Relief can come from a little bit of nothing - Concord Monitor Online - Concord, NH 03301

I've always been interested in the placebo effect, I know it gets in the way of research of new drugs and treatments but on the other hand, surely the power of the human being to heal themselves without drugs with nasty side effects should be of interest to the medical professional.

Therefore I'm pleased to see that at least some research is being done on the placebo effect as reported in this article.

Evaluating Internet Health Information: A Tutorial from the National Library of Medicine

The Internaet has proved to be an invaluable resource for health related information but it also contains lots of incorrect information which may mislead people.

This tutorial teaches how to evaluate the information and will help people get the best out of the medium.

Efficacy Of Glucosamine, Chondroitin Sulfate May Depend On Level Of Osteoarthritis Pain - ScienceDaily

Study into the effects of two popular supplements for pain relief in arthritis of the knee. There is a follow up study to see if they reduce deterioration oin the longer term.
It's a shame that this report doesn't specify the doses uses as I believe this would effect the results.

Weak immune response may cause Crohn's disease - New Scientist Breaking News

Interesting research which suggests that the current medical thinking about the causes of Crohn's disease may be wrong. If this research is confirmed by other studies it may suggest new ways of treating this disease.

Exercise for Health

A short summary of exercise and the health benefits.

Ice and heat treatment

A very useful patient informtaion leaflet explaining how to make ice packs, how long to apply them and when ice or heat should be used on an injury.

Knee Injury - Meniscus Cartilage Tear

A patient information leaflet in knee injury; this includes some general information about joints and symptoms, diagnosis and treatment of a meniscus tear.

Osgood-Schlatter's Disease

A patient information sheet on Osgood-Schlatter's Disease; it includes causes, symptoms, treatment and some advice about doing sport when you have this disease.

Paget's Disease of Bone

A patient information leaflet on Paget's disease.

Sprains

A patient information leaflet on sprains, this covers treatment, medication and advice of when you would need to go and see a doctor rather than treat tourself.

CFS/ME

A patient information leaflet about chronic fatigue syndrome sometimes known as myalgic encephalomyelitis.

This leaflets covers symptoms, currect treatment options and contacts for further information.

Acupressure 'good for back pain' - BBC NEWS

This study showed substantial benefits for back pain sufferers from accupressure over other physical manipulation therapies.

I find this particularly interesting since Neuroskeletal Realignment Therapy (NSRT)which I practice also uses many accupuncture points and is non-manipulative.

The study also suggested that a combined holistic approach was more successful than using one single therapy in isolation which is another cross-over with NSRT.

Washington study finds an effective treatment for MS patients

Interesting study about the benefits of using a pulsing electromagnetic treatment for people with mulitiple sclerosis.

BBC NEWS | Health | Many heart attacks 'not spotted'

It's worrying news that many people, women in particular don't realise they have had a heart attck because the symptoms may vary from those we all expect.

I think everyone should read this and have a check up if they have this sort of shoulder pain or any other pain or symptoms.

Reflexology offers patients relief by stimulating pressure points in the feet

Not a lot of new information here but It's good to see Reflexology getting some good press, it's such a relaxng and holistic therapy.

Healing Magnetic Therapy’s Quality Scientific Evidence Ignored by Conservative Medical Researchers

Magnetic therapy has had some bad press recently, this article points out some of the bias that medical researchers apply to complementary therapies which are ignored for some conventional therapies.

One fact that occured to me but isn't mentioned in the article is that many complementary therapies have at least one built in advantage over surgery and drugs which is that even if they don't help, at least they do no harm. Can the same be said for conventional methods?

Cervical Screening: The Facts

Useful little pamphlet about cervical screening, this is written for the patient rather than the health professional.

How broccoli helps you combat cancer | the Daily Mail

It looks like scientists may have identified why some of the green vegetables seem to offer protection against cancer.

OUCH (UK) Organisation for the understanding of Cluster Headaches in the UK

Most people know about migraine headaches but cluster headaches are less well known and less well researched. They can be agonising and bouts may last for weeks at a time.

This is a useful article about this condition.