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NHS bosses’ warning over NHS reform, acupuncture ‘helps’ woman have a baby, and why Bob Geldof was wrong all along

By Gareth Iacobucci

Our roundup of health news headlines on Tuesday 12 October.

The Guardian – one of the most vocally opposed papers to Andrew Lansley's healthcare reforms – is quick to jump on the NHS Confederation's warnings in its response to the white paper – reported here by Pulse, where managers warn about the 'hazardous journey' ahead that they say presents 'real danger of failures in care'.

Also in the Guardian, we read how a US patient with a damaged spinal cord has become the first to be injected with embryonic stem cells in a landmark clinical trial of the therapy.

The paper also reports that a doctor accused of failing to spot Baby P's abuse days before his death is seeking to have her name removed from the medical register. Consultant paediatrician Dr Sabah al-Zayyat was due to face misconduct allegations but the GMC hearing was adjourned after a fitness to practise panel heard she was 'suicidal', unfit to defend herself and had left the country.

Doctors are hailing a new drug which fights advanced prostate cancer as a 'significant move forward' in treatment of the disease, says the Telegraph.

The Mail reports on a slightly more esoteric piece of research from Mr Scientist, which suggests that those wishing to lose weight are better off being kept in the dark. According to a study, those living in well-lit towns or cities are more likely to become obese than those living in the country – even if they eat the same amount.

'Acupuncture ended our three-year wait for a baby', is the headline in the Mail, who talk to Dawn Paddock, a 31-year old nurse who believes that three half-hour sessions of the ancient Chinese practice helped her conceive their son, Shay after three unsuccessful years of trying for a baby. A worthy alternative or pure bunkum?

Bob Geldof may not have been fond of Mondays, but new research suggests that the eco-maniac might have been barking up the wrong tree with his infamous ditty, with the Mail reporting that we are most likely to feel down in the dumps on a Tuesday.

According to researchers from the London School of Economics, although our weekend buzz drops when the working week begins on Monday, it is on Tuesdays that we reach our lowest ebb.

Spotted a story we've missed? Let us know, and we'll update the digest throughout the day...

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