Social care continues to be a major issue in 2012 with cross-party talks about elderly and disabled care beginning again this month, the BBC reports.

However, positive steps to tackle the problem are being taken after the government announced yesterday a further £170 million funding to help older patients leave NHS hospitals, reports the Guardian.

The move comes after another report in the Guardian writes that patients who stay in hospital instead of going home are squandering NHS resources.

Meanwhile a surgeon has advised the removal of all faulty breast implants following a health scare in France late last year, reports the BBC.

But former health secretary Andy Burnham claims that the NHS should not have to carry the full burden of the problem and that private clinics must also pick up the bill.

The news comes after the Independent reported that French businessmen Jean-Claude Mas, who is at the centre of the international scandal, tried to set up a new breast implant factory last summer.

As the world welcomes in the new year, it's not just adults that should be having a kick-start after the BBC reported that children's academic performance is linked to how much exercise they do.

With health in mind, the BBC also reports that the government has launched a campaign encouraging Brits to eat healthily on a budget.

And if healthy eating is top of your agenda this new year then be sure to check how fattening your food is, after a study by the World Cancer Research Fund revealed a concerning lack of knowledge when it came to calories.

To prove the point, the Daily Mail reported that overweight Brits are in denial about their size.

And as the holiday season draws to a close, the Alcohol and Sexual Health Working Party says that alcohol advice should be given to young adults when they access sexual services in order to tackle the problem, the BBC reports.

Meanwhile, the BBC also reports that patients in some areas of England will be able to register with a GP practice of their choice under new plans. Parts of London, Manchester and Nottingham have been selected to trial the initiative for a year from April.

Doctors continue to make headlines after a report by the Independent said GPs wages will rise by more than 25 per cent under NHS reforms, taking the average to £130,000 a year.

And finally, with post-Christmas blues beginning to set in, the Independent reports that high levels of depression are costing the country almost £11 billion a year in lost earnings, demands on health services and prescriptions drugs.