| Intro | British doctor |
| Is |
Physician Writer |
| From | United Kingdom |
| Type |
Healthcare Literature |
| Gender | male |
| Birth | 1 January 1943 |
| Age: | 77 years |
Alan Maryon-Davis (born January 1943), is a doctor, writer/broadcaster and member of the humorous cabaret group Instant Sunshine.
He was born in Chiswick, West London, and was educated at St Paul’s School, London, St John’s College, Cambridge and St Thomas’s Hospital Medical School, King’s College London.
Medical career
Following an early career in hospital medicine and general practice, he transferred to the field of public health with a focus on health promotion and prevention. He was Head of Health Sciences at the Health Education Council (a national non-government organization based in London) and a member of various UK Department of Health committees and task-forces on nutrition, physical activity, cancer prevention, accident prevention, and health partnerships. In the mid-1980s he founded the National Forum for Coronary Heart Disease Prevention (now the National Heart Forum) and the Welsh heart disease prevention programme Heart Beat Wales.
In 1988, he switched to working at local level as a public health specialist in inner south London, most recently as Director of Public Health for Southwark (2002–07). He is the former President of the UK Faculty of Public Health, Chair of the Royal Society for Public Health, Vice-Chair of the National Heart Forum, Councillor of the Royal College of Physicians, foundation fellow of the UK Faculty of Sports and Exercise Medicine, and an honorary professor in public health at King’s College London.
Media career
He has also been a prolific writer and broadcaster on health matters in a parallel career spanning over 30 years. His broadcasting began as the regular guest doctor on the London independent radio station LBC in the mid-1970s. He then became the BBC Radio 1 ‘doc’ in a regular slot called Stayin’ Alive with DJ David (‘Kid’) Jensen. In the 1980s he presented a number of series on health for BBC Radio 4 and was a co-presenter, with doctors Graeme Garden and Gillian Rice, of BBC1’s popular medical series Bodymatters. He wrote a weekly ‘Dear Dr Alan’ Q&A column in Woman magazine for 17 years and has written ten books on various health subjects for the general reader.
Showbiz career
His third career has been as a member of the comedy singing group Instant Sunshine since its foundation in 1966.
Selected list of works
- Werneke U, Horn O, Maryon-Davis A, Wessely S, Donnan S, McPherson K; Uptake of screening for breast cancer in patients with mental health problems; J Epidemiol Community Health; 2006 Jul;60(7):600-5.
- Maryon-Davis A, Press V; Easing the Pressure: tackling hypertension – A toolkit for developing a local strategy to tackle high blood pressure; London, Faculty of Public Health and National Heart Forum; 2005.
- Maryon-Davis A, Weight management in primary care: how can it be made more effective?, Proc Nutr Soc., 2005 Feb;64(1):97-103.
- Maryon-Davis A. Working with the media. Chapter in the Oxford Handbook of Public Health Practice (Pencheon D et al. eds), Oxford, OUP, 2001.
- Maryon-Davis A, Sarch L, Morris M, Laventure R; Let’s Get Moving – A Physical Activity Handbook for Developing Local Programmes; London, Nat Heart Forum & Faculty of Public Health, 2001.
- Maryon-Davis A, Non-cardiovascular benefits of exercise. Chapter in Marathon Medicine 2000 (Tunstall-Pedoe D, ed.), London, RSM Press, 2001.
- Maryon-Davis Dr. A, Family Health & Fitness, Octopus Books, 1981
- Maryon-Davis A, Blake Q, Feeling Good! Easy Steps to Staying Healthy, Age Concern Books, 2007
- Maryon-Davis A, Body Facts, Macdonald, 1984
- ^ King’s College London profile
- ^ Amazon search page