Innholdsfortegnelse for February 2020 i Woman's Weekly Living Series

Diehard Coronation Street fans may have noticed that one of the Street’s veterans, Sue Nicholls, has not been seen much in recent months. That’s because the 76-year-old suffered a nasty fall at home, which resulted in her breaking her collarbone and having to take an extended break from the soap. ‘I had to be written out of some scenes, which I hated’ Sue – who is married to former Corrie co-star Mark Eden – admits, ‘I had to have an operation, be written out of some scenes and take time off – which I hate doing as I don’t like letting people down. But everyone was so lovely.’ Explaining how the accident came about, she says, ‘I was creeping around in the dark after taking my face off at about…

BRIGHTEN UP Dry, parched skin can look dull and flaky, so exfoliating is a must. But instead of a scratchy, grainy scrub use a liquid formulation. Nip+Fab Glycolic Fix Liquid Glow, £20, is a bit like a toner that you apply twice a day after cleansing. It helps sweep away dead skin cells, increase hydration levels and unclogs pores. Your skin will look visibly fresher and more radiant, even after one use. UPGRADE YOUR FOUNDATION When your skin is looking less than its best, you might slap on a few more layers of foundation and hope for a miracle. But because our skin doesn’t always look its freshest in the cold weather, wearing too much base, especially on skin that’s a bit dry or flaky doesn’t usually sit well. Switch…

Dementia impacts your ability to make sense of the world around you, leading to confusion and anxiety. So living somewhere you can navigate safely and enjoyably is helpful. It can also help lessen symptoms. ‘Symptoms such as repetitive questioning can often be reduced with the right calming environment,’ says specialist dementia nurse Dave Bell from charity Dementia UK. ‘When you start to feel insecure, it increases agitation, affects confidence and has knock-on effects such as isolation, loneliness and low mood or depression.’ Getting help There are many stages to dementia, and everyone’s an individual with different likes, dislikes, responses and capabilities. Depending on the stage of the disease, different advice will suit different people. ‘Involve the person with dementia as much as possible without overwhelming them with choice,’ says Dave.…

1 Stick to a regular bedtime and getting-up time, even if you’ve had a bad night. 2 Avoid caffeine, alcohol and eating after 6pm. 3 Start your wind-down bedtime routine 1-2 hours before you plan to sleep. 4 Cut out light completely with blackout blinds, and no stand-by lights or illuminated screens. 5 For short trips abroad, try sticking to your usual timetable. For longer ones, adopt the new time zone immediately. 6 Write down any worries before sleep, then use relaxation techniques or mindfulness to switch off. 7 Light therapy may help seasonal affective disorder. See sad.org.uk…

THE OBESITY LINK Being overweight is the biggest cause of cancer after smoking. It’s linked to more than one in every 20 diagnoses here in the UK. ‘Fat in your body sends signals telling cells what to do and when to divide,’ says cancer expert Clare Hyde from Cancer Research UK. ‘Extra fat can encourage too much cell division and growth, causing cancer to start.’ Research shows that many cancer types are more common in people who are overweight/obese, including breast and bowel, and three of the hardest to treat (pancreatic, oesophageal and gallbladder). Studies show that, after menopause, obese women have a 30% higher risk of breast cancer than women of a healthy weight. Your overall cancer risk increases the longer you’re overweight for. But the good news is…

Joining a running group helped my grief DIANA POSTLE, 67, from Norwich, Norfolk ‘When I lost my husband, Nigel, to lung cancer in 2015, I felt overwhelmed – emotionally and practically. He was diagnosed 18 months before he died and, during that period, I was looking after him full-time. ‘It was hard for me to leave the house while caring for him – and after he died, I felt even more imprisoned. I was struggling. My family were in Leeds, and there was so much to deal with. My dining table was covered in paperwork and I was trying to move house. I’d often put my head in my hands and say to myself, ‘I can’t stand this.’ I didn’t know where to turn. ‘Then a lifeline appeared. I got…

SOYA BEAN & SUPER-GREEN SOUP Pack plenty of greens into your diet with this wonderfully fragrant dish SERVES 4 ✣ 1 Knorr Vegetable Stock Pot ✣ 200g (7oz) frozen soya beans ✣ 200g (7oz) frozen peas ✣ ½ head of broccoli, cut into florets ✣ 1 onion, chopped ✣ 500ml (18 fl oz) unsweetened soya milk ✣ 125g (4½oz) spinach leaves ✣ Small bunch of basil 1 Mix the stock pot with 500ml (18 fl oz) boiling water and pour into a medium-sized pan. Add the soya beans, peas, broccoli and onion. Bring to the boil, then simmer for 5 mins. 2 Add the soya milk, spinach and basil, and warm through. Pour half the mixture into a blender and blitz until smooth. Pour this back into the pan to…

Want to lose weight, boost energy levels and improve health? Injecting more colour into your diet can make a huge difference. ‘The way most people eat, especially in winter, tends to be quite bland,’ says nutrition specialist Deanna Minich PhD, author of The Rainbow Diet . ‘Yet you need colour to nourish your body, to stay healthy and to lose weight. ‘Red, blue and purple foods are high in protective antioxidants. Yellow and orange foods are packed with carotenoids (that protect cells from damage), and green foods are high in immune-boosting antioxidants, chlorophyll and fibre. Research shows that a diet high in colourful fruit and veg is associated with lower levels of diabetes and cancer. Rainbow eating also has a balancing effect that enhances weight loss.’ DAY 1 GO RED…

VAGINAL DRYNESS IS COMMON Up to 45% of women suffer, particularly in the menopause and after, but younger women can experience it too. It’s due to a change in hormone levels because female sex hormones, particularly oestrogen, dip during the menopause. Less vaginal fluid is produced, and the skin can become thinner, dry and uncomfortable. You may also have itching, burning and pain, which can make sex painful. Try a pessary or vaginal cream, like Vagisan MoistCream (£14.99, Boots). KEEPING CLEAN Your vagina self-cleans with fluid from glands inside it and your cervix. ‘There’s no need to try and clean inside it,’ says Natika Halil, formerly of sexual-health charity FPA. ‘Just use unperfumed soap and water to clean the vulva.’ Small leaks One in three women will be affected by…

Q I WAS SHOCKED WHEN MY NEIGHBOUR GOT FLU AND NEEDED ECMO. WHAT IS IT EXACTLY? A ECMO (extracorporeal membrane oxygenation) is a high-tech treatment for acute respiratory failure, when the lungs can’t transfer enough oxygen into the blood. The person is breathless, carbon dioxide builds up and tissue or organ damage may be fatal. Respiratory failure can be acute or gradual, and can occur in lung diseases such as flu-related pneumonia, asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), as well as heart disease and conditions that weaken or restrict the breathing muscles, such as motor neurone disease (MND) or obesity. Acute failure is treated with oxygen via a mask or tube while the underlying cause is treated. If this doesn’t work, a person who normally has good lung function…

Staying active as you age is the most important thing you can do for your health. Physical activity helps you fight back against chronic ‘age-related’ diseases such as diabetes, dementia, heart disease, stroke, arthritis and cancer. It’s also great for your mental health – helping to reduce stress, anxiety and depression, and making you feel happier. Exercise expert Sarah Russell offers her advice and some simple exercises to keep you strong, healthy and happy… CORKSCREW TWISTS Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart. Cross your arms across your chest or put your hands on your hips. Slowly rotate from side to side like a corkscrew. Repeat 20 times. SIT TO STAND Sit on a chair with your feet hip-distance apart and your arms out in front of you. Push up to…

MARINATED MACKEREL WITH SUMAC SALSA Fatty fish like mackerel are loaded with omega-3 fatty acids, which have extensive heart-health benefits. SERVES 6 ✣ 6 very fresh small mackerel, left whole, gutted and cleaned FOR THE MARINADE ✣ ½ small bunch of parsley, roughly chopped ✣ 3 cloves garlic, roughly chopped ✣ ¾tsp hot smoked paprika ✣ 1tsp cumin seeds, roughly crushed ✣ ½tsp ground ginger ✣ 2tbsp olive oil ✣ Juice and finely grated zest of 1 lemon FOR THE SALSA ✣ 300g (10oz) cherry tomatoes, halved or quartered ✣ ½ cucumber, peeled, deseeded and chopped ✣ 1tsp sumac ✣ 1tbsp extra virgin olive oil ✣ 1tbsp roughly chopped parsley 1 To make the marinade, in a food processor, pulse all the ingredients and a large pinch of salt until…

✣ Sign up for some refresher lessons. Call a few local driving instructors and ask if they have experience with teaching licensed drivers, and go with whoever you feel happy with. Don’t worry that the instructor will judge you – they’ll be used to nervous drivers and happy to take your lessons at a pace that helps you feel safe. ✣ Road-safety charity IAM RoadSmart runs coaching sessions in your own car for skills such as motorway driving and parking – £45 for 75 minutes. For details, call 0300 303 1134 or visit iamroadsmart.com.…

Lose weight Adding new habits to your daily routine can help you reach your goal easily and permanently. Start by taking small steps without thinking about the bigger picture. Go small: Give yourself smaller portions rather than dramatically changing what you eat. Use smaller plates. Research shows that they look as if they contain more food, and eating with smaller cutlery encourages you to take smaller mouthfuls. Eat slowly, chew your food more and put down your cutlery between mouthfuls to give yourself a chance to notice when you’re full. Get enough sleep: Sleep allows your body to release the appetite-suppressant leptin, which also affects your body temperature, increasing the amount of calories burnt. Being sleep-deprived means you don’t produce enough leptin, but overproduce ghrelin – a hormone that increases…

1 Use smaller plates Sounds simple, but it tricks your brain into believing you’re eating larger helpings. Portion size has played a huge part in the rise of obesity, with ready meals and restaurant portions increasing in size, and therefore calories. 2 Get a grip on emotions Easier said than done, but it’s possible to reprogramme your body’s response to eating triggers, says dietician Lyndel Costain (weightloss resources.co.uk ). ‘When you crave food and aren’t actually hungry, ask yourself: Why do I want to eat and what am I feeling?’ Find a distraction – a walk or chat with a friend. ‘The more often you break the “eating when you’re not hungry” habit,’ she says, ‘the weaker its hold.’ 3 Drop the ‘D’ word Label yourself as ‘on a diet’…

HEALTHY BUTTERNUT & KALE STRATA For something a little bit different try this veg-packed twist on a frittata. SERVES 2 ✣ 250g (9oz) peeled and seeded butternut squash, diced into approximately 1cm cubes ✣ 30g (1oz) roughly chopped curly kale leaves ✣ 125ml (4fl oz) liquid egg white or 4 free-range egg whites ✣ ¼tsp chilli flakes (optional) ✣ 2 sage leaves, finely chopped ✣ Salt and pepper ✣ Oil spray ✣ 6 halved baby cherry tomatoes ✣ 30g (1oz) sprouting seeds, such as Good4U Super Sprouts mix 1 Put the diced squash in a vegetable steamer placed over a pan of just boiling water, then cover and steam for 5 mins. Add the kale and steam for a further 5-8 mins, or until both the squash and kale are…

✣ KEEP STRONG Resistance training is one of the best ways to reduce risk of injury and conditions such as arthritis and osteoporosis. From our mid-30s we lose around 3-5% of our muscle mass each decade, known as sarcopenia. The old adage ‘use it or lose it’ is the motto here. Resistance training should be the priority over cardiovascular exercise. Working out with a resistance band, hand weights or doing bodyweight exercises at home is perfect. You need just 15-20 minutes two or three times a week. ✣ WARM UP It’s crucial for avoiding injury, but tailor it to the activity you are about to do. If you’re playing tennis or swimming, go through ‘range of movement’ exercises for your upper body. Running will require the same for the lower…

1 You may need blood tests, scans or other checks if you have heavy periods, bleeding between periods or after lovemaking or the menopause. 2 Emergency contraception from your pharmacy, GP or sexual-health clinic (see nhs.uk) can be used up to five days afterwards – but the sooner you take it, the more effective it is. 3 You may need advice on sexually transmitted infections (STIs), too – they’re becoming more common with new partners in later life. Condoms can offer protection. 4 Find out more about contraception and general sexual well-being at fpa.org.uk…

1 ECG (electrocardiogram/ heart tracing) – it may show heart damage, other heart problems or an abnormal rhythm. 2 Blood tests for anaemia, cholesterol levels and troponin, which measures proteins released by damaged heart muscle. 3 Echocardiogram (ECHO/ultrasound scan), exercise/treadmill test, chest X-ray, and CT/MR scans to look for other/linked heart and lung causes of chest pain. 4 Cardiac magnetic resonance (MR) scan, which shows scarring and heart areas with poor blood supply. 5 Coronary angiography, a tube is inserted into a groin or wrist artery, using a local anaesthetic. Dye is then injected that will show narrowed or blocked coronary arteries on X-rays.…

Q My dog eats everything in sight. What should I do if he swallows something he shouldn’t, such as household chemicals? A If you ever suspect your pet has swallowed a poison, don’t delay. Phone the vet immediately – day or night. If there’s no one on duty, there should be a voice message giving you the out-of-hours number to call. The vet will probably ask you to bring the animal in straightaway. Any delay can mean that we miss a vital opportunity to treat your pet. Never try to make your dog vomit with home remedies. It only delays getting to the vet, and can do more harm than good. Some poisons can cause more damage if the animal is made to vomit them up again. If your pet…

1 List the reasons you want to lose weight, problems you may face and how to overcome them. 2 Weigh and measure yourself. Aim to lose a pound a week. 3 Use a smartphone app to record your progress (see nhs.uk/live-well). Try photographing everything you eat. 4 Join a support group, plan meals in advance and limit ‘no/sometimes’ foods. 5 Allow yourself a daily treat – such as a few squares of 85% cocoa solids chocolate or a small glass of wine. 6 The occasional ‘day off’ (for example, eating out) can boost your mood and metabolism. 7 Exercise every day – just a half-hour brisk walk will help. 8 Stress-bust using mindfulness or a warm bath, instead of comfort eating/drinking.…