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The chemical used to line cans, bisphenol A (BPA), had already been banned from baby bottle in the EU but is currently still used as a coating for soup cans because it prevents the tin from rusting and keeps the soup fresh.

In a test of 75 adults it was revealed that BPA was ingested when the participants ate soup and it was then detected in large amounts of their urine.

Study author Jenny Carwhile has said that it has been known for some time now that consuming beverages which are packaged in hard plastic packages can increase BPA ingestion, but this study suggests that canned foods may be cause for additional concern given their wide usage.

As it stands the levels of BPA obtained from soup cans does not pose a risk to the health of consumers, but the findings have warranted...

During the 1960s the Egg Marketing board launched a campaign with the slogan ‘Go to work on egg’, in an attempt to convince cereal and toast lovers up and down the country that an egg based breakfast is better than a sugar laden one for keeping you awake and alert during work.

Well it would seem that the Egg Marketing Board were right after all, because according to researchers from Cambridge University, some of the proteins which are found in eggs (particularly in egg whites) are far more effective in helping us to stay awake than the carbohydrates found in chocolate and biscuits.

The researchers looked at how certain nutrients can affect the brain cells that keep us awake. What they found was that a mixture of proteins very similar in make-up to that of the content found in egg whites, activated these cells and triggered the release...

From a very early age Callum Lowe was affected by a skin condition known as psoriasis. Psoriasis is characterised by scaly red and white patches on the body and for Callum these patches covered up to 60 per cent of his body.

The condition is caused by overactive immune cells which speed up the production of skins cells which don’t shed as quickly as they are created. This series of events results in the development of the scaly patches.

A third of psoriasis sufferers have a family history of the disease, though injury and stress are known to be contributing factors in some cases.

In Callums case, doctors tried a variety of treatments in a bid to reduce the severity of his skin condition, ranging from steroid creams right through to immuno-suppressant drugs and even light...

According to a recent study conducted by a team of researchers from Northumbria University, drinking cherry juice can significantly increase the production of the sleep inducing hormone melatonin.

Drinking a glass of Montmorency cherry juice before bedding down for the evening could help you to get an extra 25 minutes of sleep per night.

According the study, which involved participants drinking a 30ml serving of the juice each day for seven days, levels of sleep regulating melatonin found in their urine increased by between 15 and 16%.

Exercise physiologist Dr Howatson has said that the results of this study could be used to facilitate healthy sleep in adults, for instance in those who suffer from insomnia related to shift work, or from jet lag.

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