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Essential readings this week:
- How to eat your way Low cholesterol
- Can’t stop coughing? Persistent cough has made This virus season is exhausting.
- Is ice melting salt bad for dogs? How to keep paws safe in snowy weather.
- Scientists may hold the key to treating tinnitus: Retrain the brain
- Do you feel bloated after flying? We asked the experts what air travel does to the body.
- Will your older self refuse to hand over the car keys? Here’s how to plan.
Your main push words for 2024
Since I started choosing a word of encouragement to start a new year, I have been amazed at how quickly positive changes have occurred. When my keyword was growth, I started a new job, moved to a new city, and even started graduate school. After choosing the word balance, I adopted a dog, which, as any dog lover knows, forces you to find balance between work and family life, if only to get out of the office and go on longer walks with your friend. four-legged.
A nudge word is a word that reflects your values, intentions, and vision for the coming year. I was excited that this year thousands of you tried our stimulus word generator, an interactive tool that helps you find the right stimulus word. We count the most common words chosen this year. Here are their 10 favorites, along with some reader thoughts on why they chose their words.
1. Balance: “Balance feels all-encompassing, for peace of mind, for being kinder, for nourishing my soul and that of my loved ones. Balance feels like the umbrella I need this year to protect me from the outside elements of life.”
2. Resilience: “Resilience resonated most when I got divorced and my kids left home. I wanted a word that said, ‘I’m here, I’m going to get up and move on.'”
3. Present: “I want to appreciate my life and all the little moments that happen instead of always thinking about what’s next.”
4. Wellbeing: “Everything I want to achieve is related to my well-being.”
5. Prosper: “It will be a stimulus for me every day to ask myself what I can do to thrive, specifically for my health, which will then allow me to thrive in other areas of life.”
6. Brightness: “It is an aspiration. “I want to feel brighter and lighter as the new year dawns.”
7. Bloom: “I want to grow. I am 73 years old and I have many things I want to learn.”
8. Commit: “I chose to commit because I feel like it’s the key word for the changes I want to make in 2024.”
Finally, my personal push word for 2024 is “fun.” While it wasn’t a popular word among readers (it was #134 this year), it’s already paying dividends for me. I’m saying yes to more social invitations, I played chess with my daughter, I recently made weekend plans with out-of-town friends, and I’m planning a real vacation this year, my first in a long time.
If you missed our word push challenge this year, it’s not too late. You can try our push word generator at any time and even opt for a new word if you feel like the one you chose isn’t working for you. The true value of the word nudging exercise is the thoughtfulness and intention that goes into choosing a word.
This is your brain on exercise
We all wish we could slow the aging process, and this week Your Move columnist Gretchen Reynolds tells us how we can do it. A fascinating new study of more than 10,000 brain scans showed a link between exercise and brain volume. A larger brain generally means better health, and in this case, research suggests that exercise could slow memory loss and cognitive decline.
The interesting thing about this study is that you don’t have to be a long-distance runner to reap the benefits of exercise. The study showed that people who exercised just 25 minutes a week (that is, less than four minutes a day) had more brain volume than those who exercised less.
You can learn more by reading the full story.
And to hear even more from Gretchen, check out her fascinating live chat this week. She answered questions about how a 93-year-old rower maintains her fitness and shared insights about her own exercise challenges. Here’s the talk.
The sexual health checkup you didn’t know you needed
It’s healthy to be sexually active as an adult and correlates with greater enjoyment of life, writes Trisha Pasricha, our Ask a Doctor columnist.
“In fact, 40 percent of adults 65-80 years are sexually active and about 10 percent of people over 90 they are,” he said. “But STDs don’t spare anyone. Few people I’ve seen whose STD tests come back positive expected that result. And from 2007 to 2017, STD cases doubled among adults age 65 and older.”
To learn more about how to care for your sexual health as you age, read the entire column.
Here are some things that brought us joy this week.
- More lessons from a 93-year-old rower. Our fitness columnist Gretchen Reynolds hosted a fascinating live chat this week. It was very fun and educational too. Check it out here.
- Why it’s okay to say no to social invitations. Actually. Just say no.
- He best photographs from the Washington Post this week include penguin parents and a surprising “holy” bath.
- What is a French blonde? she is apparently Taylor Swift’s favorite cocktail.
- Behind the impulse of paddle tennis, the posh of pickleball, privileged cousin
- Would your dog rescue you? (Mine wouldn’t.) Fortunately, The dog Ruby understood her task.
- Do you need more advice? Our January restart project has all the answers you need about home, health, food, travel and more.
Do you want to know more about “joy” snacks? Our Brain Matters columnist Richard Sima explains. ANDyou also can Read this story like a comic..
Please let us know how we are doing. Send me an email to well-being@washpost.com. You also can Find us on TikTok.