HEALTH NOTES: One in two Britons claim they are clueless about what sort of food is healthy

Nearly half of Britons claim to be in the dark about what sort of food is healthy. 

While we are paying more attention to diet and exercise due to Covid, a study of 2,000 UK adults surveyed by Asian food brand Itsu found 49 per cent said they had ‘no clue’ what a nutritious meal includes. 

More than two-thirds said they were unsure how much protein they should eat, one in five believed a single slice of brown bread had all the fibre they needed for a day, and one in ten said they had no idea that plants contain protein. 

Blood test spots worst-case Covid 

A blood test could predict how ill Covid patients will get, according to a US study.

Researchers at Yale University found that by testing patients for certain white blood cells when first admitted to hospital, they could accurately forecast what level of care would be needed.

High levels of neutrophils, a type of white blood cell created by the body to fight off infection, indicated that those patients would almost always need intensive care or a ventilator.

US scientists have developed a blood test which can be used to predict the severity of Covid-19 in a patient before their health declines allowing them to adapt their treatment plan

None of the patients with low levels of neutrophils died of Covid.

Dr Alfred Lee, a haematologist at Yale School of Medicine and study author, said: ‘This is one of the first demonstrations that a set of biomarkers in the blood of Covid patients can predict eventual ICU [intensive care unit] admission, even before such patients become critically ill.’

Women  who suffer from type 1 diabetes are more likely to enter natural menopause early.

According to a study carried out by the North American Menopause Society, on average these women stop menstruating two-and-a-half years earlier than those without diabetes.

Researchers believe this occurs because their insulin deficiency and high blood sugar levels disrupt the reproductive system’s normal function.

Dr Stephanie Faubion, medical director of the North American Menopause Society, said: ‘These women are also at increased risk of cardiovascular disease, osteoporosis, and early mortality because of early natural menopause.’

Young people are having less casual sex because they are drinking alcohol less and playing video games more, a new study suggests.

In a survey of 2,000 18-to-24-year-olds, scientists at Albany State University in the US found that more than a third of young men who said they were having less casual sex also claimed to be drinking less, while a quarter said they were playing video games more.

One in four young women who reported having less casual sex were drinking less – though video-gaming apparently had no impact on their casual sex.

Young people are having less casual sex as they are spending more time playing video games