A snake handler found dead next to his pet python was strangled, a post mortem has revealed.

Dan Brandon, 31, was discovered at his home in Church Crookham, Hampshire, where he lived with his parents and an array of exotic animals. 

One of his snakes was found slivering near his body, after seemingly escaping from its pen.

Post-mortem results found that he died as a result of 'asphyxia', Basingstoke coroner's court heard today. 

Non-venomous pythons constrict their prey, rather than attacking with a bite.

However, detectives are still investigating whether Mr Brandon was killed by his pet. 

An inquest into his mysterious death was opened this morning, with further hearings to be held on November 22.

His family asked to be left alone when approached by MailOnline this morning. 

Mr Brandon was a keen animal enthusiast and he posted photos of him with his pets, including a huge Burmese python draped over his body, to his social media accounts. 

While pythons have killed humans before, experts believe this would be the first ever case in Britain. A source told the sun 'It is under investigation whether the snake was involved. The death is in an investigation stage between natural causes and an inquest.

'Investigators are waiting for the full toxicology results and reports to come back from a post-mortem. Depending on the results, an inquest may be opened. A spokesman for Hampshire Police said: 'We were called to an address in Church Crookham. A 31-year-old man had suffered serious injuries and died at the scene.

'The death is not being treated as suspicious at this stage. A file will be prepared for the coroner.' 

Despite being found nearby its owners body, a friend of Mr Brandon's believed the snake had nothing to do with his death. Pythons have been known to be deadly however. A man was killed by a python in Indonesia earlier in the year, while two boys died in Canada after one escaped from a pet shop in 2013.

A spokesperson for Surrey and Hampshire Reptile Rescue said last night: 'There's never been a case of a python killing someone in Britain before. They only kill what they eat.'

A JustGiving page for Dan is raising money for the charity World Wide Fund for Nature. 

It says in the bio:  'He was obsessed with snakes, spiders, birds and all wildlife. We will all miss you so much. 

In a nearly empty cantina in a dark desert town, the short, drunk man makes his pitch. Beside him on the billiards table sits a chunk of rock the size of home plate. Dozens of purple and white crystals push up from it like shards of glass. "Yours for $300," he says. "No? One hundred. A steal!" The three or four other patrons glance past their beers, thinking it over: Should they offer their crystals too? Rock dust on the green felt, cowboy ballads on the jukebox. Above the bar, a sign reads, "Happy Hour: 8 a.m. to 9 p.m."

This remote part of northern Mexico, an hour or so south of Chihuahua, is famous for crystals, and paychecks at the local lead and silver mine, where almost everyone works, are meager enough to inspire a black market. "Thirty dollars." He leans in. "Ten." It's hard to take him seriously. Earlier in the day, in a cave deep below the bar, I crawled among the world's largest crystals, a forest of them, broad and thick, some more than 30 feet long and half a million years old. So clear, so luminous, they seemed extraterrestrial. They make the chunk on the pool table seem dull as a paperweight.  Nothing compares with the giants found in Cueva de los Cristales, or Cave of Crystals. The limestone cavern and its glittering beams were discovered in 2000 by a pair of brothers drilling nearly a thousand feet below ground in the Naica mine, one of Mexico's most productive, yielding tons of lead and silver each year. The brothers were astonished by their find, but it was not without precedent. The geologic processes that create lead and silver also provide raw materials for crystals, and at Naica, miners had hammered into chambers of impressive, though much smaller, crystals before. But as news spread of the massive crystals' discovery, the question confronting scientists became: How did they grow so big?

It takes 20 minutes to get to the cave entrance by van through a winding mine shaft. A screen drops from the van's ceiling and Michael Jackson videos play, a feature designed to entertain visitors as they descend into darkness and heat. In many caves and mines the temperature remains constant and cool, but the Naica mine gets hotter with depth because it lies above an intrusion of magma about a mile below the surface. Within the cave itself, the temperature leaps to 112 degrees Fahrenheit with 90 to 100 percent humidity—hot enough that each visit carries the risk of heatstroke. By the time we reach the entrance, everyone glistens with sweat. 

Eating disorders cause people to act in very strange ways that appear confusing to the average onlooker, but these disorders can have life-threatening complications like heart attack, stroke, and kidney failure. One of the most visible and well-known eating disorders is anorexia nervosa, but this affliction is just one of several dangerous eating conditions people suffer from today. The social stigma of eating disorders means millions of people suffer from these conditions, but they don’t seek treatment because of the inherent insecurity that often appears alongside an eating disorder like anorexia or binge eating disorder (BED).

Eating disorders run the gamut from those that make people want to skip as many meals as possible, like anorexia nervosa, to others that might have a sufferer hiding in a bathroom, gorging on massive amounts of food, like bulimia nervosa.According to the national Eating disorder association      (NEDA) around 10 million men and 20 million women in the United States have suffered from a severe eating disorder at some point in their lives.Complicating issues for the people who suffer from eating disorders is that these conditions sometimes develop with various psychiatric disorders like depression and substance abuse. 

The Dangerous Dogs Act sets forth laws intended to keep the public safe from dog attacks, but it remains one of the UK’s most controversial pieces of legislation.

We found out what the laws mean for owners, why it is so often criticised, and other important laws dog owners should know. The Dangerous Dogs Act was introduced in 1991 in response to a spate of dog attacks.

The legislation made it a criminal offence to have a dog ‘dangerously out of control’ in a public place or somewhere where the dog is not permitted to be.

The law was updated in 2014 to extend the law to also cover dogs on private property.

It also banned ‘Specially Control Dogs’ – these are also known as banned breeds.

What does ‘dangerously out of control’ mean?

A dog that is dangerously out of control is one that has injured another person, or has given another person reasonable apprehension that it may do so.

This may be something as simple as your dog chasing, barking or jumping up at another person or child if it leads to a complaint.

Consequences for owners may include a prison sentence and a ban on owning dogs.

If your dog is seized, the presumption is that your dog will be destroyed unless you are able to persuade the court that your dog is not a danger to the public.

You may also have to pay a fine, compensation and costs. Currently the banned types are the Pit Bull Terrier, Japanese Tosa, Dogo Argentino and Fila Brasiliero.

It is also illegal to sell, abandon, give away or breed from a banned dog.

Whether or not your dog is considered a banned type does not depend on its breed name, but on what it looks like. So if you own a dog which has many of the characteristics of a Pit Bull Terrier, it may be considered a banned type.

What if I have a banned dog?

Police and dog wardens are able to take away your dog and keep it even if the dog isn’t acting dangerously and there hasn’t been a complaint, though they will need a warrant to seize your dog on private property.

If your dog is seized a police or council dog expert will decide what type of dog it is and whether it is currently, or has the potential to be, a danger to the public.

It will either be returned to you or remain in kennels while a court application is made, in which case, owners are not permitted to visit.

If your dog is a banned type but deemed not dangerous by the court it may be put on the Index of Exempted Dogs (IED) and you will be allowed to keep your dog.

In this case you will be given a lifelong Certificate of Exemption and you must ensure your dog is neutered, microchipped, muzzled and on a lead at all times when in a public place and kept in a secure place where it won’t be able to escape.

The owner must be over 16, have insurance against the dog injuring others, produce the Certificate of Exemption within five days of being asked by police or a dog warden and inform the IED if they move house or their dog dies. The Act is often criticised for taking an approach of banning the breed rather than the deed.

Most recently, a report was published by Battersea Dogs and Cats home which found 86% of 215 dog experts said the way a dog was brought up by its owner, and 73% identifying the way a dog was brought up by its breeder, are very important in determining their behaviour.

98% believed adding more breeds to the banned list would have no effect in preventing further dog attacks and 78% of experts supported the compulsory training of new dog owners. Compulsory microchipping was enforced in April 2016. Dogs must be microchipped by the age of eight weeks old and any new owners are responsible for updating the microchip’s details.

Failure to comply could result in a fine of up to £500.

If your dog barks and causes serious nuisance to your neighbours, the local authority can serve you with a noise abatement notice which can lead to fines and legal fees.

You can also be liable for damage caused by your dog under the Animals Act.

In Northern Ireland, owners are still required to have a licence for their dogs. This costs £12.50, although there are some concessions available.

Certain bacteria commonly live on the skin of many people without causing harm. However, these bacteria can cause skin infections if they enter the body through cuts, open wounds, or other breaks in the skin. Symptoms may include redness, swelling, pain, or pus.

How serious are bacterial skin infections?

While many bacterial skin infections are mild and easily treatable, some can become very serious and even life threatening. In addition, some bacterial infections can be spread to others. This is why prevention is so important. 

What are the two most common bacteria that cause skin infections?

1. Group A Streptococcus (GAS), often called "strep."
2. Staphylococcus aureus, commonly called "staph."

Impetigo

What is impetigo?

Impetigo is a common bacterial skin infection caused by Group A Streptococcus (GAS) or "strep."

What is Group A Streptococcus (GAS)?

Group A Streptococcus (GAS) or "strep" is a common bacterium (bacterium is the singular form of the plural, bacteria) that is found on the skin or in the throat ("strep throat"). People can carry GAS and have no symptoms of illness or they may develop relatively mild skin infections, including impetigo.

How does impetigo spread?

Group A Streptococcus (GAS) or "strep" can be transmitted through direct person-to-person contact with someone who has the infection. GAS can also be picked up indirectly through contact with an item (such as a wrestling mat, gear, towel, razor, or cell phone) that is contaminated with the bacterium.

What are the symptoms of impetigo?

• Symptoms usually began 1-3 days after infection.
• Sores (lesions) begin as small red spots, usually on the face (especially around the nose and mouth), but can appear anywhere on the body.
• The sores are often itchy, but usually not painful.
• The sores develop into blisters that break open and ooze fluid -- this fluid contains infectious bacteria that can infect others if they have contact with it.
• After a few days, the ruptured blisters form a flat, thick, honey-colored (yellowish-brown) crust that eventually disappears, leaving red marks that heal without scarring.
• There may be swollen glands (enlarged lymph nodes), but usually no fever.

Introduction

Humans have been battling viruses since before our species had even evolved into its modern form. For some viral diseases, vaccines and antiviral drugs have allowed us to keep infections from spreading widely, and have helped sick people recover. For one disease — smallpox — we've been able to eradicate it, ridding the world of new cases.

But as the Ebola outbreaks now devastating  in west Africa demonstrates, we're a long way from winning the fight against viruses.

The strain that is driving the current epidemic, Ebola Zaire, kills up to 90 percent of the people it infects, making it the most lethal member of the Ebola family.  "It couldn't be worse," said Elke Muhlberger, an Ebola virus expert and associate professor of microbiology at Boston University. 

But there are other viruses out there that are equally deadly, and some that are even deadlier. Here are the nine worst killers, based on the likelihood that a person will die if they are infected with one of them, the sheer numbers of people they have killed, and whether they represent a growing threat.

American football stars took a knee in defiance of Donald trump at Wembley Stadium today after he said sportsmen who 'disrespect America' should be 'fired'. 

Players from both Jacksonville Jaguars and the Baltimore Ravens dropped to their knees as the national anthem was played prior to the match in London. 

No players were kneeling during the playing of 'God Save The Queen', which followed the Star Spangled Banner. 

They did so after President Trump had stoked tensions by saying NFL players who protested during the national anthem should be sacked by their team. 

At a rally on Friday night the president said: 'Wouldn't you love to see one of these NFL owners, when somebody disrespects our flag, to say, 'Get that son of a bi*ch off the field right now... he is fired.' 

He was referring to a controversial string of protests started by player Colin Kaepernick last year when he sat or kneeled during the anthem to highlight the treatment of black Americans. 

Players on both teams and Jaguars owner Shad Khan, who were not kneeling, remained locked arm-in-arm throughout the playing of the national anthem and 'God Save The Queen'. 

Khan, who also owns Championship football club Fulham, has previously donated one million US dollars to Trump's presidential inauguration. Shortly after the contest got under way at Wembley, the Ravens posted a message on Twitter which read: 'We recognise our players' influence. We respect their demonstration and support them 100 per cent. All voices need to be heard. That's democracy in its highest form.'

The Jaguars tweeted a photo of Khan standing, arm in arm with Lewis and Smith, with the caption 'Unity'.  

At a rally in Alabama on Friday night, Trump had delivered a scathing attack on NFL players who opt to kneel in protest when the Star-Spangled Banner is played prior to matches.

He claimed team owners should sack any player involved in such a demonstration and that fans should leave the stadium if they see it.

There was a fiery response from the NFL to Trump's controversial comments. NFL commissioner Roger Goodell released a statement saying 'divisive comments like these demonstrate an unfortunate lack of respect'. 

The NFL Players' Association said Trump had crossed a line by effectively telling players to just 'shut up and play'.

Association president Eric Winston said Trump's comments were 'a slap in the face to the civil rights heroes of the past and present'.