Overview of Health In the School of Psychology, Science Faculty

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Overview of Health In the School of Psychology,
Science Faculty

• Michael E Hyland

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Groups

• Auditory and other warnings
• Health Psychology
• Neuroscience

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Warnings

• The Schools Human Factors and Ergonomics group
  has considerable interest in human error and
  safety and have internationally recognised
  expertise in auditory and visual warning design
  and implementation.
• They have provided technical advice in the
  development of warnings standards by the
  International Standards Organisation and
  currently to the National Patient Safety Agency,
  for both visual and auditory warnings.
• One of the research councils Patient Safety
  Networks is also centred around this group.
• Professor Judy Edworthy Dr Liz Hellier

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Health and Psychology Research Group
(inter-faculty)

• Michael HylandIrving KirschJanet
  RichardsonMan Chung
• Pam Jacobs
• Paul Farrand
• Morag Prowse and many more
• 4 postgraduates

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Health Psychology Placebo and hypnosis related
research

• How important are placebo effects and can they be
  used in clinical practice?
• Can we improve compliance through suggestion

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Health Psychology self-help

• How useful are self-help packages and can they be
  improved?

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Health Psychology Menopause

• What factors contribute to good quality of life
  at the menopause?

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Health Psychology Post-traumatic stress

• Do life threatening diseases create PTSD?
• What factors make PTSD more likely?

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Health Psychology complementary medicine

• What is the mechanism underlying non-specific
  effects of CAM?
• What evidence is there for CAM efficacy?

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Health Psychology Respiratory disease

• How can the management of people with respiratory
  disease be improved?

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Neuroscience

• Chris Harris
• To understand the principles that govern human
  movement and their relationship to sensation and
  perception in health and disease at all ages.
• To put this understanding into practice to help
  people of all ages with sensorimotor and brain
  disorders

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Health related research in the School of
Biological Sciences

• Colleagues contribute to a number of research
  groups across the University and PMS
• The School has four groups two of which undertake
  health related research -
• Toxicology and Stress Biology
• Food, Nutrition and Health.

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Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy

• John Moody and Richard Handy collaborate with the
  Diving Diseases Research Centre. Topics of
  interest to this audience -
• Investigations into the mechanisms behind the
  beneficial effects of Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy
  on the healing of chronic wounds
• Investigations into the mechanism(s) of carbon
  monoxide toxicity particularly with respect to
  the heart.

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Repair of the damaged nervous system

• Stephen Thompsons group are working on
  fundamental molecular, cellular and systems
  mechanisms that underlie dysfunction within the
  damaged mammalian somatosensory nervous system.
  Main themes are -
• Understanding the fundamental mechanisms which
  contribute to chronic pain states
• Mechanisms that underlie repair and regeneration
  within the damaged peripheral and central
  nervous system

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Incorporating Genetics into Practice

• Karen Gresty and Andrew Evenden, with nurse
  colleagues in FHSW, will be presenting a paper at
  this conference (Friday p.m.)
• GeneSense is a free online resource designed to
  enable the support of genetics education in
  modern healthcare curricula and practice contexts

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Development of diabetes in young children. 

• Tamara Galloway has been working with Terry
  Wilkin on the Earlybird scheme. Two main
  themes -
• The ways in which the immunological damage that
  precedes the development of clinical symptoms can
  be predicted and monitored
• The environmental and nutritional factors that
  influence the development of diabetes at key
  stages of growth and development.

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Food, Nutrition and Health Research Themes.

• Assessment and improvement of food quality and
  safety
• Development of nutriceuticals and novel foods /
  food components (functional foods).
• Development of specific and food chain
  interventions to improve the quality of the human
  diet

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A new look at food dyes!

• Les Jervis - impact of food dyes at the cellular
  level.
• Approved dyes are widely used but -
• Conditions linked to allergic responses are
  increasing (e.g. Asthma and Irritable Bowel
  Syndrome)
• Why use them? Food dyes have NO nutritional
  benefits or preservative activity.
• Dyes like Sudan 1 dissolve in cell membranes and
  can then be metabolised into compounds that
  react with DNA.

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Trace element absorption across the gut

• Richard Handy
• Mechanisms of trace element absorption across the
  gut using in vitro models
• The relevance in the absorption of contaminants
  entering the human food chain.
• Magnesium regulation in heart disease

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Functional Foods

• Victor Kuri (presenting at this conference) is
  investigating the role of functional food
  components in the human diet
• Food innovation
• Functional foods (i.e. Prebiotics,
  probiotics, low-fat)
• Glycaemic index control
• Function and structure
• Food Safety and Quality
• Management of quality standards
• Lactic acid fermentation - traditional foods
• Consumer perception of foods

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Food chain interventions to improve the quality
of the human diet

• Jean Margerison has been investigating how cow
  diet can enhance the Selenium content of milk.
• Human Selenomethionine status is linked with the
  incidence of several cancers.
• Modifying provision through enhancement of a
  staple food like milk could be a significant
  public health intervention.

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Fermented weaning diets for infants

• Fermentation is an age old system of preservation
  BUT relies on the process delivering sufficient
  lactic acid to kill enteropathogens.
• Jane Beal is working onthe controlledfermentatio
  n of cereal based weaningfoods used extensively
  less developed countries where infant
  diarrhoeaand mortality are high

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Lactic acid bacteria (LAB) and gut health

• Peter Brooks and Vlasta Demeckova
• The relationship between LAB and gut health.
• Some LAB can elicit an immune response in the
  host.
• The underlying mechanisms are being
  investigated.