Laurel Ives

My Recent Work

Which? •

Do vitamin patches really work? - Which?

Vitamin and herbal skin patches have become increasingly mainstream in recent years. Marketed as convenient fixes for common complaints such as low energy, fatigue, anxiety, weight management and period pain, the patches typically contain a mix of vitamins, herbs and essential oils. With shiny packaging and appealing promises, they offer a tempting ’peel, stick and go’ alternative to pills - so much so that industry researchers forecast the global vitamin patch market will reach around $714.96m...
Which? •

Why IV vitamin drips are a waste of money - and could even be harmful - Which?

It’s winter, it’s grim outside, and winter bugs such as colds and flu are rife. Combine that with party season excess and end-of-year pressure and many of us are left feeling run down.It’s hardly a surprise then that vitamin intravenous (IV) drips – with their alluring promises of 'boosting your immune system', 'fighting fatigue', and 'helping hangovers' –  are tempting more people to try them. Once the preserve of luxury wellness clinics, these drips have now spread to gyms, shopping centres an...
The Telegraph •

Why poor gut health might be the hidden cause of your back pain

Whether we’re flat on our backs and barely able to move, hobbling awkwardly or forced to skip work or exercise, most of us have endured the miserable reality of back pain.Back pain is the single leading cause of disability in the world, according to the World Health Organisation, and in the UK, musculoskeletal disorders accounted for 7.8 million lost working days in 2023 to 2024.Frustratingly, though, back pain is often “non-specific”, meaning there’s no obvious cause. So we spend millions on er...
The Telegraph •

The diets to avoid if you’re worried about your heart (and the ones to try instead)

“I have patients who think nothing of starting dinner with baked camembert, moving on to steak, then treating themselves to a dessert and cheese board,” says Dr Oliver Guttmann, consultant cardiologist at St Bartholomew’s Hospital and the Wellington Hospital. “I say to them, enjoy life, but everything should be in moderation – sometimes have fish instead of steak, or get a fruit salad rather than cheese.”When it comes to heart health, what we eat is vitally important. Cardiovascular disease is r...
The Telegraph •

What happens to your body when you stop taking Mounjaro

“The weeks after I stopped Mounjaro were crazy. The hunger was uncontrollable. I went to bed thinking about food and woke up thinking about food. If I’d been at an all-you-can-eat buffet, I would have eaten it all. It was the worst three weeks of my life,” recalls Karen Lay, 56, who works in financial services.Like many of the approximately 1.5 million people in the UK taking GLP-1 weight-loss drugs (named after the hormone they mimic in the brain), Lay found that when she wanted to stop, suppor...
ReSolve GlobalHealth •

Care models evolving to meet women’s heart health needs

There are also major geographical differences in control rates where people are managing hypertension after being diagnosed. In South Korea and Canada, for example, control rates are 57%, but in sub-Saharan Africa they are less than 10%, and for some islands in Oceania, as low as 5%, according to a 2021 Lancet report. It also noted that 50–60% of women and nearly 70% of men with hypertension were unaware of their condition.In Nigeria, where rates have risen sharply, especially for women, there i...

What's the best healthy sugar alternative?

The average person in Britain consumes a whooping 19 teaspoons of sugar every day – double the recommended amount.
Many of us are trying to cut back, and sweeteners are an obvious solution. But it can be hard to know what’s best.
A 2024 Leeds University study could help dieters – participants eating sweeteners experienced slightly better weight maintenance than sugar-eaters, plus reduced cravings for sweet foods and improved mood, while it didn’t increase their risk of diabetes or heart diseas...
The Telegraph •

The worst foods for cellulite

Orange peel. Cottage cheese. Dimples in the wrong places. Cellulite is one of the most common, and stubborn, body complaints. It’s harmless but there’s still no definitive cure.It happens when fat pushes through a web of connective tissue beneath the skin, a bit like a lumpy mattress with loose springs and bulging stuffing.“Cellulite is the inflammation of the fat tissue, and it has many causes including poor circulation, hormonal changes, ageing, genetics, and lifestyle choices including lack o...
Which? •

How to get the most from your GP appointment - Which?

Just getting a GP appointment can be a challenge for many, but once you're there, how can you make the most of your allotted time to get the health results you want?That seems to be a struggle for many. The 2025 British Social Attitudes Survey reported a steep drop in satisfaction with GP services: just 31% were satisfied in 2024, compared to 68% in 2019.From the 8am scramble for an appointment, to confusing online forms and the rise of telephone assessments, you might be frustrated before you e...
The Telegraph •

The seven things that make ADHD much worse

From forgotten appointments and lost keys to emotional ups and downs, poor sleep and chronic procrastination, living with ADHD can feel like being on a rollercoaster with no end in sight.While these daily struggles are frustrating, they rarely happen in isolation, and many things can make them worse. Research shows that those with ADHD often live with co-occurring mental health conditions such as anxiety and depression, as well as other neurodevelopmental disorders like autism or dyslexia. There...
The Telegraph •

The weird experiences taking over English vineyards, from ice baths to a hobbit house

When it comes to a mini-break from the general gloom and doom of the news, many of us are turning to the booming UK vineyard scene for some much-needed fun and fizz.According to the first wine tourism report from the industry association Wines of Great Britain, 1.5 million people visited UK vineyards in 2023, a 55 per cent increase from 2022. Vineyards represent a bright spark of economic news, with over 1030 vineyards listed in 2023, a rise of 9.2 per cent in a year.Climate change is shifting t...
The Telegraph •

What alcohol does to your gut health

We all know that a healthy gut is vital for everything from fighting off colds and flu to conditions such as anxiety, depression, irritable bowel syndrome and more. We also know that eating a wide variety of plants, fermented foods and fibre will improve and maintain our gut health.Yet, unfortunately, even if we’re maxing out the kefir and kombucha, much of the good work is undone by a boozy dinner party or a few beers in the pub. Alcohol is uniquely harmful to our gut microbiome.“Consuming alco...
The Telegraph •

What alcohol does to your gut health

We all know that a healthy gut is vital for everything from fighting off colds and flu to conditions such as anxiety, depression, irritable bowel syndrome and more. We also know that eating a wide variety of plants, fermented foods and fibre will improve and maintain our gut health.Yet, unfortunately, even if we’re maxing out the kefir and kombucha, much of the good work is undone by a boozy dinner party or a few beers in the pub. Alcohol is uniquely harmful to our gut microbiome.“Consuming alco...
The Telegraph •

The British octogenarians swapping ‘dreary’ care homes for Thai luxury

Arriving at the Chiang Mai Care Resort in northern Thailand, you’d be forgiven for thinking you’re at a standard-issue, luxury Thai resort. A series of low-roof bungalows separated by palm trees and lush tropical plants are dotted around a peaceful lake. At one end are two swimming pools offering a respite from the heat, at another, an outdoor restaurant has views across the distant mountains.It’s only the sight of a nurse in uniform or a resident being gently pushed in a wheelchair that hints t...
The Telegraph •

Mood swings, anger and ADHD – separating fact from fiction

For people with ADHD, emotional dysregulation is often expressed as irritability, rude, snappy behaviour, or overreaction to certain triggers. These triggers might be noise, light or touch, as well as being over-sensitive to criticism and rejection, changes to their routine, and feeling overwhelmed by their difficulties with organisation and time management. “I’d get tired and stressed, and I’d then overthink things and sleep badly as a result. That would in turn make me more likely to react ang...
The Telegraph •

Why medicating people with ADHD isn’t always the answer

For Becky Stevenson, taking ADHD medication has been life-changing. “Before medication, it was like I had 30 TVs going on in my head at the same time. After the medication, it just stopped. Suddenly, I could think clearly and cope with all the challenges of being a mum and running a business,” says the 42-year-old business consultant.As the number of people being diagnosed with ADHD has soared, Stevenson’s experience is increasingly common. Since 2015, the number of prescribed drugs for ADHD has...
The Sunday Times •

I was a high-flying GP, before burnout. Here’s how I bounced back

‘My head was in my hands and I was shaking uncontrollably,” says Dr Claire Ashley, recalling an appointment in her GP surgery. “A patient had been very verbally abusive because they weren’t eligible for a sick note. After they left I started crying and I couldn’t stop. My next appointment was with a patient who I believed had a particularly nasty cancer and deserved the best from me, but I felt completely overwhelmed. I needed a break but instead I pulled myself together and pushed on.” It was 2...
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