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Among the more interesting developments in public health in recent years have been a range of efforts to curb smoking, which have included the use of vaping as a less harmful alternative and plans to raise the minimum smoking age by a year every 12 months to create a ‘smoke-free’ generation.

Across the UK, the number lighting up has been falling, with 12.9 per cent of the adult population smoking in 2022, the most recent year for which data is available. This was the lowest proportion on record in the decade that comparable information had been collected.

The rate of smoking was higher than average in Scotland at 13.9 per cent, but this was lower than in Wales or Northern Ireland.

Such a decline has not come about by accident, although the groups who smoke the most are not older demographics from an age where this was more common, but the 25-34 age range.

That suggests many older people have managed to kick the habit. But can you do it, and how? This is when discovering how local pharmacies’ stop smoking services can help can be a great step towards successfully quitting, especially if you have tried to stop in the past but have not managed to.

Vaping is one way that has been frequently tried. Notably, the 16-24 age range saw the largest increase in vape use in the decade to 2022, up nearly a third. This reflects the popularity of vaping with younger people, which, sadly, also comes with the problem that many underage children vape illegally.

However, the NHS backs vaping as a less harmful (though not harmless) alternative to smoking. The chief difference is that vapes lack the tar and other carcinogenic chemicals that cigarettes do, which reduces the potential for users to suffer diseases like lung cancer.

Smoking itself may yet be subject to new legislation that raises the minimum age every year. This idea was first legislated for in New Zealand but dropped following a change of government there.

Some might expect plans unveiled by the Conservative government might go the same way if, as the polls strongly suggest, they lose office in the general election. The calling of the poll for July 4^th meant some bills did not make it through Parliament to the statute books before it was dissolved and this was one of them.

However, a new survey carried out by YouGov for the charity Action on Smoking and Health revealed overwhelming public support for such a ban. It found a majority of voters in every one of the 650 constituencies in the upcoming election backed the idea, with support ranging from 57 to 74 per cent.

The idea also had majority support from the 11-15 age group at whom the plan was chiefly aimed. This suggests that, even with a change of government, this is one policy that might still be implemented by whoever is in power on July 5^th.

You may be too old to be impacted by such a ban personally, but the public sentiment shows it is increasingly seen as not cool to smoke. That may act as an extra spur for you to stop, but whether it is through vaping, gum, nicotine patches, or something else, make sure you get the help you need to quit for good.

Women have to deal with their monthly period for decades, starting from their pre-teens all the way till their 40s or 50s. However, they do not need to be restricted by it their whole lives, as there is always the option to get period delay treatment from their local pharmacy for times they need it.

What is period delay treatment?

Period delay treatment comes in the form of tablets that work by preventing ovulation from occuring by maintaining high progesterone levels in the body. This means the uterus lining remains and does not break down like it would during a period.

The tablets need to be started a few days before your period is due and have to be carried on until you are ready for your period to come. Your bleed is likely to arrive around three days after stopping the pills.

Therefore, it cannot stop your period altogether but it can postpone it until it is a more convenient time for it to come.

Why would you want to delay your period?

There are many reasons why women, who might have had their periods since they were 12 years old, might want to have more control over when they turn up.

Some people even start puberty much earlier and have been restricted in their 28-day cycle for many years.

During this time, they might have had to skip swimming lessons, avoid wearing certain colours in case they have a leak, face acne breakouts at the worst possible time, suffer from fatigue, endure problems with their sex drive, and feel incredibly bloated without any warning.

Periods can also leave women feeling irritable, suffering from constipation or diarrhoea, with joint pain, struggling to sleep, and putting up with breast tenderness.

Many females also get extreme abdominal cramps during their period, resulting in them not feeling well enough to get out of bed in some cases.

Therefore, there are some occasions or events they might want to avoid these symptoms, including:

• Their wedding day
• Their honeymoon
• A major exercise competition
• A big race
• A special event you want to look and feel your best at
• Swimming
• A big exam or interview
• An important date

What are the other reasons doctors prescribe period delay treatment for?

GPs can also prescribe period delay treatment if they think it will help relieve some difficult menstrual symptoms. These include having heavy or painful periods, getting irregular periods, bleeding more frequently than every 28 days, or suffering badly from premenstrual tension.

They can also give it to women who have endometriosis, which is when the uterus tissue grows outside of the womb causing lots of pelvic pain. It can also result in painful sex, urination, or defecation.

Periods are also usually very heavy, while patients typically become fatigued and bloated, and may also feel depressed or anxious.

Taking period delay treatment can help in these circumstances by regulating hormones better.

With summer fast approaching, many people will be planning their getaways, with bookings made, clothes being bought and passports checked to ensure they are in-date. Glasgow Airport will soon be joining others getting busy in the great summer getaway.

However, whether your summer holiday will be happening in early summer or whether it has to wait for the school holidays, you will also need to check if you need to take care of some extra medical needs. In some cases, you should book a visit to our travel health clinic in Glasgow to get the jabs and other treatments you might require.

Of course, if your holiday is in the UK you won’t need anything like that and in most developed countries, such as Europe or the US and Canada, the only extra concern should be to have your travel insurance in place (especially for America). But elsewhere, there is much to consider.

It is when you travel to the tropics that you are likely to start to need inoculations, but where exactly you go will determine what you need.

Yellow Fever is one example of this. According to World Health Organization (WHO) data published last year, this disease, which is spread through mosquito bites, is endemic in 34 African countries and 13 in Latin America. While only occasionally fatal, it is a nasty virus to get and definitely not something you want on holiday.

Therefore, if you are travelling to a country where yellow fever is endemic, you should get vaccinated. Some of these countries will require proof of vaccination. Fortunately, modern vaccines against the disease are effective for life, whereas in the past a booster would be needed after ten years.

Hepatitis is another viral infection you can get mainly in the tropics. A viral liver disease, it is currently killing an increasing number of people, according to the WHO. This is largely down to low vaccination rates in developing countries. But you can get your jabs before you go.

Hepatitis A It is usually caught from unclean water, although intimate contact with an infected person can also spread it. The virus is common in sub-Saharan Africa, much of Asia and Latin America. The vaccine is not routinely offered to people in the UK, so you should only get it if you are travelling to an at-risk country or in close contact with an infected person.

Similarly, Hepatitis B is a risk only in certain places, including parts of Africa and Africa, although there is also a risk in the Pacific Islands and some parts of eastern Europe. Once again, a vaccine is available.

However, it is worth noting that infection risks for both A and B versions are increased by activities such as unprotected sexual contact and needle sharing, which are risky activities you should avoid anyway.

Some other treatments will depend on where you go. Antimalarial tablets will usually be issued for trips to Sub-Saharan Africa, but rabies, while a deadly risk, can be treated with a course of injections just after a potentially infected scratch or bite. You should not need a jab unless you are going to be around potentially infected animals, like veterinary work.

It makes sense to see your GP and establish what you need, then get your jabs well in advance so they can take effect before you go.

With the spring and summer months filled with a number of bank holidays, most people are typically making arrangements for how they want to spend their time away from work or school, but before they do there is one action they should take now if they have a repeat prescription.

If your GP has advised that you are going to take more than one course of a given medicine, they will typically set up a repeat prescription to make it easier for you to get the medication you need if you are running low.

Generally, your pharmacy will work on your repeat prescription as soon as possible and many pharmacies can either offer or signpost a reminder service to ensure that you receive it before your medication supply runs low.

Exactly how long it takes can vary on a few factors, such as the type of medication, whether you need to provide additional information for certain prescriptions, whether you get it delivered or collect it from your pharmacy, as well as the general availability of certain medicines.

Typically it takes two days, but it is advised to order them seven days in advance just to make sure you have them, especially if you need GP approval.

However, there are a few times in the year when it is best to order your prescriptions earlier than usual, and that is around bank holidays. Whilst Christmas, New Year and Easter have already been and gone, there are still some more holidays to come.

On bank holidays, GP’s offices and some pharmacies will be closed, and in the run-up to a bank holiday weekend, there will be a lot more requests for repeat prescriptions than usual, which can sometimes cause delays in getting your medication.

Generally, if this is the reason for an early repeat prescription order, it will typically be approved early, but there are other reasons why you might need a repeat prescription and as these might require a consultation with your GP, getting in touch as soon as possible is essential.

If you do run out of your prescribed medicine and need it urgently, an emergency prescription can be an option in some cases.

If you already have a prescription and need the medication, you can visit any pharmacy and if they have it in stock they will dispense your medication.

In other cases, the NHS 111 service can provide non-emergency medical advice if your usual pharmacy is closed, such as on a bank holiday or outside of typical opening hours.

Community pharmacists will usually carry out a few face-to-face checks and confirm that you have been prescribed the medicine before and to make sure it is the most appropriate dose. If you have a copy of your repeat prescription or the packaging of your prescription medicine that usually has the information they need.

This means they can provide a 30-day supply of the most common prescription medication, a tube of topical medication or an inhaler, depending on the particular medicine you need.

The best way to avoid this, however, is to order as soon as possible, and your local community pharmacy will help you every step of the way.

The invention of Viagra in the 1990s brought waves of joy to many people. Some of them were cartoonists and comedians, but for the most part, it was men whose erectile dysfunction (ED) problems appeared to be over.

Of course, it wasn’t quite that simple, not least because ED can be a symptom of wider medical problems. It is associated with, among other conditions, obesity, diabetes, heart disease, high blood pressure, raised cholesterol, or psychological issues such as depression. Some research has strongly indicated it can also be a consequence of Long Covid.

What that means is that if you suffer from ED symptoms, it is extremely unwise to try to solve the issue simply by ordering private supplies of sildenafil or any other ED medication. Instead, you should be coming to the pharmacy to pick up an erectile dysfunction prescription only if and when your GP has agreed this is the best approach.

The fact that your condition could be a symptom of something else that urgently needs addressing is not the only major medical reason not to go down this road. Taking ED drugs without a prescription can also mean you suffer unanticipated side effects that can damage your health in other ways.

A recent report in the London Evening Standard showed the kind of unexpected problem that can occur when ED drugs are acquired from unofficial and unregulated sources. It covered the case of a raid on a shop in the Southall area of west London, where sildenafil, the active ingredient in Viagra, was among the haul of illicit items recovered.

The fact that such illegal suppliers exist might tempt some people to get their ‘supplies’ in this fashion, one reason being that they can be acquired without the embarrassment some might feel of going to their GP or picking them up over the counter at the pharmacy, as well as doubts over whether they might be prescribed them in the first place.

A good reason for not prescribing such drugs in some cases is that a patient does not relay need them. This is particularly true if they are trying to compensate for issues like excess alcohol consumption, which can curb erections.

In the US, the recreational misuse of erectile dysfunction drugs is rife and Cleveland Clinic urologist Raevti Bole told the New York Post that recreational use is a very bad idea, as they can be addictive. Moreover, he noted, that some users are not taking them for sexual performance reasons at all, but in the belief they can enhance athletic performance.

“For people who are healthy, there’s no good evidence that the medications significantly improve athletic abilities in a standard, sea-level environment,” he cautioned.

Part of the problem, Dr Bole explained, is that ED drugs are PDE5 inhibitors that lower blood pressure. If these are being taken at the same time as other drugs that also lower blood pressure, the combined effect can be extremely dangerous.

As the Southall incident shows, the problems Dr Bole described are not just confined to the US. If you have ED symptoms, it is vital to see your GP to make sure it is safe to take them alongside any other medication you have, as well as getting checked for any other associated medical issues that might need major interventions.

Anyone wanting to protect themselves from Covid-19 who is not already eligible for free vaccinations can now book private jabs at some pharmacies in Scotland.

Who can book a private Covid-19 jab?

This is the first time Covid inoculations will be available to purchase in the UK for anyone over the age of 12, thanks to Pharmadoctor releasing it to local chemists.

Speaking with The Guardian, Graham Thoms, chief executive of Pharmadoctor, said: “Over the coming weeks, as pharmacists come on board to offer the service, the network will build and we expect it to mirror the private flu service, which we support thousands of pharmacies to offer each year.”

Currently, 27 chemists across England and Scotland are able to provide the vaccination, but it is expected that lots more pharmacies will come on board if demand for the jab is high.

The government has now restricted the free inoculation to just those who are over the age of 75, care home residents, and anyone who is immunosuppressed. However, this means that millions of Brits are being left compromised, as they last received a Covid booster in 2021.

Therefore, their immunity to the virus is likely to have diminished, making them vulnerable to contracting the illness if they come into contact with someone who has it.

What does the vaccination include?

Those who are keen to boost their immunity against Covid-19 can receive either the Pfizer/BioNTech jab, which costs between £75 and £85, or the Novavax one for £45 to £55. However, the price could vary from pharmacy to pharmacy.

The former vaccine is based on mRNA or adenovirus platforms, which is newer technology. However, the latter jab, which particularly protects against the Omicron XBB.1.5 subvariant of the Sars-CoV-2 virus, is a protein-based inoculation.

More types of vaccines will also be added to the list once they are licensed.

How to book an appointment

Members of the public who are not eligible for the free NHS jab can book their private vaccination at their local pharmacy. Appointments can now be booked in many pharmacies, though availability is likely to increase with time.

It is worth keeping an eye out to see if your local chemist is providing the service, as awareness of the private jab grows.

Before getting the vaccination, patients will need to have a face-to-face consultation with the pharmacist to check they are clinically appropriate for it.

Those who want to avoid getting Covid-19 and particularly Long Covid are going to be the first in line in the booking system, as the virus still has a list of unpleasant symptoms even if it is not as dangerous as it was when it initially spread across the world in 2020.

These include a fever, cough, difficulty breathing, fatigue, muscle aches, headaches, loss of taste or smell, sore throat, congestion, nausea or vomiting and diarrhoea.

The journey for a medication from the laboratory to the pharmacy is long and often fraught with complexities, to ensure that any drugs that are used are safe, work well and are good value for money.

According to Pfizer, one of the biggest pharmaceutical companies in the world, medication can take over 10 years to develop, from making a promising discovery, through several phases of clinical trials before finally reaching patients who need them.

This time, as well as the expense of drug research, can be frustrating for people who find that there is a promising treatment for a condition that they have but it has yet to receive approval.

However, is there an alternative approach that could provide medical treatments much faster and in a way that is more affordable for researchers and patients alike?

What Is Drug Repurposing?

The concept of drug repurposing is simple; instead of going through the entire trial and approval process, a manufacturer could take an existing drug used to treat another condition and explore whether it could be used to treat another condition.

The advantages are that because the drug is already known and has already passed several safety tests, it has fewer clinical trial stages to go through, it is already being manufactured so it can be provided to pharmacies faster, and would be more affordable to do research on and produce.

There are a lot of examples of this, with repositioning both being used to treat seemingly untreatable conditions as well as provide a way for research on neglected diseases to be carried out affordably.

There are several famous examples of drug repurposing in action. One of the most famous of these was a vasodilator used to treat high blood pressure by the name of minoxidil.

First approved in 1979, the Upjohn Company (later a division of Pfizer) explored the potential for repurposing the medication for hypertension similar to what would later happen with sildenafil.

However, when a study demonstrated a remarkable level of hair growth, the research quickly changed to see if minoxidil could potentially be used to treat hair loss, a condition without a reliable treatment at the time.

Ultimately, after it was discovered that doctors were providing minoxidil to balding patients as an off-label, the medication was eventually approved for hair loss and has continued to be used ever since.

Another particularly striking example came in the treatment of leprosy using thalidomide.

In the 1950s, thalidomide was at the centre of one of the biggest medical controversies in history, as a gap in how drugs were tested at the time led to severe birth defects that caused lifelong medical complications.

This led to it being banned, but during that time, Jacob Sheskin, a doctor based in Jerusalem found that the medication helped to relieve one of the major symptoms of leprosy, erythema nodosum leprosum (ENL).

It was approved in Brazil in 1965 and by the American Food and Drug Administration in 1998 albeit with exceptionally strict conditions on its use to avoid the side effects that led to its ban in the first place.

Whilst it is not the first-line treatment anymore, it has helped treat a condition that was seen as difficult to treat for thousands of years.

Few health conditions can be as distressing or embarrassing for a man as erectile dysfunction, or ED. On the one hand, it brings the prospect of being deprived of one of life’s greatest pleasures. On the other, it erodes self-esteem, can contribute to depression and is something nobody wants to admit to.

Of course, it is impossible to conceal it from everyone, unless you are single. Indeed, your partner may play a significant role in persuading you to seek medical attention, however awkward and cringe-worthy it may feel.

After all, ED can often be linked to wider health issues such as obesity, Parkinson’s disease, diabetes, high blood pressure, or heart disease. If these have not been diagnosed, your ED might be a sign that prompts you to act and thus enable you to access the treatments you need for those other health conditions. That could save your whole life, not just your sex life.

At the same time, while there may be preventative steps you can take to tackle ED like taking more exercise, cutting down on alcohol, or giving up smoking, your GP may be able to prescribe you something that can help treat your condition.

Talking to your GP is one thing; at least you can be assured they have seen it all before and everything is private and confidential. But picking up an erectile dysfunction prescription may seem like another matter altogether. After all, a prescription counter at a pharmacy can seem like a very public place compared to the surgery at a local medical practice.

However, it is important to remember that every pharmacist is highly trained in what they do and they will come into the role with the full knowledge that they will be giving out prescriptions for medication like yours.

Suffering ED can make you feel lonely and isolated, but you are not the only one and your pharmacist will have handed out the same prescriptions or very similar to countless men. They won’t bat an eyelid.

It is true that when Viagra was first patented and licensed in the 1990s it gained huge media attention, with comedians and cartoonists having a field day. But when you think about it, as a medication it is designed to restore a function most would take for granted, which is, after all, what so many medicines are about.

If you do feel anxious about picking up ED medication over the counter, it is worth remembering what other embarrassing problems others will be collecting their medication for that very same day. Among them will be people struggling with specifically female conditions, haemorrhoids, or other nasty things they really don’t want anyone to know about.

To our professional staff, dealing with these conditions and dispensing prescriptions for medication to treat them is an everyday reality.

You should never let embarrassment or squeamishness stop you from getting help for any medical condition. Not only can it help ensure any wider health issues are addressed, but in the case of ED you can get the best possible relief from your troubling symptoms in a way that will soon make you glad for what you picked up from our counter.

Having a healthy diet is important for everyone, but there are some people for whom this means taking extra steps to either include more of particular food and drink ingredients or eliminate them from their intake.

The second category can include those with food allergies, those with lactose intolerance and sufferers of coeliac disease or dermatitis herpetiformis, who need to go gluten-free.

If you are in the latter category, you will be in good company. Public awareness of gluten intolerance and its health consequences has grown in recent years, partly thanks to some famous individuals acknowledging a problem in this area.

These include people like tennis star Novak Djokovic, whose adoption of a gluten-free diet enabled him to reach supreme levels of endurance and athletic fitness, so that he could fulfil his huge talent. He is proof that a gluten-free diet can be life-enhancing, not life-limiting.

However, gluten intolerance is a problem that has been understood for decades and while it may seem that gluten-free products are now more broadly available, it has been possible to be prescribed gluten-free food on the NHS since the 1960s.

A Westminster government inquiry in 2017 into the provision of gluten-free food on prescription led to the adoption of new guidelines in England in late 2018. This limited the list of foods available by prescription to bread and mixes. This decision was based mainly on the fact that more gluten-free options are available in the shops.

However, in Scotland, the range of foods you can be prescribed on the NHS is wider. In the case of the Greater Glasgow and Clyde area, you can get bread, bread mix, crackers, pasta, pizza bases and cereals.

This wider range of foods can be invaluable in helping maintain a healthy, gluten-free diet. Because prescriptions are free here in Scotland unlike most in England, it can also make a significant difference for those on low incomes who might struggle to afford some gluten-free foods in the shops.

Prescription gluten-free food is available via the Gluten Free Food Service, which runs across Scotland through community pharmacies like ours. Anyone living in Scotland, registered with a GP and diagnosed with coeliac disease or dermatitis herpetiformis can use the service.

Our experienced pharmacists will be on hand to help you with this. That should include an annual health check in which your weight and height will be measured, you will be asked relevant questions about your diet and you will get a chance to ask your own questions and raise any problems or fears you have.

Nothing about the annual check will alter the volume of the order to which you are entitled and you can change the order whenever you wish; for example, you might want more pizza bases and less bread if you have a party coming up.

If you have just been diagnosed as gluten intolerant for the first time, it may seem like bad news as it means there are some foods you will have to cut out of your diet. But you will soon feel liberated as you enjoy the benefits of better gut health and more energy.