A HEAVY LOAD: BACKPACK BASICS Experts say that a bag that weighs more than 10 percent of a kid’s body weight can cause a host of painful problems, such as bad posture, aching shoulders and a sore neck. To avoid ailments, pick a pack with extra-cushy shoulder-band and back padding. Because backpacks evenly distribute the weight, they’re preferable to messenger or tote bags. But if your children don’t want to give up their satchels, remind them to switch shoulders throughout the day.
-Prevention
THE SOUND OF MUSIC Studies show that exercising to music improves your workout. But change your music selection regularly—mixing up what you listen to speeds your results in the same way switching your routine does.
-Oxygen
SOME LIKE IT HOT The capsaicin in red chili pepper flakes helps lower cholesterol and triglyceride levels, which reduces the risk for heart attack. Sprinkle the flakes on pizza or into tomato sauces, vegetable dishes or fruit salad.
-Redbook
NATURE'S UMBRELLA Broccoli could be sprouting up in your anti-aging regimen. Applying a smear of an extract found in broccoli sprouts to skin reduced inflammation and redness—key measures of future skin cancer risk—by nearly 40 percent, according to researchers at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. The compound, rich in the antioxidant sulforaphane, activates skin’s own cancer fighting ability by boosting production of protective enzymes. Once stimulated, the mechanism works for days, long after
the extract is washed away, says lead researcher Paul Talalay, M.D., a professor of pharmacology and molecular sciences. Keep an eye out for topical broccoli-based sun-protective products, which are in development.
