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West Australian
09-08-2025
- Health
- West Australian
Nat Locke: why walking, drinking coffee, laughing with besties and being a nerd are all good for a long life
Some of my favourite sorts of news articles are those that are reporting on people who have celebrated an impressively huge birthday, because inevitably, they ask them one universal question: what is the secret to a long life? This week, that question was answered by a delightful 103-year-old lady who attributed her longevity to being proactive about her health and looking after others. This is a very wholesome response, and genuinely good advice for those of us who might want to live an equally long life. But don't we all prefer the people who answer that question with something like 'I drink a can of Swan Gold and eat a vanilla slice every day?' We're just always looking for the cheat code, aren't we? In case you're wondering how you can live a life long enough to be newsworthy, I've done some research for you (you're welcome). A quick google revealed that there's a bunch of strategies that can help you live longer. Some of them are pretty obvious, like not smoking and limiting your alcohol. Some would suggest there's not much point extending your life if you can't partake in a cheeky G&T from time to time, and then those same people point out that the Queen Mother made it to 101 and she famously loved a drink. Royal insiders described her intake as 'steady but not excessive' but she would have her first drink before lunch every day and it was gin and Dubonnet, which is a kind of fortified wine. She then had red wine with lunch and a martini at six, before champagne with dinner. Every day. And I repeat: she lived until she was A HUNDRED AND ONE. Exercise is also important, and a Griffith University study found that if you're over 40 and in the least active 25 per cent of the population, an hour spent walking can add six hours to your life. I didn't pay a lot of attention in maths class, but I think that means if you start walking for four hours a day, you can live forever. The university study didn't say that explicitly, by the way. I've drawn my own conclusions. Google also told me that drinking coffee or tea is beneficial to a long life, because it helps to lower the risk of several chronic diseases including Type 2 diabetes and Parkinson's. But you can't drink more than four cups of coffee. However — and hear me out — if you did, you'd have enough energy to walk four hours a day. Logically, the next strategy is to get a good night's sleep. Yes, after all that coffee. Hopefully all that walking has tired you out. Sleeping less than 5-7 hours, or more than 8-9 hours is linked to a shorter lifespan. It's also recommended that you go to bed and wake up at roughly the same time every day. It's safe to say I'm screwed. Breakfast radio hours and a natural propensity to stay up late are not doing me any favours in this department. And on the weekend, I definitely do not continue to get up at four in the morning. My sleep patterns are all over the shop. I guess I'm going to have to walk for six hours a day now. Being happy is also another key strategy. Studies have found that you can live 18 per cent longer if you are happy. I'm not sure how this works if you become happier by drinking eight glasses of rosé a day, but I think we've learned this isn't necessarily a logical process. Related to happiness, you also need to avoid stress and nurture your social circle. I guess that means we'll have to start a walking group together, because I don't think I've got any hours left in the day. But whenever you get together and have a good old belly laugh with your mates, you can totally understand why it's beneficial to both your physical and mental health. There is nothing quite so restorative as a good old session with your bestie. Also, you need to nurture those social circles if you're all going to live to 100, or else it's going to be a lonely old existence. And finally — and slightly weirdly — researchers found that more conscientious people live longer. A study followed 1500 boys and girls into old age and found that the ones who were observed to be more conscientious lived 11 per cent longer. Those little nerds. And I say that with love, because if you asked any of my primary school teachers, they probably would have said I was conscientious. Realistically, I was probably just bright and eager to please, because the conscientiousness has not followed me into my adult years. So there you have it. Just follow my simple steps (and by 'my' I mean 'Google's') and live a long, bountiful life. Or start getting sauced at 11am like the Queen Mother and live to 101. You choose.
Daily Record
31-07-2025
- Health
- Daily Record
Princess Margaret 'had foetal alcohol syndrome from Queen Mother's drinking' claims new book
Queen Elizabeth's sister, Princess Margaret, showed some symptoms of foetal alcohol syndrome, according to Pulitzer Prize-nominated biographer Meryle Secrest in her new book. Princess Margaret had foetal alcohol syndrome because the Queen Mother drank while she was pregnant with her - claims a new book. Foetal alcohol syndrome develops when alcohol is exposed to a baby in the womb, which can damage their brain and body and stop them from developing normally. It can result in a loss of pregnancy, and babies who survive may be left with lifelong problems - including with movement, learning communication and hyperactivity. Pulitzer Prize-nominated biographer Meryle Secrest made the claims in a new book in which she analysed Margaret's personality and personal struggles in light of greater knowledge about the condition, reports the Mirror. It comes after Joanna Lumley said King Charles 'really is ill' as she shares rare health battle insight. In her book, it's speculated that Queen Elizabeth's younger sister, who died aged 71 in 2002, suffered from an "invisible disability" due to the condition, The Telegraph reports. The biographer's claims about the princess have not been proven and there is no firm evidence that Margaret suffered from an alcohol-related neurodevelopmental disorder. The book claims that while Margaret lacked the tell-tale symptoms of smooth lip philtrum and small eyes, she displayed characteristic mood swings, stunted growth, difficulties learning how to write, and painful migraines. It also cites accounts of the Queen Mother's drinking in later life - with claims from a former equerry that during the day she would enjoy gin and Dubonnet. Foetal alcohol syndrome wasn't well understood until the 1970s, the book states, and it is likely that the young Queen Mother would not have been advised to avoid alcohol during her pregnancy with Margaret. But it claims that in the Queen Mother's letters from when she was pregnant with Elizabeth II, she wrote she could not bear the thought of wine, suggesting she may have drunk less when expecting the future queen. She wrote in a 1925 letter to the future King George VI: "The sight of wine simply turns me up! Isn't it extraordinary! It will be a tragedy if I never recover my drinking powers." Fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS) is a condition that develops in a foetus when a pregnant woman drinks alcohol during pregnancy, explains the Cleveland Clinic. A syndrome is a group of symptoms that happen together as the result of a particular disease or abnormal condition. When someone has foetal alcohol syndrome, they're at the most severe end of what are known as foetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASDs). The condition is life-long and can't be cured. It can be prevented if you don't drink any alcohol during pregnancy, as even small amounts can damage your developing foetus. The new biography, named Princess Margaret and the Curse: An Inquiry into a Royal Life, has been written by comparing Margaret's life with those who have suffered from the condition. It will be released by the US house Skyhorse Publishing.
Daily Mirror
30-07-2025
- Health
- Daily Mirror
Princess Margaret 'had foetal alcohol syndrome from Queen Mother's drinking', new book claims
Pulitzer Prize-nominated biographer Meryle Secrest claimed in her new book that Queen Elizabeth's sister, Princess Margaret, showed some symptoms of foetal alcohol syndrome Princess Margaret had foetal alcohol syndrome as the Queen Mother drank while she was pregnant with her, a new book has claimed. The condition develops when a baby is exposed to alcohol in the womb, which can damage their brain and body and stop them from developing normally. It can result in a loss of pregnancy, and babies who survive may be left with lifelong problems - including with movement, learning communication and hyperactivity. The claims were made by Pulitzer Prize-nominated biographer Meryle Secrest in a new book in which she analysed Margaret's personality and personal struggles in light of greater knowledge about the condition. It comes after Joanna Lumley said King Charles 'really is ill' as she shares rare health battle insight. In her book, Ms Secrest speculated that Queen Elizabeth's younger sister, who died aged 71 in 2002, suffered from an "invisible disability" due to the condition, The Telegraph reports. The biographer's claims about the princess have not been proven and there is no firm evidence that Margaret suffered from an alcohol-related neurodevelopmental disorder. The book claims that while Margaret lacked the tell-tale symptoms of smooth lip philtrum and small eyes, she displayed characteristic mood swings, stunted growth, difficulties learning how to write, and painful migraines. It also cites accounts of the Queen Mother's drinking in later life - with claims from a former equerry that during the day she would enjoy gin and Dubonnet. Foetal alcohol syndrome wasn't well understood until the 1970s, the book states, and it is likely that the young Queen Mother would not have been advised to avoid alcohol during her pregnancy with Margaret. But it claims that in the Queen Mother's letters from when she was pregnant with Elizabeth II, she wrote she could not bear the thought of wine, suggesting she may have drunk less when expecting the future queen. She wrote in a 1925 letter to the future King George VI: "The sight of wine simply turns me up! Isn't it extraordinary! It will be a tragedy if I never recover my drinking powers." Fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS) is a condition that develops in a foetus when a pregnant woman drinks alcohol during pregnancy, explains the Cleveland Clinic. A syndrome is a group of symptoms that happen together as the result of a particular disease or abnormal condition. When someone has foetal alcohol syndrome, they're at the most severe end of what are known as foetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASDs). The condition is life-long and can't be cured. It can be prevented if you don't drink any alcohol during pregnancy, as even small amounts can damage your developing foetus. The new biography, named Princess Margaret and the Curse: An Inquiry into a Royal Life, has been written by comparing Margaret's life with those who have suffered from the condition. It will be released by the US house Skyhorse Publishing.
Telegraph
30-07-2025
- Health
- Telegraph
Princess Margaret ‘left with foetal alcohol syndrome from Queen Mother's drinking'
Princess Margaret suffered from foetal alcohol syndrome brought on by the Queen Mother's drinking during pregnancy, a biography has claimed. The syndrome is caused by a developing baby's exposure to alcohol in the womb, and can give the child distinctive facial features and cause difficulties with learning, impulse control and managing emotions. Meryle Secrest, a Pulitzer Prize-nominated biographer, has re-examined the princess's personality and personal struggles in light of greater knowledge about the condition. Princess Margaret and the Curse, Secrest's forthcoming unofficial biography, speculates that the princess, who died in 2002 aged 72, suffered from an 'invisible disability' brought on by foetal alcohol syndrome. The book says that while Margaret lacked the syndrome's tell-tale smooth lip philtrum and small eyes, she did display characteristic mood ,swings, stunted growth, difficulties learning how to write, and painful migraines. It cites accounts of the Queen Mother's drinking in later life, when it was claimed by a former equerry that during the day she would enjoy gin and Dubonnet: two parts pink vermouth to one part gin, as well as wine and port, until the 6pm 'magic hour' when martinis would be prepared. Foetal alcohol syndrome was not well understood until the 1970s, the book states, and it is likely that the young Queen Mother would have not been advised to avoid alcohol during her pregnancy with Margaret. But the book says that in the Queen Mother's letters from the time of her pregnancy with Elizabeth II, she writes that she could not bear the thought of wine, suggesting that she may have drunk less when expecting the future queen. A 1925 letter to the future King George VI said: 'The sight of wine simply turns me up! Isn't it extraordinary! It will be a tragedy if I never recover my drinking powers.' The book puts forward no claim that the late Queen suffered from any condition. Secrest, who was awarded a medal for her work in 2006 by George W Bush, the former US president, has looked at Margaret's life and compared it to typical cases of foetal alcohol syndrome. Now 95, the biographer notes that children with the syndrome may typically misbehave and have difficulty regulating their behaviour and emotions. The biography claims that Margaret's family and her nurses found her to be 'naughty' and 'mischievous and provocative', at one point sinking a boat during a rowing lesson by removing the plug in the hull. She was also impulsive and would 'blurt out the truth', it is claimed, as can be common among those with foetal alcohol syndrome. The Princess suffered a nervous breakdown in 1974. Her later private life would also raise eyebrows. Her marriage to Lord Snowdon ended in divorce after both partners had extra-marital affairs. The book notes that sufferers of foetal alcohol syndrome often have stunted growth. Margaret was recorded as being 5ft 1in. Additionally, it is claimed she had a poor awareness of physical danger, another effect of the syndrome, citing her apparent indifference to setting her hair on fire during a family get-together. Secrest has cited the work of Dr Kenneth Jones, a leading expert in foetal alcohol syndrome, who first properly identified the issue in 1973. There is no firm evidence that Margaret suffered from an alcohol-related neurodevelopmental disorder, and the new biography has been written by comparing Margaret's life – as attested in pre-existing written sources – with those who have suffered from the condition.
Spectator
30-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Spectator
Kingsley goes to the toilet
In 1978, I gave a poetry reading at Hull University. Philip Larkin was glumly, politely, in attendance. I was duly appreciative, knowing what it must have cost him. He was deaf as well as disaffected. Perhaps the deafness helped. The next day, we had a lunchtime drink at the University bar. We talked about Kingsley's recently published Jake's Thing, a fictionalised account of Kingsley's sexual relations with Jane Howard. Larkin was puzzled: 'It's determinedly foul-mouthed, which I like, but there is a central implausibility. Jake can do it, but he doesn't want to.' An innuendo? A suggestion that Jake, and by implication Kingsley, couldn't? He sipped something improbable like a Dubonnet. A year previously, Kingsley had taken me to lunch in Wheeler's. I was teaching at Christ Church and Kingsley wanted to know if I thought an Oxford college might be called St James's – or 'Jim's' in what he called 'popular parlance'. I thought it entirely plausible and, as he told me more about the novel, I had several other suggestions of my own. I thought he wanted to pick my brains. He didn't. I had answered the question he wanted answered. Anything else was an impertinence. He became irritated. Finally, before he had finished his dover sole Walewska, he got to his feet and said he needed a shit. When he returned, he asked me if he had tucked his shirttail in properly. 'One of my nightmares: everyone knows you've just had a shit.' Sometime later, we had lunch together in La Capannina, an Italian greasy spoon near the New Statesman offices in Holborn. Kingsley, his lips gathered, was in evangelical mode, hot against false gods: 'Picasso couldn't draw.'
