The Village Effect by Susan Pinker review – the science of friendship
Being sociable can lengthen your life – but there’s a risk of making it into a self-improvement chore
Publishers to cease printing paleo cookbook and ‘anti-cancer’ diet book
Bubba Yum Yum paleo cookbook, co-authored by Pete Evans, will not make it to shops after health outcry and Belle Gibson’s The Whole Pantry is under review
Belle Gibson’s book publisher never verified cancer survivor’s health claims
Penguin says it published The Whole Pantry ‘in good faith’ and never checked Gibson’s claims she cured her brain cancer through diet and lifestyle alone
Why media coverage of alternative cancer cures is dangerous
Michael Marshall: A Mirror Online report on a breast cancer patient who refused medical treatment for so-called natural alternatives ignores the health risks
What do doctors say to ‘alternative therapists’ when a patient dies? Nothing. We never talk
Jessica Ainscough’s tragic death is all too familiar for oncologists. We’ve all lost patients to the ‘secret powers’ of alternative therapy
‘Smear for smear’ campaign leaves many uncomfortable
Vicki Jamieson: The ‘smear for smear’ campaign, even if well intentioned, is misguided
The perils of having an older parent
When Charles Lambert was born, his father was 64. After a childhood overshadowed by ill-health and old age, he cautions against late-life parenthood
The ketogenic diet: high fat, high hopes
Cure for epilepsy? Radical weight-loss programme? This increasingly popular regimen could have many benefits
Being Mortal review – a surgeon’s view of how we should end our days
Doctor and New Yorker writer Atul Gawande argues that we should focus less on prolonging life and more on making it meaningful, writes Geraldine Bedell
Does sex with more than 20 women really protect against prostate cancer?
Archie Bland: Yes, according to a new study. But before you start counting, not all the experts are convinced