Healthy Sex for Women

A pleasurable, satisfying sex life is good for your health. Sex can reduce emotional stress. It can be a bonding experience within a relationship. It can also be a great deal of fun.

However, sex has risks. Sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) can cause emotional and physical discomfort. They can also cause serious medical problems like infertility. Chronic pelvic pain can affect your enjoyment not just of sex but also of daily life. Sexual dysfunction can make sex seem like more of a chore than a pleasure.

Having a healthy sex life takes work. Fortunately, most of the time it’s easy to improve your sexual health.

Protect Yourself from Sexually Transmitted Diseases

If you are a sexually active woman, you are at risk of contracting an STD. Your risk is higher if you’ve had 15 lifetime partners than if you’ve had only one. However, it’s possible to contract an STD the first time you have sex. You can even contract an STD if your partner is also a virgin. It’s rare, but it can happen. Many children contract oral herpes from their families while growing up. They can then pass it on to a partner during oral sex.

There are ways to protect yourself from STDs. They may not be 100 percent successful all the time, but they can help.

Get Vaccinated

Currently two types of STDs are preventable by vaccine. These are the human papillomavirus (HPV) and hepatitis. Two HPV vaccines are available. Cervarix protects against the two types of HPV that cause most cases of cervical cancer. Gardasil protects against those two types as well as the two types that cause the majority of genital warts. Both vaccines are most effective when given before a woman starts having sex. You can still get vaccinated up through your late 20s.

A vaccine is also available against hepatitis B. It’s normally given during infancy. Hepatitis B causes liver disease. It can be transmitted through sexual activity.

A vaccine for hepatitis A is available as well. Hepatitis A is not usually spread during sex, but it can be transmitted during oral-anal contact. The vaccine is recommended for all children at age 1. 

Practice Safe Sex

Safe sex is very effective at preventing STDs that spread through infected secretions, such as HIV. It’s less effective at preventing STDs that are transmitted through skin-to-skin contact. However, it can still reduce your risk.

Try to use latex or polyurethane condoms and dental dams every time you have sex. There is always an advantage to using protection. Consistent use of barriers can reduce the transmission of STIs during:

• oral sex
• vaginal sex
• anal sex

Many women do not realize that oral sex can transmit disease. However, a number of STDs can be transmitted during oral sex. These include:

• syphilis
• HPV
• herpes

A recent rise in the increase of oral cancer is thought to be due to the transmission of HPV during oral sex.

Get Screened for STDs

Regular STD testing can reduce the long-term consequences of an infection. Left untreated, bacterial diseases such as gonorrhea can have serious health consequences, including infertility. Screening can help to prevent such outcomes.

Screening can also reduce your risk of contracting an STD. Make a date to get tested with a new partner before starting a sexual relationship. Then you will each know if you are putting the other at risk.

STD screening is a good idea for anyone who is sexually active. STDs can affect individuals of any age. Even people in monogamous marriages can end up with an STD if both partners weren’t screened before they got together.

Have Regular Pap Smears

Pap smears are a routine part of women’s healthcare. These tests detect early signs of cervical cancer. Precancerous changes can be treated before they become serious problems.

Most cases of cervical cancer are caused by infection with HPV. Therefore, practicing safer sex can reduce your risk of cervical cancer. HPV vaccination can reduce your risk as well. However, there are many types of cancer-causing HPV. Not all of them are covered by the vaccine. Regular Pap smears are important even for women who have received the HPV vaccine.

Invasive cervical cancer, and its treatment, can have negative effects on your sex life and fertility. It’s better to catch cervical changes early than wait for them to cause damage.

Women often assume that pelvic pain is a normal part of womanhood. They have been told that menstruation is supposed to hurt. Therefore, they may not discuss pelvic pain with their doctor.

However, women should not have to live with serious pelvic pain. Often severe pain during menses is a sign of a potentially treatable health problem. Such problems can also cause problems with fertility and pain during sex.

Endometriosis

Endometriosis is an overgrowth of the lining of the uterus. This lining is called the endometrium. It’s the source of blood and tissue during menstruation. It also nourishes the growing fetus.

When a woman has endometriosis, the endometrium grows outside the uterus. It can attach to other organs and the inside of the abdomen. This can be extremely painful. Symptoms of endometriosis include:

• severe menstrual pain
• pain during sex
• pain during bowel movements
• heavy bleeding
• bleeding between periods

Pain from endometriosis can often be helped with treatment. Treatment depends on whether you want to have children. Options include:

• pain medication
• hormone therapy
• surgery to remove the excess tissue
• hysterectomy (removal of the uterus)

Fibroids

Fibroids are noncancerous tumors of the uterus. According to the Mayo Clinic, up to 75 percent of women have fibroids. However, most women will never need treatment. Fibroids are not necessarily painful or problematic. They do not increase your risk of cancer. Large fibroids may affect your ability to have children.

Fibroids can affect your sex life if they cause:

• pelvic pain
• pain during sex
• problems with menstrual bleeding.

If treatment is necessary, several options are available. They will not necessarily affect your ability to have children.

Find a Way to Enjoy Sex

Female sexual dysfunction is common. Many women have problems with their sex lives. Effective treatments are available for most common forms of female sexual dysfunction.

There are four main types of female sexual dysfunction.

Lack of Interest in Sex

There are many reasons why a woman may not be interested in sex. She may be too tired. She may be annoyed with her partner. Her hormone levels may be out of balance and affecting her interest.

If you have experienced a sudden lack of interest in sex, talk to your doctor. There may be a biological cause. Your doctor can also refer you to a sex therapist for counseling. If you want to be interested in sex, you can usually learn how to make that happen.

Difficulty Becoming Aroused

Difficulties becoming aroused, or maintaining arousal, are not uncommon. These problems may be medically based. They may also be based in relationship problems. Sexual beliefs can affect your ability to become aroused.

If you are concerned about problems with arousal, talk to a doctor. Help may be available. Some arousal problems respond best to medical therapy. Other women just need help with stress reduction and improving their relationships.

Painful Sex

Sexual intercourse shouldn’t be painful. If you are having pain during sex, talk to your doctor. There are several potential causes of sexual pain. These include:

• endometriosis
• fibroids
• vaginismus
• vulvodynia

It’s very important to get help for painful intercourse as soon as possible. If not, fear of pain may lead you to clench up during sex. This can make sex even more painful. It can be a vicious cycle.

Painful sex can be treated in a variety of ways, depending on the cause. When you talk to your doctor about your problem, be prepared to discuss if you have pain:

• during penetration
• when touched on the outside of your vulva
• because your vagina is clenching uncontrollably
• during deep penetration

The details are important. They can help your doctor diagnose underlying problems that may be causing your pain.

Problems with Orgasm

Problems with orgasm are often the easiest type of sexual dysfunction to treat. Many women who can’t orgasm simply aren’t getting the right type of stimulation during sex. There is a common misconception that women should be able to orgasm from vaginal intercourse. However, the majority of women need direct clitoral stimulation to climax.

If you have difficulty reaching orgasm, you may benefit from seeing a sex therapist. A sex therapist can help you learn how to have an orgasm. Educational books and videos are also available to help you find your orgasm.

Choose When (and If) to Have Children

If you are a woman who has sex with men, it’s important to know your options for contraception. Trying to get pregnant, or worry about unwanted pregnancy, takes a toll on many women’s sex lives.

Reversible Contraception

If you think you might want to have children eventually, but don’t want to have them now, reversible contraception is the way to go. Contraceptive options vary greatly in convenience, ease of use, and cost. They range from the cheap, use-when-needed condom to an intrauterine device (IUD), which can last for up to 10 years.

Other contraceptive options include:

• birth control pills
• hormonal patches
• hormonal rings
• female condoms
• cervical caps
• diaphragms
• contraceptive sponges

Talk to your doctor about which option is right for you. The effectiveness varies greatly. So does the ease of use.

However, there’s one thing every woman should remember. There are lots of ways to prevent pregnancy. Only condoms can effectively reduce the risk of STDs.

Sterilization

If you never plan to have children, you may choose to undergo sterilization. Female sterilization methods work by blocking the Fallopian tubes. The sperm cannot reach the egg. This means a pregnancy cannot be achieved.

If you are in a couple, talk to your partner about your options. Sterilization is generally less painful and invasive for men than women.

Some sterilization procedures are theoretically reversible. However, reversal does not always work. Therefore, you should treat the procedure as permanent.

Don’t Let Age Slow You Down

The best way to keep your sex life healthy is to keep having sex. Regular sexual activity helps to keep the vagina healthy. However, even if you haven’t had sex in a while, age doesn’t have to hinder your sex life. You just have to keep certain factors in mind.

Balance Your Hormones

The perimenopausal period occurs five to 10 years before menopause. During this period, your hormones may fluctuate wildly. This may cause:

• a lower libido
• irregular periods
• vaginal dryness

A low-dose birth control pill or hormonal IUD may be able to help. However, you shouldn’t use hormones if you are still trying to get pregnant.

As you move into menopause, your hormone levels will continue to change. A lack of estrogen can lead to vaginal atrophy and dryness. This can be helped with hormone replacement therapy (HRT) or local estrogen creams.

Physical Changes

Many women experience vaginal dryness after menopause. Their vaginal tissues may also become more delicate and sensitive. This can increase the risk of contracting an STD. It can also make sex more painful.

Problems with vaginal dryness can often be helped with sexual lubricants. Sometimes these lubricants can be used in combination with an estrogen cream or suppository. The estrogen helps to restore elasticity to the vaginal tissues.

Sexual Changes

Women’s arousal patterns change as they age. It may take longer for them to become aroused. They may have less lubrication. On the other hand, no longer having to worry about pregnancy can be freeing. Some women enjoy sex even more once they’ve gone past menopause.

Sexual patterns for men change with age as well. Women who have sex with male partners may notice that it takes longer for their partners to get an erection. The erection may not be as firm as it used to be. However, many men may be able to last longer during intercourse.

Your sex life may change, but you’re never too old to enjoy sex.

Don’t Forget to Play Safe

With the increase in erectile dysfunction (ED) drugs, active sex lives are on the increase in older populations. Perhaps unsurprisingly, this has led to an increase in STDs among older adults. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), HIV is a growing problem in mature adults. Individuals over the age of 55 accounted for 19 percent of people living with HIV in the United States in 2010.

Many older adults aren’t aware of safe sex techniques. Condoms and lubricant should be used during anal and vaginal intercourse. Condoms or dental dams can be used during oral sex.

Safe sex is not necessary if you’re in a long-term relationship where both partners have tested negative. In all other cases, it’s an excellent idea. 

Sexuality and Menopause

Menopause is the cessation of menstrual periods and marks the end of a woman’s reproductive life. There’s no specific age when this happens, but one correlating factor seems to be the age at which a woman’s mother went through menopause. Current research indicates that your body starts preparing for menopause about eight to 10 years prior to the actual end of the menstrual cycle. Once you’ve gone 12 consecutive months without a period, you’re said to be through menopause.

Physical and Emotional Effects

Changes in the length or heaviness of your periods, sweating, hot flashes, and mood swings may come on slowly at first and increase with time. Hormonal changes may cause vaginal dryness, thinning of the vaginal walls, and decreased vaginal wall elasticity. Some women make it through menopause with little or no discomfort, while others experience severe symptoms and mood swings.

Menopause can bring up fear, sadness, and feelings of loss. Those who aren’t ready to give up their ability to bear children struggle with the end of that phase of their lives.

It’s understandable for women to give into stereotypical beliefs about aging, especially as youth is equated with sex while aging is equated with the end of the sexual side of life. However, this is simply not true. You can continue to have a healthy and satisfying sex life long after menopause. In fact, many women report positive changes in their lives and relationships and an increase in sexual satisfaction after menopause.

Some of the positive aspects include no longer having:

• to worry about pregnancy
• to use birth control
• menstrual cramps, bloating, or other physical issues associated with periods

Postmenopausal Zest

During the 1950s, anthropologist Margaret Mead first coined the term “postmenopausal zest,” a burst or surge of energy that women experience after going through menopause. Some women say that this is the most productive phase of their lives, as they have finished bearing and raising their children and have become involved in new interests and projects.

While many women are going through menopause, they’re also saying goodbye to their last child leaving home. Instead of feeling like empty nesters, couples feel like honeymooners again. Couples can enjoy time with each other, meaning there’s also more time for sex. Because women who are postmenopausal often need more stimulation to have an orgasm, sex is no longer a race and it provides an opportunity to relax and explore each other’s bodies.

Physical Symptoms

The physical changes that can accompany menopause can affect your sex life as well. Vaginal dryness is the most common complaint among menopausal women. Fear of pain with intercourse often causes women to shy away from intimacy with their partners. However, hormone replacement therapy may help with these issues. A water-based lubricant also can help with vaginal dryness and make sex more pleasurable.

Communication

The most important aspect of sexuality and menopause is communication. You and your partner may need to be more patient with each other. You may also need to be willing to try new things to make sex enjoyable again.

Talking to your partner about how you feel about what’s happening can go a long way towards keeping your relationship healthy, especially when symptoms flare and mood swings become intense. You may feel unattractive and undesirable at this stage of life, but getting reassurance from your partner and making time for romance can be just the confidence boost you need.

Expectations

Today, both men and women are living longer with a better quality of life. For women, this often means that you’ll have more postmenopausal years than reproductive years.

Embrace this part of life and reclaim your sexual self instead of giving into society’s view that sex is just for the young. By being educated and prepared about what to expect with menopause, you can continue to be sexual throughout your lifetime, which is how nature intended it.

10 Early Signs of Liver Damage & How to Strengthen Your Liver

The liver is the body’s largest glandular organ and has hundreds of important functions. The three most essential functions are producing bile to aid digestion, cleansing harmful toxins from the blood and storing glucose to fulfill the body’s energy needs.

With the vital role that your liver plays in your body, it is important to pay attention to its health. Diet, exercise and adequate sleep are three keys to a healthy liver.

By avoiding an excess of toxic food and beverages, such as alcohol, coffee and refined grains, you’ll be doing a great favor to your liver’s health.

When anything goes wrong with the liver, the effects can be seen in different functions and parts of the body. There are several types of liver problems. The most common are cirrhosis, cystic disease, fatty liver disease, gallstones, and hepatitis.

Always remember that if you look after your liver, it will surely look after your health. By keeping an eye open for any early signs of liver damage, you can seek treatment sooner rather than later and help your liver make a full recovery.

Here are the 10 early signs of liver damage.

1. Nausea and Vomiting

Many people ignore nausea and vomiting as it is usually not considered to be a serious medical problem.

If nausea and vomiting occur separately or together without any known reason, such as motion sickness, dizziness, a migraine, food poisoning, early pregnancy, anxiety and depression, it can be due to a kidney or liver problem.

People suffering from liver damage often have a persistent feeling of nausea. This arises due to the liver’s diminished ability to process and eliminate toxins. Changes in metabolism and digestion also cause nausea and vomiting.

Constant feelings of nausea or vomiting can wreak havoc on your health and should be investigated thoroughly by a doctor.

2. General Weakness and Tiredness

Constant feeling of fatigue and tiredness can also be a tell-tale sign of improper liver functioning. It is the liver that breaks down food to release energy required for performing daily tasks.

When the liver is not in good condition, your body needs to work harder in order to survive and hence needs more rest.

Plus, fatigue and weakness are likely to worsen due to an increase in toxic products in the blood, which the damaged liver is not able to eliminate properly.

If the feelings of weakness and tiredness are present along with any other symptoms mentioned in this article, consult your doctor for a diagnosis.

3. Loss of Appetite

Loss of appetite is also one of the early signs that your liver is not working properly. If you experience loss of appetite along with any other symptoms mentioned here, make an appointment with your doctor immediately as it could be a sign of chronic liver disease, hepatitis or kidney failure.

People with liver damage may not feel like eating anything, due to the problem with bile production. Bile helps break down fats so that they can be digested. When food is not digested properly, it often leads to loss of appetite and even severe weight loss.

Significant changes in appetite can also make a person weak and tired, which can further hinder recovery.

4. Digestive Issues

The liver plays an active role in the digestion process through the production of bile. Bile helps process the nutrients absorbed from the small intestine and plays an important role in digesting fat.

Thus, if the liver begins to malfunction, it can result in digestive problems like diarrhea and indigestion.

Abnormalities in bile production can also lead to gallstones, abdominal bloating, constipation, irritable bowel syndrome and intolerance to fatty foods and alcohol.

When the damage is severe, it can cause severe abdominal pain that often sends people to the doctor.

5. Changes in Urine Color

If you are drinking enough fluid and your urine has a darker color, it may be an indication of a liver problem. Dark-colored urine can look orange, amber or brown.

The change in urine color occurs due to an increased level of bilirubin in the bloodstream. This happens when the liver is unable to eliminate bilirubin via excretion through the kidneys.

Dark urine can also be caused by dehydration, taking vitamin B supplements, side effects of antibiotics, enzyme deficiencies, a urinary tract infection and kidney problems.

If your urine is persistently dark, you should visit your doctor for a diagnosis.

6. Yellowing of Skin

One of the early signs of liver damage is jaundice, where yellowing of the skin, eyes, tongue and fingernails or fingertips is noticeable.

Jaundice is caused by a buildup of bilirubin in the blood and body tissue that the liver normally would get rid of along with old red blood cells. Bilirubin is a yellow pigment that is formed by the breakdown of dead red blood cells in the liver.

When bilirubin accumulates in your bloodstream and then on your skin, it takes on a yellowish hue.

As jaundice may also indicate a serious problem with your gallbladder or pancreas, do not take it lightly and follow your doctor’s advice.

7. Changes in Stool Color

Changes in stool color may also indicate liver trouble. A well-functioning liver releases bile into the stool, giving it the normal brown color.

Inflammation or scarring in the liver affects bile production, which causes stool to appear grey, pale, yellow or clay-colored.

Having pale or clay-colored stools once in a while is fine. If it occurs frequently, consult a doctor to rule out the possibility of liver damage or any other illness.

8. Changes in the Abdominal Area

Changes in the abdominal area is another possible sign of a malfunctioning liver. You may experience pain or cramping in the lower abdominal area as well as swelling. This can quickly lead to the feeling of bloating. Medically, these symptoms relate to the problem known as ascites.

Ascites is a buildup of fluid in the abdominal cavity, which happens due advanced liver disease or cirrhosis. It is usually accompanied by other symptoms, such as portal hypertension (an increase in the blood pressure in the portal vein system of the liver).

Ascites can also be caused by non-liver disorders. Hence, it is best to consult a doctor for proper diagnosis.

9. Fluid Retention

Early liver damage can also lead to fluid retention that causes swelling in the feet and ankles. This is also related to ascites and portal hypertention. Also, liver damage affects liver function and causes changes in the secretion of fluid-regulation chemicals.

Other possible causes of fluid retention are a hormonal imbalance in the body, kidney-related problems, heart disease and a problem with the lymphatic system. Hence, it is important to consult a doctor for proper diagnosis.

10. Increase in Skin Sensitivity

Another early sign of a liver problem is increased skin sensitivity. Your skin may become itchy, flaky or oversensitive to touch. It may even bruise easily. In some cases, people also notice the appearance of veins through the skin.

What Your Face Tells You about Your Health

Your face is a road map of your health, like your eyes are the windows to your soul. While emotions get reflected on your face, the different parts of your face reveal the status of your health.

Different parts of your face correlate with different organs of the body and their health status. This is why doctors examine your eyes, tongue and other parts of your face when you go for regular health check-ups.

A new mole, a change in complexion, new lines, a new skin tag and so on, everything has a reason behind it. Hence, it is important to pay close attention to your face and any new changes should be brought to your doctor’s attention.

Here are the 10 things that your face tells you about your health.

1. Yellowing of Skin and Eyes

If you notice a yellow tinge around your face and specifically the whites of your eyes turning yellow, it is a big sign that you may be suffering from jaundice.

Jaundice occurs due to the buildup of bilirubin in the blood and body tissue that normally the liver would get rid of along with old red blood cells. Bilirubin is a yellow pigment formed by the breakdown of dead red blood cells in the liver.

It can also be a sign of liver disease, such as hepatitis or cirrhosis. Yellowing of the skin may even indicate problems with your gallbladder or pancreas.

Along with yellowing of the skin and eyes, other symptoms of jaundice are fatigue, a headache, a fever, loss of appetite, nausea, vomiting, weight loss, abdominal pain, skin itching, and pale-colored urine and stools.

Hence, if you have yellowing of the skin and eyes, see your physician for further evaluation.

2. Butterfly-Shaped Rash

Any kind of rash on the face is a sure sign that something is wrong within your body. If the rash stretches across both cheeks in the shape of a butterfly and has a sunburn-like appearance, you may be suffering from lupus. Lupus is an immune-system disorder that affects the skin, joints, blood, lungs, heart and kidneys.

Along with the butterfly-shaped rash, other symptoms of lupus are fatigue, joint pain, swelling, muscle pain, a low-grade fever, enlarged lymph nodes, chest pain, shortness of breath, fluid retention and frequent headaches.

If you have this butterfly-shaped rash on your face as well as some of the other symptoms mentioned above, it is important to consult a doctor.

Timely management of this disease is important, as it can lead to life-threatening complications like cardiovascular disease and kidney problems in some people.

3. Excessive Facial Hair

Unwanted hair along the jaw line, chin and upper lip can be very embarrassing for any woman. This beauty problem is known as hirsutism.

This facial hair problem can be a symptom of polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), a hormone imbalance in which male hormone levels are elevated. This problem is more common in women after menopause due to sudden hormonal changes in the body.

According to a 2012 study published in the American Family Physician, PCOS is the most common cause of hirsutism, accounting for three out of four cases. The study says that hair removal and pharmacologic measures are effective treatments for the hirsutism. Shaving is effective but needs to be repeated often.

Along with PCOS, unwanted facial hair can also be due to the use of certain medications or adrenal gland disorders. In rare cases, it can be due to a tumor or cancer of the adrenal gland or ovaries.

4. Pale Skin

If your otherwise healthy looking skin suddenly appears pale, washed-out and lifeless, get your iron level checked.

Iron-deficiency anemia, which affects billions of people worldwide, is one of the main causes of pale-looking skin.

Due to a low iron level, the body cannot produce sufficient hemoglobin, which is needed to give your blood its red color and your skin its healthy tone.

In cases of severe iron deficiency, the skin may lose its normal color and become severely pale. Even the inside of the lips, gums and the inside of the bottom eyelids appear less red than usual.

Along with pale skin, fatigue is a common symptom of iron deficiency. Other symptoms include shortness of breath, headaches, coldness in your hands and feet, brittle nails.

If you have an iron deficiency, it is important to eat more iron-rich foods like meat, beetroots, pomegranates, lentils and beans. To aid proper absorption of iron in your body, make sure to eat foods rich in vitamin C, too.

5. Dry Skin and Flaky Lips

Everyone experiences dry skin from time to time. It can be due to minor causes, such as wintry air or overly hot showers. However, at times, excessive dry skin as well as flaky and chapped lips is a classic sign of dehydration.

The skin contains approximately 30 percent water, which contributes to plumpness, elasticity and resiliency. So when your body lacks water, it may result in dry skin. In addition, dehydration can cause dry and chapped lips.

Plus, a low water level in the body means it does not sweat enough to wash away excess dirt and oil accumulated on the skin. This in turn can increase the risk of acne, eczema and psoriasis.

Hydrate your skin by drinking plenty of water. Also, apply a thin layer of coconut or olive oil on your skin and lips and massage gently.

While having dry skin once in a while can be due to dehydration, if you have this problem more often, it can indicate other health problems like hypothyroidism or diabetes. Vitamin B deficiency can also be one of the causes.

6. Abnormal Skin Discoloration

Women who have PCOS may notice thick, brown or black patches on the neck folds, forehead, navel, armpits and breasts. This type of skin discoloration is known as acanthosis nigricans. Insulin resistance or high insulin levels in people suffering from PCOS causes the appearance of thick, corrosive and discolored skin on various parts of the body.

In a 2004 study published in the Middle East Fertility Society Journal, 68.75 percent of 33 PCOS patients (18 to 32 years old) reported having acanthosis nigricans.

A 2013 study published in the Journal of Clinical and Diagnostic Research reports that PCOS patients who had a family history of diabetes and obesity were more likely to develop acanthosis nigricans, which is a marker of hyperinsulinemia and insulin resistance.

7. Deep Premature Wrinkles

Wrinkles are inevitable with age. However, premature wrinkles around the mouth or forehead can take away the beauty and charm of youth.

Premature wrinkles can be due to excessive exposure to cigarette smoke. The nicotine in cigarettes narrows the blood vessels in the skin’s outer layers and reduces blood flow. This deprives your skin of oxygen and nutrients needed for healthy and beautiful skin.

Plus, there are more than 4,000 chemicals in tobacco smoke that damage collagen and elastin, which give your skin its strength and elasticity.

In a 2002 study published in the International Journal of Dermatology, researchers studied 123 nonsmokers, 160 current smokers and 67 past smokers (ages 20 to 69 years) for a month. After image analysis of facial skin replicas, they found that current smokers have a higher degree of facial wrinkling than nonsmokers and past smokers. Past smokers who smoked heavily at a younger age even showed less facial wrinkling than current smokers.

By saying no to smoking, you can slow down the development of wrinkles and, with time, your skin will start to look healthier.

8. Cracks at the Corners of the Mouth

Cracks near the mouth, which is medically known as angular cheilitis, are often associated with vitamin B2 or riboflavin deficiency.

Lack of this B vitamin in the body can lead to inflammation of the membranes of your mouth, skin, eyes and gastrointestinal tract. Along with cracks at the corners of your mouth, you can also suffer from symptoms like swelling of the mucous membranes, inflamed eyelids, sores on your lips or mouth, and skin redness.

To treat the cracks at the corners of your mouth, include vitamin B-rich foods in your diet. Eat more poultry, salmon, tuna, eggs, oysters, clams, sun-dried tomatoes, Swiss chard, peanuts, beans and legumes. Alternatively, you could try taking a vitamin B supplement after consulting your doctor.

Along with vitamin B2 deficiency, this painful problem can also be due to iron and zinc deficiencies.

9. Yellow Patches around the Eyes

Yellow patches in the skin around the eyes, known as xanthelasma, can be a sign of heart disease.

Xanthelasma palpebrarum are yellow plaques that occur most commonly near the inner canthus of the eyelids. These small skin patches are soft and painless and don’t interfere with vision. However, this problem is often associated with atherosclerosis, dyslipidemia and coronary artery disease.

A 2013 study published in BioMed Research International found that a significant number of cases of xanthelasma palpebrarum are combined with smoking, central obesity, hypertension, diabetes and dyslipidemia, which are the major risk factors for coronary artery disease.

10. Puffy Eyes

Puffy eyes or dark circles under the eyes typically result from too many late nights or not getting enough sleep. It can even be due to too much crying.

However, if puffy eyes occur more often despite getting enough sleep, it may signal an underlying medical problem.

For instance, it may be due to thyroid eye disease that causes swelling of the tissue and muscles around the eyes.

Thyroid eye disease is an autoimmune diseasein which the body’s immune system attacks the back of the eye and causes inflammation. Apart from puffiness, there may be other symptoms likea change in the appearance of the eyes, a feeling of grittiness in the eyes, watery eyes, blurred vision and even pain in or behind the eyes, especially when looking up, down or sideways.

At times, puffy or bulging eyes can signal a thyroid disorder known as Graves’ disease. It may also signal some kind of kidney problem that can lead to general swelling throughout the body, including around the eyes.

Top 10 Health Benefits of Drinking Water

Water is the main component of the human body. In fact, the body is composed of between 55 and 78 percent water, depending on body size. Adequate and regular water consumption has numerous health benefits. As an added plus, it has no calories, fat, carbohydrates or sugar.

The amount of water you consume everyday plays an important role in maintaining a healthy body. Experts recommend drinking eight to 10 glasses of water each day to maintain good health.

Furthermore, the Institute of Medicine has determined the adequate intake of total beverage per day (AI) to be about three liters or 13 cups for men and 2.2 liters or nine cups for women.

Water helps keep the body well hydrated, which is essential because almost every cell in the body needs water to function properly.

Here are the top 10 health benefits of drinking water.

1. Relieves Fatigue

If you often feel tired, there is a high chance that it could be due to inadequate consumption of water which makes the body function less efficiently. In fact, fatigue is one of the first signs of dehydration.

When there is less water in the body, there is a drop of blood volume which causes the heart to work harder to pump oxygenated blood out in the bloodstream, and other major organs also work less efficiently. Thus, drinking adequate water can help your body function better and reduce fatigue.

2. Improves Mood

Research indicates that mild dehydration (even one or two percent lower hydration level of hydration than optimal) can negatively affect your mood and ability to think.

A small study conducted on 25 women and published in the Journal of Nutrition found that being dehydrated can take a toll on your mood and cognitiive function. The color of your urine is a good indicator of your level of hydration. The lighter the color the better the level of hydration and vice versa.

3. Treats Headaches and Migraines

If you have a headache or migraine, the first thing that you can do to get some relief is drink plenty of water. Headaches and migraines are often caused by dehydration.

In a study published in the European Journal of Neurology, researchers found that increasing water intake helped reduce the total number of hours and intensity of headaches in the study participants.

4. Helps in Digestion and Constipation

Water also improves the functioning of the gastrointestinal tract. This helps in digestion and prevents constipation. Inadequate water in the body often results in constipation as the colon pulls water from the stools to maintain hydration, thereby making them harder and difficult to pass.

Drinking sufficient water boosts your metabolism and helps the body properly break down food. This helps your digestive system work well and promotes regular bowel movements. Warm water, in particular, is good for digestive health.

5. Aids Weight Loss

In a clinical trial, scientists found that drinking two eight-ounce glasses of water prior to meals can help suppress appetite and hence support your weight loss efforts. When you drink water, it fills your stomach and reduces the tendency to eat more.

Plus, it helps increase the rate at which the body burns fat, and promotes the breakdown and elimination of fat cells.

Calorie-free water is also a great replacement for high-calorie drinks like alcohol, sugary fizzy drinks and sodas that often contribute to weight gain.

6. Flushes Out Toxins

Water is an excellent detoxifier as it helps flush out toxins from your body and get rid of waste primarily through sweat and urine.

It also promotes kidney function and reduces kidney stones by diluting the salts and minerals in urine that cause kidney stones.

Though you need to drink adequate amount of water throughout the day, experts warn against drinking too much water (although uncommon still, it is possible) as it may reduce your kidneys’ ability to filter out waste.

Thus, it is recommended to drink the amount of water your body requires. As the amount of water required by the body tends to differ from one person to another, it is usually suggested to drink to your thirst, and also include other fluids and foods with high water content in your diet.

7. Regulates Body Temperature

An ample amount of water in the body also helps regulate body temperature. The thermal properties of water and its ability to release heat from the body when sweat evaporates from the surface of the skin greatly helps maintain an even body temperature.

A well-regulated body temperature also will make you feel more energetic when exercising. Water also helps keep your joints and muscles lubricated, thus preventing cramps and sprains.

8. Promotes Healthy Skin

Water keeps the body well hydrated and improves capillary blood flow, which promotes healthier and younger-looking skin. Water helps replenish skin tissues, moisturizes skin and increases the elasticity in your skin.

When the body gets enough water, your skin will feel moisturized and it will look fresh, soft, glowing and smooth. Also, water helps prevent and treat soft lines, scars, acne, wrinkles and other aging symptoms.

9. Relieves Hangover

Drinking water works as a simple yet effective way to get rid of hangover as well. Being a diuretic, alcohol causes you to pee much more than you take in. Thus, water helps rehydrate the body and speed up recovery.

Experts recommend drinking 16 to 20 ounces of water at night before going to bed after you have had too much alcohol.

10. Beats Bad Breath

Bad breath is a clear sign that you may not be drinking sufficient water. It keeps your mouth moist and washes away food particles and bacteria. It also dilutes the smelly compounds that oral bacteria create.

WARNING!!! NEVER REHEAT THESE 7 FOODS, THEY CAN POISON YOUR FAMILY

Very often, people reheat and consume the leftovers. All of you should be aware of the fact that certain types of food are safe for consummation after reheating, while other may cause severe damage to your organism.

In today’s article we are going to present you list of 7 foods that you should never reheat for the second time and eat them again.

MUSHROOMS

This food has the first place as reheated mushrooms are highest health risk. You should eat the mushrooms right after you prepare them, or to eat then cold the next day. You should be aware that if you reheat the mushrooms, you put yourself at risk of suffering from digestive and even heart, problems.

EGGS

Keep in mind that reheating fried or boiled eggs will make them lethal for your organism, and you should never do that.

POTATO

Potato is crop that has many health benefits and a lot of people from all around the world consume potatoes as meal prepared on numerous ways. But, all of you need to be aware of the fact that the benefits and dietary quality of the potato are lost if you don’t consume your dish the same day that you have prepared. In fact, experts warn that eating potato the next day and reheating it makes this edible tuber very dangerous for your body.

CHICKEN

Chicken is particularly dangerous for your health if you consume it a day after you have prepared it. Experts warn that it may cause certain digestive issues, and the reason for that is the structure of proteins that changes the following day. Moreover, it is advisable to eat chicken meat when is cold. But, in case you need to reheat the chicken, do that on very low temperature for some longer period.

SPINACH

You should never reheat spinach. In fact, you should eat this plant immediately after preparation and the reason for this are the nitrates contained in spinach. To be more precise, if you warm up the spinach the nitrates will transform into nitrites and thus, heating makes spinach carcinogenic for human body.

CELERY

Celery is one of the main ingredients that people use in order to prepare soups. This plant, as well as spinach, contains nitrates that transform into nitrites after it is reheated. If you prepare soup with celery, you should eat the soup immediately, or another option is to remove the celery before you warm the soup.

BEETS

Another plant that contains nitrates is beets, which are extremely harmful and destructive for the body if is reheated.

THE SECRET TO RELIEVING BACK PAIN IS IN YOUR FEET! DO THESE 5 EXERCISES FOR JUST 15 MINUTES

Acupressure has been a part of the ancient Chinese medicine for more than 5000 years. Putting a pressure on certain points on the body helps relieve stress, stimulate the function of different organs and treats some health conditions. It works the same way as acupuncture, but here we use our fingertips instead of needles.

THE FOLLOWING 5 EXERCISES WILL HELP PREVENT PAIN, STRENGTHEN YOUR FEET, AND IMPROVE YOUR BALANCE.

-Toe Presses

Warm up your leg muscles before starting any exercise. Amazing way to warm up and relax your feet is toe presses. While standing, slightly bend your knees then grip the floor with your toes. Hold in that position and count to three. Repeat this exercise three times a day doing 10 sets each time.

-Toe Walking

This can be done by anyone not necessarily a ballerina. Toe walking strengthens the toe muscles, the muscles around the balls of your feet, and ligaments. It is very simple, stand on your tiptoes and move forward for 20 seconds. Then rest 10 15 seconds and walk again 5 more times. For better outcome, do it twice a day.

-Ankle circles

The ankles mobility and flexibility are of great importance. The overload of the body is a reason for tight and restricted ankle, which results in muscle and joint pain. Also, back, hip, and knee pain can be caused by tight muscles.

Lie on the back and extend one leg overhead. You need to rotate clockwise the ankle of the extended leg and count to 10. Switch legs and make a repetition with your other leg.

SAY GOODBYE TO BAD BREATH, PLAQUE, TARTAR AND KILL HARMFUL BACTERIA IN YOUR MOUTH WITH ONLY ONE INGREDIENT!

This ancient technique is extremely efficient method for cleansing the body from toxins and great way to improve your oral and overall health, as well. It is particularly beneficial for detoxifying of your teeth and gums, but in same time has the ability to whiten your teeth.

At this point it is important to mention that people who have tried this specific technique claim that it is incredibly efficient and helps in treating various skin conditions, arthritis, infections, headaches, hormonal imbalance, asthma, etc.

This extremely powerful technique will help you protect and strengthen your teeth, but also will make them super-bright white!

How it works?

Oil pulling is specific treatment that includes swishing of some oil in the oral cavity for few minutes. This is very simple and yet effective method that dramatically improves the oral health. To be more precise, this method has the ability to remove toxins from the mouth and goes through the plaque.

This remarkable healing treatment will detoxify your teeth and gums, but in same time will prevent infections and dangerous bacteria. Additionally, it will whiten your teeth.

Along with numerous benefits for the oral cavity, many people who have tried this technique claim that it had helped them in treatment of various health issues, such as asthma, skin issues, headaches, liver problems, hormonal imbalances, arthritis and more.

In order to get best results it is crucial to utilize quality oil. On that way this cheap and completely natural method will not cause any side-effects, instead will multiple its health benefits.

This method has been practiced hundreds of years in India and due to its numerous benefits even today, many experts claim that is one of the efficient treatments for many different health issues, and that particularly refers to oral health.

If you are wondering about which oil to choose for this purpose, our advice is to use organic coconut oil as it additionally will boost the effects of this method. This oil is considered to be one of the healthiest ingredients that nature offers us.

There are many reasons why you should try oil pulling utilizing coconut oil and on that way to promote oral health, and some of them are:

• destroys harmful bacteria and fights gum infections
• whitens teeth
• prevents cavities
• breaks through the plaque
• provides amazing effects for the entire oral cavity

Below we are presenting you detailed explanation about how to use coconut oil for oil pulling:

In the morning, right after you wake up and get up from bed, you should swish a few teaspoons of solid coconut oil in the mouth and let it melt. It is highly recommended to keep the oil in your mouth about 20 minutes. If you are suffering from some severe dental problems or gum infections, you can repeat the same procedure few times throughout the day, preferably before meals.

Make sure to keep the oil in your mouth for 20 minutes as that is enough time for the oil to break through bacteria and plaque. Still, that is insufficient time for your body to reabsorb the toxins again.

After that, simply spit it out. You should never swallow the oil as after performing this technique it is loaded with the bacteria and toxins from your mouth.

Finally, rinse your mouth well with warm water in order to remove any remains. After this procedure you should brush your teeth as usual and thus to remove all bacteria left.

IF YOU DON’T HAVE HALF MOON SHAPE ON YOUR NAILS, VISIT THE DOCTOR URGENTLY

The white half-moon on your nail is called lunula and is a very important part of our body. It is extremely sensitive, and some experts say that its size can be a possible cause of various diseases. If the half-moon isnon- existent or is reduced, this may point to possible diseases.

In Latin lunula means “little moon,” but it is actually the visible part of the nail root. It is most noticeableon the thumb. The white color of lunula is apparent because the fifth basal layer of the epidermis is hiding underneath the blood cells.

The lack of lunula can cause the following:

• If the thumb does not have lunula, it may cause psychological disease.
• If the lunula of the index finger is very small or there isn’t any, it can cause problems with the intestines, liver, pancreas, and with the reproductive system in women.
• The absence of lunula on the middle finger indicates a problem with blood pressure.
• Small or non- existent lunula on the fourth finger can be a sign that you suffer from a problem with the thyroid gland.
• If thelunula is non-existent on the little finger, it may mean that your intestines are clogged – writes Bright Side.

Your health can be improved by practicing yoga for the fingers.

HERE ARE 4 DRINKS THAT WILL HELP YOU CLEANSE YOUR KIDNEYS AND FILTER YOUR BLOOD STREAM!

The food you eat and beverages you drink have direct impact on your kidney. In order to protect your kidneys, you need to eliminate all toxins which are accumulated and excess of liquids, as well.

-GREEN JUICE THAT WILL HELP YOU CLEAN YOUR KIDNEYS

This juice is abundant with nutrients and antioxidants which make it extremely efficient for elimination of toxins from your body.

It is advisable to consume these vegetables: spinach, parsley, carrot, cucumber and celery, lettuce, kale and zucchini.

When it comes to fruit, it is recommended to consume: oranges, peaches, pears, pineapples and apples. Simply mix all ingredients in a blender and consume the potion fresh, right after preparation.

A few suggestions for recipes that will help you to clean your kidneys and purify your body:

You will need:

• Organic apple cider vinegar
• Fresh lemons
• Purified water

Directions:

In a bowl mix well all ingredients. Drink this healthy juice in period of 4 days cleanse your body and kidneys from accumulated toxins.

-CRANBERRY JUICE

This juice has the ability to reduce the calcium phosphate. Doctors explain that excess calcium oxalate in the body is responsible for formation of kidney stones. Moreover, cranberry juice will prevent renal infections. For preparation of this juice our advice is to use organic cranberries which are free of sugar, artificial and preserving flavors.

-BEET JUICE

Due to the high content of potassium, beets are extremely beneficial against hypertension, but also have the ability to eliminate toxins and uric acid. In addition to that, beets contain betaine, a phytochemical that possesses antioxidant properties. This juice is particularly useful due to the fact it has the ability to clean the accumulation of struvite and calcium phosphate from the kidneys.

-LEMON JUICE

With consummation of lemon juice you will increase the levels of citrate in the urine and thus you will avoid formation of kidney stones. Our suggestion is to squeeze 4–5 lemons and mix with 1 liter of cold water. If you prefer warm drink, squeeze 1 lemon in 8 oz of warm water. Drink this lemonade after you wake up in the morning, before breakfast.

Top 10 Tips to Help Children Develop Healthy Habits

You can help your child develop healthy habits early in life that will bring lifelong benefits. As a parent, you can encourage your kids to evaluate their food choice and physical activity habits. Here are some tips and guidelines to get you started.

1. Be a good role model - You don’t have to be perfect all the time, but if kids see you trying to eat right and getting physically active, they’ll take notice of your efforts. You’ll send a message that good health is impor­tant to your family.
2. Keep things positive - Kid’s don’t like to hear what they can’t do, tell them what they can do instead. Keep it fun and positive. Everyone likes to be praised for a job well done. Celebrate successes and help children and teens develop a good self-image.
    
3. Get the whole family moving - Plan times for everyone to get moving together. Take walks, ride bikes, go swimming, garden or just play hide-and-seek outside. Everyone will benefit from the exercise and the time together.
    
4. Be realistic - Setting realistic goals and limits are key to adopting any new behavior. Small steps and gradual changes can make a big difference in your health over time, so start small and build up.
    
5. Limit TV, video game and computer time - These habits lead to a sedentary lifestyle and excessive snacking, which increase risks for obesity and cardiovascular disease. Limit screen time to 2 hours per day.
    
6. Encourage physical activities that they’ll really enjoy - Every child is unique. Let your child experiment with different activities until they find something that they really love doing. They’ll stick with it longer if they love it. check out these activities for kids.
    
7. Pick truly rewarding rewards - Don’t reward children with tv, video games, candy or snacks for a job well done. Find other ways to celebrate good behavior.
    
8. Make dinnertime a family time - When everyone sits down together to eat, there’s less chance of children eating the wrong foods or snacking too much. Get your kids involved in cooking and planning meals. Everyone develops good eating habits together and the quality time with the family will be an added bonus.
    
9. Make a game of reading food labels - The whole family will learn what’s good for their health and be more conscious of what they eat. It’s a habit that helps change behavior for a lifetime. Learn more about reading nutrition labels.
    
10. Stay involved - Be an advocate for healthier children. Insist on good food choices at school. Make sure your children’s healthcare providers are monitoring cardiovascular indicators like BMI, blood pressure and cholesterol. Contact public officials on matters of the heart. Make your voice heard.

NEW STUDY SHOWS: COCONUT OIL KILLS 93% OF COLON CANCER CELLS IN ONLY 2 DAYS!

Latest studies have shown that coconut oil can inhibit cancer.Probably a lot of people would not believe in this but it has been actually praised as a potential cure for many diseases.Alternative medicine has been using coconut oil as a cure for many diseases and it was proved that is can be a lifesaver.
Many scientists from the Adelaide University of Australia have confirmed these studies about coconut oil.They were discovering the lauric acid which is the main component in coconut oil and they find out that it can destroy even 93% of colon cancer cells in just 2 days.
Other studies from American Nutrition Association have shown that coconut oil can also be used in order to prevent many conditions such as:osteoporosis,diabetes,hepatitis C,cancer,tract diseases and Chron’s disease.

People believe that the benefits of this healthy oil have been downplayed by Big Pharma so they can maintain their profits. Ty Bollinger, an advocate for alternative medicine and author of the book “The Truth About Cancer”, says that food manufacturers play a big role in this. “In the 1960’s, food manufacturers wanted consumers to buy their margarines and hydrogenated oils,” Bollinger writes. “To do that, they had to ‘discredit’ the products people had always used in their homes to prepare their food,” he said. Bollinger also says that the coconut oil replacements the food industry offers have been the main culprit behind many diseases. “It is the very goods the food manufacturers had been pushing on their consumers for thirty years. The trans-fats contained in these ‘fake foods’ were incredibly dangerous to your entire body. High fat, high sugar, and high carb diets were put under the microscope and found guilty,” he wrote in his book.
And, although coconut oil’s high fat content has been demonized for a long time, these fats have been proven as healthy and useful, and their use in alternative therapies is currently underway.

Lauric acid, the colon cancer killing property within coconut oil, is typically found in breast-milk as well. It’s a medium-chain fatty acid which supports the immune system and has plenty of antimicrobial properties. Some people consider raw, organic, virgin coconut oil to be a superfood that can help heal cancer and other disease, and studies like the one above support that assertion.

According to the American Society for Nutrition, clinical studies have also shown that the fats found within coconut oil (MCFAs) “may be useful in treating and preventing diseases such as diabetes, osteoporosis, virus-related diseases (mononucleosis, hepatitis C, herpes, etc.), gallbladder disease, Chrohn’s disease, and cancer.”

Coconut oil has even been shown to decrease the side effects of chemotherapy and improve the quality of life for cancer patients.

The point is that there are too many potential health and healing properties associated with virgin coconut oil to count, and further research would be, inarguably, beneficial. If you are interested in learning more about it we encourage you to further your research.

There are so many potential cancer healing foods and plants out there, it’s literally overwhelming, and at the same time heartbreaking that pharmaceutical companies do not use their funds to encourage more research, or acknowledge the research that has already been done. As it stands now, 25 percent of the active ingredients in cancer drugs are found only in the Amazon, despite the fact that only 10 percent of its plants have been studied for their medicinal properties.

According to studies published in Life Sciences, Cancer Letters and Anticancer Drugs, artemesinin, a derivative of the wormwood plant commonly used in Chinese medicine, can kill off cancer cells and do it at a rate of 12,000 cancer cells for every healthy cell.

More recently, bitter melon juice was shown to kill pancreatic cancer cells in vitro and in mice in a study done by the University of Colorado. Considering the results were seen in both in vitro and in vivo tests, the effectiveness of bitter melon juice in treating pancreatic cancer, and potentially other cancers, at a clinical level, are clearly promising.

The list goes on and on, and there are hundreds, if not thousands, of similar studies that urge further examination into these potentials…

DO NOT EAT FRUIT AFTER MEAL – EYE-OPENING INFORMATION!

You may think that buying and munching on your fruit is pretty much everything you have to do when it comes to eating healthy, but trust me, it isn’t that simple.

It’s pretty much important to eat your fruits right.

Eating fruits before you eat anything will boost our body’s detox function, and you get the energy needed to melt pounds and perform your daily activities.

What happens when you eat your

breakfast, and then a serving of fresh fruit?

Fruit tends to “head” straight to the intestines, but the breakfast you’ve just eaten will prevent that. So, the food you ate will rot, ferment and turn into acid. Who on Earth wants that?

The moment fruit touches the rest of the food in your stomach and the digestive juices, everything turns into a big ball of rotten food. Yes, always eat your fruit before you eat or drink anything.

“Every time I eat watermelon I burb, when I eat durian my stomach bloats up, when I eat a banana I feel like I’m getting nauseous, etc.”

None of this will happen if you eat your serving of fruit on an empty stomach.

Fruit reacts with the putrefying of other foods, which makes you bloated. Eat your fruits first, and you won’t be dealing with graying, balding, nervous outburst, and dark circles under your eyes.

No, fruits aren’t acidic, since they become alkaline once you ingest them, explains Dr. Herbert Shelton. The doctor did a thorough research on this subject.

Always drink fresh fruit juice! Avoid canned, packed and bottled fruit juice. Never drink juices that have been heated up. You should also avoid cooked fruits, because they won’t give you the nutrients your body needs. It’s just the taste you get.

High temperatures “kill” the vitamins. Eating a whole fruit is much better than juicing it. Slowly sip your fruit juice.

A 3-day fruit fast will help you eliminate the toxins from your body. All you have to do is eat fresh fruits and drink fresh juice for 3 days. You will be amazed of the way your skin looks!

10 Signs You Have A Healthy Sex Life

1. You feel good about your body.

In a University of Texas study on women ages 18 to 49, those who scored highest on a body image scale were also the most sexually satisfied. One reason: Dwelling on the size of your thighs or belly distracts you from pleasurable sensations during sex. In turn, that can affect things like lubrication and the ability to have an orgasm. Exercise—regardless of weight loss—has been shown to boost self-esteem and body confidence. (And you can get that boost fast with Fit in 10, Prevention's fitness plan that only takes 10 minutes.) Another surprising thing you can do right now? Listen to your heart. Turning "inward" and listening to your body's signals—like your heartbeat—can bolster your self-image, reveals research in PLOS One. 

2. You're not afraid to ask for what you want (and he isn't either).
"Good sex is all about finding your perfect recipe," says certified sex therapist Aline Zoldbrod, PhD, of SexSmart.com. While you can't expect your partner to read your mind, he or she should be open to learning about and responding to what you want. If you find it tough to state your sexual hopes, you may find texting your partner about your fantasies is easier than face-to-face or in-the-moment declarations of desire.

9 Things Your Vagina Is Trying To Tell You

3. Sometimes you schedule it.

A lot of people feel like sex should arise from a spontaneous bout of lust. But that's not always required. "Unless you're living a life of leisure and your kids are grown and out of the house, I think scheduling sex is a good idea," Zoldbrod says. She suggests planning your night around it. Get the kids dinner and put them to bed. Order in a light meal that won't leave you stuffed or left with a pile of dishes. Then do something to de-stress—like watching a funny TV show or movie together. You'll find it easier to get in the mood after relaxing, Zoldbrod says.

4. You're not counting.
Whether you're doing it a few times a week or once a month, focusing on a number isn't a great way to assess your sex life, says Kristin Zeising, PsyD, a certified sex therapist in San Diego. In a study published in the Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, researchers randomly assigned couples to double the number of times they had sex. Compared to a control group that went about their lives as normal, those who did the deed more weren't any happier. Putting pressure on yourself to have more sex may turn it into another to-do item, which drives down satisfaction, the research indicates. On the other hand, the study authors say traveling to new locales or going on date nights—opening up natural opportunities to have sex more often—may make it more enjoyable.

5. You like it.

No matter how many times a week or month you get busy, whether you orgasm or not, and whether someone would characterize your sex life as crazy or vanilla, the most important sign is that you enjoy it. "Do you feel closer to your partner afterwards? Are you in a better mood?
Zoldbrod calls this "mercy sex." It's when you have sex because your partner wants to—even though it's the last thing you want. Some experts say you shouldn't turn down your partner. Zoldbrod says mercy sex is acceptable on occasion, but a steady diet of it can tank your libido by training your brain to think of sex as a chore. It's completely fine to turn down your partner in a nice way if you're not feeling it, Zoldbrod says. But if you do say no, try to be the one who initiates sex the next time to show your partner you desire him, Zoldbrod says.

7. You know when to change things up.
Forget When Harry Met Sally. In the real world, it's hard to fake your way through sex. If you're not enjoying it, chances are your partner can tell, according to a 2014 study from the University of Waterloo, in the UK. What does this mean for you? "Most couples find they get stuck in a certain sexual routine, and they may feel less interested in sex if it feels like they're in a rut," says Zeising. Although it requires a little extra effort, switching rooms or outfits or positions are all simple ways to make sex feel fresh again. Give these 11 sex positions a try.

8. You're happy together.
It sounds simple, but there's a strong link between sexual satisfaction (factors like having interest in sex, feeling good about how often it happens, and infrequent arguments about sex) and happiness in your relationship, shows a study from Social Science Research. Relationship satisfaction fuels attraction, paving the way for better sex, the research suggests. So if you're into your partner, your sex life is probably in good shape.

MORE: 9 Ways Therapists Can Tell If Your Relationship Is Going To Survive

9. You've got a racy vocabulary.
Whether you're sending a flirty text mid-day or whispering something into your partner's ear, sexual banter is linked to greater sexual satisfaction for both men and women, per a 2011 study in the Journal of Integrated Social Sciences. "Sex therapists call this 'simmering'—or little things you do to and for each other that keep you physically and romantically bonded," says Zoldbrod.

10. You don't freak out about the occasional slow stretch.

"It's important to have realistic ideas about what a healthy sex life is," says Zeising. Namely, it won't always be passionate and intense, and the frequency will ebb and flow throughout your relationship. "If you accept there's no right or wrong way to be sexual, and you and your partner are open with each other about when you're feeling it and when you aren't, then you will have a healthy sex life," she says.

8 Ways Exercise Makes You Gorgeous

Anyone who makes a habit of going to the gym, unfurling a yoga mat or hiking in the woods is privy to a secret known only to the physically active: The rewards of exercise extend far beyond slimming down or adding muscle tone. Dozens of subtle changes visibly revamp the body and the psyche in ways scientists are only beginning to understand.

Maybe your skin looks brighter, your step is springier or you’re more confident at work. Such small victories may go unnoticed by unobservant exercisers, but those on the lookout for these benefits will find them every bit as valid as gains measured by scales and calipers.

Scientists chalk up such fitness boons to a range of powerful physiological and biochemical processes triggered by regular exercise. “Every cell in the human body benefits from physical activity,” says Tim Church, MD, PhD, the director of preventative medicine at Pennington Biomedical Research Center in Baton Rouge, La. And, he says, you feel tangible rewards right away. “Within an hour of exercising, you feel less anxious; that night you sleep better; and for 72 hours afterward your body processes blood sugar more efficiently.”

Need more incentive to lace up your sneakers? Here’s a peek into a few of the ways exercise can make you look and feel fantastic.

1. Smoother, More Radiant Skin

Genma Holmes, 43, was horrified when she broke out in adult acne three years ago. “I was 40 and felt like a hot mess because my face was dotted with pimples,” says the working mom from Nashville, Tenn. Then, last year, she started walking two miles a day and working out on an elliptical trainer three times a week. Sure, she expected to shape up, but she was shocked when her acne cleared. “Looking in a full-length mirror and seeing a slimmer me is great, but looking in a compact mirror and not seeing blackheads is even better,” she says.

Holmes’s clearer skin comes as no surprise to Audrey Kunin, MD, a dermatologist in Kansas City, Mo., and author of The DERMAdoctor Skinstruction Manual (Simon & Schuster, 2005). Working up a good sweat is the equivalent of getting a mini-facial, she says. “When the pores dilate, sweat expels trapped dirt and oil. Just be sure to wash your face afterward so the gunk doesn’t get sucked back into the pores.”

Breaking a sweat isn’t the only way exercise benefits the skin — it also reduces bodywide inflammation, helps regulate skin-significant hormones and prevents free-radical damage. When you exercise, the tiny arteries in your skin open up, allowing more blood to reach the skin’s surface and deliver nutrients that repair damage from the sun and environmental pollutants. These nutrients also rev up the skin’s collagen production, thwarting wrinkles. “As we age, fibroblasts [the collagen-producing cells in the skin] get lazier and fewer in number,” Kunin says. “But the nutrients delivered to the skin during exercise help fibroblasts work more efficiently, so your skin looks younger.”

Exercise Makes Skin Healthier“.

2. Greater Self-Confidence

Confident people radiate a certain physical appeal and charisma. A recent British study found that people who began a regular exercise program at their local gym felt better about their self-worth, their physical condition and their overall health compared with their peers who stayed home. The best part was that their self-worth crept up right away — even before they saw a significant change in their bodies.

“You don’t need to improve your fitness level to improve your self-perception of how fit you are,” says Adrian Taylor, PhD, an exercise researcher at the University of Exeter in England and the study’s lead investigator. And from there it’s only a short leap to enjoying healthier self-esteem, he adds. “Our self-worth is directly tied to our energy levels, our feelings of competence and our perceived attractiveness.” And nothing is more gorgeous than the self-assurance that comes from feeling good in your own skin.

3. Increased Stature

Annie Appleby, 45, a yoga instructor and founder of YogaForce LLC in San Francisco, took up yoga as a means to relieve stress. But it wasn’t until she had a checkup a few years later that she saw the full effects of her practice. When the doctor measured her height, they both noticed she’d grown an inch and a half. “I couldn’t believe it,” she says. “I’d always wanted to be taller; now I fit into my clothes better and feel more spacious in
my body.”

No one has studied precisely why exercise makes you taller, but activities that stretch and strengthen muscles at the same time, like yoga or Pilates, can correct bad posture and therefore add height, says Dan Bradley, MD, an orthopedic surgeon at the Texas Back Institute in Denton, Texas. Hunching makes some muscle groups contract and others lengthen, he explains, which subtracts height. “If you actively work to bring muscles back into balance, your back will lengthen, your posture will improve and you can grow taller.”

People with swayed backs benefit most from core strengthening exercises, such as planks, farmer’s walks and bird dogs. For hunched shoulders, working on strengthening the upper back using resistance with bands, machines or free weights can help restore lost height. And, of course, exercise that improves posture tends to also make you look thinner, fitter and more confident.

4. Less Stress and Anxiety

Anxiety, fearfulness and uncertainty all drain your vitality and dampen your mood, which in turn tends to show on your face and in the way you carry yourself. Roughly 40 million Americans over 18 suffer from anxiety disorders, according to the National Institutes of Mental Health — that’s nearly 20 percent of all adults — and for many of them, that anxiety strips both the smile from their face and the spring from their step. Exercise has been shown to alleviate most mild to moderate cases of anxiety, and can very quickly improve mood.

Jack Raglin, PhD, a sport psychologist at Indiana University in Bloomington, Ind., is only half-joking when he says, “Exercise is like taking a tranquilizer, but better because you get the side effect of improved health and fitness.” Studies out of Raglin’s lab suggest that as little as 15 minutes of exercise bestows a calm that can last for hours. As for what kind of exercise elicits the biggest response, he recommends either heart-thumping aerobic exercise, like running, cycling or swimming, or a mixture of aerobic and anaerobic exercise, such as weight training.

In one study, Raglin and his team recruited 16 athletes, tested their anxiety levels, then put them through 30 minutes of resistance training and another 30 minutes of cycling. Afterward, they rechecked the students’ stress levels and found that they had plummeted within 10 minutes of wrapping up the workout and continued to decline for the next hour.

For Dorothy Foltz-Gray, 61, a writer in Knoxville, Tenn., going for a bike ride at the end of a hectic workday delivers even faster results. “I can leave my desk anxious from a day of work, grab my bike and in a few minutes have a smile on my face as I glide along a bike path,” she says. “Suddenly I’m 12 years old again, grinning at all the other bikers who grin back because they are feeling the same burst of freedom.”

5. Better Immunity and Detoxification

With spring cold season on the horizon, exercise’s immune-enhancing powers are nothing to sneeze at. Exercise shores up the immune system by goosing the body into churning out more white blood cells, including neutrophils and natural killer cells. More white blood cells mean fewer bacteria and viruses sneak past the gate. Net effect: You don’t get that worn-down sick look that comes from feeling under the weather, and small blemishes and wounds of all kinds heal faster.

Exercise also keeps the lymph system happy. The body has roughly 500 lymph nodes — little nodules of tissue that take out metabolic trash. But the nodes can’t haul garbage to the curb without the help of nearby muscles. When muscles contract during exercise, they put the squeeze on lymph nodes, helping them pump waste out of your system. Result: You look less puffy and polluted.

Increased circulation is the key to both white blood cell production and better lymph drainage, and the best way to achieve it is to regularly do things that make you breathe hard, says David Nieman, PhD, director of the human performance labs at Appalachian State University in Boone, N.C. “Right now, your heart is pumping 4 to 5 liters of blood per minute, but, if you got up and went for a run, it would pump up to four times more.”

That increased blood flow is what revs up the immune system, he says. His research shows that just 45 minutes of walking each day can cut the number of days of work you miss because of illness by up to 50 percent.

Elle Swan, 39, a life coach in Las Vegas, Nev., radiates vitality and credits her regular exercise routine —which includes Bikram yoga, group-cycling classes and weightlifting — with the fact that she hasn’t missed a day of work in seven years. “I used to catch at least four colds a year, and they would often turn into ear and sinus infections,” she says. “But I started exercising regularly and now I never get sick.”

The takeaway message, says Nieman, is simple: “There is no supplement or medication that has proven to be as strong as regular exercise in improving the immune system’s ability to detect and destroy invaders.”

6. More Restful Sleep

Plagued by dark circles? You’re not alone. As many as 60 million Americans wrestle with insomnia, according to a recent Harvard Medical School report. A slew of studies show exercise can elicit longer, more restful sleep. Why? Well, an intense workout may leave you more hungry for shuteye recovery time, but there’s more to it than that. Shawn Talbott, PhD, nutritional biochemist and author of The Metabolic Method (Current Book, 2008), explains that exercise sharpens the body’s sensitivity to the stress hormone cortisol, which can enhance sleep. Sleeping better leaves you looking fresh and healthy.

Here’s how it works: When your boss yells at you, the body spews cortisol to help muscles either duke it out or run like the wind. But, instead, if you sit and seethe at your desk, the cortisol stays in the bloodstream, like a racecar circling the track in a speedway. If the stress is chronic, the presence of cortisol 24/7 blunts the body’s cellular receptors, muting the hormone’s arousal call. That lack of sensitivity causes the adrenal glands to make more, just to get the body’s attention. “It’s like your body turns the volume up full-blast to get the message across,” says Talbott.

As a result, the body’s natural cortisol rhythms (high in the morning, low in the evening) “flatten out,” he explains, which can leave you mentally wound up at night — and carrying excess baggage under your eyes the next day.

But exercise is essentially a release valve for cortisol, helping you sleep more soundly and greet the day looking more refreshed, Talbott explains. “It sends a message to the brain that you’re using the cortisol for its original purpose — movement — and that it’s safe to turn off the tap afterward.” Bottom line: Your body is able to use the downtime for the tissue-repair work that keeps you both looking and feeling great.

7. Less Visceral Fat

Yes, exercise can help you lose your love handles, but it’s the loss of excess fat deep inside the body that boosts your overall vitality and your looks.

The body contains two types of fat. The one you can pinch (subcutaneous) is relatively benign. But the less visible stuff, the visceral fat that pads the abdominal organs like so many packing peanuts, can be a killer. Excess visceral fat fuels low-grade inflammation in the body and is tied to a virtual who’s who of 21st-century ills, including type 2 diabetes, heart disease, colon cancer, breast cancer and dementia. It can also upset the balance of important hormones (more on that to come) that affect your skin, hair and general appearance.

Regular exercise trains the body to burn visceral fat more efficiently. Exercise attacks fat on several fronts, explains Jason Karp, PhD, an exercise physiologist at Miramar College, distance-running roach at San Diego State University and owner of in San Diego. When you exercise regularly, your body makes more mitochondria, the cellular engines where aerobic metabolism takes place; it also produces more proteins to speed up the transportation of fatty acids into cells to be burned as energy; and it makes more enzymes that break down fat. “Enzymes regulate the speed at which chemical reactions take place. So the more enzymes you have, the faster visceral fat can be burned,” he adds. And the better your whole body looks as a result.

8. Stronger Sex Hormones

Getting fit not only makes you look sexy, it also makes you feel sexy by balancing the body’s sex hormone levels, which in turn can improve the appearance of hair, skin and muscle tone. Although the most studied hormones linked to exercise are endorphins, sex hormones, such as testosterone and human growth hormone (HGH — the same youth-serum substance celebrities pay thousands to be injected with), also get a boost.

When British scientists compared the hormone levels of 10 middle-aged men who ran more than 40 miles a week with 10 healthy, but sedentary, men, they found that, on average, the runners had 25 percent more testosterone and four times more HGH than the couch potatoes.

“What’s good for your heart is good for your sex life,” says C. W. Randolph, MD, cofounder of the Natural Hormone Institute of America and coauthor of In The Mood Again (Simon & Schuster, 2010). He points to studies showing that the sex lives of fit 60- and 70-year-olds often resemble the sex lives of people decades younger. And, remember, testosterone fuels sex drive in both men and women, so this isn’t one-sided advice.

You can tailor your workout to produce more testosterone, says Randolph. He says working large muscle groups — doing things like squats, lunges, dead lifts, bench presses and rows — ramps up testosterone more than single-joint, small-muscle-group movements like biceps curls or triceps extensions. For best results, he suggests doing three sets of five to 10 repetitions with weights that push muscles to their edge, and rest 30 seconds to two and a half minutes between sets. (For more on the sex appeal of good health, see “Health: The New Sex Symbol” in the December 2006 archives and “Faked Fitness ” in the March 2010 archives.)

Exercise researchers agree that the benefits of improved fitness are a boon to virtually every system in our bodies. And any kind of regular activity will help you experience more of these benefits for yourself. “Most people think exercise is only about burning calories, but it’s so much more than that,” says Talbott. “Exercise is about a million small perks, like stress management, better sleep and an overall healthy body.” And they all add up to a more radiant, gorgeous you.