11 h. ago Dust from popular countertop material that causes incurable lung disease linked to death of Massachusetts worker

The disease has previously resulted in dozens of deaths in California and across the country

Events

22 h. ago The Birth Keepers: how the Free Birth Society is linked to baby deaths around the world – video

The Free Birth Society (FBS) is a multimillion-dollar business that promotes an extreme version of free birth, meaning women giving birth without medical assistance. The Guardian can now reveal that the organisation has been linked to dozens of cases of maternal harm and baby deaths around the world. After a year-long investigation, Sirin Kale and Lucy Osborne explain why some women they interviewed found FBS’s views so appealing, and why medical professionals say their claims about birth are dangerousThe Birth Keepers: I choose this – episode one Continue reading...

Events

39 h. ago A dead whale shows up on your beach. What do you do with the 40

A fin whale washed ashore in Anchorage and was left there for months. Then a self-described ‘wacko’ museum director made a planWhen a whale dies, its body descends to the bottom of the deep sea in a transformative phenomenon called a whale fall. A whale’s death jump-starts an explosion of life, enough to feed and sustain a deep-ocean ecosystem for decades.There are a lot of ways whales can die. Migrating whales lose their way and, unable to find their way back from unfamiliar waters, are stranded. They can starve when prey disappears or fall to predators such as orcas. They become bycatch, tangled in fishing lines and nets. Mass whale deaths have been linked to marine heatwaves and the toxic algae blooms that follow. Continue reading...

Events

65 h. ago Coronation Street fans rumble 'foreshadowing' of major charater's death amid crossover 'link'

Those who follow the ITV soap are fearing for an iconic Weatherfield resident

Events

69 h. ago ‘There’s no longer a heartbeat’: the couple whose twins were stillborn – and the ‘birth keeper’ they blame

Soon-to-be parents hired a woman they believed would act as a licensed midwife. But she in fact belonged to a radical society that was linked to baby deaths around the world• Read more of the Guardian’s investigations into the Free Birth SocietyErnesta Chirwa recalls the jarring moment the woman she presumed was her midwife said something unexpected. Caitlyn Collins was driving her to hospital after 6am, on 15 February 2022. “She said,” says Chirwa, who is 30 and lives in Cape Town, “Please don’t mention to the nurses that we were trying to have a home birth.”Chirwa was in too much pain to speak – she was in active labour. But she remembers feeling surprised. “Why,” Chirwa recalls, “is she asking us not to mention that we were trying to have a home birth?” Continue reading...

Politics

3 d. ago Six modifiable risk factors linked to almost half of cancer deaths

Avoidable cancers are a quieter crisis that has been gathering force for decades

Events

7 d. ago Urgent warning to millions of diabetics as faulty monitors are recalled in 17 countries

Global healthcare giant Abbott is recalling faulty blood glucose sensors across multiple countries due to potentially life-threatening inaccuracies in their readings.

Events

8 d. ago 7 deaths linked to faulty glucose monitors put in people’s arms, FDA says

About three million devices are affected, though many may be expired or already used

Events

8 d. ago Death of Irish mother in ‘free birth’ reveals how poor maternity care is pushing women towards extreme influencers

Women in Ireland and the UK linked to Free Birth Society among scores around world to have suffered loss or serious harm after birthsFull story: How the FBS is linked to baby deaths around the worldOver a weekend in late June 2024, Emilee Saldaya, the leader of the Free Birth Society, hosted a festival on her 21-hectare (53-acre) property in North Carolina. It was a celebratory gathering for FBS, a multimillion-dollar business that promotes a radical approach to giving birth without medical support.Promotional footage from the Matriarch Rising festival shows Saldaya dancing beside her private lake, wearing a crown. That same weekend, more than 3,000 miles away, in Dundalk, a town on the east coast of Ireland, Naomi James, bled to death after freebirthing her son. Continue reading...

Events

1 week ago My son, 23, fought in a white collar boxing training camp... minutes later he collapsed in the toilet

The heartbroken family of a young man who died while training for a white-collar boxing charity match have spoken out in fury at an events company that has now been linked to four deaths.

Events

1 week ago Experts say strict new FDA protocol for vaccine approval is ‘dangerous and irresponsible’

Lead FDA vaccine regulator announced new approval process after claiming Covid vaccine had killed 10 childrenThe leading vaccine regulator at the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has announced a far stricter course for federal vaccine approvals, following claims from his team that Covid vaccines were linked to the deaths of at least 10 children.Experts suggest the announcement will make the vaccine approval process significantly more difficult. Continue reading...

Politics

1 week ago Emmerdale fans predict shock death as they 'rumble' crossover link with Coronation Street

Emmerdale fans are gearing up for a crossover with Coronation Street and are now worried that the special programme could result in a shock death for a fan favourite

Events

1 week ago New Jill Dando murder evidence linking Serbian assassin to BBC star's death probed by police

The Metropolitan Police are looking at evidence published by the Mirror that links a convicted killer to Jill Dando's 1999 murder

Events

2 w. ago Creator of iconic ITV game show Bullseye dies aged 91 as his daughter pays tribute to ‘legend’ dad

THE creator of popular game show Bullseye has tragically passed away, his family has announced. Andrew Wood, with comedian Norman Vaughan, created the iconic darts-themed game show in 1980. The show swiftly rose to fame and became an ITV staple in the 80s and 90s. His daughter Laura Wood announced his death on LinkedIn. She said...

Events

2 w. ago NHS directed pregnant women to controversial Free Birth Society via charity

Exclusive: NHS websites pointed women to factsheet featuring podcast by ‘dangerous’ influencers linked to baby deaths• Full story: How the FBS is linked to baby deaths around the worldThe NHS has been directing pregnant women to a website that connected them to the Free Birth Society, an organisation that has been linked to baby deaths around the world after promoting labour without medical support.A number of NHS trusts are directing women who are contemplating a “free birth” to a charity website that until Monday referred to FBS podcasts as a source of “empowering stories” that can help British women “preparing for their own birth”. Continue reading...

Politics

2 w. ago Netflix star and UK rapper Ghetts appears in court charged with further driving offences linked to road death of student

Rapper Ghetts, also known as Justin Clarke-Samuel, has appeared in court via videolink charged with further motoring offences over the death of a student in an apparent hit-and-run last month.

Events

2 w. ago Five key findings from our investigation into the Free Birth Society

Year-long investigation into multimillion-dollar business exposed serious concerns, from dangerous medical claims to FBS-linked stillbirths• Full story: How the FBS is linked to baby deaths around the worldThe Free Birth Society (FBS) is a business run from North Carolina that promotes the idea of women giving birth without midwives or doctors present.It is led by Emilee Saldaya and Yolande Norris-Clark, ex-doulas turned social media influencers who have gained a global following through the FBS podcast, which has been downloaded millions of times. Continue reading...

Events

2 w. ago Influencers made millions pushing ‘wild’ births – now the Free Birth Society is linked to baby deaths around the world

A year-long investigation reveals how mothers lost children after being radicalised by uplifting podcast tales of births without midwives or doctorsAs Esau Lopez was asphyxiated for the first 17 minutes of his life on Earth, the atmosphere in the room remained serene, even ecstatic. Acoustic music crooned from a speaker in a modest two-bedroom apartment in a suburb of Pennsylvania. “You are a queen,” murmured one of three friends in the room.Only Esau’s mother, Gabrielle Lopez, felt something was wrong. She was pushing hard, but her son would not be born. “Can you help [him] out?” she asked, as Esau crowned. “Baby is coming,” the friend replied. Four minutes later, Lopez asked again, “Can you grab [him]?” Another friend murmured, “Baby is safe.” Six minutes passed. Again, Lopez asked, “Can you grab [him]?” Continue reading...

Events

3 w. ago A popular supplement has been linked to the deaths of six people in California. But no one knows the exact danger it poses

Several states have banned kratom, an unregulated supplement, that has been linked to six deaths in Los Angeles County

Events

3 w. ago Justice for families as UK man to be prosecuted for online suicide forum deaths

A man who sold a lethal chemical on a pro-suicide forum has admitted aiding suicide, prompting renewed calls for Ofcom to shut the site down amid links to more than 130 UK deaths

Events