Inside Health BBC Radio 4

How did you sleep last night?
Perhaps you couldn't drift off, or maybe you woke in the middle of the night and then couldn't nod off again.
In this special edition of Inside Health we're talking all about insomnia. It’s an issue that may affect many of us at some point in our lives – but for some it goes beyond a short period of not being able to sleep and becomes something more serious.
You’ve been getting in touch with your questions, and James is joined by a trio of experts ready to answer to them: Dr Allie Hare, president of the British Sleep Society and consultant physician in sleep medicine at the Royal Brompton Hospital, Colin Espie, a professor of sleep medicine at Oxford University and Dr Faith Orchard, a lecturer in psychology at Sussex University.
We’re going to find out why we get insomnia, when to seek help and how much factors like ageing, menopause, needing the loo or shift work matter. And we'll look at the latest advice and treatments. Can insomnia be fixed?
You can keep in touch with the team by emailing insidehealth@bbc.co.uk
Presenter: James Gallagher
Producer: Gerry Holt
Researcher: Katie Tomsett
Production coordinator: Liz Tuohy
Studio managers: Jackie Margerum & Andrew Garratt

Scientists are worried about ticks.
They say they’re starting to pose more of a health risk here in the UK, as our climate warms and urban areas spill into green spaces.
But what are ticks, what kind of disease can they cause – and how much of a problem are they? We go on a tick hunt in Richmond Park and then head back to the lab to meet the ticks we’ve collected. We find out why new species of ticks and new diseases could be coming our way - and what you can do to keep safe.
Also this week, we answer your questions on the impact of noise on our health following our recent programme.
And we delve into the fascinating world of measles. It’s the most contagious virus in the world – by a long way. What is it about this virus that makes it so spectacularly good at infecting us?
Keep in touch with the Inside Health team at insidehealth@bbc.co.uk
Presenter: James Gallagher
Producer: Gerry Holt
Editor: Martin Smith
Production coordinator: Liz Tuohy

Have you ever tried intermittent fasting? As the month of Ramadan comes to an end, many Muslims are concluding several weeks of time-restricted eating. But outside of religion, many of us are now choosing to eat this way for health reasons – even UK PM Rishi Sunak does a weekly fast. Claimed benefits of intermittent fasting range from weight loss to improved immune function to maybe even living longer, but do these stack up?
James Gallagher gives one of these popular diets a go whilst trying to answer if restricting when we eat our food is good for us. He chats to Colin Selman from the University of Glasgow about the animal studies which inspired these claims, Claudia Langenberg from Queen Mary University on what happens in our bodies when fasting, and Lucy Serpell from UCL on the potential dangers these types of diets can pose. Plus, we visit AFC Wimbledon for an Iftar event to hear if people fasting during Ramadan experience any changes to their health.
Presenter: James Gallagher
Producer: Julia Ravey
Editor: Holly Squire
Studio Manager: Giles Aspen

From ear-splitting aircraft noise and the drone of traffic to the hum of an open-plan office, the world around us can feel loud.
But is it getting louder? And is this having any effect on our health - and even on how long we live?
We find out when living close to a road, railway or airport might go from nuisance to health hazard, with potential effects on our sleep, heart health, mood and concentration.
It’ll get loud as we do some tests in a lab to explore how unwanted sound might affect the rest of the body beyond our ears, and we sift through the growing research on the impact of noise. Who might be most at risk and why?
We also find out why our reaction to noise might be about more than just volume - and we go in search of some simple tips to help.
Keep in touch with the Inside Health team at insidehealth@bbc.co.uk
Presenter: James Gallagher
Producer: Gerry Holt
Researcher: Amy Ringrose
Editor: Martin Smith
Production coordinator: Connor Morgans

Ever wondered how much caffeine is too much? Or whether you’d feel better off if you took an afternoon nap? And with the rise in ‘day raving’ we’ll be looking at whether it’s better for your health to have your night out at 2pm rather than 2am.

We’ll learn about the amount of caffeine in different drinks, looking at what it does to the body in the short-term and finding out more about what effects it can have when it comes to things like dementia and cardiovascular disease.
Then we’ll be following a strict scientifically-approved napping schedule and hearing what impact those bonus sleep sessions can have on brain function – while catching 40 winks in some unusual locations.
After that, we’ll take all that energy and party the afternoon (and early evening) away at a daytime rave to find out if that is better for our bodies than pulling an all-nighter.
Along the way we’ll be joined by people who know way more about these things than us, from a Spanish sleep whizz in Manchester to a body boffin in Barry Island.
Producer: Gerry Holt
Presenter: Laura Foster
Editor: Holly Squire
Production Co-ordinator: Jonathan Harris

BBC health journalist Laura Foster can’t get the first days of the pandemic out of her head; the stunned silence of the newsroom as the first lockdown was announced, the chaos and noise at the supermarket and the empty streets of London.
But even though she was a reporter covering every twist and turn of the story, she still can’t remember the first time she heard about long Covid.
The world was so engrossed by the immediate threat that few paid attention to what was happening around the edges; the people whose lives didn’t move on after that little red line disappeared from their test and whose symptoms never went away.
And that problem was getting bigger and bigger by the day.
We visit the UK’s very first long Covid clinic where healthcare workers started learning about this life-shattering disease in the hospital car park - and we find out why recovering from long Covid is a lot like training for the Olympics.
What did we know back then – and what do we know now? And are we really any closer to seeing the end of long Covid?
Details of organisations offering information and support with long Covid are available at bbc.co.uk/actionline.
Presenter: Laura Foster
Producer: Gerry Holt
Editor: Martin Smith
Production co-ordinator: Jonathan Harris