PublicHealthMatters

On the 4th March this year, the Government announced £100 million of new funding to help support people in achieving a healthier weight. This is a welcome move given the high prevalence of excess weight in England and the burden it places on individuals, families, social care and the NHS. Over the last 12 months … Read more

When we first started the COVID-19 Dashboard back in March 2020, it was just a map and a few charts reporting four metrics on cases and deaths. How that has changed in a year. We are now publishing nearly 200 metrics at 4pm each day – which adds up to about 40 million individual figures … Read more

Setting the foundations for health and wellbeing during pregnancy and in the early years is crucial to ensure we give every child the very best start in life as possible. It is also important that support and access to effective interventions is continued throughout the school-aged years. New parents need to be supported as they … Read more

As we carefully move forward from the restrictions we have lived under in recent months, COVID-19 infection incidents in care homes are coming down. We have now also had a change in guidance from the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) which includes visitor testing information and aims to enable more visiting for more … Read more

Since the disappearance and murder of Sarah Everard on the 3rd March, women around the world have been sharing their stories of catcalling, harassment, being exposed to and assault or their fears of these things happening to them every time they walk down the street. The pandemic of violence against women and girls (VAWG) or … Read more

We have published the first UK-wide report on children, teenage and young adult cancers in almost a decade. The report combines data on cancer incidence, survival and mortality from cancer registries in the four UK countries. This work is a collaboration between PHE and the national cancer registries in Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales. The … Read more

Coloured transmission electron micrograph (TEM) of a SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus particle isolated from a UK case of the disease Covid-19. The SIREN study looks for answers to the most important questions about reinfection and COVID-19. This blog sets out how PHE has led the national effort to develop the science that helps decision-makers control the disease. … Read more

Everyone knows smoking is very bad for physical health. But what about its impact on mental health? Many smokers believe that smoking helps to relieve stress, anxiety and low mood, when in fact the opposite is true. Today, for the first time, the national No Smoking Day campaign will focus on the significant benefits of … Read more

Wuhan city,China Looking out over a glistening South China Sea makes for an impressive background for your daily Zoom calls. After an illustrious career, including a spell as the deputy Chief Medical Officer for England, Professor John Watson had been planning to retire from PHE and start to slowly wind things down. The COVID-19 pandemic … Read more

Obesity is a global and complex public health concern. It is associated with reduced life expectancy and is a risk factor for a range of chronic diseases, including cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes, at least 12 kinds of cancer, liver and respiratory disease, and can also impact on mental health. As we now know that … Read more