Cultivating good healthy habits

Another suggestion is to get children to help parents to prepare the meals.

Breakthrough of the week

Studies have shown that higher body weight is associated with big bone mass and that people trying to lose weight through dieting affect their bone health in the process.

To avoid losing bone mass, Stuart Phillips of McMaster University in the US recommends that women trying to lose weight should eat more dairy. According to the study, this results in improvements in markers of bone formation and reductions in markers of bone degradation in obese young women.

If you could do one thing for your health

Avoid overeating. How? By serving meals from the stove instead of from the dining table. Nutrition experts from Harvard Medical School say keeping food at a distance is one technique that can be used to reduce your kilojoule intake.

It is easier to avoid a second helping when food is further away from you - you'll think twice before grabbing another bite.

Bizarre of the week

A rugby player woke up gay and quit his bank job to become a hairdresser after breaking his neck and suffering a stroke during a gym accident.

According to a report in The Daily Mail, Chris Birch, 26, said when he regained consciousness, he found he was no longer interested in women. He called off his engagement to his girlfriend.

Stroke association spokesman Joe Korner said: "The brain can make new neural connections during recovery, which can trigger things people weren't aware of, such as sexuality ."

Source: The Times