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A large, real world study involving half a million people has revealed that the BioNTech-Pfizer coronavirus vaccine is 94% effective. The paper was published in the New England Journal of Medicine on Wednesday and involved studying 1.2 million people during Israel's mass inoculation campaign . What did the study reveal? The study showed that two shots of the BioNTech-Pfizer vaccine cut symptomatic COVID-19 cases by 94% across all age groups, while a single shot was 57% effective in protecting against symptomatic infections after two weeks. The vaccine also proved 92% effective at preventing severe illnesses after two shots and 62% after one, the peer-reviewed study found. The results of the study were close to those in last year's clinical trials for the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine which found two doses to be 95% effective. It showed that there could be a strong protective benefit against infection, a factor that is considered crucial in breaking onward transmission. … [Read more...] about Coronavirus: Mass study confirms BioNTech-Pfizer vaccine ‘extremely effective’

SCHOOLS won't have to enforce face masks or carry out regular testing on pupils, it was revealed today. Speaking to Good Morning Britain this morning, education minister Nick Gibb said twice-weekly testing will not be compulsory for pupils to go to school in England but remains “highly recommended”. With pupils returning to schools in March 8, Gibb confirmed a "no test, no school" policy is not in place but said he hopes the majority of students will volunteer to test themselves at home twice a week before coming in to school. "No, they’re not compulsory but we highly recommend it, it’s everybody doing everything we can to identify asymptomatic cases of Covid , helping to reduce the transmission," he said. "The first three tests will be taken in the school that will show the students how to do it most effectively and it’s the students themselves that will do it at home with supervision by their parents," he added. Meanwhile, normal summer exams have been ditched and … [Read more...] about Coronavirus news UK update – A Levels and GCSEs SCRAPPED for 2021 as schools told testing & masks won’t be compulsory

Three weeks after Myanmar's military coup , protests in cities around the country are growing larger than ever before and have spread to the capital cities of provinces with significant ethnic minority populations. Thousands of flag-waving demonstrators took to the streets of Lashio in the eastern Shan state, Myitkyina in Kachin state to the north, or Hpa-An in the southeastern Kayin state. Leaders of Myanmar's different ethnic groups that are supporting resistance against the military leadership also support the civil disobedience movement, under which public servants, health care and transportation workers are striking around the country. Who are Myanmar's minorities? Myanmar's minorities together make up about one-third of the country's 54 million inhabitants. They live primarily in border areas that form a horseshoe around the fertile rice fields of Myanmar's heartland, which is dominated by the Bamar ethnic majority. For decades, some of these groups have been fighting … [Read more...] about Myanmar coup unites ethnic minorities and pro-democracy protesters

Compared with men, women undergo 'significantly faster' cognitive declines later in life that increases their risk of dementia, a new study has warned. Researchers from the US analysed data on the cognitive decline of 26,088 people who were repeatedly tested for global cognition, executive function and memory. At the start of the testing, the average age of participants was 58. The team found that, on average, men and women experienced declines in their memory ability at a similar rate. However, women were found to undergo significantly greater declines in both global cognition and executive function — trends linked to increase dementia risk. Compared with men, women undergo 'significantly faster' cognitive declines later in life that increases their risk of dementia, a new study has warned (stock image) '[Our] results suggest that women have greater cognitive reserve but faster later-life cognitive decline than men,' the researchers wrote in their paper. … [Read more...] about Women experience ‘significantly faster’ declines in cognition than men and are at higher risk of dementia, scientists warn

MARTIN Lewis has named the three top energy deals right now as he urged households to check if they can save hundreds of pounds. It comes as the Big Six energy firms confirmed price hikes for millions of customers starting in April. The Sun has reported on British Gas upping bills by £97, while Scottish Power, EDF Energy and EOn are hiking prices by £96. NPower and SSE are also increasing prices by £96. Writing in his weekly MoneySavingExpert newsletter, Martin said customers who aren’t happy with the bill changes should shop around for the best deal. In two of the examples he provided, he said the average saving is £218 for customers affected by the energy price cap, which is increasing to £1,138. What to do if you can't pay your bills FALLING behind on your energy bills can be extremely stressful. If you’re struggling to pay what you owe, contact your supplier as soon as possible. Your provider has to help you come up with a solution, and you … [Read more...] about Martin Lewis names top three energy deals right now as Big Six hike bills for millions