Health and medicine press releases

Unhealthy exercise attitudes and behaviours in young people linked to parental and peer expectations

Young people’s exercise attitudes and habits are influenced by parents, peers and fitness tracker goals as they strive to achieve the bodies they see on social media.

Respiratory disease in early childhood linked to higher risk of death in adulthood

Contracting a lower respiratory tract infection in early childhood is associated with a higher risk of dying from respiratory disease as an adult, according to new research.
El Morgan

How nuns’ urine, frogs, and hamsters are helping me make sense of my relationship with my frozen embryos and view IVF differently

If you walk into El Morgan’s solo exhibition at the Castlefield Gallery you’ll be met by a bubbling cauldron of fake urine, pictures of frogs that birth young through their backs, and maggots dancing to swan lake.
An elderly person is supported by a care worker

Could memory-based theatre therapy help prevent undernutrition in older adults?

A new Loughborough University research programme will examine if a type of memory-based theatre therapy can be used to prevent and treat undernutrition in care home residents.
children in a PE lesson

Support needed to enhance PE provision for young people not in mainstream schooling – new study

New research has found that physical education (PE) provision away from the mainstream schooling system may not be supporting young people as effectively as it might, leading to them potentially missing out on positive developmental opportunities.

a pregnancy kit

New research to offer guidance to athletes supporting pregnant partners

Researchers from Loughborough University will spearhead a new project looking at how athletes can better support their partners throughout pregnancy.

Five reasons physical activity is important for cancer patients

You might know that physical activity can help lower your risk of getting many common types of cancer. But what many of us don’t realise is just how important physical activity is if you’ve been diagnosed with cancer.

Watching your weight? You may only need to make small changes to your daily routine

Losing weight is one of the most popular new year’s resolutions, yet it is one which most of us struggle to achieve. By the time the second or third week of January rolls around, many of us are finding it harder to stick with the lifestyle changes needed to lose, or at least maintain, our weight.

How weightlifting saved me – going from fear and anxiety to international sport and medals

Syuhaidah Ahman took up weightlifting while at Loughborough University to help her cope when her self-esteem plummeted.

COVID in 2023 and beyond – why virus trends are more difficult to predict three years on

In 2020, we knew very little about the novel virus that was to become known as COVID-19. Now, as we enter 2023, a search of Google Scholar produces around five million results containing the term.

Activity “Advent calendar” could help boost activity and cut sitting time

A Christmas themed physical activity intervention during Advent shows promise for increasing physical activity and reducing sedentary time among inactive adults, finds a trial by Loughborough University.

Procrastination: the cognitive biases that enable it – and why it’s sometimes useful

Are you procrastinating? I am. I have been delaying writing this article for the last few days even though I knew I had a deadline. I have scrolled through social media, and I have gone down a rabbit hole looking up houses on Rightmove – even though I do not need a new house.
Illustration of a woman in a pink jumper sat cross-legged, meditating.

Exercise toolkit looks to improve physical and mental wellbeing of patients in secure psychiatric facilities

A new physical activity toolkit for patients and staff in secure services has been launched by Loughborough University academics.

cartoon veg

Struggling to get your children to eat enough veg? Loughborough researchers may have the answer!

Many parents will know all too well the struggle with encouraging children to eat more vegetables.

New multimillion investment in Leicester to help turn research discoveries into treatments for patients

Pioneering research into medical advancements in Leicester has received a welcome boost today, as the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) announces £26 million over the next five years for an NIHR Leicester Biomedical Research Centre (BRC).

Triage by telemedicine – Loughborough research directs healthcare policy in Brazil

Loughborough’s research into video consultations has helped shape healthcare policy in Brazil after COVID-19 put unsustainable pressure on hospitals and doctors’ surgeries during the pandemic.
An example of PACE labelling could work.

Food labelling should show how much physical activity is needed to burn off the calories, not only the number of calories

New research from Loughborough University shows that food labelling that includes the amount of physical activity needed to burn off the calories contained within it would be easier to understand than existing traffic light labelling, and would be more likely to help consumers to avoid high calorie foods.
Line drawing of a doctor talking to two people by adozeneggs.

Hospice licenses training resources developed by Loughborough academics that teach healthcare workers how to engage people in end-of-life talk

Communication training resources that teach healthcare and social care practitioners how to engage people in end-of-life talk will help even more patients and their family members, thanks to a new licensing deal.

Two wheelchair users looking at a phone

Could a new fitness app help people with disabilities be more physically active?

Researchers from Loughborough University are working with the founders of a new fitness app, created specifically for people with impairments, to test its usability and effectiveness.
Illustration of a monster behind a child.

How chronic stress stunts child growth

As we go through life, our health and wellbeing is impacted by a variety of factors that in turn affect our growth and development.

Military veterans praise ‘life changing’ support programme

Military veterans who attended Loughborough University’s first mental wellbeing support programme have described it as ‘life changing’.
Close up of an ambulance

How ready are we for the next pandemic? New report analysing UK’s response to COVID-19 says technology is key

The COVID-19 pandemic has been labelled as the largest peacetime emergency that Britain has faced in the last 100 years.
a bike in action

Tour de France: future heatwaves may make it untenable to hold the race in July

As the men’s Tour de France wraps up and the women’s tournament begins, the European heat wave rages on. If you look closely, the heat can be seen in photos of the event: cooling towels around racers’ necks, water splashed over red faces, ice packs sticking out from under race jerseys.
headshot of Joseph Bentley

ACT Medical founder Joseph Bentley accepted for Enterprise Fellowship at Royal Academy of Engineering

Loughborough University alumnus and ACT Medical founder Joseph Bentley has won an 1851 Enterprise Fellowship at the Royal Academy of Engineering as he continues to develop his award-winning system for reducing the number of deaths from knife wounds.
Illustration of a phone saying 'extreme heat' with a red toned landscape in the background

Scientists share tips and tricks for staying cool in this week's extreme heat

The UK will experience two days of unprecedented heat this week, says the Met Office, and there’s a 90% chance the current temperature record will be broken.