Stop making this handwashing mistake, eat shrimp and use the Pomodoro technique to clean up — plus 8 more tips to improve your health
This week, Kerry Justich spoke to American track and field Olympian Gabby Thomas, who spilled her wellness routine. This includes drinking coffee, which Thomas says is 'one of the first things I do every morning.'
The athlete may not be ditching coffee anytime soon, but plenty of people are, whether that's due to caffeine jitters or digestive woes. The good news? There are some excellent coffee alternatives on the market.
This week, I explored whether beanless brews and coffee blends — some of which are made with mushrooms or upcycled ingredients like date pits — are a good solution for when you're craving a pick-me-up that isn't a traditional cup of joe. While experts say there's no reason to ditch coffee if your body responds well to it, you could get some perks by sipping on these beverages, such as a brain boost from adaptogens like reishi.
Take a peek at the local weather forecast and, if so inclined, peruse your horoscope to see what the stars have in store. Then check out what small steps you can take to make the week ahead great.
The National Foundation for Infectious Diseases just released its State of Handwashing report, which revealed that 48% of Americans are not washing their hands at key times. But some may not be aware of what those times even are. For example, while most Americans sudsed up after going to the bathroom and handling food (phew!), the NFID says that we should also be washing our hands after visiting food-centric places — like a grocery store, restaurant or coffee shop — as well as the doctor's office, pharmacy or hospital. These places have the potential to be particularly germy, and those germs can go from your hands into your mouth, eyes or nose and get you sick.
An easy habit to stick with? Wash your hands every time you come home, and make sure you're doing it the right way: Scrub with soap and water for at least 20 seconds, making sure to get under your fingernails. Don't forget to properly dry your hands too; wet hands spread germs more easily.
May 10 is National Shrimp Day, but there are a lot of reasons to eat this crustacean year-round. One big benefit of shrimp is that it's very low in calories while also being high in protein — a three-ounce serving has about 20 grams of protein. Plus, it also contains minerals like potassium, phosphorus and magnesium.
Want to get the best-tasting shrimp? While it may make dinner take a little longer to prepare due to the de-shelling process, buying shrimp that are still in their shells will deepen that umami flavor.
It's already May, and you still haven't gotten around to spring cleaning? It's time to stop procrastinating. Yes, organizing your closets and filing 6 months' worth of random paperwork can feel overwhelming, but Apartment Therapy has a handy hack: Try cleaning with the Pomodoro technique, a method in which you work in focused 25-minute intervals followed by five-minute breaks. The goal? Staying motivated while also breaking down big tasks into smaller, more manageable chunks. Your house will get clean and you won't lose your mind in the process — a win-win!
Weird … but kind of genius? A writer at Salon found that her smoothies tasted even better when she started using roasted fruit. Think roasting peaches with honey and cinnamon, or creating an apple pie-inspired smoothie by baking apples, storing them in the fridge overnight and then blending them with rolled oats in the a.m. It's a great way to make a morning smoothie way more exciting with new flavors.
The latest fitness craze on social media? People doing 100 kettlebell swings a day. You don't need to do that many reps to enjoy the benefits of this exercise, however.
'Most of us spend a lot of time sitting — on our phones, at our computers, in our cars — which makes the front of our body super-tight and pulls us into that rounded, hunchback position,' personal trainer Nico Gonzalez tells Yahoo Life. 'When done correctly, kettlebell swings really activate the muscles along your spine, the backs of your arms and the backs of your legs, which helps bring your posture upright. So, it's actually a really great corrective exercise.'
Research says that working out with kettlebells can improve your grip and muscle strength overall, as well as lower inflammation. This week, make your gym workout all about kettlebells with this five-move kettlebell plan.
I recently hit up an infrared sauna on my longevity treatment journey and was so glad I did; there's nothing more relaxing than getting a good sweat in. But there's science behind the sweat too: Regularly using a sauna has been shown to reduce joint and muscle stiffness, improve your immune system and enhance sleep. Plus, spending time in a sauna has also been linked to a better mood. I, for one, am never happier.
Try sitting in a sauna for 15 to 20 minutes, Dr. Jaclyn Tolentino, a primary care physician at Love.Life, tells Women's Health. If you feel dizzy or sick, step out. "Sauna use should feel like a supportive ritual, not a challenge to power through,' Tolentino explains. "The key is to listen to your body — it should feel nourishing, not punishing."
Gossiping has an admittedly bad reputation. But there's actually some good that can come from talking about others. 'Human connection through shared information and communication is core to who we are and connects us to each other,' Thea Gallagher, director of wellness programs at NYU Langone Health, tells Fox News. 'We might feel closer to someone when we know they are confiding in us with information and vice versa.'
And gossiping can also build empathy. For example, if you get wind that someone else is dealing with something (divorce, a sick parent, etc.) you can relate to, you may feel more connected to that person and be even more likely to open up to them in the future.
The key to making sure gossip never becomes malicious or catty is to ensure it's coming from a place of curiosity, rather than to harm someone's reputation through the spread of mean-spirited comments.
May 11 is National Foam Rolling Day, which should be your reminder to break out your roller after an intense exercise session. Foam rolling is a practice in which you use a foam cylinder (or sometimes even something spherical, like a hard rubber ball) to apply pressure to sore or tight muscles. This targets fascia, aka the connective tissue surrounding muscles and organs. It helps increase blood flow, reduce muscle tension and improve flexibility, making it an excellent way to aid in recovery, not to mention prevent injury next time you work out.
Need help getting started? Try these two easy exercises from Men's Fitness. And make sure to skip foam rolling your neck, joint areas or anywhere that you're already injured; you could do more harm than good.
In the mood to try a new tea? Try dandelion tea — especially if you deal with digestive discomfort. Dandelion tea can help relieve bloating, which can potentially come from eating a high-sodium diet, thanks to its natural diuretic properties, helping to flush excess fluid from the body.
But that's not the only reason to try this herbal tea: Dandelion tea is packed with antioxidants, including beta-carotene, in addition to being a good source of vitamin A.
You may have seen the 'okra water' trend making its rounds on TikTok, with some claiming that this drink — which is made by soaking sliced raw okra pods overnight and straining out the solids — helps with blood sugar control. While there haven't been studies confirming this, there is still a good reason to eat okra, which is packed with fiber, minerals and antioxidants. It's specifically a great source of magnesium and folate, which support muscle and heart health. Try pickling it, using shorter pods and patting them dry before brining to avoid a slimy texture.
Resistance training is so important for maintaining muscle mass and bone health. This week, change things up by picking up a medicine ball. Training with a medicine ball helps build 'explosive power, increases body strength, increases speed and provides more versatile movement in different planes,' fitness coach Tatiana Lampa tells Women's Health.
You can slam a medicine ball, toss it or twist with it beyond what you could do with a traditional weight. Plus, the shape and feel of a medicine ball means it mimics real-world activities — like, say, lifting a toddler or carrying a bag of groceries — which helps build functional strength.
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They often find those policies online, in what has become a dizzyingly complicated system of government-regulated insurance marketplaces created by the ACA. The marketplaces vary in quality from state to state; some are far better than others. But they generally offer few easily identifiable, affordable, and workable choices. 'The good news is that the ACA gave young people more options,' said Karen Pollitz, who directed consumer information and insurance oversight at the Department of Health and Human Services during the Obama administration. 'The bad news is the good stuff is hidden in a minefield of really bad options that'll leave you broke if you get sick.' Publicly funded counselors called 'navigators' or 'assisters' can help insurance seekers choose a plan. But those programs vary by state, and often customers don't realize that the help is available. The Trump administration has cut funding to publicize and operate those navigator programs. In addition, changes to Medicaid eligibility in the policy bill recently passed by Congress could mean that millions more ACA enrollees lose their insurance, according to the Congressional Budget Office. Those changes threaten the very viability of the ACA marketplaces, which currently provide insurance to 24 million Americans. In dozens of interviews, young adults described the unsettling and devastating consequences of having inadequate insurance, or no insurance at all. Damian Phillips, 26, a reporter at a West Virginia newspaper, considered joining the Navy to get insurance as his 26th birthday approached. Instead, he felt he 'didn't make enough to justify having health insurance' and has reluctantly gone without it. Ethan Evans, a 27-year-old aspiring actor in Chicago who works in retail, fell off his parents' plan and temporarily signed up for Medicaid. But the diminished mental health coverage meant cutting back on visits to his longtime therapist. Rep. Maxwell Frost, a Florida Democrat and the first Gen Z member of Congress, was able to quit his job and run for office at 25 only because he could stay on his mother's plan until he turned 26, he said. Now 28, he is insured through his federal job. 'The ACA was groundbreaking legislation, including the idea that every American needs health care,' he said. 'But there are pitfalls, and one of them is that when young adults turn 26, they fall into this abyss.' Back in 2010, the decision to make 26 the cutoff age for staying on a parent's insurance was 'kind of arbitrary,' recalled Nancy-Ann DeParle, deputy chief of staff for policy in the Obama White House. 'My kids were young , and I was trying to imagine when my child would be an adult.' Before that time, children were often kicked off family plans at much younger ages, typically 18. The Obama administration's idea was that young adults were most likely settling into careers and jobs with insurance by 26. If they still didn't have access to job-based insurance, Medicaid and the ACA marketplaces would offer alternatives, the thinking went. But over the years, the courts, Congress, and the first Trump administration eviscerated provisions of the ACA. By 2022, a shopper on a federal government-run marketplace had more than 100 choices, many of which included expensive trade-offs, presented in a way that made comparisons difficult without spreadsheets. Jack Galanty, 26, a freelance designer in Los Angeles, tried to plan for his 26th birthday by seeking coverage on the California insurance marketplace that would ensure treatment for his mild cerebral palsy and for HIV prevention. 'You're scrolling for what feels like years, looking at 450 little slides, at the little bars, and trying to remember, 'Was the one I liked No. 12 or 13?'' he recalled. 'It feels like it's nearly impossible to make a good choice in this scenario.' Out-of-pocket expenses have soared. Complex plans in the lightly regulated marketplaces featured rising premiums, high deductibles, and requirements that patients pay a significant portion of the cost of care, often 20% — a charge known as coinsurance. More than half of Americans ages 18 to 29 have incurred medical debt in the past five years, a KFF Health News data investigation found. Few have the reserves to pay it off. The networks of doctors to choose from in these plans are often so limited that an insured person struggles to get timely appointments. It can even be hard to find the official websites amid an explosion of look-alikes operated by commercial brokers. Sharing her contact information with one site that appeared legitimate left Lydia Herne, a social media producer in Brooklyn, 'drowning' in texts and phone calls offering plans of uncertain and unregulated quality. 'It never ends,' said Herne, 27. Young Invincibles, an advocacy group representing young adults, runs its own 'navigator' program to help young people choose health insurance plans. 'We hear the frustration,' said Martha Sanchez, the group's former director of health policy and advocacy. 'Twenty-six-year-olds have had negative experiences in a process that's become really complex. Many throw up their hands.' Elizabeth Mathis, 29, and Evan Pack, 30, a married couple in Salt Lake City, turned to the marketplaces two years ago, after Pack went uninsured for a 'really scary' year after he turned 26. 'Every time he got in the car, I thought, 'What if?'' Mathis said. The couple pays more than $200 a month for a high-deductible health plan backed by a federal subsidy (the kind set to expire next year). It's a significant expense, but they wanted to be sure they had access to contraception and an antidepressant. But last year, Pack suffered serious eye problems and underwent an emergency appendectomy. Their plan left them $9,000 in debt, for medical care billed at over $20,000. 'Technically, we gambled in the right direction,' Mathis said. 'But I don't feel like we've won.' The ACA was supposed to help consumers find affordable, high-quality plans online. The legislation also tried to expand Medicaid programs, which are administered by states, to provide health insurance to low-income Americans. But the Supreme Court ruled in 2012 that states could not be forced to expand Medicaid. Ten states, led mostly by Republicans, have not done so, leaving up to 1.5 million Americans, who could have qualified for coverage, without insurance. Even where Medicaid is available to 26-year-olds, the transition has often proved precarious. Madeline Nelkin of New Jersey, who was studying social work, applied for Medicaid coverage before her 26th birthday in April 2024 because her university's insurance premiums were more than $5,000 annually. But it was September before her Medicaid coverage kicked in, leaving her uninsured while she fought a chest infection over the summer. 'People tell you to think ahead, but I didn't think that meant six months,' she said. When Megan Hughes, 27, of Hartland, Maine, hit the cliff, she went without. An aide for children with developmental delays, she has a thyroid condition and polycystic ovary syndrome. She looked for a health care plan but found it hard to understand the marketplace. (She didn't know there were navigators who could help.) Now she can't afford her medicine or see her endocrinologist. 'I'm tired all the time,' Hughes said. 'My cycles are not regular anymore at all. When I do get one, it's debilitating.' She is hoping a new job will provide insurance later this year. Traditionally, most Americans with private health insurance got it through their jobs. But the job market has changed dramatically since the ACA became law, particularly in the wake of the pandemic, with the rise of a gig economy. Over 30% of people ages 18 to 29 said in recent surveys that they were working or have worked in short-term, part-time, or irregular jobs. The ACA requires organizations with 50 or more employees to offer insurance to people working 30 hours per week. This has led to a growing number of contract employees who work up to, but not past, the hourly limit. Many companies, which say they can't afford the rising costs of traditional insurance, offer their employees only a modicum of help, perhaps around $200 per month toward buying a marketplace plan, or a bare-bones company plan. Young people juggling part-time jobs and insurance options face bumpy, daunting transitions. In Oklahoma, Daisy Creager, 29, has had three employers over the past three years. Insurance was important to her, not least because her former husband had Type 1 diabetes. As she left the first of those jobs, her husband's endocrinologist helped the couple stockpile less expensive insulin from Canada, since they would be uninsured. After a few months, they bought a marketplace plan, but it was expensive and 'didn't cover a lot,' she said. When she found a new job, she dropped that plan, only to discover that her new insurance coverage didn't start until the end of her first month of employment. The couple would be uninsured for a few weeks. A few days later, she came home to find her husband unconscious on the floor, in a diabetic coma. After hovering near death in an intensive care unit for four days, he woke up and began to recover. 'I think I've done everything right,' Creager said. 'So why am I in a position where the health insurance available to me doesn't cover what I need, or I can barely afford my premiums, or worse, at times I don't even have it?' Kathryn Russell, 27, developed excruciating back pain two months before her 26th birthday. After extensive testing, doctors determined she needed a complex surgery, which her surgeon couldn't schedule until after she would be off her family's insurance plan. Forget the pain and the fear of the operation, she said, it was insurance that kept her up at night. 'There's this impending terror of, 'What am I going to do?'' she recalled. (One day before she turned 26, her father's company agreed to keep her on his plan for six more months, if he paid higher premiums.) The idea that the ACA would offer a variety of good options for people turning 26 has not worked as well as the legislation's authors had hoped. The 'job lock' tying insurance to employment has long plagued the United States workforce. Young adults need guidance on their options beforehand, said Sanchez of Young Invincibles. None of those interviewed for this story, for example, knew there were navigators to help them find insurance on the online marketplaces. Experts agree that the marketplaces need stronger regulation. In 2023, the federal government defined clearer standards for what plans in each tier of insurance should offer, such as better prescription drug benefits, defined copays for X-rays, or coverage for emergency room visits. Certain types of basic care, such as primary care, should require just a small copay for at least a small number of initial visits. Each insurer must offer at least one plan that complies with these new standards for every level, known as an 'easy pricing' option or a 'standard plan.' Most plans on the marketplaces don't meet these criteria. Federal and state regulators had long planned to cull such 'noncompliant' plans, gradually — fearing that doing so too quickly would scare insurers away from participating. But with the priorities of the new Trump administration now in focus, and a Republican majority in Congress, it's far from clear what course President Donald Trump, who sought to repeal the ACA outright in his first term, will take. There are hints: Subsidies to help Americans buy insurance, adopted during the Biden administration, are set to expire at the end of 2025 unless the Republican-led Congress extends them. If the subsidies expire, premiums are likely to rise sharply for plans sold on the marketplaces, leaving insurance out of reach for many more young adults. KFF Health News is a national newsroom that produces in-depth journalism about health issues and is one of the core operating programs at KFF—an independent source of health policy research, polling, and journalism.
