Positive Health Online

Recent BBC scandals include MasterChef which was plunged into crisis, with a report  upholding 45 allegations about Gregg Wallace's behaviour on the BBC show, and another against co-host John Torode of using racist language.

BBC employees with the authority to cut the live stream of Bob Vylan's Glastonbury performance were among 550 members of staff at the festival. Director general Tim Davie has said The punk duo led a chant of "death, death to the IDF [Israel Defence Forces]" and made other derogatory comments during the performance, prompting apologies from the BBC and Glastonbury, as well as triggering a police investigation.

Thousands of Afghans have moved to the UK under a secret scheme which was set up after a British official inadvertently leaked their data. In February 2022, the personal details of nearly 19,000 people who had applied to move to the UK after the Taliban seized power in Afghanistan were leaked. The previous government learned of the breach in August 2023 when some of the details appeared on Facebook. A new resettlement scheme for those on the leaked list was set up nine months later, and has seen 4,500 Afghans arrive UK so far. But the existence of the leak and relocations were kept secret after the government obtained a super-injunction stopping it from becoming public.

The Ukraine-Russian war carries on, despite numerous mentions of deals by President Trump. Donald Trump has said that he is disappointed but not done with Vladimir Putin, in an exclusive phone call with the BBC. The US president was pressed on whether he trusts the Russian leader, and replied: "I trust almost nobody."

The agonizing to watch Israel-Gaza war becomes more impossible to watch every day. Gaza father's outrage after Israeli strike kills son 'searching for sip' at water point. "That area was inhabited by displaced people, others who were exhausted by the war, and those who have seen the worst due to the imposed siege and limitations, and the ongoing aggression," Mahmoud said in an interview with a local journalist working for the BBC. "The children, Abdullah among them, stood in a queue with empty stomachs, empty jerrycans, and thirsty lips," he added. "Minutes after the children and thirsty people of the camp gathered, the warplanes bombed those children and the water distribution point, without prior notice."

Here are a number of authoritative sites with a non-mainstream take on health news:

Alliance for Natural Health International  write that Bacteria in our gut have the potential to remove PFAS chemicals from our body. Researchers publishing in Nature Microbiology found that certain strains of human bacteria were able to absorb and contain a long chain per- and polyfluoroalkyl (PFAS) substance, Perfluorononanoic Acid PFNA , fed to mice, whose guts had been colonised with certain species of human gut bacteria. The chemicals were bound by the bacteria and then excreted via the mouse faeces. It’s too early to know if the findings will translate to humans. The scientists involved are looking to develop the bacteria into probiotics to help protect against the harms of PFAS;

Dr Mercola in a post entitled How Google Search Rankings Are Silencing Alternative Health Websites  states: Google slashed traffic to Mercola.com by 99.9%, replacing years of trusted content with pharma-backed search results that promote junk food and drugs as "healthcare" solutions;  A new term, “nonaginate,” describes Google's tactic of wiping out 90% or more of alternative health websites’ visibility  – a practice now threatening hundreds of holistic sources;  Under the guise of safety, Google uses vague policies like "Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness" (EEAT) and "Your Money or Your Life" YMYL to bury licensed doctors and researchers who question mainstream pharmaceutical narratives;

Dr Sircus in a post entitled Cardiac Inanity raises serious concerns about mRNA vaccine safety, particularly regarding myocarditis, and questions the motives of key figures like Dr Robert Malone and the broader public health establishment. It also touches on heart disease trends and the perceived contradictions in reporting. CDC’s Captain Dr Sarah Meyer (CDC/NCEZID), during her recent ACIP presentation titled “COVID-19 safety update” regarding long-term outcomes from COVID-19 mRNA product myocarditis, assured the nation that post mRNA vaccine myocarditis, while a real risk, resolves completely without long-term problems. Dr. Robert Malone writes, “Frankly, that statement was verifiably false. ”The claim that myocarditis “resolves completely” is controversial because even mild heart tissue damage can lead to scarring, potentially increasing risks of arrhythmias or heart failure years later. A 2024 follow-up study in Circulation noted that 10–20% of vaccine-related myocarditis cases showed lingering cardiac abnormalities at one-year follow-ups.

Positive Health PH Online August  Issue 304  publishes an wide-ranging spectrum of editorial features discussing an array of clinical treatment approaches including Mind / Body / Spirit including Editorial Features,  Letters to the Editor, Research Updates and Short Features and Brief Takes

The following editorial features in Issue 304 discuss Mind and Body aspects of our health and attitudes:

The Quest for Calm: When Information is Far too Surplus

Inside Social Care: It’s My Job

If You Are Stressed, Breathe

Macular Degeneration – Impact and Treatment Options

The Hidden Power of Structured Water: Nature's Anti-Ageing Elixir

The following articles discuss nutritional, biochemical and genetic interactions of our health and wellbeing:

3 Surprising Store Cupboard Ingredients that Could Change Your Health in Peri Menopause

How Oxalates Can Wreck Your Health

Lubricating The Joints And Fighting Allergies in Winters

The following articles discuss bodywork and mind/body aspects of  treatments:

Aromatherapy and Skin Types

How to Prevent Injuries in Strength Training

The Alexander Barrie System of Pelvic Correction™ –  Dislocated Pelvis Central to Back Pain Suffering

Letters to the Editor Issue 304 include the following topics:  Tea, Berries, Dark Chocolate and Apples Could Lead to a Longer Life Span; Birmingham Researchers Work on Revolutionary Approach to Prevent Hay Fever; 3D Printing Breakthrough: Scientists Create Functional Human Islets for Type 1 Diabetes Treatment; Breakthrough Biomarker Predicts MS Relapse Up To A Year Before Onset; Simple Blood Test Detects Preeclampsia Risk Months Before Symptoms Appear

Research Updates Issue 304 include Research in the following areas:  acupuncture, cancer, meditation, nutrition, pain relief, stress, women’s health, yoga

I wholeheartedly recommend PH Online August 2025 Issue 304 for your enjoyment and clinical education.