HEALTH NOTES: Office workers wired differently as 9 in 10 say they’re ‘neurodiverse’, study claims
HEALTH NOTES: UK office workers are wired differently as nine in 10 identify themselves as ‘neurodiverse’, study claims
Nine out of ten British office workers describe themselves as ‘neurodiverse’, according to a study.
It’s a term used by some to describe people who have brains that work differently than the average person, including conditions such as autism, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), dyslexia, and Gilles de la Tourette.
Studies suggest that about 15 to 20 percent of the population is neurodiverse.
However, this new research, conducted by online printing company Instantprint, suggests that the vast majority of people in the UK who work in an office environment claim to have one of these brain disorders.
The survey, which polled 1,000 people, also found that women were much more likely to identify as neurodiverse than men.
Nine out of 10 British office workers described themselves as ‘neurodiverse’, according to a survey (stock photo)
Bugs lurking in kitchens are usually safe
Most bacteria growing in kitchens are harmless, researchers have found.
A Norwegian team swept everything from sinks and countertops to cutting boards and cloths in 74 kitchens in five European countries.
Their results, published in the journal Applied and Environmental Microbiology, showed that the same eight types of bacteria grow in most kitchens, none of which are considered harmful to humans.
They concluded that the main source of illness in the kitchen is food containing insects, such as salmonella.
Patients with an aggressive form of endometrial cancer now have access to a breakthrough drug that significantly extends their lives.
About a quarter of patients have a form of the disease that is particularly difficult to treat because of the DNA of the cancer cells. When chemotherapy failed, there used to be no effective treatments available on the NHS – patients lived an average of eight months.
But in a study of 500 patients, 60 percent of those given the new drug dostarlimab were still alive two years later, compared with 15 percent of those who didn’t take it.
Health regulators last week approved dostarlimab for use in an unlicensed drug plan that is expected to benefit 725 patients with the life-threatening cancer next year.
Tesco sells a test that can detect urinary tract infections in less than two minutes.
The kit, which looks for substances in a urine sample, is designed to shorten the time patients wait to find out if they have the painful infection.
NHS figures show that around 40 per cent of people who have an appointment with a GP due to a urinary tract infection (UTI) have to wait longer than four weeks.
Left untreated, UTIs can damage the kidney and become life-threatening if it spreads into the blood.
Tesco sells a pack of three tests for around £10.