Health Tips Line

What were you doing in 2007? If you could see the future, you’d know that the economy was about to crater. There was a major housing crisis brewing, and that plus the Great Recession were about to land like a one-two punch. In the last 19 years, wages have been climbing steadily (up 66%), but if you think that’s been enough to even maintain the same standard of living as back then, well, the people of 2026 would like a word. Paying for rent, groceries and a used car hasn’t gotten any easier over the past two decades, and a new report from InvestorsObserver has the stats to prove it. People are actually working multiple days more than they used to every year just to afford basic necessities! How many more days are we talking? Ahead, we dive into the report, and it’s not pretty. Read on to learn just how many more days you’re putting in to keep a roof over your head, your car on the road and food on the table . Get  Reader’s Digest ’s  Read Up newsletter for more work news...

Recently, I did something gloriously unhinged: I taught a Millennial Dance Party fitness class. We’re talking full video choreography to Britney Spears’s “Oops! … I Did It Again,” which I performed in the red vinyl bodysuit from the music video and a blond wig (because if you’re going to embarrass yourself, you might as well commit). We danced to Usher. We twerked to Beyoncé. We worked out to songs that were playing the last time any of us had a metabolism worth bragging about. I had expected a decent turnout. But I ended up with a room packed full of middle-aged moms who had put their kids to bed early and come out on a school night—on a school night!—to squeeze into their old low-rise jeans, fold-over yoga pants and Juicy Couture tracksuits (butt bling and all) and absolutely lose their minds to their middle school jams. People were laughing. People were scream-singing the words. People were doing the “Toxic” slither with a level of commitment they probably haven’t brought to anythi...

If you’ve ever stood in the supermarket’s dairy aisle comparing egg cartons , you’ve probably noticed something: Nearly every package is labeled Grade A or Grade AA. That raises an obvious question: Are eggs like batteries, sold in ever-increasing letter categories? And what’s the difference between them all? Well, you’ll never come across a Grade C or D egg. But Grade B eggs? Those are very real and still produced today under the same federal grading system. Yet most shoppers will go their entire lives without ever spotting a carton in the egg case . So where are these B players hiding—and should you care? Turns out, those are egg-cellent questions. For the answers, I spoke to food science consultant Ed McCormick. Let’s get crackin’. Get  Reader’s Digest ’s  Read Up newsletter for more food news, humor, travel, tech and fun facts all week long. What is egg grading? Egg grading is a system used to evaluate egg quality based on appearance and physical characteristics . ...

I made a social faux pas that still wakes me up at 3 a.m. with a full-body cringe. It happened 15 years ago, and I’m still spiraling about it. My friend Brooke (not her real name because I’m not about to make the same mistake twice) had weight-loss surgery. She’d been saving for years; it was going to help with serious health problems and, she hoped, help her find love in a world that equates thin with beautiful and beautiful with lovable (the saddest math equation ever). She told me because she needed someone to help her until her mom could arrive, and I’m nothing if not a good helper. She specifically asked me not to tell anyone. She wanted to surprise our friends with a big reveal. I told someone. Why? I was so excited for her that I couldn’t wait to share the good news. Her good news. Of course, that friend told another friend, and it wasn’t long before everyone knew. Brooke was crushed—and then, devastatingly, she forgave me . Graciously and quickly, which is honestly the wors...

Data-breach notices are becoming all too common these days, aren’t they? Those tiny folded postcards and thin, ominous business envelopes—from your health insurance company, cellular provider, bank or even your gym—arrive at such a fast clip that you might be tempted to just toss ’em to the side with the junk mail. Don’t. When it comes to data breaches, it’s an issue of when—not if—you’ll be impacted. According to the Identity Theft Resource Center (ITRC), nearly 80% of consumers received at least one data-breach notice in the past year, and many received several. If you’re tossing those cards in the recycling bin, it’s time to think twice about that. The ITRC calls this “breach fatigue” and urges people to take notices seriously. What if someone got a credit card in your name and racked up a $25,000 bill in minutes? Or used your Social Security number to obtain medical care? It happens all the time. Just this past winter, a massive breach at a Washington-based benefits manager expo...