The healing field at Glastonbury, with its gong baths and laughter meditation, might have some of the trappings of the ever-expanding wellness industry, but it has competition. Because Goop, the controversial lifestyle brand and wellness empire founded by Gwyneth Paltrow, is bringing its summit, In Goop Health, to [...]

Zoe Williams cites the American sociologist Elizabeth Armstrong, who “examined the evidence for the detrimental effects of stress on a pregnancy. The only demonstrable correlation was between a profound stress event – the death of an existing child, or spouse – during pregnancy, and a negative outcome” (The [...]

Get A Drip, a wellness company offering “affordable IV vitamin drips and booster shots”, has withdrawn a product it called a “fertility IV” from sale after the British Pregnancy Advisory Service said there was no evidence this “treatment” could improve [...]

Harness pedal power Try a gym powered by human energy. Terra Hale in London runs the lights and speakers on pedal power – one class generates enough energy to supply a computer for a day. In Brighton, Eco Gym has cardio equipment that puts 74% of energy back into the grid, as well as energy-saving lighting, eco [...]

Vary your training Charlotte Arter, the British 10,000-metre champion and Saucony ambassador, clocked the fastest female Parkrun time in the world in Cardiff earlier this year, at just 15min 50sec. She advises varying runs by length and pace. For three to four runs a week, Arter recommends one faster 5km, broken down [...]

If your periods are interfering with your life, seek advice Menstrual cramps happen when the womb’s muscular wall tightens to encourage its lining to shed, says Dr Caroline Overton, a consultant gynaecologist and a spokeswoman for the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists. “The pain sensation is due [...]

Not many people have heard of misophonia – which is ironic, because it has everything to do with hearing. It describes extreme reactions – in my case, mostly rage, but in the case of others it may be anxiety or disgust – to certain sounds. I don’t actually know whether I have misophonia. It seems low on the [...]

Two types of bacteria live on our hands: resident bacteria, which are rarely implicated in infection and are good for the skin, and transient bacteria, which we pick up on our fingertips when we touch surfaces. The latter are the ones we want to [...]

Limit the time spent reading news “Headline anxiety” is a growing problem. A report from Ofcom last week found that 78% of Britons are concerned about their internet use, while more than half of Americans surveyed by the American Psychological Association in 2017 said the political environment was a significant [...]

A couple of years ago, the idea of putting on a pair of boxing gloves and attempting to bob and hook would have had me (and anyone who knows me) weeping with laughter. I was always the girl with two left feet; more likely to accidentally smack myself in the face than accurately punch a boxing pad. Despite being highly [...]