“Sleep follows the rise and fall of the human body core temperature cycle,” explains Breus. When your core temperature hits its peak, a quarter to half a degree Celsius drop signals the brain to tell the pineal gland (a pea-shaped gland in the brain that regulates some hormonal activity) to produce melatonin, which Breus says, is “the key that starts the engine for sleep.” Parasympathetic tone increases, while sympathetic tone decreases, all while a cascade of hormones, neurotransmitters, and amino acids also produce the melatonin needed to fall asleep, Breus says, adding that a simultaneous accumulation of adenosine, a natural compound that relaxes blood flow and heartbeat, also contributes to the body’s sudden wash of sleepiness....

As board-certified sleep specialist Michael J. Breus, Ph.D., explains to mbg, the circadian rhythm is a roughly 24-hour cycle that your body repeats over and over. “It basically ‘runs’ your sleep—starting it and stopping it—by sending out neurochemical signals telling each area, organ, or receptor site what to produce, what to receive, and what to do,” he explains. And according to naturopathic sleep doctor Catherine Darley, N.D., “There are also clock genes in each cell, which makes the cell do more or less of its function at different times of the day....

There is some debate about what squirt is and where exactly this fluid comes from, as well as if all women can squirt. It’s also possible that squirting is released through the urethra itself. The most important thing is that it can feel really good, and that pleasure is what really matters here. Here’s exactly how to make someone squirt (or how to make yourself squirt) and get it on this fun and adventurous way....

Yes. Mindfulness is all of those things, but at the core of it, it’s about paying attention. And one of the most powerful tools in your mindfulness toolkit is something you may not have considered: a simple journal and pen. Just as mindfulness can strengthen creativity, creativity can strengthen a mindfulness practice. Getting into the habit of writing down your observations in a journal can help you practice noticing. When was the last time you really paid attention to the sound of birds singing outside your window in the morning, or the feeling of warm sand between your toes at the beach?...

I went home and immediately began playing around. Because I wanted to use the oil for cooking, I immediately rejected olive oil, which has a low smoke point of 350 degrees and as such shouldn’t be used for stir-fries. It’s also not great for stirring into smoothies. The answer? From there, it was super easy. Make a jar of this and keep it on hand (in your fridge, it last for a year, and on the counter, six months) so you can use it for everything that needs a little health and flavor boost, from roasted vegetables (toss ’em in the oil before cooking!...

So how do you nail this “no-makeup look”? We tapped the experts for the easiest step-by-step guide. That might mean incorporating a hydrating toner into the rotation, sure, but you also want to keep your base bouncy and lightweight. To do so, mix a few pumps of serum or moisturizer with your foundation or BB cream for an extra-sheer application so you can blur any imperfections, but let your natural skin texture breathe....

“There’s absolutely no way I can risk getting pregnant,” a few will say bluntly, or “I’ve tried other methods, and this is what works best for me.” Others are wary about going off the pill because they have read about the symptoms that can occur with post-birth control syndrome (PBCS), like anxiety, weight gain, and hormonal imbalances. But, absolutely no pressure. This is your body and your life, and I trust you know how to live it best....

What do you do once you receive a sign? Here’s how to surrender to diving timing.

Just like the oils we cook with, essential oils do eventually “go bad.” While an expired oil won’t be dangerous to use per se, it will lose its potency and become just another good smell—or a not-so-great one. “Expired oils will smell nasty!” says Mariza Snyder, D.C., a functional medicine practitioner and author of Smart Mom’s Guide to Essential Oils. “If it smells like something you don’t want to put on yourself, you probably shouldn’t....

As far as tightening the fragile neck skin, it’s a similar story you’ll hear with pretty much all skin-aging woes: The best approach is actually delaying early onset in the first place and keeping the skin as healthy as you can. That’s not to say you can’t improve it naturally once the issue crops up—you can, it’s just important to be realistic here. As board-certified dermatologist Flora Kim, M.D., FAAD, notes, “Wrinkled and sagging skin will require more involved solutions as the problem runs deep....

This is actually great news. It means even when circumstances, possessions, or people in our lives aren’t exactly as we’d like them to be, there are simple ways we can increase our happy brain chemicals and alter our moods. Here’s how you can do the same. Endorphins are released after both aerobic and anaerobic exercise. In one study, as little as 30 minutes of walking on a treadmill for 10 days in a row was sufficient to produce a significant reduction in depression among clinically depressed subjects....

The mirror uplifts your chi, or life force energy, effectively enhancing, magnifying, and centering your energy flow when you sit underneath it. For extra feng shui credit, place this adjustment between the hours of 11 a.m. and 1 p.m., the most life-affirming yang hours of the day. The pad should take up at least half of your desk, and you should be intentional with your color choice. Black relates to connections and flow while tones of orange, yellow, and brown provide stability and support....

Rough sex can be really fun if you’re looking to spice things up with some role play and explore new things. Sometimes when a person has a Type-A personality or has a lot of power in their daily lives (i.e. The Boss), they like to be more submissive and let her partner take control in the bedroom. This is perfectly normal. And yes, rough sex, when you’re doing it for the right reasons in the right way, can deepen your connection to your partner....

But here’s one that we don’t often hear or talk a lot about: childhood trauma. And that doesn’t include only childhood sexual abuse (although that’s a large and pervasive type of childhood trauma). It also includes being neglected by your parents, seeing aggressive or emotionally abusive behavior between your parents, getting bullied or mistreated by peers, dealing with identity-related discrimination, and more. These early negative experiences can psychologically shape us and the way we behave, think, and move throughout the world....

Now, if you’ve paid attention to the beauty space for the last several years, you know this not to be true. Clean makeup brands started embracing bold colors and high-coverage finishes that, too, had staying power. And yet, the reputation for less-than-stellar mascara still lingers. I just can’t give up my favorite mascara, I’ll hear with some regularity. I’ve never tried a natural one that looks as good, they’ll tell me....

Most people who identify with these behaviors have the same attachment style, characterized by insecurity, called insecure attachment style. One of several attachment styles, this attachment style can make it difficult for people to make deep emotional and intimate connections with a partner, Chamin Ajjan, M.S., LCSW, A-CBT, tells mbg. “An individual who has an insecure attachment to another typically feels anxious about the relationship and whether or not their own needs or desires can be met by the other person,” holistic psychologist Nicole Lippman-Barile, Ph....

Joel Kahn, M.D., is a big fan of the fasting-mimicking diet, a program created by Valter Longo, Ph.D., at USC. “I adopted a five consecutive day, low-calorie, plant-based “fasting mimicking diet” plan and lost 18 pounds in three months” he explained. If you still have questions, check out our complete beginners guide to intermittent fasting.

We tapped experts to get the scoop on this professional hair removal service—including whether it’s actually a safe procedure to try. Keep reading to find out what laser hair removal is, whether it’s safe for you, the side effects, and other hair removal options if you aren’t ready to get up the gumption just yet. Winnie Moses, M.D., a board-certified medical aesthetics doctor and founder of Parfaire Medical Aesthetics in Los Angeles, says laser hair removal targets hairs that are in their active growth phase....

It’s a tricky question, so we asked sex therapists to weigh in. “Cheating is, at its simplest, actions that cross the agreed-upon boundaries in a relationship. If both parties agree to not view porn and one person does in secret, then in that circumstance, yes, it could be considered cheating,” explains Shadeen Francis, LMFT, CST, a licensed marriage therapist and board-certified sex therapist. But watching porn isn’t in itself a betrayal, Francis emphasizes....

But if you follow a ketogenic diet, can you partake in the spiked seltzer craze? Molly Knudsen, M.S., RDN shares the lowdown on how the beverage could affect someone in ketosis. Knudsen warns anyone on the keto diet to steer clear of sugary drinks like margaritas, sangria, and daiquiris. “Any drink with fruit juice, sweetened sodas, or simple syrups are going to be loaded with carbs and could knock you out of ketosis in a snap....