Health Tips Line

We throw it around constantly: “Hey, dude.” “Dude, no way.” “Duuude.” It’s one of those words that feels timeless, universal and weirdly flexible. But once you stop to think about it, dude is a pretty strange word. How did this slangy little syllable come to mean everything from “bro” to “person” to “oh, no”? To get to the bottom of this linguistic puzzle, I spoke with Michael Adams, PhD, a professor of English and linguistics at Indiana University. And it turns out, the story of dude is way older—and way weirder—than anyone who first said it on a skateboard in the 1980s might guess. So grab your spurs, your surfboard or your phone because we’re about to ride through the surprisingly epic evolution of the word dude . The truth, you could say, is totally (tubularly) historic. Get  Reader’s Digest ’s  Read Up newsletter  for more grammar, humor, travel, tech and fun facts all week long. What does dude mean, exactly? At its most basic, dude just means a guy or a ...

When it comes to choosing a baby name, parents-to-be walk a fine line between picking one that sounds cute— and maybe a bit trendy —and avoiding any that are too “out there” or downright strange. My husband and I also struggled with our last name, Geddes, whose sibilant sound meant another s , as in Agnes, Iris or Linus (my fav!), probably wouldn’t work. And since so many folks seemed to trip over the pronunciation of Geddes, we wanted a name that was super easy to say. In the end, after cruising baby name lists and checking for vintage names in our family trees, we landed on Isabel and Fiona for our daughters. But today’s moms and dads have it even easier, thanks to the savvy name pros at BabyCenter, who’ve just debuted the most popular baby names of 2025. Curious what’s leading the pack right now? I caught up with Rebekah Wahlberg, a BabyCenter specialist in baby-name trends, to get the scoop. Read on for the big reveal and to learn which baby-name trends we’ll be seeing in 2026....

We’ve been watching the royal corgis almost as long as we’ve been keeping an eye on the Windsors themselves. We know Queen Elizabeth II loved her dogs , so when she died in 2022, the world was anxious to discover the fate of her devoted hounds. Luckily, they’ve been in good hands at the Royal Lodge, one of the many grand retreats in the royal family’s stable of homes. But now that the royal formerly known as Prince Andrew has been stripped of his title and his home (yep, that same Royal Lodge), the world waits once again to learn the fate of Muick and Sandy, the two canine residents caught up in the melee. The former prince, now called Andrew Mountbatten Windsor, is beginning the gargantuan task of packing up the place, so naturally, we all want to know: What’s happening to the corgis? Ahead, we’ll spill the afternoon tea on where the fluffiest royals will soon lay their heads (in their luxury kennels, natch). We all need a place to call home —corgis included—so keep reading to disc...

We all want the best for our kids. And where you live can shape nearly every aspect of family life—from your children’s education and safety to your financial well-being and overall happiness . A supportive community, access to quality health care and safe neighborhoods can make a world of difference in raising healthy, thriving kids. But where is the best place to put down roots for your family? New research from ConsumerAffairs analyzed all 50 states to identify where families have the best opportunities to flourish, and it has a new top spot for 2025. We spoke to ConsumerAffairs lead researcher Rebecca Sowell to learn which states offer the strongest foundation for family wellness from the standpoint of safety, affordability , health care access and more. It turns out that location truly matters when it comes to raising a family. Keep reading to find out which states scored the best—and the worst. Get  Reader’s Digest ’s  Read Up newsletter for more news, cleaning, humo...

Former Vice President Dick Cheney, who died on Nov. 3 at age 84, will be remembered for his strong political convictions, hawkish policies in two Middle Eastern wars and effective partnership as vice president to George W. Bush. Born in Lincoln, Nebraska, and raised in Wyoming, Cheney was a staunch conservative whose trajectory took him from local politics to Washington (and back again) to the second-highest office in the country. Serving the father-son duo of Bush presidents , Cheney directed the course of both the Persian Gulf War under President George H.W. Bush and later the Iraq War under President George W. Bush. His influence on military policy and the direction of the presidency was so powerful that some regarded him as a Machiavellian, behind-the-scenes maneuverer—a sly mover and shaker who knew how to make things happen in politics. But Cheney was also a devoted family man, marrying his high school sweetheart and supporting his two grown daughters. He also never forgot his ...