An anxious Hammersmith reader, who is the girlfriend of a redundant City worker, asks if there is any truth in the rumour that the level of sexual promiscuity and drinking among City employees, or former employees, has risen because of the turmoil in the financial world and the consequent shedding of jobs.

Almost 37,000 NHS patients have died after catching either the MRSA or C-difficile hospital superbugs during Labour's time in office, official figures show. The two virulent infections claimed 36,674 lives between 1997 and 2007. Of those, 26,208 were from Clostridium difficile and 10,466 from MRSA. Numbers dying in England and Wales from C-difficile soared from 975 in 1999 to 8,324 last year, a jump of about 850 per cent, while fatalities linked to MRSA grew from 386 in 1997 to 1,593 in 2007.

The skeleton of a man discovered by archaeologists in a shallow grave on the site of the University of York’s campus expansion could be that of one of Britain’s earliest victims of tuberculosis. Radiocarbon dating suggests that the man died in the fourth century. He was interred in a shallow scoop in a flexed position, on his right side. The man, aged 26–35 years, suffered from iron deficiency anaemia during childhood and at 162 centimetres (5ft 4in), was a shorter height than average for Roman males. The first known case of TB in Britain is from the Iron Age (300 BC) but cases in the Roman period are fairly rare, and largely confined to the southern half of England. TB is most frequent from the 12th century AD in England when people were living in urban environments. So the skeleton may provide crucial evidence for the origin and development of the disease in this country.

Pandemic flu poses an even greater danger to individuals in the United Kingdom than terrorism and climate change, according to a new national risk register released by government officials from the Cabinet Office. Although terrorism was deemed a more likely event, a flu epidemic would affect more people and, according to government figures, could kill 50,000–70,000 people. Although enough doses of the anti-viral drug Tamiflu have been stockpiled to treat 25% of the population, a pandemic vaccine would take 4–6 months to manufacture and could not be developed until the virus had been identified. Experts cannot predict when a flu pandemic might occur, but think that it will eventually come in waves lasting 3–6 months over a period of 2 years and would generate "unprecedented levels of public fear, stress and panic". The Times/The Scotsman/BBC

Vaccinations against the virus which causes cervical cancer are to be offered to more than 3,000 schoolgirls throughout Cumbria. The HPV, or human papillomavirus, vaccine, which is given in three doses over six months, is being offered to all 12 and 13-year-old girls.

Ministers went ahead with the programme to vaccinate schoolgirls against cervical cancer despite government-funded research concluding that parents were widely opposed to the move, with many fearing it would give their daughters a licence to be promiscuous. Schools across the United Kingdom last week began offering all 12- and 13-year-old girls the vaccine against the human papilloma virus (HPV), blamed for causing 70 per cent of incidences of cervical cancer. Scottish schoolgirls last week became the first in the UK to be vaccinated. Pupils in England, Wales and Northern Ireland will follow in the coming weeks.

(BEIJING, August 19) -- Britain's Chris Hoy took the gold medal in the Cycling Track Men's Sprint final after out riding compatriot Jason Kenney who claimed the silver.

(QINGDAO, August 19) -- Paul Goodison of Great Britain clinched gold in the Laser (Men's One Person Dinghy) with a ninth finish in the medal race and an overall point total of 63

(BEIJING, August 18) -- Great Britain rewrote the history books with an Olympic and world record in winning the Men's Team Pursuit at the Laoshan Velodrome on Monday.

More effort is needed to spread HIV prevention information among African men and women now living in the UK, claim researchers. A survey conducted by the University of Portsmouth revealed commonly-held false beliefs about HIV infection. These included the fear that HIV diagnosis could lead to deportation from the UK.