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Trust in politicians is at a low ebb and the health of the UK democracy matters as much to voters as issues such as crime and immigration, according to a new report by the UCL Constitution Unit. Published today, the report found that most voters believe stronger mechanisms are needed to ensure politicians follow the rules, with four out of five saying the current system needs reform so that politicians who do not act with integrity can be punished.

An unwillingness among healthcare professionals to prescribe and dispense otherwise recommended medications is putting the health and lives of pregnant women at risk, finds a new study involving a UCL researcher. The research, published in BMJ Open and involving researchers at UCL, the Centre for Reproductive Research & Communication at BPAS, Cardiff University, and Pregnancy Sickness Support, highlights the experiences of women whose pharmacists had refused to dispense prescriptions made by their GP.

Researchers at UCL and University of Ghana have successfully predicted whether children have anaemia using only a set of smartphone images. The study, published in PLOS ONE , brought together researchers and clinicians at UCL Engineering, UCLH and Korle Bu Teaching Hospital, Ghana to investigate a new non-invasive diagnostic technique using smartphone photographs of the eye and face.

Baby formula manufacturers are marketing their products in ways that contravene guidance from the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC), according to a new study by UCL researchers. The peer-reviewed study, published in the journal Public Health Nutrition , analysed the wording and images on 71 formula products available in UK supermarkets and pharmacies.

Testing a population for multiple genes at once will be limited in its ability to accurately predict disease risk, argues a new paper involving UCL's Professor Aroon Hingorani. DNA sequence commonly varies between individuals at many different points throughout the genome. Some of these genetic variants influence individual risk of common diseases such as dementia, cancer, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease, through effects on the expression or function of the encoded proteins.

Loneliness can often contribute to depression in expectant and new mothers, finds a new review of evidence led by UCL researchers. The researchers say people working with expectant mothers, such as in antenatal classes or consultations, should be aware of the importance of loneliness and the value of encouraging new mothers to develop and maintain good social connections.

Rare diseases are varied and life-threatening, yet most still remain undiagnosed and have no effective treatments. Now, scientists at the UCL Neurogenetics Lab are focusing on these conditions, to find diagnoses and treatments that could be crucial for scientific discovery. There is a common misconception that rare diseases only affect a small number of people.

Researchers from the UCL Cancer Institute have provided important molecular understanding of how injury may contribute to the development of a relatively rare but often aggressive form of brain tumour called a glioma. Previous studies have suggested a possible link between head injury and increased rates of brain tumours, but the evidence is inconclusive.

Professor Amitava Banerjee (UCL Institute of Health Informatics) describes in The Conversation his team's recent research finding that 59 percent of long Covid patients suffered organ damage, even in individuals with less-severe initial infections. The latest data from the Office for National Statistics suggests that more than 1.2 million people in the UK report living with long COVID for 12 months or more.

Exercising at least once a month at any time in adulthood is linked to better cognitive functioning in later life, a new study led by UCL researchers has found. The study, published in the Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery, and Psychiatry looked at data from 1,417 people who filled in surveys about their leisure-time physical activity (sports and exercise) over three decades and took cognitive tests at the age of 69.

Adverse effects caused by the Covid-19 pandemic could have lasting implications for children under five who are living in temporary accommodation in London, finds a new study led by UCL researchers. The research, published in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, examined the impact of not having a fixed address during the Covid-19 pandemic on the healthcare access and health outcomes of children under five living in the London Borough of Newham.

A UCL-led research team has, for the first time, identified a specific region of chromosome 21, which causes issues with memory function and anxiety in a mouse that models Down syndrome, a finding that provides valuable new insight into the condition in people. Most people have 46 chromosomes in each cell, divided into 23 pairs: people with Down syndrome (DS) have an extra copy of chromosome 21, which carries over 200 genes.

A new diagnostic technology, developed by scientists at UCL, that uses tiny fibre optic sensors to detect the causes of heart disease, more quickly and accurately than existing methods, has been used for the first time in patients. The iKOr device uses an ultra-thin microcatheter integrated with fibre optic sensors and allows doctors to check both blood pressure and blood flow around the heart and look for signs of narrowing and thickening of the arteries - a common sign of disease.

Organ damage persisted in 59% of long Covid patients a year after initial symptoms, even in those not severely affected when first diagnosed with the virus, according to a comprehensive new study co-led by a UCL researcher. The study, published in the Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine , focused on patients reporting extreme breathlessness, cognitive dysfunction and poor health-related quality of life; 536 long Covid patients were included in the study.

Gut health is crucial for our wellbeing and numerous studies have found that imbalanced or disruptive gut microbiomes can lead to a wide range of disorders, including Parkinson's disease, depression and irritable bowel syndrome. One factor affecting our lifelong gut health is whether or not we received breast milk as babies.

The replication success of scientific research is linked to research methods, citation impact and social media coverage - but not university prestige or citation numbers - according to a new study involving UCL researchers. Published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences  ( PNAS ), the study explores the ability of a validated text-based machine learning model to predict the likelihood of successful replication for more than 14,100 psychology research articles published since 2000 across six top-tier journals.

The short-term effects of vaporised cannabis do not differ between adolescents and adults, while cannabidiol (CBD) does not dampen the effects of the drug, finds a new study led by UCL and King's College London researchers. For the experimental study published in Addiction , the researchers measured how regular cannabis users of different ages responded to inhaling cannabis with differing levels of CBD.

Links between an area's health and employment figures are stronger when looking at self-rated health measures, compared with life expectancy or mortality indicators, finds a new study by UCL researchers. The research, published in BMC Public Health, sought to evaluate which health indicator is most closely linked to labour market outcomes, such as not being in paid work, working hours (i.e.

Researchers at UCL and the University of Cambridge have discovered a new type of ice that more closely resembles liquid water than any other known ices and that may rewrite our understanding of water and its many anomalies. The newly discovered ice is amorphous - that is, its molecules are in a disorganised form, not neatly ordered as they are in ordinary, crystalline ice.

Using talking therapies to effectively treat depression in adults over the age of 65 may be clinically linked with slightly reduced rates of future dementia diagnosis, finds a new analysis of health data led by UCL researchers. In this first-of-its-kind study, published in  Psychological Medicine  and funded by the Alzheimer's Society, researchers assessed whether psychological therapies, such as Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT), used to treat depression could play a role in dementia risk reduction.