Vegetarian diet just as effective for weight loss as Mediterranean diet, study claims

The Mediterranean diet is often lauded as one of the healthiest diets around, taking inspiration from the eating habits of those living in Spain, Greece and Southern Italy - however, the vegetarian diet might not be too far behind in terms of heart health and weight loss, new research suggests. Published in the journal Circulation, the study examined the effects of both diets on 107 overweight but otherwise healthy adults for a six-month-long period, with participants spending half of that time consuming a Mediterranean diet before switching to a lacto-ovo vegetarian diet. Following final examinations, the Italian researchers concluded that both diets were as effective in reducing body weight, fat mass and body mass index, with the average participant losing 1.88kg on the vegetarian diet and another 1.77kg on the Mediterranean diet.

GPs who prescribe homeopathy are more likely to go against medical guidelines, study suggests

GP surgeries that recommend homeopathic remedies are more likely to be rated poorly for their prescribing in general, and to prescribe at greater cost to the NHS and potentially less safely, researchers say. Scientists collected data from NHS Digital, via the Open Prescribing project, to discover which of 7,618 primary care practices in England prescribed homeopathy between December 2016 and May 2017. An average rating for each practice was then generated using 36 measures of prescription performance overall, which the researchers said had been “developed [by Open Prescribing] to address issues of cost, safety or efficacy by doctors and pharmacists”.

20 Awesome Father's Day Gift Ideas

20 Motivational Quotes That Will Inspire You

14 of the Best BFF Getaway Destinations

15 Last-Minute Mother's Day Gift Ideas

Target Is Launching New Makeup for Dark Skin Tones

YES!

Anna Faris Responds to "Divorce Sucks" Comment

Now it's Anna's turn to speak.

Mooncups may pose greater risk of toxic shock syndrome than tampons, study claims

Toxic shock syndrome (TSS) has long-been associated with tampon use, but a new study claims that menstrual cups could pose an even greater risk. Favoured for their economical and eco-friendly properties, menstrual cups have risen in popularity in recent years and are viewed by many as an ethical and more hygienic alternative to more traditional sanitary products, such as towels and tampons. Conducted in Lyon, France, researchers examined the material of 15 different tampons and menstrual cups to see which might increase bacterial growth or infections that lead to TSS.

Best Bronzers for Every Skin Tone

Kale, Beetroot and other nutritious ingredients for a healthy diet

With people becoming more health conscious, several restaurants have started introducing dishes with healthy ingredients like kale, beetroot and quinoa. These dishes offer wholesome goodness as it is not just good on nutrient value but also on taste, say experts. Rajesh Sawhney, Co-founder of Healthie.in and Rajiv Kumar, CEO of Culinate, have listed some of the healthy ingredients that restaurants and cafes have started using in their dishes (News18).

The Stork: Meet the matchmaking agency bringing people together purely to have babies

In fact, some people are more desperate to have a baby than find a life partner, and this is why one woman decided to launch a matchmaking agency designed purely to match two people who want to have children. The Stork was created by Fiona Thomas in 2014 after she realised many of her friends were single in their 30s, hadn’t met ‘the one’ yet and were close to missing their fertility window. “I think if you can meet someone and fall in love and have the fairy tale then great – go for it,” Thomas told The Independent.

Charity money raised by teenager whose sister died of cancer stolen by thieves

A teenage girl was left devastated when the money she’d raised by shaving her head in memory of her sister who died from cancer was stolen by thieves. In January this year, to mark what would have been Katie’s 16th birthday, 17-year-old Hannah Anderson courageously shaved off her long hair to donate to the Little Princess Trust and to raise money for Little Havens Hospice, which looked after her sister Katie before her death. Hannah successfully raised almost £1,000, but the day before she and her mother, Dee Anderson, were due to take the money to the hospice, the family were targeted by thieves who stole the envelope containing the cash.

Crohn's disease: What are the symptoms and is there a cure?

After seeing the toll that Crohn’s disease has taken on Dynamo, forcing the magician to put his career temporarily on hold, interest surrounding the incurable illness has surged, but what exactly is it? A form of Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD), Crohn’s is a chronic condition that causes inflammation in the digestive system, leaving sufferers with myriad symptoms that can severely inhibit their daily lives if not treated with the right medications. According to Crohn’s and Colitis UK, there are at least 300,000 Britons diagnosed with an IBD - another common form is Ulcerative Colitis - and while symptoms are treatable, there are currently no known cures.

Woman decides to change her career after using an AncestryDNA test

As a native New Yorker, 27-year-old Bri Rogers was intrigued to discover more about her ancestry and how her family made its way to the Big Apple. With a father from Brooklyn and a mother born in Puerto Rico, Ms Rogers was positive that results from an AncestryDNA test would uncover familial connections with Ireland and Spain. AncestryDNA uses the sample to estimate your biological connection with more than 350 regions from around the world.

Father with postnatal depression pens a heartbreaking letter to his baby daughter

A dad who suffered from postnatal depression after his baby daughter was born has written her an emotional letter explaining why he “hated” her. Describing the letter as a “hard letter to write, but probably a harder one to read,” Ross Hunt explains to his daughter Isabelle why he didn’t like her for the first few weeks after she was born - and at times regretted having her. Hunt goes on to explain to his daughter, who is now 11 months old, that there is something inside her daddy called depression - and that none of his feelings are her fault.

What Is the DASH Diet?

Learn the truth about the popular weight-loss method.

Mother defends sharing photos of her stillborn baby after receiving vile comments online

A mum has hit back at people who criticised her for sharing photos of her stillborn son online. Zariah Jackson, 17, from Florida, gave birth to her son Jeremiah Kai on March 14 but found out shortly after his birth, “when it was silent,” that he was stillborn. Heartbroken and devastated, the young mother shared photos of herself and her son on social media.

Hay fever: How to combat the symptoms

As lovely as the weather may seem considering the heavy snowfall that appeared earlier this month, the approach of summer means one thing and one thing only - hay fever season has officially arrived. While it may be impossible to avoid grassy areas altogether, if you know that you’re particularly affected by grass it may be worth avoiding large grassy spaces or doing activities such as camping, as advised by Dr Mary Harding.

Three-minute exercise as effective as going to the gym for half an hour, claims expert

An intense three-minute workout is enough to stay fit and healthy, claims a Melbourne-based physiotherapist. Kusal Goonewardena told Daily Telegraph Australia that exercising intensely for such a short period of time will enable you to reap the same benefits had you engaged in a moderate 30 minute workout at the gym, which the World Health Organisation advises us to do daily. The professional physiotherapist, who regularly works with Australian Olympians at the University of Melbourne, suggests hitting 85 per cent of your maximum exertion levels for the limited window either by skipping, sprinting or by doing star jumps.

Healthy lifestyle before getting pregnant can reduce risk of birth difficulties, warns scientist

Most women know the importance of eating a balanced diet and living a healthy lifestyle when pregnant. University of Queensland School of Public Health researcher Professor Gita Mishra is calling for better understanding of the steps you can take before conception to ensure a healthy labour. “The evidence overwhelmingly showed healthier pregnancies when women were able to make positive lifestyle changes before conception, such as eating well, being more active or quitting smoking,” Professor Mishra said.

How to stop your thighs chafing in the heat

And it doesn't involve Vaseline or talcum powder.

15 First Birthday Gifts That Any Baby Will Adore

Chris Pratt on Anna Faris split: "Divorce sucks."

But they're "probably doing better" since they separated.

Five parenting tips from around the world, according to a paediatrician

Lisa Lewis, a paediatrician and author of "Feed the baby Hummus," first began researching cultural differences in child-rearing techniques 20 years ago. From there, Dr Lewis began to travel the world and investigate the numerous cultural differences in raising children - and how each of these methods can benefit babies. When Dr Lewis became a parent herself, she followed her own Lebanese roots and adopted a method of co-sleeping “100 per cent,” where the baby has a separate sleep area, such as a co-sleeper or bassinet, in the same room.