Personal transformation in 6 simple steps

New Delhi, (IANSlife) Often we have had moments of self-introspection in our lives where we have questioned ourselves- where is our life heading and what is the purpose of our life? We would have also felt the need to improve ourselves and the urge to explore ourselves better and walk on the path of personal growth. In pursuit of happiness, people today are actively adopting the path of personal transformation.

The journey of personal transformation

Life is unpredictable and challenging. We never really know what might happen in the next two minutes or even two hours from now! Amid such unforeseen circumstances, knowing our purpose in life, outgrowing ourselves, and possessing the power to deal with roadblocks can feel satisfying. Investing in ourselves can be a truly rewarding and memorable experience, which only personal transformation can offer.

The process of self-transformation is all about knowing ourselves better, changing some aspects of who we are and how we are leading our lives, and taking action to bring about a transformation. It is a conscious, well-thought decision and a form of commitment to ourselves where we want to bring about a positive change.

The ultimate guide to personal transformation

Whether it is a homemaker, a corporate employee, an entrepreneur, a parent, a college student, or even a middle-aged adult, being vulnerable, not knowing how to handle a crisis, and inability to face setbacks is common. The bottom line is any individual can be prone to negativity and issues in any aspect of their life. And all of us are looking for solutions or the path to obtaining the solution. It is a personal transformation that we are in search of.

The very core of self-transformation lies in a positive state of mind. And the key to personal transformation is understanding that the changes come from within. If we want to lay a strong foundation for a better tomorrow, then ‘now’ is the right time to take a closer look at the only thing we can change to achieve the same: ourselves. Here is a six-step guide for a successful personal transformation experience:

A clear vision

The first step in this journey begins with simple questions - What do you want to achieve in life and Why is it important to me personally?

Seeking answers to these questions will help you identify the purpose of your life. The ultimate goal is to become a better version of ourselves. Having said that, a specific, well-defined goal is essential to walk on the right path and track your progress. When it comes to specific goals think across multiple areas of your life; health, relationships, emotional well-being, career, finances, Adventures & experiences you would like, etc.

Take it slow but be consistent

Rome was not built in a day! Similarly, personal transformation cannot happen overnight. It is a gradual process and it certainly won’t be a linear pathway. On some days, the progress will be tremendous, and on some days, you’ll find yourself taking a few steps back. Recognise that this IS the path towards growth, there is no path to growth that doesn’t include setbacks. This understanding keeps us moving forward and making consistent progress toward our goals.

Learn and upskill yourself

An integral step in the self-transformation process is to increase your knowledge bank. Utilize the power of the internet and read inspirational stories about people who conquered their fears and emerged victorious, and learn about tips and tricks from people who created their own personal transformation pathway. Read books, browse through blogs, groups, and communities, and watch documentaries. In fact, even connect with like-minded people, socialize with them, and gather first-hand accounts of their journeys. Who knows, you could end up making some long-lasting friendships and find a mentor who will be able to guide you on your journey! Once you have a positive environment around you, your innate passion will drive you to make efforts every day and the inspiring stories of community members will motivate you to take another step in your journey ahead.

Embrace the change

Transformation will be a challenging journey and will require bidding goodbye to comfort and stability. Growth will be accompanied by discomfort and fear. You will have to step into new environments, meet new people, and build connections. The sooner you realize and accept this fact, the faster you will be able to embrace the self-transformation process. You will have to push yourself to work through it and shouldn’t let anything put you down.

Track your progress

Once you achieve your goals and look back at how far you have come, your heart will be filled with a sense of pride and achievement. Hence, it's strongly recommended to break down your vision and journey into milestones, sub-goals, and stages. This will help you keep track of your progress, observe the small goals you accomplish, and even give you an opportunity to celebrate small victories as you go along the way, further pushing you to keep up the momentum.

The right perspective

Throughout your personal transformation journey, having the right approach and perspective is critical for your success. You must understand life isn’t about accomplishment or glamour. It’s about meaningful experiences and enjoying every moment. We should lead healthy, happy, and fulfilling lives and not waste them in anxiety, fear, or stress. And personal transformation will guide you on the same path.

To sum up

If life gives you lemons, make lemonade! This proverbial phrase encourages optimism and suggests that any adversity in life (compared with the sourness of lemons) can be dealt with with a positive attitude. We can imbibe such an optimistic approach only when we have covered the journey of personal transformation and have outgrown it as an individual.Self-transformation paves the way for self-improvement and changes our lives for the better. The process is long and continuous and requires patience, hard work persistence, and, most importantly, a mentor. Today, there are various dedicated organizations providing access to proven life design strategies, a holistic approach to transformation, fun and immersive learning experiences, and the opportunity to attend specially curated retreats, summits, festivals, etc. Such companies are turning personal growth into lifelong adventure and facilitating learning about different life aspects and personal breakthroughs while fostering connections with the sole objective of helping people achieve their personal, business, and spiritual goals. Personal transformation in 6 simple steps | MorungExpress | morungexpress.com

Read More........→January 30, 2026

Oats: The Best Healthy Snacks!

Oats: The Best Healthy Snacks!

Oats are edible seeds of the Avena sativa plant. These are one of the healthiest snacks consumed as oatmeal or rolled oats. Oatmeal is the perfect meal to start your day because it boosts your energy and has plenty of fiber to keep you full and satisfied. Oats are high in phytonutrients, beta-glucans, selenium, proteins, manganese, iron, thiamin and magnesium. By itself, oatmeal is low in fat and fairly low in calories.

Oatmeal is also full of water-soluble fibers, which play a crucial role in making you feel full over a longer period of time. Studies have also shown that oatmeal reduces cholesterol, maintains blood sugar levels and fights against heart disease, diabetes, colon cancer and obesity.

All types of oatmeal are healthful and low-fat, but steel-cut oats are less processed than rolled oats and are believed to retain more nutrients. Packets of instant oatmeal often contain more sugar than oats you cook yourself. Regardless of the type of oatmeal you choose to eat, be careful of what you add to your bowl.

Choose skim milk to keep the calories low. Instead of sweetening your oatmeal with sugar, try berries or dried fruit, which also offer additional fiber and nutrients. For all the good reasons, this snack would certainly help keep a check on your weight too!Stay Happy, Stay Healthy! The Kitchen Clinic: Oats: The Best Healthy Snacks!

Read More........→January 30, 2026

Your sense of self is deeply tied to your memory – here’s how

Shane Rogers, Edith Cowan University

You might say you have a “bad memory” because you don’t remember what cake you had at your last birthday party or the plot of a movie you watched last month. On the other hand, you might precisely recall the surface temperature of the Sun any time when asked.

So, is your memory bad, or just fine? Memory is at the very heart of who we are, but it’s surprisingly complex once we start looking at how it all fits together.

In fact, there’s more than one type of memory, and this determines how we recall certain facts about the world and ourselves.

How do we classify memory?

Cognitive psychologists distinguish between declarative memory and non-declarative memory. Non-declarative memories are expressed without conscious recollection, such as skills and habits like typing on a keyboard or riding a bike.

But memories you’re consciously aware of are declarative – you know your name, you know what year it is, and you know there is mustard in the fridge because you put it there.

However, not all of our memories are stored in the same way, nor in the same place in our brains. Declarative memory can be further broken down into semantic memory and episodic memory.

Semantic memory refers to general knowledge about the world. For example, knowing that cats are mammals.

Episodic memory refers to episodes of your life, typically with elements of “what”, “where” and “when”. For example, I remember cuddling my pet cat (what) in my home office (where) just before sitting down to write this article (when).

A sense of self-awareness is strongly involved in episodic memory. It’s the feeling of personally remembering.

For semantic memories, this sense is not as strong – you can have detached knowledge without the context of “how” and “when”. For instance, I know that Canberra is the capital city of Australia (semantic memory), yet I can’t remember specifically when and where I learnt this (episodic memory).

Lessons from amnesia

In the mid-20th century, famous case studies of amnesic patients were the early evidence of this distinction between semantic and episodic memory.

For example, Henry Molaison and Kent Cochrane both experienced brain damage that severely impacted their episodic memory abilities.

They couldn’t recall events from their lives, but knew many things about the world in general. In effect, their personal past had vanished, even though their general knowledge remained intact.

In one interview after the accident that caused his brain damage, Cochrane was able to describe how to change a flat tire in perfect detail – despite not remembering having ever done this task.

There have also been reports of cases of people whose ability to recall semantic memories is largely impaired, while their episodic memory abilities seem mostly fine. This is known as semantic dementia.

Your age affects how your memory works

Young children have both memory systems, but they develop at different rates. The capacity to form strong semantic memories comes first, while episodic memory takes longer.

In fact, true episodic memory ability may not fully develop until around the age of three or four years. This helps explain why you have scant memories of your earliest childhood. We gain greater self-awareness around the same age too.

While episodic memory ability develops more slowly in early life, it also declines more quickly in old age. On average, older adults tend to remember fewer episodic details compared to younger adults in memory recall assessments.

In older adults with more severe cognitive decline, such as dementia, the ability to recall episodic memories is typically much more affected, compared to semantic memories. For example, they might have difficulty remembering they had pasta for lunch the day before (episodic memory), while still having perfect knowledge of what pasta is (semantic memory).

Ultimately, it all works together

Brain imaging studies have actually revealed that overlapping areas of the brain are active when recalling both semantic and episodic types of memories. In a neurological sense, these two types of memory appear to have more similarities than differences.

In fact, some have suggested episodic and semantic memory might be better thought of as a continuum rather than as completely distinct memory systems. These days, researchers acknowledge memory recall in everyday life involves tight interaction between both types.

A major example of how you need both types to work together is autobiographical memory, also called personal semantics. This refers to personally relevant information about yourself.

Let’s say you call yourself “a good swimmer”. At first glance, this may appear to be a semantic memory – a fact without the how, why, or when. However, recall of such a personally relevant fact will likely also produce related recall of episodic experiences when you’ve been swimming.

All this is related to something known as semanticisation – the gradual transformation of episodic memories into semantic memories. As you can imagine, it challenges the distinction between semantic and episodic memory.

How our memories form over time. Shane Rogers/The Conversation

Ultimately, how we remember shapes how we understand ourselves. Episodic memory allows us to mentally return to experiences that feel personally lived, while semantic memory provides the stable knowledge that binds those experiences into a coherent life story.

Over time, the boundary between the two softens as specific events are condensed into broader beliefs about who we are, what we value, and what we can do. Memory is not simply a storehouse of the past. It’s an active system that continually reshapes our sense of identity.

Shane Rogers, Senior Lecturer in Psychology, Edith Cowan University

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

Read More........→January 29, 2026

10 Minutes of Intensive Workout Can Trigger Powerful Anti-Cancer Effects: New Study

Credit: Fitsum Admasu

Those brief, intense workouts you’ve heard about that boost fitness might also help fight certain types of cancer by releasing molecules into the bloodstream that can spur DNA repair and inhibit cancer growth signals.

When embarking on an exercise routine for the new year, take heart that new research reveals that just 10 minutes of intense exercise could help fight cancer, too.

Short bursts of energetic activity can trigger rapid molecular changes in the bloodstream, shutting down bowel cancer growth and speeding up DNA damage repair, a new study has shown.

Researchers at Newcastle University have found that exercise increases the concentration of several small molecules in the blood—many linked to reducing inflammation, improving blood vessel function, and metabolism.

When these exercise-induced molecules were applied to bowel cancer cells in the lab, the activity of more than 1,300 genes was altered, including those involved in DNA repair, energy production, and cancer cell growth.

The findings, published in the International Journal of Cancer, help explain one way exercise can protect against bowel cancer: by sending molecular signals in the bloodstream that influence the activity of genes that govern tumor growth and genome instability.

The study is another step forwards in the fight against bowel cancer and further strengthens the importance of staying active.

‘Opens door to new treatments’

“What’s remarkable is that exercise doesn’t just benefit healthy tissues, it sends powerful signals through the bloodstream that can directly influence thousands of genes in cancer cells,” said Dr. Sam Orange, Senior Lecturer in Clinical Exercise Physiology at Newcastle University, who led the study.

“It’s an exciting insight because it opens the door to find ways that mimic or augment the biological effects of exercise, potentially improving cancer treatment and, crucially, patient outcomes.

“In the future, these insights could lead to new therapies that imitate the beneficial effects of exercise on how cells repair damaged DNA and use fuel for energy.”

The Newcastle researchers found that exercise boosted the activity of genes that support mitochondrial energy metabolism, enabling cells to use oxygen more efficiently.

At the same time, genes linked to rapid cell growth were switched off, which could reduce the aggressiveness of cancer cells, and exercise-conditioned blood promoted DNA repair, activating a key repair gene called PNKP.

The study involved 30 volunteers, male and female aged 50–78, all overweight or obese (a risk factor of cancer) but otherwise healthy.

After completing a short, intense cycling test lasting approximately 10 minutes, researchers collected blood samples and analysed 249 proteins. As many as 13 proteins increased after exercise, including interleukin-6 (IL-6), which helps repair the DNA of damaged cells.

“These results suggest that exercise doesn’t just benefit healthy tissues, it may also create a more hostile environment for cancer cells to grow,” said Dr. Orange, a Clinical Exercise Physiologist at The Newcastle Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.

“Even a single workout can make a difference. One bout of exercise, lasting just 10 minutes, sends powerful signals to the body.”

“It’s a reminder that every step, every session, counts when it comes to doing your best to protect your health.”

Bowel cancer is the 4th most common cancer in the UK, after breast, prostate and lung—and it’s estimated that physical activity reduces the risk by approximately 20%.

It can be done by going to the gym, playing sports or through active travel such as walking or biking to work, but also as part of household tasks or work like gardening or cleaning.In the future, researchers plan to test whether repeated exercise sessions produce lasting changes and explore how these effects interact with standard cancer treatments like chemotherapy and radiotherapy. 10 Minutes of Intensive Workout Can Trigger Powerful Anti-Cancer Effects: New Study

Read More........→January 13, 2026

Tiny Baby Born With Hands Smaller Than a Fingertip is Now Home After a Year–And Developing Normally

Preemie baby Gabriel Golden at Vanderbilt NICU-SWNS

A premature baby, born so tiny his hand was smaller than his dad’s fingertip, is finally home and healthy after a year in the hospital.

Gabriel Golden was born weighing one pound in September 2024 after just 22 weeks gestation.

He endured nearly a year in the Vanderbilt NICU in Nashville, Tennessee, battling chronic lung disease and multiple infections before his parents Caroline and Garreth were finally able to bring their son home three months ago.

Little Gabriel still faces respiratory challenges, but is thriving developmentally.

“It was amazing that somehow, even though his finger was so small, I could feel his grip,” said his father Garreth.

“The strength those tiny fingers held left me speechless.”

Caroline started hemorrhaging 14 weeks into the pregnancy, and for a harrowing eight weeks, doctors warned daily that she could miscarry at any moment.

She recalls bleeding constantly while on bed rest and stuck at home. When at 18 weeks, Caroline’s water broke. The preemie wasn’t considered viable, so the couple waited in limbo until 22 weeks, when Caroline was hospitalized with hopes of buying more time for their son’s development.

The medical team presented stark statistics—and the numbers were devastating: a less than five percent survival rate, with greater than 90 percent odds of neurological problems, heart defects, and vision or hearing loss.

“The biggest thing is that their lungs are barely developed,” Caroline said.

At 22 weeks and four days, Caroline went into labor during an emergency situation that put both their lives at risk. Garreth watched helplessly as medical staff rushed his wife to surgery.

“They’re having her sign paperwork that she could die from the surgery,” recalled Garreth, who spent a lot of time “not knowing what to think or what to do.”

Against all odds, Gabriel was able to use the breathing tube and survived.

Gabriel Golden is finally home -SWNS

But he still had to battle severe broncho-pulmonary dysplasia—a chronic lung disease that left his lungs scarred and rigid. The couple said goodbye to their son on three separate occasions during his first six weeks of life.

Multiple pneumonia infections also set him back, and doctors eventually determined he would need a tracheostomy to survive.

Throughout the ordeal, Garreth traveled three hours each way to his job, continuing to work so they could pay their bills and Caroline tried to maintain a bedside vigil.

Their church community provided financial support, and four primary nurses at Vanderbilt became like family during Gabriel’s extended stay. “We couldn’t have done it without them,” Caroline said.

“One nurse specifically was with us for nine and a half months. I personally couldn’t have done it without her.”

Gabriel Golden family at Vanderbilt NICU-SWNS

Caroline, who had always dreamed of being a mother, says the experience transformed the couple’s faith and perspective on life.

“I was thrust into a situation where my faith was the only thing I had to cling to. Now it’s stronger than I ever thought it could be.”

While Gabriel is home, he still requires a tracheostomy and faces respiratory challenges, but there’s good news, too.

“By the grace of God, Gabriel is completely developmentally appropriate, and has no brain issues,” Caroline told SWNS news agency.

“Other than his lungs, his body is in wonderful working condition.”

The experience gave Garreth a new perspective when he walked through the children’s hospital and saw other families facing their own battles.“As complex as Gabriel is—and as precious as his life is—you walk into Vanderbilt’s Children’s Hospital, and it hits you like a wave of gratitude when you see some of the things going on with these children.” Tiny Baby Born With Hands Smaller Than a Fingertip is Now Home After a Year–And Developing Normally

Read More........→January 08, 2026

Pigments and palettes from the past – science of Indigenous art

Some Indigenous paintings have lasted thousands of years … so what is it about the pigments that make them so long-lasting? Carolien Coenen/Flickr, CC BY-NC-ND Andrew Thorn, International Centre for the Study of the Preservation and Restoration of Cultural Property

Indigenous Australian practices, honed over thousands of years, weave science with storytelling. In this Indigenous science series, we look at different aspects of First Australians’ traditional life and uncover the knowledge behind them. Here we examine the chemistry and techniques behind perhaps the most iconic element of Indigenous life: rock art.

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Visitors to Uluru might also find themselves at Mutitjulu Waterhole in the company of a travel guide filled with wisdom about the meaning of the paintings. Uluru has almost 100 painted sites, of which I have studied most, and tourists will encounter a dozen or less.

Anangu people will explain that the paintings have many meanings depending on the audience. An undulose band may be a snake in one story, a creek in another. A tourist may or may not be told that the paintings at Uluru are in themselves not necessarily highly charged with spiritual values but rather an auxiliary expression in response to the power of the rock itself. The main stories, the big stories, are told in the rock.

So why did people paint? What did it mean? How was it done? Why did they use certain pigments? Why has it lasted so long? The answers inevitably vary depending on where you are standing and with whom.

Painting techniques

Paint has been applied to rocks, almost all types, by a variety of application techniques. Marks were made using what appears to be a dry crayon or pastel application, where a piece of pigment-rich soft rock has been drawn across the surface.

A wide variety of implements were used as brushes to apply water-dispersed pigment, and there is ethnographic evidence of chewed bark and other suitable implements being used – as they still are today for bark paintings.

Fingers may have been used and in one rare and precious place across the flood plain from Ubirr in Kakadu, senior elder of Kakadu, Bill Neidjie, once pointed to a place in the ceiling where his footprints still remained from his youth where he was dipped in paint and pressed against the ceiling.

Stencils at Carnarvon Gorge. Pierre Pouliquin/Flickr, CC BY-NC

Stencil techniques have been used to portray everything from full bodies (the finest examples in Carnarvon Gorge in Queensland), to hands, weapons, and introduced objects of fascination such as clay pipes and wool shears. There are some very fine and complex hand prints east of King’s Canyon in the Northern Territory, pressing three coaxial U shapes to the rock by painting the two inner, the two outer fingers, and the palm.

Paintings can be highly detailed within an individual figure but rarely narrative panels extend across a whole site or rock panel. More typically pre-existing paintings are painted over with no regard for their meaning or author.

There are examples of important images that have been faithfully reproduced because of their fundamental meaning for a given site. It is important to underline this fact, that repainting, when considered over several hundred years is not commonly faithful reproduction but an accumulation of new expression.

Photographs of Mutitjulu waterhole at Uluru, taken by Australian anthropologist Charles Mountford in the late 1930s, are almost unrecognisable due to the accumulated new painting since that time.

Artwork at Mutitjulu. aa140/Flickr, CC BY-NC-ND

Regular painting at Uluru ceased in the 1960s with only a few isolated cases of painting through to the 1980s.

Pigments

In Australia, pigments were chosen from naturally occurring minerals with little evidence of manufacture. Charcoal is one exception to this, but it could be argued that it was a routine by-product rather than a deliberately manufactured pigment.

There is some unsubstantiated speculation that yellow ochre was heated to turn it red and cases where European pigments were adopted. This availability of new colours did not result in the adoption of more colourful paintings, with the exception of some use of washing blue (a coarse synthetic ultramarine) in parts of Arnhem Land.

The traditional palette, that is to say the most commonly encountered colours, are red, white, yellow and black, with variations on the composition of these but with little evidence of mixing to create intermediate tones.

By studying the trace elemental composition of pigments it is possible to connect them to geological events, and hence their source. Such studies proves that pigments were traded, in some cases over long distances. It is difficult to postulate however that distance of manuportation equals significance or spiritual value, but further research may enlighten this fact.

Pigments were sourced from known locations such as Walgi Mia in central Western Australia and from large coloured earth deposits in the Flinders Ranges. But if we look at one colour – white – the distribution of the minerals used suggests local source rather than trade.

White, yellow and red painting at Burrunggui, Kakadu. Rae Allen/Flickr, CC BY-NC-SA

Kaolin – a soft white clay – is abundant in most parts of Australia but where calcite is found, as it is in the river beds of Arnhem Land, it becomes the more common white pigment. The Kimberly is more abundant in the carbonate mineral huntite and yet it is rare to find huntite used outside this region, despite it being a brighter white than kaolin.

Examples of trade exist and some of these provide interesting insights into the selection of paints.

Just south of Uluru, near the South Australian border, lie a group of sites containing a metallic red pigment characteristic of the Walgi Mia quarry 1,000km to the west. It is said these caves and their paintings were created by the emu creation beings who had a dreaming path extending out to the western coastline and which would have passed very nearby the pigment source. It is not surprising therefore to find a pigment that has come from such a distance.

What is fascinating is that near to Walgi Mia is a very large painting site, Walghanna, that features a very large emu footprint. Emus are not known to have existed in the vicinity of Walghanna, according to the archaeological record and oral history. There appears to have been a two-way trade in materials and stories.

Durability and age

The 1930s photograph by Mountford, showing paintings that no longer exist due to subsequent overpainting indicates, among other things, that all of what one sees at Mutitjulu today is “modern art” painted in the period 1936-1962.

I had great fun at a conference using Powerpoint to fade between an image of the Mutitjulu panel and Convergence, a Jackson Pollock painting with an almost identical scramble of lines, shapes and colours, aimed to make the point that not all rock art is ancient. Some other more significant statements can be added. Most very old paintings survive as very thin remnants.

Art at Ubirr, Kakadu. andrea castelli/Flickr (rotated), CC BY

There are cases in Kakadu of whole colours falling off an image, resulting in, for example, birds without legs. Some very old paintings have survived for thousands of years with every detail seemingly intact, such as those of the dynamic style and others of that period.

These paintings tend to be monochromatic red, applied with haematite that is both very fine and non-responsive to humidity or chemical alteration.

Studies have shown degradation pathways for rock art pigments and it is no surprise that charcoal will jump off the rock very quickly, followed by kaolinite, huntite, then yellow and red ochres.

Dark red haematite is usually the last surviving pigment, unless a painting is subject to floodwaters or other physical agents. There are examples of red paintings surviving under water at Jowalbinna near Laura and east of Mt Isa, both in northern Queensland.

Pigments survive depending on their stability to climatic variations and then ultimately due to their ability to intimately bond with the rock.

It has to be stated that the greatest threat to indigenous rock paintings is the tourist, who out of curiosity rather than malice, desires a sensory connection to inanimate culture.

Having on many occasions adopted the disguise of the tourist I have observed a bus load of fascinated fellow travellers comparing their own hand with that sprayed on the ceiling of Mulga’s Cave just north of Wave Rock.

This is an act of connection with someone from the past but its very execution ensures that connection will soon be lost.

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See also:
Stories from the sky: astronomy in Indigenous knowledge
Indigenous medicine – a fusion of ritual and remedy

Andrew Thorn, Heritage Consultant and Materials Conservator; Sessional Lecturer in Stone Conservation, International Centre for the Study of the Preservation and Restoration of Cultural Property

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

Read More........→January 07, 2026

Weight Loss Tips ...

In the era of commercialization, we find various weight loss pills, anti-cellulite products and expensive fitness gadgets popping up on the internet and television screens, but these can only cause frustration and may prove detrimental to our health. Natural herbal remedies are safe and promising in reducing weight.

Eat a Balanced Diet

A balanced diet and any form of exercise plays a vital role in reducing as well as maintaining a normal weight. One should eat a diet good in green vegetables and fresh fruits. Some of the fat burning spices such as black pepper, long pepper, mustard, ginger, cinnamon and cayenne should be added to the meals or used in preparations.

Fish like tuna & salmonare high in Lectin, a protein, which helps improve metabolism and aids fat loss. Reduce the intake of salt & carbohydrate rich, high calorie foods (eg. rice, potatoes). Having vegetable soup or eating papaya at dinner time is helpful in reducing weight. Eating a cabbage salad also helps reduce weight as tartaric acid, an ingredient in the vegetable is known to inhibit conversion of dietary sugar to fat.

Follow any Form of Exercise Regularly

Along with diet, regular exercise is quite beneficial. Brisk walk, skipping a rope, jogging, aerobics, yoga and pranayam (yogic breathing exercises) are among few exercises that can be of help to attain a healthy weight. Also, one should eat slowly as it satisfies hunger with less food, thereby reducing calorie intake. Drink plenty of water (3-4 litres/ day) as it has no calories and reduces hunger.

Herbal Remedies for Weight Loss

Along with a balanced diet and regular exercise regime, do try some of these natural herbal remedies for controlling weight in a healthy manner, that too, without any side effects.

• Squeeze a lemon in a glass of bitter gourd juice and have it every morning.
• Boil about 10 gm of triphala (a combination of equal amount of Amla, Harra & Beheda powder in a glass of water for 10 minutes. Consume it warm in the morning.
• Consuming 2 cups of Green tea is also believed to shed excess fat.
• To keep a check on weight, soak a few leaves of Indian plum/ Jamun overnight. Discard the leaves & drink water in the morning on an empty stomach.
• Take ½ tsp of guggal powder, a tsp of ginger rhizome powder and mix in honey to make it into a paste. Administer it once a day to lose weight.
• Mix in a glass of lukewarm water, a tsp of honey with ½ tsp lemon juice. Drink it every morning and evening to lose weight.
• Pound a ginger rhizome & boil the same in water. Add to it, ½ tsp lemon juice and 1/4th tsp black pepper powder. Have it when hot.
• Having a tomato or two in morning is said to be beneficial in reducing weight.
• Remember Folks, losing weight isn't a mysterious process… it’s a matter of burning more calories than we eat! So get going! All the best! The Slimming Furnace: Best Weight Loss Tips Ever!

Read More........→January 06, 2026

Experts warn about risks of cosmetic face fillers

People who have cosmetic filler injections in their face should be warned of the risk of a dangerous complication involving blocked arteries that can lead to skin loss and even blindness due to damaged blood flow, say experts.

Researchers used ultrasound to study 100 cases of filler injections that had gone wrong, BBC News reported.

Clinics are now being advised to carry out ultrasounds before giving dermal fillers in the face, to avoid harming any nearby arteries.

Lead researcher Dr Rosa Sigrist says that, although uncommon, such "vascular occlusion" events - where the filler is injected into or too close to blood vessels - can be devastating because they can cause tissue death and facial deformity if not treated.

Dermal fillers are injectable substances, commonly used to target wrinkles and smooth or "rejuvenate" the skin.

Sometimes they are used to contour or shape the nose or lips.

Areas around the nose are particularly risky injection sites, says Dr Sigrist, because nasal blood vessels communicate with some very important parts of the head.

Damage to these vessels can cause severe complications including skin damage, blindness and stroke, she explains.

Dr Sigrist's team, from the University of São Paulo in Brazil, studied filler-related vascular complications in 100 patients across four radiology centers (two in Brazil, one in Colombia and one in Chile), one dermatology centre in the Netherlands and one plastic surgery centre in the US between May 2022 and April 2025.

Her work will be presented at a medical conference - the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America - this week.

In just under half the cases, ultrasound scans showed absent blood flow to small blood vessels that connect superficial arteries to deep ones in the face.

And in a third of cases, blood flow was absent in major blood vessels.

To avoid complications in the first place, she advises clinics to use ultrasound to plan where to inject.

If complications do arise, ultrasound can guide where to treat.

"If injectors are not guided by ultrasound, they treat based on where the clinical findings are and inject blindly," Dr. Sigrist says.

"But if we can see the ultrasound finding, we can target the exact place where the occlusion occurs."

Rather than flooding the area with a drug called hyaluronidase to dissolve the filler, clinicians can do guided injections that use less hyaluronidase and provide better treatment results, she says. Source: https://www.panorama.am/

Read More........→January 05, 2026

Unique WWII documents on display at Yerevan exhibition

As part of the exhibition “Unique Documents from the Collections of the National Archives of Armenia,” currently underway at the National Archives of Armenia, visitors can explore rare and historically significant materials related to World War II and the Great Patriotic War.

The exhibition features a wide range of documents preserved in the National Archives, including both official records and personal materials. On display are wartime news reports, propaganda publications, photographs, posters, and other archival items that shed light on the period.A special section dedicated to the 80th anniversary of Victory in the Great Patriotic War highlights particularly valuable exhibits. Among them are photographs of heroes of the Tamanyan Division, a personal letter from renowned Armenian painter Martiros Saryan to Marshal Hovhannes Baghramyan, wartime-themed informational posters produced by the Armtag news agency (now Armenpress), as well as documents detailing the activities of the Armenian SSR’s rear services and military industry. Source: https://www.panorama.am/

Read More........→January 05, 2026

Western Tatami Mat Mania Keeping Alive Japan’s Traditional Woven Grass Flooring Industry

A modern tatami room – credit, Filiz Elaerts on Unsplash

Western admirers of Japanese aesthetic are keeping afloat tatami craftsmen in Japan, where modernity and maintenance requirements are driving down interest in this artisanal form of flooring.

From Europe to the US and even in the Middle East, eager importers of tatami mats now account for a sizable amount of orders from workshops like that run by Mr. Fumio Kuboki.

Kuboki is just the latest of his kin to run the family business which has been making tatami mats for 280 years. He still sells mostly to the Japanese market, but substantial help is coming from across the Pacific.

Half of the company’s international orders come from the US, Kuboki told the Japan Times.

For hundreds of years, a Japanese house wouldn’t be complete without wall-to-wall mats made of woven grass, called tatami. Made of tightly woven igusa grass, they were the standard feature in all dry rooms.

But one of Japan’s great marvels is that, even with as characteristic and attractive a traditional culture as it cultivated over the centuries, its modern aesthetic and lifestyle is almost just as iconic. As a result, the tatami mat has become somewhat neglected among Japanese crafts: reminiscent of your grandparents house and rural living.

Western-style flooring began to be the norm starting in the 1970s, and China began mass producing synthetic tatami that was easier to clean, longer-lasting, and cheaper to replace. As a result, it’s estimated that every year, 40 traditional tatami makers close up shop for good.

Yet for the increasing number of foreign residents, tatami represents the attractiveness of the Japanese aesthetic, and as well as installing it in their residences in the country, many of them bring it back to Europe or the US.

Arno Suzuki, a professor of architectural design at Kyoto Tachibana University who has studied the use of tatami in Spain, Italy and France, told the Times that seeing the appreciation for tatami among the rest of the world has somewhat reminded the younger generations of Japan of its value

Having a tatami “space” in an apartment or house is suddenly not as uncool as it once was.

“Nowadays they have a tatami space—not a tatami room, but at the corner of their living room they have three or four tatami mats, and they enjoy it. And also, many people realize that it’s better for when—especially when they have small kids, like toddlers and babies, it’s safer for them to crawl,” Suzuki told the Times.

In the city of Kobe, Taro Mano is the 4th in his family to take over the 70-year-old tatami business. He too has seen a rise from foreign buyers in countries like those Suzuki studied in.

“Tatami is a kind of symbol of Japan. It’s an easy way to express a Japanese atmosphere, even in other countries,” Mr. Mano said, adding that he first thought the interest would come from the United States, but it came to be far more diverse than that.

Mr. Kuboki makes some 10% of his revenues from overseas sales, with many of his products being stocked year-round at Japan House in Los Angeles. 100 years ago, no one ever wondered what else could be made of tatami, but now, whether it’s a coaster or a book cover, the artform is being reimagined.“Every day I talk with visitors and listen to what kind of tatami they want,” Mr. Kuboki said. “The products that are selected and loved by people are the ones that will naturally become the future of tatami. The future of tatami will be decided by customers.” Western Tatami Mat Mania Keeping Alive Japan’s Traditional Woven Grass Flooring Industry

Read More........→January 02, 2026

Fussy Girl Overcomes Vegetable Phobia and Now Loves Brussels Sprouts Thanks to Eating Disorder Specialist

Emie Williams at home -SWNS

A fussy five-year-old girl has overcome her phobia of vegetables and now loves Brussels sprouts–just in time for her mother’s Christmas dinner.

Emie Williams would scream and cry if her mom, Hayley, tried to give her anything except crackers, french fries, or other beige-colored foods.

It meant family meals were fraught with conflict—Emie wanting different food and refusing to even taste hot dinners.

“She’d just refuse to eat any vegetable or any meat. We took her for check ups and health visits for advice but they just said give her what she wants because it’s probably a phase.”

But Hayley suspected that she may have ARFID (Avoidant/Restrictive Food Intake Disorder), believing she had “all the signs”.

Emie’s energy levels dipped, and she would get really tired at the end of the day.

“I explained (to doctors) that if I don’t give her what she wanted then she wouldn’t eat.”

Last month, Emie had a routine health check-up and a blood test revealed she had erratic sugar levels, so Hayley and her husband took their daughter to the hospital where doctors warned them Emie was in danger of developing diabetes unless she changed her diet.

In desperation, Hayley decided to take drastic action and contacted David Kilmurry, who specializes in obsessive eating conditions.

“We were pretty desperate when we contacted David but the results have been amazing,” the mother-of-3 from Coventry, England, told the SWNS news agency.

After a series of two-hour sessions, Emie now counts 30 foods that she willingly eats. Her favorite is Brussel sprouts, which she even enjoys raw.

Emie Williams eating her new favorite food, Brussel sprouts – SWNS

Due to her age, Emie was not hypnotized, but David, a cognitive behavioral hypnotherapist, sat with the youngster and gradually encouraged her to try different foods.

Hayley attended all the sessions and just watched Kilmurry at work.

“He’d do magic tricks and talk to Emie to gain her trust, and then brought out different foods.

“Slowly, she tried more and more until she was really enjoying apples and oranges.

“She’s really taken with Brussel sprouts, especially eating them raw. I can’t wait to see her enjoying her first ever Christmas dinner with all the trimmings.”

David, who runs practices in Coventry and London, said: “ARFID isn’t taken seriously enough.“It doesn’t just go away.” Fussy Girl Overcomes Vegetable Phobia and Now Loves Brussels Sprouts Thanks to Eating Disorder Specialist

Read More........→January 01, 2026

5th Edition of Nagaland Literature Festival concludes

Members of Writers Collective seen with the winners of the Short Story Writing Competition organised as part of the NLF 2025 and others on December 13. (Photo by Jabu Krocha)

‘Distinctive feature of NLF is embracing all forms of creative self-expression’

Asserting that literature is essentially a reflection of life and the most quintessential way in which human beings express their emotions, Dr Vizovono Elizabeth, General Secretary of Writers Collective Kohima remarked that the distinctive feature of Nagaland Literature Festival (NLF) is embracing all forms of creative self-expression and storytelling.

Delivering the way forward at the closing ceremony of the 5th Edition of Nagaland Literature Festival at Don Bosco Higher Secondary School Kohima on December 13, she observed that the mushrooming of literature festivals across India on big scales has become like a ‘fashion’. NLF, she added is still a very small community, and has a long way to go, but stated belief that “it is very special because it is relevant to our own context.”

She echoed the vision of the Writers’ Collective, and expressed that, “the focus is not about trying to do what other people are doing, it is not about trying to compete or be at par with others, but it is more importantly about nurturing our own talents and providing a platform especially for the young, aspiring and upcoming creative artists.”

Even while keeping it very local, she stated that they were encouraged by the support and the positive response from so many unexpected supporters drawing entries even from the international level for its short story & poetry writing competition.

Participants of the Reading Session ‘Unraveling the magic of words’ seen with Easterine Kire. (Photo by Jabu Krocha)

In this regard, she exuded hope that “the seeds that we are sowing are slowly growing and that we will continue to grow together.” She reiterated that the distinctive feature of NLF “is not just a celebration of established and now popular authors, but more importantly, it is a platform and a safe space for new and upcoming writers and creative artists.”

Not all participants are writers either, she further highlighted while revealing that, “we also have very avid readers and supporters of literature taking active part and working along with us.” Terming this as “truly wholesome”, she said that literature would be meaningless without the readers.

Looking ahead, she envisioned that they can go ahead together and continue to support, learn and grow together. Expressing that it is the dream of Writers Collective Kohima to nurture our own storytellers and provide platforms for their voices and stories to be heard, she urged the gathering to walk with them on this beautiful journey. “Let’s learn to do this by utilizing our God-given beautiful brains, not being controlled by AI, but using it only as a tool so that we do not lose our souls or our humanity”, she further articulated.

Highlights of the closing ceremony included prayer and poetry reading by Rev Azahto Kiba, Senior Pastor, New Life Church Kohima & Poet, special number by Richard Ezung and Reading of short story excerpts by Winners of NLF 2025 Short Story Writing Competition, Visemenuo Sekhose and Imnajungshi Jamir. Shyamolima Saikia was adjudged third in the competition. In the poetry writing competition, Temjenwapang Jamir won first prize while Christabel Damien and Songaror Horam won second and third prize respectively. Earlier in the day, a reading session called “Unraveling the Magic of Words” was moderated by the President of Writers Collective, Vishü Rita Krocha. The readers included K. Roselyn Miachieo, Vibeituonuo Kuotsu Solo, Imlikokla Jamir, Kelhukiesie Savino, Machipeibo Zeliang, Elongshila Jamir, Avinuo Kire, Menang Longkumer and Inaholi Asumi. 5th Edition of Nagaland Literature Festival concludes | MorungExpress | morungexpress.com

Read More........→January 01, 2026

Famous monument in Artsakh vandalized

Azerbaijan has vandalized Artsakh's symbol, the We Are Our Mountains (Papik and Tatik) monument, the Geghard Foundation reports, citing social media footage.

In particular, an ethnic Talysh Azerbaijani journalist, Rahim Shaliyev, wrote about this on his microblog on X, posting a video of the monument. “The historical monument "We Are Our Mountains", considered a symbol of Artsakh, was vandalized by Azerbaijanis.” Shaliyev noted.

In the video he posted, various Azerbaijani inscriptions can be seen carved on the front of the monument.

In the comments of the journalist’s post, another user shared a video showing more Azerbaijani inscriptions carved onto other parts of the monument.

Since September 19, 2023, after Azerbaijan’s military aggression against Artsakh, followed by ethnic cleansing and the depopulation of Armenians, the We Are Our Mountains monument has been particularly targeted by Azerbaijanis. During this period, various photos and videos have repeatedly appeared online showing acts of vandalism against the monument, people taking photos next to it with the Azerbaijani flag, making insulting statements about Armenians, and leaving offensive inscriptions.

From time to time, statements are even made in Azerbaijan calling for the destruction of this Armenian monument.

In particular, this August, Gudrat Hasanguliyev, a member of Azerbaijan’s Milli Majlis and chairman of the “Justice, Law, Democracy” party, proposed demolishing the monument.

“The monument called We and Our Mountains, built in 1967 in Khankendi (referring to Stepanakert) and turned into a symbol of Armenian nationalism and separatism, must be demolished, and in its place a grand monument should be erected in honor of the Azerbaijani soldier,” Hasanguliyev said.

Azerbaijani political analyst Ramiz Yunus wrote:

“In medicine, when metastases spread throughout the human body, urgent surgical intervention is sometimes necessary. Likewise, in order for the contagious metastases of Armenian ‘miatsum’ to never again appear on Azerbaijani soil, they must be surgically removed from the root. This applies to all Soviet-era monuments, including the ugly pedestal of ‘Grandpa and Grandma,’ installed in 1967 in Khankendi (Stepanakert), which was depicted on the emblem of the so-called ‘NKR’.”

Another member of the Milli Majlis, Fazail Ibrahimli, has also supported statements about removing Armenian traces in Artsakh, especially in Stepanakert. Supporting Hasanguliyev’s proposal to dismantle the “We are our Mountains” monument, he stated that he considers important to completely remove the Armenian traces in Khankendi (Stepanakert).

“There are ugly scenes in Khankendi, and naturally, they must be removed from there…” Ibrahimli said, adding that those “who present this issue as cultural destruction are hiding their real intentions, and this should be understood as the elimination of separatist symbols.”

The “We are our Mountains” monument was erected in 1967. Its sculptor is Sargis Baghdasaryan, and its architect is Yuri Hakobyan. Located at the entrance to Stepanakert on a hilltop, the statue is made of red tuff. It symbolizes the connection between the land of Artsakh and its people. The monument depicts an elderly Artsakh Armenian couple in traditional attire—standing shoulder to shoulder, proud, steadfast, and with a firm gaze.

It is noteworthy that Azerbaijan is not restrained even by the decision of the International Court of Justice from December 7, 2021, which obliged Azerbaijan to “take all necessary measures to prevent and punish acts of vandalism and desecration affecting Armenian cultural heritage…”

Despite its policy of cultural vandalism in Artsakh, yesterday Azerbaijan was once again elected a member of the UNESCO World Heritage Committee, thereby formally committing itself to preserving cultural monuments."It is evident that Armenian religious, historical, and cultural heritage in Artsakh remains under threat. Baku has not abandoned, and will not abandon its efforts to erase Armenian traces from the settlements of Artsakh, change their Armenian character and “Azerbaijanize” them," the foundation said. Source: https://www.panorama.am/

Read More........→December 30, 2025

It’s hard to describe what it feels like to become a mum, but it has a name: matrescence

Dylan Nolte/Unsplash Belinda Eslick, The University of Queensland; Fabiane Ramos, University of Southern Queensland, and Laura Roberts, Flinders University

“Completely life-changing”. “Nothing could have fully prepared me”. These are the sorts of phrases you often hear from women when they become a mother.

These descriptions can point to the complexity and depth of the experience. It can be joyous and stressful, exhausting and euphoric, profound and mundane. It’s unlike any other life transition, and – try as we might – hard to capture in words or short phrases.

It turns out, though, there is a word for this process of becoming a mother: matrescence.

It’s a simple but powerful concept that’s changing the way we think about mothering. Here’s what matrescence means and how the concept can help mothers and those supporting them to navigate and understand this time of life.

Where did the term come from?

The term matrescence was coined in a 1973 essay by medical anthropologist Dana Raphael to describe the transition to motherhood. Raphael found most cultures had rites of passage that recognised “the time of mother-becoming”. However, Western countries such as the United States and Australia tended not to.

These practices, which vary depending on the cultural setting, have something in common. They acknowledge that, like adolescence, becoming a mother is a complex experience that brings a period of learning and transformation.

Raphael also coined the term “patrescence”, which, while not the focus of her study, recognised that fathers and other parents also go through a period of transition.

It would take decades, but matrescence made it into the public consciousness in 2017 in an article and widely-viewed TED Talk by reproductive psychiatrist Alexandra Sacks. Books, podcasts and media coverage have abounded since.

What changes during matrescence?

Most public discussion of matrescence still tends to centre the challenges of mothering, for example postpartum depression and anxiety.

But there is increasing interest in the many kinds of changes experienced in matrescence, such as dramatic brain changes or the phenomenon of microchimerism, where foetal cells from pregnancy can remain in the mother’s body, and vice versa.

Research on these phenomena matter not just scientifically, but philosophically.

Other body changes include powerful hormonal changes in pregnancy, birth, and postpartum. There’s also research looking at how having children and breastfeeding can reduce the risk of breast cancer.

Much of this research is emerging, which is unsurprising given historical and ongoing medical misogyny.

More than physical changes

Mothers can also experience significant shifts in identity, including changes in personal values, new priorities, or a sense of loss for other parts of themselves.

Mothers encounter new social dynamics and peer groups, too. The new social identities of “mother” or “mum” (or the markers “working mum” or “stay-at-home mum”) introduce new expectations, norms and ideals.

Relationship dynamics with partners, friends and family can shift significantly.

Mothers can also experience an expansive new relationship with their baby, though this might be sentimentalised or downplayed by others.

Other new emotional experiences, ranging from intense love and gratitude to “mum guilt” and “mum rage”, can arise, too, sometimes leading to maternal ambivalence.

New sensory experiences such as breastfeeding and physical contact can lead mothers to feeling overstimulated or “touched out”, but can also bring joy.

Women also take on a new political and economic identity when becoming mothers. In 2025, mothers are often expected to remain ideal workers in the paid workforce, sometimes navigating a return to paid work while caring for an infant and performing the bulk of crucial unpaid reproductive household labour and care.

This juggle can lead to maternal burnout and negative impacts on mothers’ wellbeing.

This all contributes to the “motherhood penalty” – the well-documented, entrenched and persistent economic injustice experienced by mothers.

Matrescence is a term that helps to capture the breadth of these experiences in all their enormity and complexity.

The oppression of ‘motherhood’

Matrescence doesn’t happen in a vacuum. As Raphael’s original essay showed, it’s shaped by many cultural, economic, and political factors. It’s not the same for every mother.

In her 1976 landmark feminist study on mothering, North American writer and poet Adrienne Rich made the useful distinction between the experience of mothering and what she described as the patriarchal institution of motherhood.

It was the institution of motherhood, Rich argued, that oppressed mothers, not mothering itself. The flipside of this argument was that a liberating motherhood was possible under different conditions.

Feminist scholar Adrienne Rich distinguished between mothering and the institution of motherhood. Colleen McKay/Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA

When it comes to matrescence, the institution of motherhood in Western societies like Australia tends to sideline the experience of mothers, and the transition to motherhood is still largely experienced in isolation and silence.

Often, a focus on the baby overshadows the maternal-infant relationship or the needs of the mother, with many new mothers feeling unsupported or invisible.

New mothers are also often expected to live up to the “good mother” ideal by being totally self-sacrificing or naturally competent at mothering.

Societal norms can overlook the transitional and transformative period of matrescence, with mothers urged to “bounce back” – either by returning to a “pre-baby” body shape or by promptly getting back to paid work in the same capacity as before giving birth.

These experiences are exacerbated by a range of factors, including class, race, partnered status, sexual orientation and life stage, among others.

How does matrescence help?

While the concept of matrescence has become popular among some mothers and those working in maternal wellbeing, wider awareness of the term and the many changes new mothers experience is important.

For mothers, just knowing the concept can help by normalising what they might be experiencing. It can also help those who are pregnant or considering having a baby to prepare for motherhood.

But it can also help us to recognise that becoming a mother is not just a matter of flicking a switch, but a long and profound process of change that requires supportive conditions.

For individual mothers and families, this might mean friends and family offering to provide food or household help (rather than visiting just to hold the new baby).

Collectively, it means broader social changes, including changing cultural attitudes and better social, economic, and health policies to support mothers and families. These should recognise that when a baby is born, so is a mother.

Belinda Eslick, Honorary Research Fellow, The University of Queensland; Fabiane Ramos, Lecturer, University of Southern Queensland, and Laura Roberts, Senior Lecturer in Women's and Gender Studies, Flinders University

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

Read More........→December 30, 2025

It’s a pool party! How to stay safe around the pool with friends this summer

Amy Peden, UNSW Sydney

It’s summer so kids’ playdates and birthday parties might start moving from the playground to the pool.

I research how to prevent drowning. I’m also a mum of two kids living in a house with a pool. So water safety is always front of mind.

Drowning deaths are at a record high in Australia. For pre-schoolers, this often happens in backyard pools. Although school-aged children have a much lower risk it’s still important to be vigilant.

Here are some key questions to ask and things to consider before you accept an invitation to a pool party or host your own.

With these tips, you’ll be able to navigate pool safety while ensuring the kids have heaps of fun.

Not everyone knows how to swim

First, think about your child’s swimming ability. Have they learned to swim? Do you know how their ability stacks up against their peers? Check their skills against the recommended minimum national swimming and water safety benchmarks for their age.

Perhaps some top-up lessons or some intensive lessons over summer might give their skills a boost ahead of a busy swim season.

As important as swimming skills are, so too is knowing how to be safe around the water. Have you talked to your kids about water safety? Are they mindful that others may not be able to swim as well as they can and may not be comfortable disclosing this to their friends?

Have you discussed how dangerous it can be to hold each other down under the water or hold their breath to swim to the end of the pool repeatedly? It can lead to someone blacking out.

It’s also not just about drowning. Knowing about water depth, the dangers of diving into shallow water, and not running around a wet and slippery pool can help avoid injury.

It’s not just about the kids

You also have a more direct role in keeping everyone safe. If you’re hosting a playdate and planning to include a swim, have you checked with the child’s parents? Ask about children’s swimming abilities or fears.

Before everyone hits the water, discuss your pool safety rules and expectations with the kids, including your own. My kids, and their friends, are very used to my “lifeguard lectures” by now.

An important part of playing lifeguard is supervision. If your kids’ friends are weak or poor swimmers, regardless of their age, you should be in the water with them. This is usually more fun anyway.

For older kids and more confident swimmers it’s still best to supervise from a distance (maybe poolside) and be dressed ready to get into the water in an emergency.

If you’re expecting more than a couple of kids, you might need more than one adult to ensure adequate supervision (and keep your stress levels down). Ensure each person’s supervision responsibilities are clear to avoid tragic miscommunications, such as: “I thought you were looking after them.”

Have you refreshed your CPR skills lately? Does your pool have a CPR sign you can refer to? Is your pool fenced and compliant? Does the gate close and lock on its own?

What about at someone else’s house?

Are you confident in your child’s ability to swim and be safe around the pool, if you’re not there? Have the hosts asked about your child’s swimming ability and any concerns? If not, you should be proactive and flag them.

Remember that eveyone’s definition of “can swim” is different. Would the hosts mind if you stayed to help supervise?

If you’re going to do the “drop and run”, will the adults hosting be supervising? How vigilant will they be? Will the adults be drinking alcohol?

Having the conversation early can ensure all parents involved are aligned on matters of water safety.

We’re heading to the local pool instead

Many of the same rules apply if you’re meeting up with friends for a swim at your local pool.

Conditions here are more controlled with depth markers and safety equipment. But none of this replaces good swimming skills and safe behaviours.

Although lifeguards are on hand to help should anything go wrong, they are not a substitute for active parental supervision and shouldn’t be treated as babysitters.

In fact, reports of aggression and verbal and physical abuse of lifeguards are increasing, so please be respectful and keep your cool.

Keep yourself safe too

Kids aren’t the only ones who can get into trouble in the water. Adult drownings in a variety of different waterways are also on the rise.

So if you’re hitting the pool this summer, avoid alcohol around the water. You can even be impaired the day after heavy drinking.

Older adults can also be at risk of drowning in backyard pools due to medical incidents, such as a heart attack, or accidentally falling into the water.

If you keep all these issues in mind, we can all have a safe and enjoyable summer by the pool.

Amy Peden, NHMRC Research Fellow, School of Population Health and Co-founder UNSW Beach Safety Research Group, UNSW Sydney

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

Read More........→December 24, 2025