Natasha May

One postmortem shows one of the koalas had a joey when she was translocated. The joey was found dead in her pouch during a health check after the first koala deaths in April but the adult female was re-released. She was found on the ground in the forest in late May and died on the way to the vet.

Australian health experts warn Trump’s unfounded autism claims about paracetamol may harm pregnant women TGA confirms drug is safe for use in pregnancy as doctors worry about effect of White House misinformation

www.theguardian.com/australia-ne...

“We know that actually there is a link between fever and impacts on babies – not neurodivergence – but complications in pregnancies that result from unmanaged fever,”

‘We are horrified’: proposed lead mine in NSW wine region has community living in fear for children’s health Following revelations the environment watchdog buried a report on lead mining, parents wonder if they can ‘trust that our children’s safety is coming first’ over mining interests

Lisa wants to raise her children on the family farm - but a lead mine next door threatens her dream.

Great reporting from @natashamay.bsky.social on this issue and gorgeous photos from Blake Sharp-Wiggins

www.theguardian.com/australia-ne...

Community fights lead mine near primary school as report highlights Australia’s failure to protect children Report commissioned by Mudgee health alliance suggests mine’s health and environmental assessments accepted by NSW government contain errors and outdated evidence

Excellent reporting from @natashamay.bsky.social - Community fights lead mine near primary school as report highlights Australia’s failure to protect children www.theguardian.com/australia-ne...

Environment watchdog buried report on lead in children’s blood to placate mining companies, emails show Documents tabled in parliament show NSW agency took four years to publish report and told miners it would be put online ‘quietly’ but EPA says it was released to community earlier

Environment watchdog buried report on lead in children’s blood to placate mining companies, emails show. By @natashamay.bsky.social

Environment watchdog buried report on lead in children’s blood to placate mining companies, emails show Documents tabled in parliament show NSW agency took four years to publish report and told miners it would be put online ‘quietly’ but EPA says it was released to community earlier * Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast The NSW environment watchdog sat on a report for four years linking elevated levels of lead in children’s blood to current mining, and promised mining companies they would not do any “finger-pointing”, new documents tabled in state parliament show. The documents include internal emails released under freedom of information laws that show the scientist who produced the report into lead exposure in Broken Hill was at one point texting the Environment Protection Authority every two days asking when it would be published. Continue reading...

Environment watchdog buried report on lead in children’s blood to placate mining companies, emails show

Misdiagnosis of iron deficiency can lead to years of debilitating illness. Could nanodiamonds be the solution? Exclusive: A new test offers hope for the one in five Australian women who have been misdiagnosed with depression and other chronic illnesses * Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast At about the age of 14, Lily* started to feel tired a lot of the time. She would regularly oversleep and lacked the energy to do basic things. It was also the time she started menstruating and having heavy periods. At 25, Lily was diagnosed with anxiety and depression, and prescribed antidepressants for her symptoms. While they helped her, she also had to put up with the side effects of memory loss, low sex drive and weight gain. Continue reading...

Misdiagnosis of iron deficiency can lead to years of debilitating illness. Could nanodiamonds be the solution?

‘Slip, slop, slap for brain health’: Australia needs a major prevention campaign for dementia, doctor says Prof Henry Brodaty of UNSW says managing risk factors such as diet and anxiety is a cost-effective way of curbing the disease * Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates * Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast A “slip, slap, slop”-style preventative campaign is needed for dementia, as new research shows cases of the disease could be delayed with no added cost, a leading doctor has told the National Press Club on Wednesday. In the speech titled “Hope Beckons”, Prof Henry Brodaty, a co-director of the Centre for Healthy Brain Ageing (CHeBA) at the University of New South Wales, said there was much more Australia could be doing to help prevent dementia in its ageing population by addressing risk factors that can be managed, such as poor diet. Continue reading...

‘Slip, slop, slap for brain health’: Australia needs a major prevention campaign for dementia, doctor says

Is ‘office air’ to blame for your limp hair and spotty, flaky skin? | Antiviral Air conditioning, heating and poor ventilation in the office can contribute to drier skin and greasier hair, but other factors such as the commute may play a part too * Read more in the Antiviral series Still life paintings known as vanitas, popular in the 17th century, served as reminders of the transient nature of everything on earth, doomed to wither and fade. It’s a lesson most of us get when we catch our reflection in the office mirror and are shocked to find our neatly groomed appearance has rapidly deteriorated somewhere between the commute and an 11am meeting. Social media has recently questioned whether this phenomenon is really an inevitable consequence of nature, or if a more modern culprit is robbing hair and skin of beauty and vitality. Continue reading...

Is ‘office air’ to blame for your limp hair and spotty, flaky skin? | Antiviral

Is the inquest into the Bondi Junction murders further stigmatising schizophrenia? Sandy Jeffs ‘bought into the pessimism of my diagnosis because that’s what I was told by all those clinicians’

For many people with schizophrenia, the spotlight from the Bondi Junction inquest is causing distress, for fear they will be further judged and ostracised. Sandy Jeffs says ‘I just don’t know how we’re going to come back from this.’
www.theguardian.com/australia-ne...

NSW’s sole women’s-only clinic dedicated to trauma ends ‘gamechanging’ focus Specialists at Ramsay Clinic Thirroul have reportedly resigned against backdrop of larger shortage of psychiatrists across state

Over a year ago I wrote about the pioneering work Australia's only female trauma hospital was doing. My story today is about how the private facility is no longer dedicated to providing a space for these women, often survivors of family and sexual violence:
www.theguardian.com/australia-ne...

With a drip in his arm, this patient came out of a Sydney hospital to support striking doctors Tuesday is the first of three days of industrial action being taken by public sector doctors in NSW

Loved this from @natashamay.bsky.social :

Psychiatric care in NSW facing ‘collapse’ because of poor pay and conditions, court hears as arbitration battle begins At least 10 hospitals in NSW risk being stripped of accreditation to train junior doctors as ‘serious concerns’ raised in Industrial Relations Commission court

Psychiatric care in NSW facing ‘collapse’ because of poor pay and conditions, court hears as arbitration battle begins, by @natashamay.bsky.social www.theguardian.com/australia-ne...

Researchers thought bacterial vaginosis was an STI years ago, but trials in the 80s and 90s did not find treating a man alongside his female partner was effective. Read what's changed this time around.

Social media’s gut feeling is all wrong: there is no fast track to a healthy microbiome | Natasha May A diet high in fibre from different food sources is far more effective for maintaining a healthy gut than supplements and online fads, experts say

My first antiviral column out today on a topic I personally wanted the answers to! Turns out dietary fibre is the nutritional hero our guts need.
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Trevor felt ‘invisible’ after his wife died – now experts are trying new ways to tackle Australia’s loneliness epidemic One in four Australians report feeling persistently lonely, with doctors increasingly ‘prescribing’ non-medical activities to improve wellbeing and social connection

Good article in @australia.theguardian.com by @donnadlu.bsky.social & @natashamay.bsky.social on loneliness-described in this @mja.com.au article as "one of the most pressing public health concerns in Australia and internationally" www.mja.com.au/journal/2024...
www.theguardian.com/australia-ne...

Learning CPR on manikins without breasts puts women’s lives at risk, study finds Analysis of training models on global market found all had flat torsos with just one having a breast overlay

Most CPR manikins don’t have breasts, which contributes towards women being less likely to receive life-saving first aid from bystanders, a study has found. Story by @natashamay.bsky.social and research led by @inquisitivegyn.bsky.social www.theguardian.com/australia-ne... @

Social media influencers are ‘fearmongering’ to promote health tests with limited evidence, study finds Researchers warn of harms of overdiagnosis for generally healthy people as well as the cost of tests themselves

Social media influencers are ‘fearmongering’ to promote health tests with limited evidence: study. Researchers warn of harms of overdiagnosis for generally healthy people as well as the cost of tests, by @natashamay.bsky.social www.theguardian.com/society/2025... via @australia.theguardian.com

The high cost of Australia’s dental care divide - podcast Guardian Australia health reporter Natasha May speaks to Reged Ahmed about why more people are putting off going to the dentist, or can’t get the care they need

There's a growing class divide for dental care in Australia. @natashamay.bsky.social unpacks it all in the full story pod
www.theguardian.com/australia-ne...

How much does the gender health gap cost? For Alyse, it’s $400,000 Exclusive: Women twice as likely to delay seeing a GP compared with men, with the high cost of living delaying treatment

Hello Bluesky! Feels appropriate my first post is about medical misogyny, one of my favourite topics on the health round. Medicare's gender bias leaves women like Alyse paying thousands more for basic healthcare than men:
www.theguardian.com/australia-ne...