about this site

Are you worried about your health, but too busy or embarrassed to go to your doctor? Perhaps you don't want to bother your GP with something that may be trivial. You're not alone. Thousands of people put up with uncomfortable, painful or embarrassing symptoms while others ignore potentially serious problems. But delaying treatment may make your illness harder to treat. body can give you upfront answers to your questions, straightforward information about how to help yourself, and clear advice about when you really should talk to your doctor or pharmacist.

4Health search

If you know what you're after, but you're not sure where to find it, try our 4Health search box. Simply type in a word, press 'go' and you will be given a list of all the articles that contain that word.

help and info

At the end of each 4Health article we have a section called help and info. Here we'll provide a list of organisations, websites and books that are good sources of further information. Some offer helplines, support groups, drop-in centres or clinics, but do check opening hours before you visit or phone.

We do our best to keep this information up to date. However, if you come across any inaccurate information, or links that don't work, e-mail body@channel4.com and tell us about it.

To the right hand side and at the very end of each article, we have a list of other related articles that you might be interested to read. These may be in the same section as the article that you have just read, or in any of the other sections of 4Health, such as Sex, Mind, Family, Drugs or Complementary Medicine.

send to a friend/print this article

If you know someone else who might be interested to read one of our articles, you can select the 'Send to a Friend' button at the end and on the right hand side of each article. Or, if you want to print it out and read it later, select the 'Print this Article' option.

answer back

In answer back, we take the questions that you have written in to us about and publish the advice given by our team of expert advisors. We only publish questions that you are happy for us to use, and all names are changed.

don't panic

If you're in a hurry for some straight-talking advice or want a quick answer to help you deal with a tricky situation, then check out don't panic. With frank, no-nonsense advice related to various 'panicky' situations, don't panic is the place to go if you need crisis drugs advice, stress busting tips, info about early warning health signs or if you're dealing with issues such as problem eating, emergency contraception, bullying or self-harm.

We have a different don't panic feature for each section, so if your problem is connected with mind, body, sex, drugs, food, stress, family or teen life, then go to that section and click on the don't panic button on the left hand side of the page.

the abc of body

The abc of body tells you about a wide range of common conditions – typical signs and symptoms, how they are diagnosed and treated, and what you can do to prevent them. It also advises when it is important to seek help.

just ask

Our just ask service – where you could send a question to our team of advisors for free, personalised advice – has been temporarily suspended. However, you can still search the just ask bank of over 6,000 questions and answers to find ones that are relevant and helpful to you. Our team of specialist advisors has answered thousands of questions on many aspects of health. Simply type a keyword into the search box to search for any questions and answers that contain that word. You'll be given the opportunity later to refine your search by gender, age group or theme.

this site

This site can be viewed in Netscape or Internet Explorer versions 4 or above, with JavaScript enabled (this is the default setting on most computers). The site is best viewed at 800 x 600.

The site has been designed to adhere to HTML standards, so that it is still readable in a variety of settings and using a screen reader.

For additional information and details on how to improve your experience of the website, follow this link:
www.channel4.com/access.html

legal disclaimer

This website is not a substitute for professional advice on medical matters or the law relating to mental health. Although every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of the information on the site, Channel 4 Television accepts no liability for any errors of fact or substance and cannot be held responsible for any action resulting from the information published on this site, or the content of private answers to questions.

While every effort has been made to check the websites listed, we cannot take responsibility for the content of any external website.

If you have any questions about the security of the site, or the thinking behind its development, please e-mail body@channel4.com. Please put the subject of your question in the heading of the email.

credits

published by
Channel 4
124 Horseferry Road
London SW1P 2TX

Managing editor: Katie Streten
Project manager and editor: Helen Saunders
Design: Alan Outten, Louisa Walker
Resources: Channel 4, Kirsty Stretton-Cox and Nigel Cooper
Picture research: Louisa Walker and Alan Outten
Picture credits: Stockbyte, DigitalVision/Eyewire/Photodisc (Getty Images), Padraig Boyle and Alan Outten

Site contributors: Dr D A Sturgeon, Sally Burningham, Liz Sturgeon, Red Cinnamon, bss.