How to Improve Your Circulation

 Why You Need Good Blood Flow

It’s hard to believe, but your body holds about 60,000 miles of blood vessels. Along with your heart and other muscles, they make up your circulatory system. This network of roadways carries blood to every corner of your body. But when your circulation is poor, it slows or blocks the blood flow. That means the cells in your body can’t get all the oxygen and nutrients they need.

Signs of Poor Circulation

When your limbs can’t get enough blood, your hands or feet may feel cold or numb. If you’re light-skinned, your legs might get a blue tinge. Poor circulation also can dry your skin, turn your nails brittle, and make your hair fall out, especially on your feet and legs. Some men may have trouble getting or keeping an erection. And if you have diabetes, your scrapes, sores, or wounds tend to heal slower.

Snuff Out Tobacco

Nicotine is the active ingredient in cigarettes, electronic cigarettes, and smokeless tobacco. It harms the walls of your arteries and thickens your blood so much, it can’t get through. If you smoke, quit. It can be hard to stick with it, but your pharmacy or doctor’s office can help.

Control Your Blood Pressure

If it’s too high, it can cause arteriosclerosis, a condition that hardens your arteries and can help choke off blood flow. Aim for 120 mmHg over 80 mmHg or less, but ask your doctor about the best numbers for your age and health. Check your reading at least once a month. You can buy a home blood pressure monitor or use a kiosk at your pharmacy.

Gulp It Down

Blood is about half water. So you need to stay hydrated to keep it moving. Aim for 8 glasses of water a day. You’ll need to drink more if you exercise or if it’s hot outside.

Stand Up at Your Desk

Sitting for hours at a time isn’t great for your circulation or your back. It weakens leg muscles and slows the blood flow in your legs, which could cause a clot. If you’re a desk jockey at work, consider a standing desk instead. It may take a little while to get used to, but getting on your feet works the valves in your leg veins, sending blood up to your heart.

Relax and Twist

Yoga is a low-impact exercise that can jump-start your blood flow. When you move, it brings oxygen to your cells. When you twist, it sends blood to your organs. And upside-down positions shift blood from the bottom half of your body up to your heart and brain.

Hit the Wall (in a Good Way)

Not a yogi? When your ankles or feet swell, try the legs-up-the-wall yoga pose. Also called viparita karani, it’s an easy way to send your blood in the other direction. Lie on the floor or on a yoga mat, with your left or right shoulder close to the wall. Turn your body so you can put your feet up, and scooch your bottom against the wall. Stretch your arms out on the floor with palms down for balance.

Pump It Up

Aerobic means “with oxygen.” So when you run, bike, walk, swim, and do similar exercises, you take in more oxygen and move it to your muscles. This gets your blood pumping, makes your heart stronger, and lowers your blood pressure. Set a goal to exercise for 30 minutes, 5 to 7 days a week. Break it up into small chunks if needed. If you walk, know that moderate to intense speeds -- at least 3 miles an hour -- offer the best health benefits.

Cop a Squat

This form of strength training not only gets your blood pumping, it also helps lower your blood sugar and helps with back pain. Start with your feet shoulder-width apart and your arms at your sides. Now slowly bend at your hips and knees, but keep your back straight, like you’re sitting in a chair. As you return to the starting position, bend your arms for balance.

Compress Your Socks

Put your wardrobe to work. Compression socks put a bit of squeeze on your legs so your blood doesn’t hang around too long. Instead, it’ll move back up to your heart. Ask your doctor which length and amount of pressure are best for you.

Eat More Plants and Less Meat

Let’s face it: There’s no downside to a balanced diet. Eat lots of fruits and vegetables. Stay away from saturated fats that can be found in red meat, chicken, cheese, and other animal sources. Steer clear of too much salt. That will help keep your weight in a healthy range and your cholesterol and blood pressure in check -- and your arteries clear.

Brush Your Body, Not Just Your Hair

Sweep your blood in the right direction. Take a body brush with stiff, flat bristles and stroke on your dry skin. Start with your feet and work your way up, using long motions on your legs and arms. Make circles on your belly and lower back. Dry brushing also gets rid of dry skin. Do it every day, right before your shower.

Sip or Soak

It’s a temporary fix, but a bath is a great way to kick-start your circulation. Warm water makes your arteries and veins open a bit wider, letting more blood through. Hot water or tea does the trick as well.

How to Get Rid of Love Handles

 Medically Reviewed by Zilpah Sheikh, MD on February 28, 2024

Written by Sylvia Davis

What Are Love Handles?

"Love handles" is a slang term that describes fat deposits along the sides of your waist and hips. You might also hear these deposits called "muffin top" or a "spare tire."

While you may be most concerned about the way love handles look, research has shown that excess fat around the waist can increase your risk for conditions like type 2 diabetes, heart disease, and even cancer.

Short of liposuction or another cosmetic procedure, there's no way to "spot reduce" love handles away. But reaching and maintaining a weight that's healthy for you and increasing your muscle mass with exercise can help get rid of love handles while improving your overall health.

Your fitness routine should include moves to strengthen your core muscles (the muscles in your torso). Not only can that help your midsection look better, but a strong core also:

Helps prevent back injuries and back pain

Improves balance

Improves posture

Helps protect your hips and knees

Ab exercises alone won’t get rid of love handles. But exercises like deadlifts and hanging leg lifts can help you build a stronger core.

What Causes Love Handles?

Love handles are caused by fatty tissue around your midsection. Whether your body tends to store fat around the middle depends on:

Genetics. Fat storage patterns tend to run in families.

Hormones. Men (and those identified as male at birth) are more likely to store fat in the belly area rather than the hips and thighs.

Your age. Levels of belly fat tend to increase at midlife and later.

It's possible to have a body mass index (BMI) that's considered healthy and still have too much belly fat for optimum health. Your waist measurement can be a general indicator of whether you have unhealthy levels of belly fat:

For men and those assigned male at birth, that's a waist over 40 inches.

For women and those assigned female at birth, it's over 35 inches.

If you have a larger body size, exact waist measurements may be less important than whether your waistline is getting larger over time.

You can't change your body's fat storage patterns. But when you lose fat and build muscle through diet and exercise, your belly will most likely shrink -- and you may lose your love handles. Some research has found that exercise is even more effective for reducing belly fat than for overall weight loss.

Love Handle Exercises

While a strong core is important, exercises that target your abs aren't enough to get rid of love handles. You need full-body exercises for best results -- both for your love handles and the rest of your body.

These exercises combine ab-strengthening moves with those that benefit your back, hips, and legs. Try to do one set of 12-15 repetitions of each exercise. If you have physical limitations or are new to exercise, it's best to talk to your doctor before you start a new workout routine.

Side planks

Side planks work your arms, legs, and all your ab muscles, including those along your side where love handles form.

Step 1: Lie on your side and prop yourself up with one arm. Keep the arm bent and your elbow in line with your shoulder.

Step 2: Place one leg on top of the other until your body forms a straight line from head to feet. Then, lift your hips off the ground.

Step 3: As you lift, squeeze your glutes (your butt muscles) and tighten your abs.

Step 4: Hold for around 30 seconds. Then switch to the other side and repeat. As you grow stronger, you can challenge yourself by doing these planks with your supporting arm straight.

A side plank is similar to a regular plank, except with this movement you're positioned on your side.

Russian twists

The Russian twist targets all the muscles in your core and stabilizes your spine.

Step 1: Sit down with your knees bent at 90 degrees and feet flat on the ground. Lean your torso back until it's at about a 45-degree angle from the floor, keeping your back straight.

Step 2: Using both hands and with arms bent, hold a dumbbell or other weight above your abdomen. If that's too difficult, do the exercise without the weight. To make the move more challenging, lift your feet a few inches off the ground and balance on your rear.

Step 3: Twist your torso and arms as far as you can toward the left.  Repeat on the right side and alternate.

Mountain climber’s twist

The mountain climber engages several muscle groups, in both your upper and lower body. If you do them at a fast pace, they also have cardio benefits. Adding a cross-body twist pulls in your oblique muscles, which run along the sides of your torso, into the equation?

Step 1: Get into a plank position, with both hands flat on the floor and about shoulder-width apart. For an easier version, do this exercise with your hands on a plyo box, exercise step, bench, or chair.

Step 2: Keep your core tight and your spine straight as you lift your right knee and bring it up toward your left elbow, crossing your body. 

Step 3: Return to the starting position, then lift your left leg and bring your knee up toward your right elbow. Alternate sides.

Deadlifts

Lifting weights builds muscle and bones while it burns fat. You can use a barbell or dumbbells for this exercise. Start with a weight you can lift 12-15 times with good form.

Step 1: Stand with your feet about hip-width apart. Hinge forward at your hips, bending your knees a little, and grasp the barbell or dumbbells with an overhand grip. 

Step 2: Keeping your back flat and your head in line with your spine, push your hips forward as you stand up until your hips and knees are straight. Hold the barbell or weights close to your body as you lift.

Step 3: Hold for a few seconds, then hinge at your hips again as you return the weight to the floor. Be careful not to round your shoulders or bend your knees too deeply.

Squats

Squats work the large muscles in your lower body. You can do them while holding dumbbells or a barbell, or just use your own body weight as resistance.

Step 1: Stand with your feet a little more than shoulder-width apart.

Step 2: Keeping your back in a neutral position, slowly bend at your knees, hips, and ankles until your knees are at a 90-degree angle to the floor. If that's too hard, just go as low as you can while maintaining good form. Keep your knees centered over your feet as you squat.

Step 3: Slowly return to standing.

Bicycle crunches

These core exercises include a rotating movement that helps to improve spine flexibility.

Step 1. Lying on your back, raise both legs off the floor with your knees bent at a 90-degree angle.

Step 2: Put your hands behind your head with your elbows out to the sides.

Step 3: Slowly lift your head and shoulders off the floor, and then move your left elbow toward your right knee. At the same time, straighten out your left leg (but keep it off the floor).

Step 4: Keeping your head and shoulders up, rotate to bring your right elbow to your left knee as you straighten your right leg.

Hanging leg raises

The hanging leg raise is an advanced exercise that challenges your abdominal muscles and hip flexors, using your own body weight. You can do them at the gym or at home using a pull-up bar. Don't attempt these if you have back problems.

Step 1: Hanging from your hands from a bar above your head, bend your knees and slowly bring them up to your chest.  For an even more advanced version, try keeping your legs straight.

Step 2: Slowly lower your legs back down.

Step 3: Squeeze your ab muscles during both the lifting and lowering movements to maximize the effect.

Safety Considerations

Always use slow and controlled movements during strength-building exercises. Moving too quickly risks straining your muscles and possibly damaging tendons, ligaments, and joints.

Alignment is especially important when you do core exercises. Pay attention to how your spine is aligned. Change positions or stop the exercise if you feel discomfort in your back. Only do as many repetitions of each exercise as you can comfortably do with good form. Over time, you may be able to build up to more.

You might feel the effort of exertion, but no exercise should hurt. Stop the exercise if you feel any pain, especially in your lower back. Check your alignment and technique and try again. If the pain persists, talk to a doctor before continuing your exercise routine.

Takeaways

Love handles are fat deposits in your belly area, along the sides of your hips and waist. You can't spot-reduce love handles away. But maintaining a healthy weight and building muscle throughout your body will shrink love handles as it improves your overall health.

Love Handles FAQs

Does running help with love handles?

Cardio exercises like running can help you lose fat all over your body, including your love handles. For maximum benefit, aim for at least 150 minutes a week of running, cycling, dancing, or whatever cardio exercise you like best.

Can I lose love handles in 2 weeks?

When you're trying to lose weight and get fit, there's no way to target belly fat. Weight loss will slim your midsection along with the rest of you. But the rate of weight loss differs from person to person. The key to losing weight and keeping it off is to make long-term changes in your diet and exercise patterns that you can stick with.  Experts recommend losing no more than about 1-2 pounds per week.

What exercise gets rid of love handles the fastest?

There's no single love handle workout or exercise that's most effective. The best routine for losing belly fat includes full-body strength training as well as cardio exercise.

How Often Do Married Couples Have Sex?

 Medically Reviewed by Sanjay Ponkshe on July 11, 2023

Written by WebMD Editorial Contributors

It may not be a good idea to compare your sex life to that of other couples. But it is interesting to look at what statistics say about this issue. You may think that you're having sex fewer times than your peers, but scientific studies may prove you wrong. For example, a recent study shows that American couples are having less sex than they did a decade ago.

It’s also worth noting that there is no perfect answer to the question.

Average Number of Times Couples Have Sex Per Week

‌Research carried out by the General Social Survey shows the following: ‌

7% of American adults had sex once or twice in the last year

10% did not have sex in the past year

19% had sex twice or thrice per month

17% had sex once a month

5% had sex four or more times a week

16% had sex twice or thrice per week

25% had sex weekly

‌Another study published in 2019 found that about 47% of married couples have sex less than once a week.‌

The frequency of sex is said to be closely linked to a happy marriage. But research shows that married people who have more sex weekly are no happier than those who have less of it. This is according to a study involving 30,000 people.‌

You’re probably within the normal range. If you’re happy with the number of times you have sex in your marriage, that’s the right amount of sex for you. Research shows that pushing sex frequency to more than once a week may decrease your desire for and enjoyment of sex. This is to say that quality is as vital as quantity.

Married Sex and Satisfaction

‌Satisfaction and interpersonal connection are more important in marriage than the frequency of sexual intimacy. There is also a strong connection between well-being, positive emotions, and sex. ‌

Mutual respect is a huge contributor to sexual satisfaction. Respondents in research studies reported that they are looking for the following for an improved sex life: ‌

 

More quality time with their partner

‌More love and romance

‌Less stress ‌‌

Strive to be a better communicator. The journey of making your sex life better begins with ensuring open communication with your partner. One study ties sexual communication with a better sexual experience and satisfaction. For example, you're less likely to fake an orgasm if you have open talks about sex with your partner.‌

Research also shows that the more you fake orgasms, the less likely you are to talk about sex with your partner. This is because you will feel embarrassed and choose not to talk about it. Some reasons for this include not wanting to hurt your partner's emotions or not feeling comfortable being explicit.

Is Your Marriage in Trouble?

‌When you stop having sex in marriage, your relationship becomes vulnerable to detachment, anger, infidelity, and ultimately, divorce. Lack of frequent sex in marriage can be due to many reasons, including the following: ‌

Age

Natural libido levels

Each partner’s health status

The overall quality of the relationship

‌As such, there's no standard scale to determine how often you should have sex in your marriage. Having sex at least once a week is ideal to keep the marriage intact. But having sex less than ten times a year is enough reason to qualify a marriage as a sexless one. Over time, it may lead to divorce due to dissatisfaction.‌

It’s worth noting that lack of sex doesn’t always imply a failed or dysfunctional marriage. Sexual intimacy is how you express your love and desire for your partner. Not having sex doesn't necessarily end in divorce. All the same, it is something that you should strive to handle before things get out of hand. ‌‌

Sex can easily fall to the bottom of the to-do list for most people. Yet it is the glue that keeps them together. Without it, you might be headed to the "good friends" zone at best or "bickering housemates" at worst.

Syncing Your Sex Drives

Many factors must fall into place for sex to become something you desire and want to do often. For most couples, a difference of opinion is usually the main problem affecting the frequency of sex in their marriage. The problem is usually not about sex but about getting to the act itself.

Your willingness for sex at any given time may not always match up to your partner’s. The secret is to negotiate how many times per week works for both of you. Just like many other areas in marriage, sex and its frequency also require compromise. But studies show that a weekly frequency is good enough to keep your marriage happy.

High-Risk Plaque: The Hidden Killer that Has Doctors Divided

 Written by Lisa O'Mary

March 20, 2025 -- More people are likely to be diagnosed with a condition that heightens the risk of heart attack and stroke, thanks to a controversial broadening of the definition that has cardiologists sharply divided. 

The condition is “high-risk” plaque, once narrowly defined as plaque built up in the arteries that are likely to rupture, possibly leading to an acute heart attack or sudden cardiac death. It was rarely diagnosed due to the need for complex imaging tests.

But treatments for high-risk plaque — and understanding of the condition itself — have grown rapidly in recent years. And a leading cardiology journal just published a proposed broadened definition of high-risk plaque and how to spot it, meaning more people might see the term show up in their imaging test reports.

“Patients these days have access to their test results,” said senior author Ik-Kyung Jang, MD, PhD, professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School. “When they see high-risk plaque in the report, they may become panicked and call their cardiologist or doctor and ask, ‘Am I going to have a heart attack? Am I going to drop dead?’”

What happens next depends on your doctor because there are two schools of thought. Likely, your doc will recommend medication and lifestyle changes to reduce plaque buildup. But some are also advocating for more tests and diagnoses that, ultimately, could pave the way for invasive interventions like a stent, a mesh tube that can keep an artery open.

Medication and lifestyle changes alone can dramatically lower the risk. But because the new definition opens the door to more invasive procedures like stents, some maintain that it’s steering us down an unnecessary and potentially harmful path.

How Serious Is High-Risk Plaque?

High-risk plaque causes up to 40% of acute coronary syndromes (sudden heart blood flow problems like unstable angina and heart attack).

What You Need to Know About Stents

Learn about heart stents, why they're used, and what types you and your doctor can choose from.

Among several types of high-risk plaque, the most dangerous is called thin-cap fibro-atheroma plaque (TCFA) and is at especially high risk for rupture.

“We have followed patients with TCFA for four years,” said Jang. “Only 1% of TCFA plaques led to acute myocardial infarction [a heart attack]. One percent.”

If doctors were to treat all TCFA with stents, “99 out of 100 patients” would be receiving unnecessary treatment, said Jang, who used to favor stenting for TCFA, but after two decades researching vascular biology in living patients, now encourages medication management.

The new definition of high-risk plaque includes a range of imaging options for diagnosis, including CT scans.

CT scans usually lack the detail needed for firm diagnosis, which is why many patients are referred to Jang for further testing. By then, patients are extremely worried — but just because high-risk plaque was detected “doesn’t mean that’s going to cause trouble,” Jang tells them.

High-risk plaques are often described to patients as volcanoes, said study co-author Gregg W. Stone, MD, a professor at Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in New York. The problem is, sometimes a seemingly dormant volcano can erupt.

“You can walk on them, they look all fine, but you don't know that there's all this molten lava going on inside, which, if it bursts through, it then causes a real problem,” Stone said.

That’s what high-risk plaque is like. “It's basically a stable plaque until it's not,” Stone said. “And then it causes a heart attack, or threatened heart attack, or even sudden cardiac death for the patient.”

Where Both Sides Agree

Stone is among the group of cardiologists who advocate for more diagnostic imaging and possibly someday — if research supports it — offering patients procedures such as stents to reduce risks.

In addition to TCFA plaques, there are two other types that, if found on imaging, would be labeled as high-risk plaque on a report.

One is called erosion-prone plaque, which is “a more fibrous plaque, where there aren’t necessarily a lot of lipid or cholesterol deposits. There may be, but there doesn't have to be. And the plaque doesn't rupture,” like with TCFA, Stone said. “In plaque erosion, the surface of the plaque becomes irregular and inflamed, and a blood clot can form on the surface of the plaque.”

The other type is an eruptive calcified nodule, “which is this big, chunky deposit of calcium or multiple deposits of calcium,” Stone said. “It's very irregular, and it causes blood flow turbulence, and that can cause a blood clot to form. So the final common denominator of all three of these types of plaques is a blood clot.”

Regardless of the type, both sides agree that aggressive medical therapy is the “foundational approach,” the new position statement says.  

The treatment involves strong medication and lifestyle changes like a healthy diet, exercise, and quality sleep. Doctors may prescribe a statin along with other drugs that help lower cholesterol, reduce inflammation, or protect the heart, such as PCSK9 inhibitors, bempedoic acid, colchicine, ezetimibe, icosapent ethyl, and inclisiran, said Matthew Budoff, MD, professor of medicine at UCLA and chair of preventive cardiology at the Lundquist Institute in Torrance, California. (Budoff wasn’t involved in writing the new definition.)

These therapies can erase the label “high risk” from plaque or even reduce the buildup.

“Without therapy, they would be high risk,” Budoff said. “We have done numerous studies with different therapies and documented that we can stabilize plaques and cause regression.”

Will You Need a Stent?

But Budoff and Stone differ on more invasive options, such as a stent.

“Another thing that we might consider that's an emergent therapy is to put a stent on the high-risk plaque,” said Stone, who was at the helm of two preliminary studies of the procedure. “And as the stent heals, it thickens the cap and presumably makes it less vulnerable because of that.”

Budoff called the expanded definition of high-risk plaque problematic.

“It lends itself to getting a stent placed in the high-risk plaque, and that is why the vast majority of authors of this document were interventional cardiologists,” Budoff said. It’s not yet established that the benefits of placing stents will outweigh the risks, he said. “There is no data to support stenting of these lesions, as we don’t know for sure which will rupture, so the treatment has to be medical, yet I think it will lead to more stents, which is problematic.”

Jang, who is an interventional cardiologist, agreed.

And despite being a proponent for stenting high-risk plaque, Stone agreed a lot more needs to be known before it goes mainstream.

“We need a lot more studies before that becomes widespread and an accepted therapy because that has the potential to totally change the way we diagnose and treat patients,” he said.

Healthier Comfort Foods

 Comfort Can Be Healthy

When it turns a little chilly outside or you’re a bit down in the dumps, there’s nothing like good comfort food to make you feel better. The problem is, comfort foods often aren’t the best thing for you to eat. Here are a few smart choices to keep you healthy and get you comfy when you need it the most.

Vegetable Lasagna

Lasagna is a comfort-food staple, but it can be trouble if you’re not careful. Like many favorites with lots of ingredients, cheese-laden lasagna can be overloaded with things like saturated fats. A meatless lasagna, one with vegetables, is healthier. Go with low-fat or fat-free cheese, too. Think about making it with whole-grain pasta.

Spaghetti Squash

Few meals are more reliable than a big, warm dish of spaghetti. As is always the case, though, what’s in the dish, and how it’s prepared, matters. You can use spaghetti squash and take it easy on the carbs. Watch the salt in your sauce, and use olive oil to make a heart-happy and stomach-filling meal.

Baked Potato with Chili

It’s hard to beat a hefty baked potato as part of a good, homey meal. But if you’re heaping on salt, butter, and bacon bits, it can turn unhealthy in a hurry. Instead, a turkey and veggie chili -- lean turkey, heart-healthy veggies, lots of beans that are high in protein and fiber -- can make a baked potato into a full-blown, much-healthier meal.

Chicken or Black Bean Enchiladas

You might not think of a pan of enchiladas as a classic comfort food. But oooh, that cheesy, spicy goodness is hard to pass up. To make it as healthy as you can, choose low-fat or fat-free cheese, pick lean chicken (or go without, making it with protein-rich black beans or no-fat refried beans instead), and use whole-wheat tortillas.

Popcorn

Movie theaters sell those 25-gallon tubs of popcorn for a reason: People love it. Watching a good movie at home is a good reason to make some, too. But popcorn, as fiber-packed as it is, can be unhealthy. Pop your own, in air, ideally. If you use oil, avoid corn, sunflower, or soybean oils.  And go easy on the salt, butter, and toppings.

Pretzels with Mustard or Hummus

Mindless snacking in front of the TV? If you must, a whole-grain, low-salt pretzel is a good way to go. And to top it off, try some different kinds of mustard or a healthy dish of nutritious hummus (made with protein- and fiber-rich chickpeas, also known as garbanzo beans).

Chips and Salsa

If you’re jonesing for some tortilla chips, go for baked (which you can make yourself). Black-bean dip, a good veggie-rich salsa (watch for added sugars) or some homemade guacamole (with good fats, fiber, and potassium) can all be healthy, yummy additions.

Low-Fat Ice Cream (or Sherbet)

Some of us believe true comfort lies at the end of a meal -- or whenever you decide to break out the dessert. Ice cream, of course, is a favorite. Newer offerings cut back on fat and calories, but be careful: with additives, they may not be as healthy as they seem. Sherbet usually has some milk added (check the label). Sorbet is dairy-free.

Oatmeal-Raisin Cookies

Nobody ever linked good health and cookies. Still, a good oatmeal-raisin one, made with whole-wheat flour and maybe some applesauce or plain yogurt, is a fine, and relatively healthy, indulgence.

Ginger Snaps

These cookies contain ginger, shown to have anti-inflammatory properties. Ginger also eases nausea and is a proven remedy for motion sickness. Add things like whole wheat flour, molasses, and cinnamon, and you have a rarity: A health-conscious cookie with cancer-fighting nutrients.

Health Do's and Don'ts of Buying Used

 What’s the Big Deal?

You might save some money upfront, but buying used can come with hidden costs. From bed bugs to product recalls, things can go sideways sometimes. That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t buy anything secondhand. But when you get that thrift store itch, know what to watch out for and which things you should never buy used.

Do: Be Careful With Kids’ Stuff

When it comes to toys and children’s furniture, always check for safety recalls and make sure there’s no lead paint involved. If you can’t find out for sure, move on. You also should stay away from anything with missing or broken parts, or that’s wobbly when it should be stable. And remember that older products may not have the same safety features as new ones.

Don’t: Buy Car Seats

This means booster seats, too. While you can check for recalls, you don’t know a seat’s history. Even a little fender bender could have damaged it and keep it from protecting your child the way it was meant to. In general, they have a service life of about 6 years. After several summer heatwaves and winter freezes, they can break down in ways you can’t see.

Do: Sniff Out Third-hand Smoke

This is what smoking leaves behind in clothes, furniture, curtains, and pretty much everything else. It builds up over time and can last for weeks. Stay away from items you know came from the home of someone who smoked. Since you don’t always know for sure, it’s best to give everything you buy used a thorough cleaning.

Don’t: Buy Cribs

Cribs made before June 2011 must not be used or sold because safety standards have changed. There also are strict rules for things like height, how close together the slats must be, and how the mattress fits. When you add it all up, it’s not worth the risk.

Do: Check Strollers and High Chairs

Make sure the safety straps are in good working order and that no sharp parts, like screws, jut out from anywhere. And check the company’s website to be sure it hasn’t been recalled. Fold and unfold strollers to see if they’re sturdy. Test that high chairs aren’t wobbly and trays snap firmly into place. Keep in mind that some older models may not be tip-proof.

Don’t: Buy Makeup or Makeup Brushes

It might seem like a good deal -- until you have to pay for a doctor’s visit and some medication. Makeup and brushes touch your hands, eyes, and mouth. That makes those little containers breeding grounds for all kinds of germs. Even the testers in stores can be a bad idea. You can get skin rashes and serious infections. And used makeup may no longer have labels that list ingredients and warnings and tell you how to use them safely.

Do: Wash and Dry Clothes and Linens

If you’re concerned about bedbugs -- and most of the time, you probably should be -- go straight to the dryer. Washing alone won’t kill them. Run everything through on high heat for 30 minutes. Take any bags the items came in to your outside trash right away. For things that can’t go into the washer and dryer, dry cleaning will get the job done.

Don’t: Buy Helmets

From bikes to horse riding, most helmets are made to hold up through only one crash. Or one drop on a hard surface. Once that happens, the foam inside squeezes and won’t protect you the same way, even if it looks fine. Plus, older helmets don’t necessarily meet the same safety standards as new ones, and the materials can break down over time.

Do: Ensure Halogen Lamps Have Shields

The bulbs in tall torchiere lamps can get twice as hot as your oven. If a curtain touches it, it can catch fire. Look for one with a wire or glass shield over the bulb. And even if the label says otherwise, don’t go any higher than a 300-watt bulb. It’s also good to check for a polarized plug, where one side is wider than the other. And make sure the cord isn’t frayed and that the lamp doesn’t have any bent, rusted, or loose parts.

Don’t: Buy Swimwear or Underwear

While used clothing is generally fine, you don’t want these items used. Because of where they sit on your body, a whole other level of germs come into play. That includes genital infections and small amounts of poop. And swimsuits tend to wear out quickly, so you’re not really saving much money in the long run.

Do: Look for Bedbugs in Furniture

These critters can crawl into the tiniest seam or crack and go a year without eating. Once you have them, they’re brutal to get out. They can be in most types of used furniture, but you’re more likely to find them in mattresses or items with soft fabric, like sofas. Check these things very closely, looking for bugs, eggs, and signs of their poop, which looks like tiny black dots.

Do: Know Your Allergies

If you’re allergic to dogs or cats, it’s probably the dried skin flakes, known as dander, that affect you. And they’re sticky, so they easily cling to clothes and other fabrics. Look for hair or fur to give you a warning sign. Washing clothes and linens will help. And furniture made of wood is a lot easier to clean than that almost perfect vintage sofa.

Don’t: Buy Tires

Like car seats and helmets, there’s just too much you can’t know about their history. Were they in an accident? Driven at really high speeds? Towing loads that were too heavy? All those can cause damage you can’t see. And every tire has an expiration date. They’re only good for 6 years, whether you use them often or not.

Do: Check the Plug on Hair Dryers

Water and electricity are deadly together. As long as it’s plugged in, a hair dryer has electricity raring to go, even if it’s turned off. Newer ones protect you with a bulky plug that has red and yellow switches on it. It cuts off the supply of electricity if it gets wet. Don’t buy older models that don’t have this feature. And check that the cord is in good shape.

How to Find Out About Recalls

From washing machines to strollers, pretty much anything can be recalled for safety reasons. To find out if there’s been one for something you’re interested in buying, get the brand and model, and then check the manufacturer’s website. Older products may no longer be on recall lists, so you may want to give the company a call to be sure. You can also check with the government’s Consumer Product Safety Commission at www.cpsc.gov.

Facts About Gray Hair

 All the Shades of Gray

It’s said a woman’s hair is their crowning glory. Sooner or later, that crown will start to gray. You now face a decision. Banish gray hair with dye, or rock a silver mane? Whichever you pick, know the facts about your gray strands to keep your hair looking and feeling its best.

Science of Grays

Your hair follicles have pigment cells that make melanin, a chemical that gives your hair its color. As you age, these cells start to die. Without pigment, new hair strands grow in lighter and take on various shades of gray, silver, and eventually white. Once a follicle stops making melanin, it won’t make colored strands again.

When and Why It Happens

You might blame your stressful job or your unruly teens for your grays. But it’s mostly your genes that dictate how early and how quickly it happens. So if either of your parents had a full head of gray hair in their 30s, there’s a good chance you will, too.

How Race Plays a Role

On average, white people start to gray in their mid-30s. Asians start in their late 30s. And African Americans usually don’t see color changes until their mid-40s.

What’s Premature Gray?

Some people go gray 10 or more years earlier than the average person does. It’s premature if you’re gray before:

20 if you’re white

25 if you’re Asian

30 if you’re African American

 Do Health Problems Turn Hair Gray?

They could. These conditions include:

Lack of vitamin B12

Certain rare, inherited tumor conditions

Thyroid disease

Vitiligo, a condition that destroys pigment-making cells in the scalp

Alopecia areata causes patches of hair (usually ones with color) to fall out. This can look like sudden graying because the hair that’s left is gray or white. When your hair regrows, it could be gray, white, or your normal color.

Does Stress Make You Go Gray?

Not directly. But it can cause a condition that causes your hair to shed about 3 times faster than normal. It’s possible that when your hair grows back, it’s gray instead of your original color.

The Smoking Link

Lighting up affects your body from head to toe. That includes the hair on your head. One study showed that smokers are 2 1/2 times more likely to gray before age 30 than nonsmokers. It also can make silver gray look yellow.

To Pluck or Not to Pluck …

There’s an old wives’ tale that says if you pluck a gray, three will grow back. That doesn’t happen. Still, don’t pluck. You’re just delaying the inevitable -- another gray strand will replace it. Besides, pulling hair out can damage follicles so much, they no longer grow hair. This can make your mane look thin over time.

Do Grays Feel Different?

Gray hair is thinner than hair with natural color because its cuticle is thinner. Your hair needs that natural protection from water, ultraviolet rays from the sun, humidity, chemicals, and heat styling. Without that barrier, your hair loses water. So your gray will feel dry, fragile, and coarse. African American hair tends to be more prone to damage, compared to that of Asians and whites.

Tame Those Tresses

Moisture treatment and hair oils can fight dull, dry grays. Anti-frizz products can help, too. Heat and light from lamps or the sun can “bleach” gray hair and make it look yellow. Ask your stylist how to prevent this. A purple-toned shampoo can help keep your tresses vibrant silver.

Special Care for African American Hair

Black people’s hair usually is thinner, drier, and breaks more easily, compared to hair of people of other races. So comb and otherwise treat it gently, especially if you use chemicals to relax your hair. Add moisture with a light conditioner that penetrates your hair shafts, instead of lanolin or other oily treatments that simply coat the strands.

No-Dye Camouflage

If you’re sporting just a few gray hairs, you can hide them if you get creative. Wear a pretty headband. Or switch up your hairstyle -- part it where there is less gray. If you have long hair, wear an up-do to hide gray roots.

Or, Just Dye It!

You can do it yourself with a box from the drugstore. Look for products designed for gray hair. Permanent dye will better cover stubborn roots than semipermanent color. If you can afford it, opt for a color treatment at your local salon. If some of your grays won’t take in the color, try using a lighter shade that will blend in with the grays.

Herbal Cover-Up

If you worry about the damage from chemical dyes, consider using natural henna. It can add red, brown, or black sheen to any textures of hair. Powdered pigments from the leaves of the henna plant can work well to camouflage your gray roots.

Go Au Naturel

If you’re ready to ditch the dye, you can go gray gracefully while it grows out. Ask your stylist how much gray you actually have. If it’s a lot, you can go lighter through highlights to minimize grow-out. Or, you can switch from a permanent color to less opaque demi color, which can make your gray strands mimic highlights and blend in better with the rest of your hair.

Get the Right Cut

Rock a great cut with lots of style and texture, and get a trim every 6-8 weeks. Women who are 100% gray often wear their hair short. But consider long layers. They can be beautiful and add movement to healthy, bouncy hair.