five months. My treatment involved cognitive therapy sessions once a week, and I gradually started to eat small amounts of food again. My recovery was slow. What really helped to pull me through was writing and the consistent support from my family.
"I started to write about my experiences and realised that I wanted to recover so I could help others who were battling with the same problem. I gradually got better and went back home the day before my 16th birthday.
"I have had a couple of relapses, but five years on I am fully recovered, with few long-lasting effects. Although I have been diagnosed with the early stages of osteoporosis, my periods have come back, so I can have children.
"I still feel depressed at times, but writing about it helps me get over it. I eat healthily and exercise for pleasure, not punishment. My book, A Stranger in the Family (Accent Press), has been published and I'm about to start a university degree. A few years ago I would never have imagined that.
"If you're going through what I went through, you must talk about how you are feeling to your parents, friends or doctor, no matter how insignificant you believe your issue might be. It's vital to express depressive feelings because things only get worse if you bottle them up, and this can lead to major health problems.
"Aim to live every day as though it is your last and not submit to anorexia. Try to defeat anorexia before it defeats you. Always remember that help is out there."