Emdoc Health

Emdoc Health Preventative and lifestyle medicine physician. Health promoter. Speaker. Researcher. If you are unwell, always contact your own GP.

Evidence-based health promotion discussions here are for eneral information purposes only.

Listen Live 2pm Tomorrow (Thursday) 3 September 2026.I'll be sharing evidence-based tips on Healthy Back to School when ...
02/09/2026

Listen Live 2pm Tomorrow (Thursday) 3 September 2026.

I'll be sharing evidence-based tips on Healthy Back to School when I'm back as a guest on the Lite Lunch with Gerry Kelly on LMFM

Let's set you up for success to keep your family healthy this time of year -- and likely save you some €€€€€

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I've a few new followers recently, so it's a good time to re-introduce myself. My name is Dr. Kate McCann. I'm a mother ...
30/08/2026

I've a few new followers recently, so it's a good time to re-introduce myself. My name is Dr. Kate McCann. I'm a mother of 2 boys (and an elderly rescue terrier) I've been a doctor for 20 years.

I began this social media project in 2018 as a passion project during maternity leave - I noticed the huge amount of health misinformation out there, especially targeting women/parents. So this project talks family health topics - fact-first and evidence-based - with some serious urban mythbusting. The goal is to get patients savvy and smart on their health based on facts - not fears (or marketing).

What do I do as a doctor in real-life? I have a small private practice focusing on preventative health. That means I work with patients - and often their partners or whole families - who need/want to get healthier for reasons like fertility, living well with arthritis, preventing heart disease, putting their Type 2 diabetes in remission, "pre-hab" before major surgery, or as part of obesity or mental health treatments.

I have certifications in lifestyle medicine, obesity and trauma-informed care. I did post-doctoral work in both molecular biology and global health, and my public practice is in clinical research. I also lecture.

The Blog (link in Bio) now has 400+ archived posts on topics ranging from worm dose to Ozempic, sunscreen to lice, vomiting bug to warts, tips on needlephobia to talking to your GP. Free to access, searchable by keyword, lots of urban myth busting.

(You already know this but ...as much as I love your questions and suggestions for education topics, I always cover the general topic but social media just isn't the place for personal medical advice.)

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This week we again saw had the annual memes and parodies of parents joyously pushing reluctant kids out of the door bac...
30/08/2026

This week we again saw had the annual memes and parodies of parents joyously pushing reluctant kids out of the door back-to-school while pouring themselves large glasses of wine.

Controversial: It's okay if you didn't feel that way. I certainly didn't.

If one were practical, parents' "joy" of returning to school for some is less joy and just mere relief -- more to do with the economic and childcare crises. School provides at least a partial solution to affordable childcare and lunch while parents work and struggle to make ends meet.

So I am only too aware that I am very, very lucky that I could take some extra time this summer again with my children. On my extra days off, my boys climbed hills, explored castles, went to the beach, saw the solar eclipse, and at one point, locked each other in pillories. They turned out to be great little roadtrippers, and happily tagged along with me for my trips to Cork and Galway. I defied death on a nearly daily basis, avoiding squishmallos and hot wheels on the stairs. In my house this week, I don't know who was more reluctant for first day of school: me or my children.

But now -- school is back. My schedule gets busier in the academic year; they return to their whirlwind of activities.

Next summer, they will be another year older. And one summer very soon, they won't care if I have a day off work. They won't want to go to the beach or race up a hill -- or want an entire day to build the ultimate hot wheel track down the stairs.

So, if you weren't entirely joyous this week, it's okay. It's okay to enjoy being a parent to children who are old enough to properly talk back. I actually quite like my children; I find them more interesting than many adults I know and decidedly more honest, in any case.

29/08/2026

The best exercise is the one you will do.

Hate the gym? Hate running? Then don't do it

Running is my happy place. What's yours?

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28/08/2026

Here are some tips shared by my paediatric colleagues yesterday at a most unusual party. I was delighted to be invited as a guest to national Poisons Information Centre of Ireland 60th anniversary. Did you know you can call them if you think your child -or anyone else - has been poisoned? Bites, stings, chemical exposures at work, 🍄 foraging - poisoning can be any age. But it is mostly children up to age 4, they explore the world with their mouth. And tiny size means just a little dose can do big harm. Here are some top tips that Dr. Saja Alwahal, visiting paediatric fellow with CHI, shared with us yesterday. If you are a parent, save that number on your screen. National Poisons Information Centre, Ireland .fides

I turned around ...and he was gone and so was the bottle. In the seconds it took me to hand my 5 year old the drink of...
28/08/2026

I turned around ...and he was gone and so was the bottle. In the seconds it took me to hand my 5 year old the drink of water, the 2 year old had grapped the Calpol bottle and toddled top-speed out of the room. I dashed after him -- but didnt' catch him before he had taken a good swig out of the bottle. Now, did I need to panic? I know as a doctor to calculate weight, amount, concentration. Best option was to ring an expert. I rang just as a mother -not a doctor. Because when it comes to poisoning, time matters and access to the experts isn't just for doctors - its for everyone.

I was delighted when I was invited as a guest to the National Poisons Information Centre, Ireland 60th anniversary party yesterday.

Poisons in our environment can affect anyone: chemical spill at work, bites and stings, mushroom foraging, recreational drug overdose. But children are the most at risk as they climb and explore the world with their mouth.

Over the 60 years, they have played an invaluable role in reducing unnecessary emergency room visits and given expert advice to both healthcare professionals, workplace health and safety, and the community.

I learned loads about fungi and mushroom yesterday from the mushroom experts that volunteer their expertise to the NPIC (so - yes, I will be sharing that with you later - really interesting!)

But today, swipe through above to see some important points from Dr Saja Alhawal, a visiting Paediatric Emergency Medicine Fellow specialising in toxicology (poisoinings). She gave a fantastic talk about what parents should know. (Share this with someone -or their granny - who has been putting off the baby-proofing!)

If you are every concerned about a poison, do not hesitate. Call 01-809-2166.

Got your wellies? If you're heading to this weekend, let's stay safe. Dry and safe would be great. But I think we wi...
27/08/2026

Got your wellies? If you're heading to this weekend, let's stay safe. Dry and safe would be great. But I think we will have to settle for safe.

Once again this year, Ireland .ie will have a tent. It provides urgent, expert medical help -- without judgement!! -- as well as a drugs drop box. Did you know? Many of the staff there this weekend are volunteers!

What to know? The best option is to avoid recreational drug use.

HOWEVER - If you choose to do it, start low and go slow. Always stay with your friends, and try to have one friend who is not using. If anyone is unwell, seek medical help urgently. Never mix drugs and alcohol. Follow alerts [email protected] who will again be doing back of house drug testing. If you are new to drug-taking and are confused about what you are being offered -- I mean, the best advice here is just to steer clear but if you must...: both .ie and .ie website have some guidance.

20 years of being a doctor has taught me 2 things:

1. Recreational drug-taking does real harm, and ideally would be avoided.
2. But no one deserves a life-changing injury from one poor decision, so harm-reduction is often the best pathforward. Parents have a real role to play here - if you haven't talked about drugs with your teen yet, this weekend is a great time to start.

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Why was I visiting set of Ros na Rùn today? Check out today's Reel for the whole story but since 2012, I've been an expe...
26/08/2026

Why was I visiting set of Ros na Rùn today? Check out today's Reel for the whole story but since 2012, I've been an expert medical resource for script writers.

But fantastic day finally visiting the fictional village -- and thanks to everyone at the set today out in An Spidéal for their hospitality today. TG4

26/08/2026

Storyline! You probably didn't know this about me! But -- everyone needs a hobby and this is one of mine! Thank you so much to everyone out at the set in An Spidéal today. I had an amazing day visiting! TG4

Now that the kids are back in school, I'll finally have time to...Does that sound familiar? How would you finish that s...
25/08/2026

Now that the kids are back in school, I'll finally have time to...

Does that sound familiar? How would you finish that sentence?

It probably won't surprise you that for many patients - and in my practice, it's more mammies than daddies - put looking after their own or their family health on the list.

Here are my expert tips if you are making changes:

Start slow! Pick one thing a week to add or change, and build on it for long term success. Huge, sweeping changes to personal habits or household routines rarely work.

Talk to your family and get their buy in/support wherever possible.

Most healthy eating changes start with how you eat rather than what you eat. If you don't already menu plan, meal prep, and/or batch cook, try bringing that in as a first step.

Get social if you can: parents are likely to have shrinking social circles, so if you have the option to join a coffee morning, yoga class or buggy walking group, try it.

Schedule and PRIORITISE sleep. Getting screens out of bedrooms (for all ages) is a healthy habit. Set a central charging point in the home with devices powered off to stop notifications going off at all hours. (A WiFi curfew can also help.)

All this past week, we've been talking healthy back to school. Small, evidence-based steps you can take to look after your family health as we head back to school.

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