- Veteran weather presenter is positive to assisted suicide
- Sian Lloyd says she would visit Dignitas rather than suffer
- The 55-year-old said she and husband would have a ‘pact’
16:00 EST, 17 May 2014
|
16:01 EST, 17 May 2014
0
View
comments
Veteran weather presenter Sian Lloyd has added her voice to the fierce debate about assisted dying – and says that if she was told she had a degenerative condition like her elderly mother, she would want to be helped to end her own life.
Her mother Barbara, 81, was diagnosed with Parkinson’s five years ago. The disease affects the brain and the nervous system, causing a slow decline into disability.
‘I believe in quality of life rather than quantity, and if I was severely ill and in pain, I wouldn’t want to be a burden on my husband,’ says Sian.
Veteran weather presenter Sian Lloyd says that if she was told she had a degenerative condition she would want to be helped to end her own life
‘I hope I would have the courage to go somewhere like Dignitas. I would rather there were places like that in this country.’
Last week TV presenters Richard Madeley, 58, and his wife Judy Finnegan, 65, revealed in an interview that they had a pact not to let the other suffer a long, undignified death. And former Blind Date host Cilla Black claimed she felt she might consider ending her own life having seen her mother battle a long-term illness.
Sian, 55, who is married to motor racing entrepreneur Jonathan Ashman, says: ‘My dad is a fit 82-year-old and is a very good cook, and he copes remarkably well with looking after my mum, but it’s difficult to see her gripped by this awful illness.
‘It has been very brave of Richard and Judy to come out and say what they did, and I think that Jonathan and I would do the same.’
Sian adds: ‘Of course I worry that I could get Parkinson’s even though there is no genetic link.’
A superhero’s guide to strokes
Heroic work: Comic book Medikidz explains what can go wrong in the human body
A new comic book for children has been launched to help them understand the effects of a stroke. The story follows the real-life experiences of 12-year-old Ethan King when his grandfather Ken Rudge suffers a stroke. Five superheroes explain what is happening to his body and brain.
There are about 152,000 incidents of stroke each year in the UK – equivalent to one every five minutes. Survivors can be left with paralysis, fatigue and emotional difficulties.
Written by leading doctors, Medikidz Explain Stroke outlines the after effects to a child. The comic is supported by the Stroke Association.
‘Until now, nothing has been available that is tailored specifically for children,’ says Peter Langhorne, president of the British Association of Stroke Physicians.
Learning a second language helps delay dementia, researchers suggest. A study by a team at Harvard University of 648 people from India, all of whom had varying degrees of dementia, found that those who spoke at least two languages developed the condition on average four years later than those who spoke just one.
Researchers say that language-learning strengthens the area of the brain associated with attention. However, the benefit is not increased by learning a third language – the study found that speaking more than two made no difference to the onset of dementia.
Doctors talk up Botox use
Another week, another new application for Botox. Doctors are now using the toxin – more famous as an anti-wrinkle treatment – to repair damage to vocal cords. It has been found to help treat lesions on them, known as vocal fold granulomas.
These occur as a result of irritation and inflammation caused by chronic acid reflux, or from too much talking, singing or shouting.
Previous treatments included bringing reflux under control, resting the voice and surgery, but results were mixed. Now doctors are injecting Botox into the muscles around the vocal cords to weaken them, so reducing the force with which the folds come together. This allows the granulomas to heal.
Nearly 90 per cent of lesions cleared up after three months, compared with 25 per cent treated with other therapies.
Gardening isn’t just good exercise for pensioners – people in their 20s can also reap the health benefits.
A study by researchers at Konkuk University and Hongik University in South Korea showed that performing moderate to high-intensity work in the garden not only lowered their cholesterol and blood pressure but also enhanced their psychological wellbeing.
Study participants, who were all in their 20s, each performed ten gardening tasks twice a week, such as planting, watering, harvesting, raking and weeding.
or comment on this article
-
Well that went well… Son gets a beating while pranking his…
-
GRAPHIC: Footage of sunken boat containing bodies of…
-
Teacher suspended for ten days for lifting boy by his neck
-
Cat saves boy from vicious dog attack in California
-
Driver manages to right semi after nearly toppling over
-
Baby born with rare disorder causing two faces
-
Girl clobbers her rival in the head with SHOVEL
-
Kind-hearted cops rescue dog stuck in mud for three days
-
Inside Dolly Parton’s 1980s New York Penthouse
-
Highlights from wacky candidates at Idaho GOP debate
-
Oprah and female journalists honor Barbara Walters
-
Iggy Azalea performs Fancy on Jimmy Kimmel Live
-
Pro surfer and model investigated for attempted murder of…
-
EXCLUSIVE: Bobby Kennedy ordered Marilyn Monroe’s murder by…
-
Faith and Hope are christened: Conjoined twin girls who…
-
Woman gives birth to rare ‘mono mono’ twins… just ONE WEEK…
-
Kate spends £1.5m turning historic home into a ‘WAG palace’…
-
The wife of radio host Casey Kasem is desperate to become a…
-
Portraits of stolen innocence: Heart-breaking pictures shed…
-
EXCLUSIVE: We’ll never give her back! Biological family of…
-
Purr genius: Hilarious photos show missing pet signs put up…
-
‘If I have one more drink I’ll die’: Grammy-nominated…
-
Girl, 10, ‘raped by eight-year-old classmate while his…
-
Incredible moment police rescued Pluto the pup after the dog…
Comments (0)
what you think
No comments have so far been submitted. Why not be the first to send us your thoughts,
or debate this issue live on our message boards.
Find out now