Health Tips Line

On my weekly supermarket run, I always try to grab as many fresh fruits and veggies as possible. A container of berries? Into the cart. Bagged salad? Easy dinner. Fresh cilantro? Absolutely. But with a growing cyclospora outbreak making people sick across the country, I’m suddenly looking at the produce aisle a little differently. More than 7,000 people have already gotten sick with cyclosporiasis across 34 states this year—and unfortunately, that number is expected to grow. And while cyclosporiasis is more common in tropical and subtropical parts of the world, it causes outbreaks in the U.S. every year. In fact, cases tend to spike between May and August, when fresh produce linked to infections is most commonly on our plates. That said, this outbreak is a lot worse. The good news? This isn’t a reason to swear off your favorite grocery store’s fruits and vegetables altogether. A few smart swaps—and knowing which foods are a lower risk right now—can h...

Aries: Ron Weasley (March 21–April 19) OK, I did put a redhead in the most feral and impatient fire sign of them all. But you have to admit that Ron is a bit of a hothead. He’s so easily flustered, like when Hermione picks on his rat, Scabbers. But what do you expect when your sign is ruled by Mars, the planet of anger and war? You have to be reactive, because you were born to fight—especially to protect the ones you love. Ron was the first to draw a wand when Malfoy called Hermione a “filthy mudblood.” And even with an injured leg, he steps in between the assumed-dangerous Sirius Black and Harry to protect his friend. Though being Mars-ruled can provide a burst of confidence, it also means you can be a little overly competitive. Aries is the first sign of the zodiac, so naturally, you always want to be first. But something in you feels like you need to prove yourself in order to be first, just like Ron. As one of seven talented children in the family, h...

The United States turned 250 this summer, and to celebrate, we shot off fireworks and went to parades and, above it all, waved the American flag . Why is that? “Every country on Earth, for the most part, has evolved a national flag,” says James Ferrigan, a vexillologist (aka flag expert and historian) and the current treasurer of the North American Vexillological Association. “It’s kind of their one chance to send a nonverbal message to the world, like, ‘Hey, we’re over here! This is us!'” That desire to be seen—across the land or ocean, as well as more philosophically—helps explain why, even though there’s no law requiring countries to develop a flag, we all do it. “No one wants to be left out,” he says. “It’s almost like we’re hardwired for it, you know?” But choosing a color? That posed a problem—for a while, at least. “Let’s say I want to turn this fabric into a new colo...

We absolutely adore Princess Diana, we really do, but this story is a tough one to swallow. In fact, this revelation about the late Princess of Wales broke our hearts a little, and we’re still processing the news that came to light when a 40-year-old letter written by King Charles was recently auctioned off by Chiswick Auctions in London for £656 ($880). But let’s start from the beginning. Diana and Charles seemed like the perfect couple on paper, but as we now know, they were a mismatch from Day One. Even before they tied the knot on July 29, 1981 , they were having problems. That being said, they really tried to make it work, and Charles made a huge sacrifice for Diana—and, if you ask us, quite a drastic one. He gave up one of his absolute favorite companions, a yellow Labrador retriever named Harvey, because Diana wasn’t a fan. (We know.) Read on to find out what happened—and whether Diana ever embarked on a puppy-redemption arc. Get  Reader...