It is a typical busy, Thursday afternoon in the office in central London, as I recall the mental note I made to myself earlier that day: ring GP practice to arrange anti-malarial prescription. I am going to Nigeria on Monday and have resolved to make sure that I take my malaria prophylaxis rigorously this time.

I have not always been so scrupulous about taking these drugs on my regular visits home to Nigeria. Ten years ago, I came to the UK to study at the London School of Hygiene & Tropical
Medicine learning in great detail the science behind the need for prophylaxis and seeing first hand at the Hospital for Tropical Diseases the tragic consequences of not taking it. And yet, for those first few years, whenever I went back to Nigeria, I did not take any preventive medication. more…

Obesity, and its control, is high on the public health agenda. Recently the Lancet published a series of important papers on the science and social science of obesity and its prevention. According to conservative estimates the projected obesity trends in the UK to 2030 imply 5,450,000 new cases of diabetes, 330,000 cases of coronary heart disease and stroke, and 87,000 cancers leading to an overall loss of 2.2 million quality adjusted life years in the population, all this costing almost £2bn per annum extra in health service costs. more…

Tuesday 20 September. Day two
7.10 Traffic is gridlocked near the UN building because so many streets are shut. Obama hits the UN today—not unfortunately the NCD meeting. more…

Four years after the ban on smoking in public buildings was extended across the whole of the UK, libertarian hackles are being raised again, this time by local government moves to ban it outdoors.

The localism bill, soon to reach the end of its parliamentary journey, includes a “power of general competence” allowing councils to act in the interests of their communities, unless that action is prevented by other law. A few councils are examining whether they could use this power to extend the smoking ban to playgrounds, parks, sports venues, and even streets. more…

Last week’s riots took place across different nights in multiple cities and involved no one ethnic group.  The reasons behind them are complex and a unifying theory is likely to be evasive. 

Many of the explanations for the riots have been made to fit around already established political agendas.  The left has focused on deprivation and an excessively greedy society, while the right has blamed police numbers and a lack of discipline and boundaries. more…

The recent riots in London and across the UK have been an awakening for many to realise the deep seated social problems in post modern British society.  The right look for thugs to be prosecuted, while the left demand further description and analysis of the complex “causes of the causes.” Both approaches are polarised and neither is satisfactory.  more…

Earlier this week I attended a lunch in an expensive London restaurant where a motley collection of people discussed what to do about binge drinking. Alcohol was served, but I felt duty bound to decline (and I was cycling). The lunch was sponsored by an alcohol company, and they must have been well pleased with the confused result. (Chatham House rules applied.) more…

For the past two months I have been trying to find somebody to speak in in favour of mammography in a debate, but I have failed. Some six people have turned me down. Why, I wonder? more…

Does your research really matter? Most VIP introductions are bland and unchallenging. Not this time. When (Professor Sir) Peter Gregson, vice chancellor at Queen’s University Belfast, introduced the joint summer school of the UK Clinical Research Collaboration’s centres of public health and Health Research Board (Ireland), he pointed out how universities often fail to show the greater community why their research is important. Universities need to be able to justify research, especially in the current economic environment. Frank Kee (CoEfPHNI) continued, saying their international advisory committee endorsed their research output but wanted them to think more about added value – how did it actually benefit the community. There is a chasm between research and its impact and he encouraged young researchers to think about the meaning of what they do. more…

“If you feel confused you probably know what is going on.” 

Out in PCT land it is fascinating to watch and listen to all the noise and thunder in the stratosphere.  The pause is in full momentum. The events of May 5th are having repercussions with posturing and postulations about substantial amendments to the health bill. But so much has already happened it is hard to see how much of the genie could be put back in the bottle. more…