News: One in three people avoid the dentist.

One in three people avoid going to dentist because of the cost, and one in five people who do go to the dentist can’t afford it – according to a survey of more than 6000 people. Of the people that went to the dentist, 56% went for a check-up and 44% went because of a problem. Dr Jane Harford from the Institute of Health and Welfare’s Dental Statistics and Research Unit said “the concern about all of this of course is that when people do visit the dentist for a problem, they’re much more likely to have a tooth extracted than if they visit for a check-up.” The survey also found low income earners were the least likely to visit the dentist.

Meanwhile, the Greens have launched a Denticare campaign, including billboards and television commercials. They says investment in a Medicare-style system for dental care was one of the main conditions on which the party pledged its support for Labor. Speaking in response to Treasurer Wayne Swan’s announcement that the government would be making substantial cuts to return the budget to surplus, Senator Richard Di Natale said investment in dental care should not be scrapped.

Check out the ad:

Do you go to the dentist? Would you support a Denticare plan?

Pinterest bans pro-annorexia pics.

By now, you’re probably been hearing a little bit about Pinterest. It’s the new social media phenomenon that’s taking the world by storm . (If you want to know more, we wrote about it here)

Anyway, Pinterest has recently banned ‘thinspiration’ or ‘thinspo’ boards. That is, content that “consists of photos, mottos and brief notes that urge viewers to lose extreme and unhealthy amounts of weight”. It changed its terms of service so that material that promotes self harm or self abuse, like anorexia and bulimia, is now prohibited. The move comes after Tumblr did a similar thing in February when they banned “pages that actively promote self-harm such as anorexia, bulimia, self-mutilation or suicide.”

Life saving competition goes ahead despite teen’s death.

Surf Life Saving Australia has decided to resume the national surf life saving titles today in the wake of 14-year-old Matthew Barclay’s death this week. Matthew went missing after he fell from his board during an under 15’s competition on Wednesday at Kurrawa beach on The Gold Coast. Competition was suspended during an extensive air and sea search, but his body was found yesterday morning.

The competition will resume today at another beach 20 kilometres away. Maroochydore Surf Club president Tim Ryan said Matthew’s parents wanted to competition to go ahead.

Matthew’s death is the third fatality at the championships since 1996, when teenager Robert Ga

tenby drowned. In 2010, 19-year-old Saxon Bird was hit in the head with a surf ski and died. His father, Phil Bird, said he was angry that another boy had died and was critical of the competition’s organisers. “We knew that it would happen again unless they made substantial changes, which they haven’t, and our worst nightmares have come true,” he said.

New breast cancer gene discovered

Researchers at the University of Melbourne have discovered a new breast cancer gene mutation, which means gene mutations responsible for causing breast cancer could be rapidly identified in the next few years. Lead researcher Melissa Southey said the discovery of mutations in a gene called XRCC2 could mean that more gene mutations responsible for causing breast cancer could be rapidly identified in the next few years.

Tony Abbott backs Greer

Tony Abbott has been caught saying he agrees with Germaine Greer about her comments on Julia Gillard‘s dress sense. Last week Ms Greer appeared on ABC’s Q&A and said: “What I want to do is get rid of those bloody jackets…they don’t fit…you’ve got a big a— Julia. Just get them off.” In Victoria this week, when a woman in the crowd said “Get some of those jackets off her,” Mr Abbott replied ““I know, I know, I know…Germaine Greer was right on this subject”.

UPDATE: Tony Abbott has since apologised for the comments. “It was an off-the-cuff response to an observation from a member of the public. I shouldn’t have said it and I regret it,” he said, according to the Sydney Morning Herald.

After the Q&A episode last week, Mamamia’s Rebecca Sparrow wrote a post in reply called “Dear Germaine, you lost me at ‘big arse’,” which you can read here.

And in case you missed them, here’s the pics we’ve been talking about this week.

Madonna’s backflip on Malawi

Madonna’s scaled-back charity efforts in Malawi have lead some people to question whether celebrities like Madonna are a help or a hindrance to troubled African countries. News.com.au reports:

“Madonna broke ground for a $US15 million ($14.4 million) academy for girls in Malawi in 2009. Earlier this year, Madonna’s Raising Malawi foundation announced that instead of building the academy, it is providing $US300,000 to develop 10 schools.”

The Malawi education minister said he’s been left in the dark about Madonna’s plans. “We need to know what’s happening. She can’t just say: ‘I’m building schools here’. We need to be consulted in order to work out where schools are needed based on our data,” he said. But the man who is leading Madonna’s project said those allegations are “absolutely not true”.

Madonna has adopted two children from Malawi, David and Mercy, both 6.

Is there anything that you’ve seen in the news and want to talk about?