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24/01/2011

The flu risks of public transport. Mental health in the Falkland Islands. How thinking about your ancestors can boost your intelligence. And why regular breaks from your desk are good for your heart

Travelling by bus or tram makes you roughly six times more likely to have a respiratory infection a few days later, according to research from Nottingham University in the UK. However, regular users are less vulnerable than people who only use public transport occasionally.

Psychiatrist Dr Tim McInerney reports on mental health care in the Falkland Islands in the South Atlantic. He talks to doctors and patients and finds out how a new Mental Health Act could make life easier for everyone.

Many people enjoy thinking about their ancestors. Now new research published in the European Journal of Social Psychology suggests it鈥檚 not just pleasurable, it may actually make you more clever. Peter Fischer studied what happened when people thought about their forefathers just before taking an intelligence test and found that those who thought about the past members of their families were more likely to do well in the tests. He believes people are more motivated to succeed when they think about their ancestors.

Taking regular breaks from your desk is good for your heart. Sitting for long periods is not good for your heart according to research published in the European Heart Journal. But the research also shows that apparently minor exercise like getting up and down from your desk to make a cup of tea or go to the printer can make a real difference to the heart health of millions of office workers.

Available now

28 minutes

Last on

Sat 29 Jan 2011 05:32GMT

Chapters

  • The flu risks of public transport

    Travelling by bus or tram makes you roughly six times more likely to have an acute respiratory infection. Claudia Hammond talks to Professor Jonathan Van Tam

    Duration: 08:54

  • Mental health care in the Falkland Islands

    We talk to patients and doctors including Dr Tim McInerney about the changing face of mental health care in the Falkland Islands

    Duration: 05:32

  • Exercise in the office

    Claudia Hammond talks to Amy Thompson of the British Heart Foundation to find out if getting up from your desk at work to go to the printer really counts as exercise

    Duration: 05:45

  • Intelligence boosting memories

    New research shows thinking about your ancestors just before a test makes you more likely to succeed. Claudia Hammond talks to Professor Peter Fischer

    Duration: 08:34

Broadcasts

  • Mon 24 Jan 2011 10:32GMT
  • Mon 24 Jan 2011 15:32GMT
  • Mon 24 Jan 2011 20:32GMT
  • Tue 25 Jan 2011 01:32GMT
  • Sat 29 Jan 2011 05:32GMT

Podcast