Innholdsfortegnelse for Monday, July 3, 2023 i Woman's Own

Could you pass a health MOT? Take the tests on p26 – some of them are actually pretty fun (obviously, I’m not talking about the sweetcorn!). I had a great time testing my balance with Taylor Hanson (swoon) one night – remember Hanson? Three brothers, long blond hair, sang MMMBop? Well, I can confirm Taylor can balance on one leg for well over 10 seconds. The friend I’d dragged along to the gig might not have had quite as much fun, but it was definitely one of my favourite evenings ever (no judgement, please!). On the subject of love (see what I did there!) – do you think it’s important to have things in common with your partner, or do opposites really attract? On p30 we meet the couples who…

The course of love never runs smooth, but it seems as though Coleen Nolan is determined to hang onto her man after months of wooing him back. ‘Coleen is over the moon,’ our insider explains, adding, ‘she really does think Michael is her happy-ever-after and is determined to make sure it works. He is the first person she’s dated outside of the showbiz world and she loves the fact he’s just a “normal” person. They’re taking things slowly, but she’s definitely hoping the relationship will go the distance this time.’ When they were last together, Coleen admitted she could be tempted to marry once more – despite divorcing twice. ‘I’d said I’d never get married again,’ she explained, ‘but Michael has said a couple of times that it’s just inevitable,…

You frequently hear people express the view that dementia is a cruel disease, and it is. Watching your loved ones lose the pieces of their identity that make them unique can be heartbreaking. Yet in experiencing my mother’s dementia, I found a joy that we had not had in our relationship before, and I know that she felt it too. The illness brought us much closer. My relationship with my mother had been quite distant. Photographs of the two of us together when I was a baby show her cuddling me affectionately, dazzling the camera with her smile. Within five years, however, her marriage had broken down and she went through an unpleasant divorce; perhaps it was this that turned someone who had seemed open and demonstrative into the wary…

CAN I STILL DRINK? Q My dentist has given me some antibiotics for a dental abscess. We are due to celebrate my 60th birthday this weekend and I would really like to enjoy a drink with friends and family. I was always told that you should avoid drinking alcohol when taking antibiotics, but how strict is this? A It depends which antibiotic you are taking. The two most commonly used for dentistry problems are amoxicillin and metronidazole. You would be fine to enjoy a celebratory drink on amoxicillin, but metronidazole is chemically similar to a medication used to help problem drinkers to abstain and you could feel very ill if you drank alcohol while taking it and for three days afterwards. IS HIS COUGH SERIOUS? Q For years, my husband…

Protect and perfect When you care for your hair, it shows. Every hair type, from fine to curly, will benefit from wearing Silke Hair Wrap, £50, silkelondon.com. It’s pricey but it will save you bags of time styling in the morning. It protects against friction as you toss and turn, to fight frizz, prevent breakage and balance oily roots – so you don’t have to wash your hair as often. Otherwise, swap your cotton pillowcase for Kitsch Satin Pillowcase, £15, Boots, to help hair glide across it as you sleep. If you’re a slave to your heated styling tools, you need to protect against drying out strands and weakening the cuticles with something like Aussie SOS Heat Saviour Leave On Spray, £6.99, Boots, to keep hair strong, healthy and glossy.…

Scandi neutrals Mid-century Sweep upholstered bed frame, £779, bedspreads, from £90 each, cushions, £45 each, Aztec Beige framed print, from £50, groove two-drawer bedside table, £189, and Pasadena glass table lamp, £125, all John Lewis & Partners; other items, stylist’s own Beachy blues Blue button stripe bedding set, from £16, cushions, from £7 each, and rattan star mirror, £25, all George Home; other items, stylist’s own Eclectic vibe Summer haze stripe bedding set, from £16, chequerboard cushion, £14, Simone round rattan bedside table, £50, ceramic vase, £18, global rope shade, £32, and geometric wool rug, £125, all Habitat; other items, stylist’s own…

CLUES & ARROWS Fill in the clues in the direction of the arrows Sudoku To solve the puzzle, each 3 x 3 box, each column and each row must contain the numbers 1 to 9. Wordsearch Molly Schuyler set the world record for eating what foodstuff in Irving, Texas, on 25 April 2014? The answer is the one missing from the grid. BUTTERCHEESECREAMCUSTARDEGGNOGGELATOGHEEKEFIR LASSIMILKQUARKRICOTTASKYRWHEYYOGURT CROSSWORD ACROSS 1 Dawn _, star of TV sitcom The Vicar of Dibley (6)4 Of theoretical interest only (8)10 Small US songbirds (7)11 More unpleasant (7)12 Fibs (4)13 & 26 Across. 2022 mystery film featuring 1 Across,16 Across, 28 Across &23 Down (5,2,3,4)15 Groups of three (6)16 _ Brand, actor whose films include Forgetting Sarah Marshall and Despicable Me (7)20 To trip (7)21 Line on a…

Film INDIANA JONES AND THE DIAL OF DESTINY Out in cinemas 30 June After the disappointment of ..the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, Indy (Harrison Ford) returns as the veteran adventurer confronts Nazis and his mortality. Fleabag’s Phoebe Waller-Bridge joins the fun as the duo banter their way through a nostalgic thrill ride. Essential viewing. Event BST HYDE PARK: WEEKEND THREE From 6-9 July, Hyde Park, London. Tickets from £70 The legendary Bruce Springsteen, Billy Joel and Lana Del Rey headline weekend three of Hyde Park’s summer festivals season, which is celebrating its 10th anniversary. Sing, dance and sip cocktails in the sun (fingers crossed!) at the ultimate British summertime destination. Event THE WIZARD OF OZ Until 3 September 2023, The London Palladium. Tickets from £20 Join Dorothy, Toto, Tin…

Ellie Simmonds ‘WHY WAS I ADOPTED?’ The former swimmer searches for her birth mum… We know Ellie Simmonds as a brilliant Paralympian swimmer, for being wonderful on last year’s Strictly Come Dancing and for being an amazing representative for people with disabilities, but there’s one part of her life that many people don’t know about… ‘I’ve had an amazing life,’ says Ellie, 28. ‘But the beginning of my life was a different story and something I know very little about. When I was just two weeks old, I was given up for adoption and I’ve never wanted to ask why, until now. Lots of questions are starting to bubble up and I want some answers.’ A one-off documentary, Ellie Simmonds: Finding My Secret Family, follows the star as she embarks…

Carol BLASTS ITV BOSSES The fallout from Phillip Schofield leaving ITV after revealing he lied about having an affair with a younger colleague continues to rattle on. And as ITV chief executive Dame Carolyn McCall was invited into parliament to discuss how the network handled Phil’s affair, plenty of ex-ITV stars had something to say about the channel – including ex-Loose Woman Carol McGiffin. Carol, 63, who left Loose Women in May after 20 years, blasted the channel as ‘cutthroat, competitive and ruthless’. She claimed that ‘no one ever really had a good word’ to say about Phil, but added that the problems within ITV ran deeper than the drama that has ensued at This Morning in recent months. She revealed, ‘They go on about the ‘ITV Daytime Family’ being…

RISE IN SURVIVAL Partly thanks to our lovely NHS (see right), women diagnosed with breast cancer are now two thirds more likely to survive than those diagnosed 20 years ago. Basically, survival rates have soared by 66% over 20 years. The stats come from a landmark study by the University of Oxford, and as breast cancer is the most common type of the disease in the UK, it’s such an optimistic message for the 56,800 new cases each year. Breast cancer is no longer a death sentence, and the risk of dying in the first five years is now just 5%. But the message then and now is still the same: get checked and NEVER ignore any changes to your breasts, no matter how insignificant they may seem. HAPPY BIRTHDAY,…

Have you heard about? BREATHING DEEPLY CAN HELP REDUCE DEMENTIA RISK Love yoga? You’re in luck – breathing exercises can lower the levels of key proteins associated with Alzheimer’s disease in the blood, new research has found*. Our breathing affects our heart rate, which directly links to the nervous system and the way the brain produces and clears proteins. Simple breath work and meditation have the same benefits. Find free breathing and meditation exercises on YouTube. It worked for me Sarah Duffy, 34, from Lancashire. ‘I developed osteoporosis and osteoarthritis in my 20s. I recently received a treatment called teriparatide, which helped with the regular fractures, but I still live with chronic pain. I now use Actimas Celafen Cream (£11.50 for 50ml, skinshop.co.uk), which helps reduce inflammation in my hips…

Health ask us I’m angry and bitter Q I am a 68-year-old widow. My husband died suddenly a year ago and I live alone. I feel very bitter and angry about my life as we had so many plans. My kids and friends rarely visit, and I don’t bother them as they are busy. I’m healthy and there is so much I could be up to, but I can’t seem to do anything. A Grief is incredibly overwhelming, and this is behind your feelings of anger and bitterness. It’s also why you can’t motivate yourself to do anything. Talk to your GP or a grief counsellor at Cruse (cruse.org.uk) about your loss and the feelings you are having, so you can work through them. Next, let people in. Your friends…

READER QUESTION Q My fixed-rate deal comes to an end soon and a friend suggested an offset mortgage. What is this? A An offset mortgage links your home borrowing to your money in a savings account. The value of your offset savings account is deducted from your mortgage balance, and you only pay interest on the balance – that is, the mortgage minus your savings. However, offset mortgages tend to have higher rates of interest and you won’t earn interest on your savings. Find out more at moneysupermarket.com. Go green for less Can you save cash by buying pre-loved clothes online instead of new? For example, Go Thrift (gothrift.co.uk) sells second-hand branded women’s and men’s clothes, plus there’s free delivery on orders over £40 and it offers 30-day returns too.…

And… relax 27 June-3 July 2023 ARIES 21 Mar – 20 Apr Now is the perfect moment to go for what you really, truly want. You have everything you need to succeed, so believe in your capabilities and just go for it! TAURUS 21 Apr – 20 May Slow down and spend some time in nature. What ideas are coming to you now that you know you need to start moving forward? Embrace change! GEMINI 21 May – 20 Jun Do something fun this week with those closest to you. When you lighten up you’ll see your current challenges from a whole different perspective. CANCER 21 Jun – 22 Jul Mercury is now in your sign, so you might make more decisions based on your emotions and feelings. Trust your…

A MOST AGREEABLE MURDER by Julia Seales (£20, Orion, HB) Beatrice Steele’s secret obsession is decidedly improper. While other young ladies perfect their needlework, Miss Steele pores over true crime cases in the newspaper. To avoid scandal, she vows to leave this fascination behind and focus on the upcoming autumnal ball. At the event of the season, Beatrice’s sister Louisa hopes to win the heart of wealthy Edmund Croaksworth. But when the eligible bachelor drops dead on the ballroom floor, chaos ensues. The guests are trapped inside by a storm, with the killer at large among them. Pairing up with a disgraced detective, Beatrice employs all her hidden skills to solve the mystery. A delightful and highly original comedy. OKAY DAYS by Jenny Mustard (£16.99, Hodder & Stoughton, HB) The…

It all started with a selfie. In 2014, millions of people took to social media to proudly share their fresh-faced photos without a drop of make-up on, with the tagline #nomakeupselfie. But for me, then aged 22, the fear of presenting my natural face to the world was more than a few vain worries about my complexion or crow’s feet. As I stared at myself in the mirror, I picked up my phone and snapped a picture. I took in my bright blue eyes and my warm smile but all I could focus on was the birthmark that eclipsed my face, the mark I’d hidden away all my life… EARLY DIAGNOSIS I had been born with a large birthmark on the left side of my face and was diagnosed with…

WIN A HOMCOM VELVET CHAIR This tub chair, crafted by Homcom, is covered in velvet-feel material and is sure to add a beautiful and elegant touch to your home. It’s filled with a thick sponge to ensure ultimate comfort, and has a slanted back design to make sure you can sit in the chair for long periods of time. WIN A ONE-NIGHT BUYAGIFT GLAMPING BREAK FOR TWO Experience the beauty of nature while enjoying all the comforts of home with Buyagift’s glamping package. You and a guest will spend the night in a cosy and stylish glamping pod, and whether you’re looking to snuggle up or stay up late chatting around the campfire, this glamping experience has everything you need for a perfect night under the stars. WIN A REALGLOW…

LEAFY PRINT Look chic in an easy, breezy oversized shirt. £19.99, sizes xs-xxl, H&M STYLISH STROLLING Walk tall in these soft, suede espadrilles. £39.50, M&S MOTHER OF PEARL The perfect necklace for summer dressing up. £15.99, Zara SPRAY AWAY Keep indoor plants hydrated with a quick spritz. Plant sprayer, £4, B&M FRESH AS A DAISY A gorgeous slip-on dress. £23.99, sizes 8-18, threadbare.com SUBTROPICAL Keep cool when the temperatures rise with these feel-good buys. Shirt, £48, shorts, £46, both sizes 6-24, and necklace, £16, all FatFace LIP-TASTIC Nourish sun-parched lips. Skin Food Lip Balm, £7.75, Weleda VEGAN NAIL FIX Contains no petrochemicals. Nail Polish Amande, £14, uk.manucurist.com HANDS-FREE A handy tote bag for shopping sprees. £12.50, Matalan TAKE THE PLUNGE Dip into the pool in a tropical-print one-piece. £46, sizes…

The T-shirt dress Made from 100% cotton, this striped T-shirt dress is perfect for everyday wear. Lightweight and breathable, it will keep you cool in the heat. Wear it on its own, or simply put on over your swimsuit and you’re ready for the beach. Breton stripes are a classic and versatile pattern that can be worn all year round, so this dress will work for the winter seasons, too. Total outfit cost £40.99 TOP TIP When it comes to buying a beach bag go XL, the bigger the better! The shorts During the summer months, you can’t beat a denim shorts and top combo. Keep things simple with a basic plain T-shirt, or opt for a loose-fit cami top that will skim over your tummy. If…

Can’t bear the heat? Humidity making you feel irritable? You’re not alone – 80%* of women have hot flushes during the menopause. Not only are these temperature fluctuations uncomfortable, they can also disrupt your daily routine, affect your ability to focus and knock confidence, too. Add in the warm weather, and you have the perfect recipe for feeling fatigued. But you don’t have to let symptoms take the joy out of the sunny season. Our experts reveal how to take back control. WHY ARE YOU BURNING UP? Hot flushes vary between women, but they are often described as a creeping sensation of heat spreading across the body and face – sometimes with sweating, palpitations and anxiety, explains GP and menopause specialist Dr Louise Newson. And it can be debilitating. ‘They…

How healthy do you think you are? Almost three-quarters of over-40s want to feel better, and over half are motivated by wanting to live a longer life*. However, even with the best intentions, some potentially dangerous health problems are difficult to spot. ‘As we get older we become more vulnerable to certain conditions, but simple measures, such as waist circumference, can indicate if you’re at an increased risk,’ says Claire Nevinson, superintendent pharmacist at Boots. Keeping some basic targets in mind could be the incentive you need to make and maintain better lifestyle choices, and improve your wellbeing once and for all. Here’s how to give yourself a quick health check from home. LIFT YOUR LEGS… TO TEST YOUR ARTERY HEALTH This can show if the arteries that supply your…

Saucy lemony chicken SERVES 4 With just five simple ingredients, this easy chicken dinner is perfect for busy weeknights. YOU WILL NEED 4 chicken breasts, butterflied (see Step 1)60g unsalted butter150ml chicken stockJuice of 1 lemon2tbsp capersGreen beans and rice or potatoes, to serve (optional) HOW TO DO IT 1 Butterfly the chicken by cutting it lengthwise, halfway down the fillet, but not all the way through. Open out like a book, cover with cling film and use a rolling pin to flatten to an even thickness. Season well with salt and pepper. 2 In a large frying pan, melt half the butter over a medium-high heat. Add the chicken breasts and cook for 2-3 mins on each side until cooked through and golden. Do this in batches if needed.…