UK’s oesophageal cancer rate is worst in Europe

Cancer charity attributes Britain's poor global placing – equal with Rwanda – to high alcohol intake and growing obesity

Heavy drinking in pregnancy can alter unborn babies’ brains, study shows

People born to alcoholic mothers at risk of problems ranging from poor brain development to loss of hearing and vision

Multiple gene test allows more targeted treatment of cancer

SNaPshot test looks for mutations in key genes of patients with cancer so they can be given the most effective drugs

Resveratrol pills may mimic effects of exercise and low-calorie diet

A small study suggests the grape extract resveratrol has similar metabolic effects to exercise and calorie restriction

Yoga may work better for lower back pain than conventional treatments

Patients with lower back pain who did yoga showed bigger improvements in their ability to perform everyday physical tasks

The world is home to 7 billion people, but how far have we come?

Babatunde Osotimehin: The population milestone is a reminder that there is much work to do on sexual and reproductive health and HIV if we are to meet the millennium development goals by 2015

Zanzibar’s Islamic scholars tackle sex, contraception, and HIV and Aids

Damian Carrington: Religious leaders are behind a shift in attitudes that could reduce HIV infection, improve maternal health and curb population growth

Has the ‘new man’ triumphed at last?

Are you a man growing a moustache for charity next month? Do you, like one in seven dads, look after the kids? The new man has triumphed, writes William Leith

Women lead the way in the struggle against Swaziland’s HIV crisis

Gary Nunn: A support campaign for Swazi women living with HIV is transforming lives, but needs international backing

Focus on HIV-Aids cost family planning a decade, says UN population chief

Babatunde Osotimehin says it was hard to talk about cutting birth rate as families lost their children