Our modern lifestyles are confusing our circadian rhythm. Constant exposure to lights, stimulation from entertainment and the desire to squeeze more hours into the day just isn’t natural.

We evolved over generations to fall asleep when it turns dark and wake with dawn. As evening falls, the alteration in light means we produce melatonin, which helps us feel tired. Just before dawn our adrenal glands push out stress hormones to wake us.

Lack of sleep greatly affects our bodies, including our mood, our cardiovascular system and our weight. Here are a few tips you can follow to ensure good sleeping patterns:

* Get up and go to bed at the same time. By following a routine you’ll long for the pillow at the same time each night. Try to stick to your routine on weekends.
* Go to bed if you feel tired. By ignoring the weary feeling, your stress hormones will battle with the sleep-inducing melatonin.
* If you’re not tired, don’t go to bed. You’ll only end up lying awake clock-watching.
* Get out in the sunshine. Nothing resets the natural circadian rhythm like the sun.
* Make your bed inviting. Your mattress should suit your body. As you sleep, your back is repairing itself from the damage caused by being active during the day. Chiropractors suggest the life of any mattress is seven years.
* Have a milky drink before bed. Milk contains the amino acid tryptophan, which is used to make up the sleep hormone melatonin and the mood hormone serotonin.
* Don’t have a daytime nap. Power naps, where you sleep for 15 to 20 minutes, can be valuable, but sleeping longer and drifting into deeper sleep works against you.
* Keep your bedroom cool. A cooling of the body is a natural part of falling asleep. Make sure your bedroom is well ventilated or have a cool shower or bath about an hour before you settle down. As your body cools, the sleep hormones will trickle into place.
* Only use your bedroom for sleeping. Watching TV in bed stimulates the wrong sort of brainwave response.
* Learn to switch off. Don’t take work problems home. Instead, write them in a diary. Evidence suggests when you put problems into your forebrain and jot them down, they tend not to drift into other parts of your brain and fuel thought-inspired insomnia.
* Avoid drugs and alcohol. Nicotine is a stimulant and is associated with an increase in pulse rate and blood pressure. Alcohol, a depressant, may help you doze off, but if consumed in excess it will disrupt the sleep cycle later in the night and wake you. Sleeping pills should only be taken for short periods because they can lead to daytime drowsiness. Also if used for more than a week they can have the opposite effect.
* Cancel caffeine after midday. Tea, coffee, cola and chocolate are stimulants and people who have a tendency towards insomnia should make midday the cut-off.
* Can’t sleep? Try again. If you’re still awake after 15 minutes, get up, keep the light low, drink warm milk and read for a while.

Be active in the morning

It only takes 30 to 60 minutes of exercise a day to encourage sleep at night, but it’s ideal to do it in the morning. Exercising too close to bedtime increases your heart rate and works against the natural rhythm.

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Healthy lifestyle changes may reduce your risk of getting breast cancer. Try these:

1. Go for a walk.

Women who spend a little more than an hour a day walking may reduce their risk of developing breast cancer by 23 per cent, compared to their non-active peers.

2. Variety is the spice of life.

Adding cruciferous vegetables such as turnips and Chinese cabbage, instead of the usual cauliflower, to your diet may help reduce your risk of breast cancer by 50 per cent. In a study published by The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, researchers found these vegies may offer more benefits to women fitting a particular genetic profile. Other studies suggest cruciferous vegies may also cut the risk of lung, stomach, colorectal and bladder cancers. Add some to your stir-fry tonight.

3. Avoid having that last drink for the road.

Researchers recently concluded that, compared with women who abstained from drinking alcohol, the risk of breast cancer increased by as much as 51 per cent among women who consumed three or more drinks daily. It's yet another good reason to watch your intake and lessen the health impacts of alcohol.

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Here are some commonly asked questions, a few handy tips and interesting facts for getting new puppies ready for their new homes.

The right start

Q: What is puppy preschool and is it really that important?

A: Socialisation is vital to ensure a well-adjusted, even-tempered dog. The window of opportunity for imprinting good social behaviour in pups is between six and 15 weeks of age. After this, the dog's innate habits have already formed.

Puppy preschool gets dogs together at this age and teaches them social skills and basic training. Many behavioural problems, such as separation anxiety, other anxiety disorders and aggression, are compounded by poor socialisation in early life.
Protecting puppy

Q: What diseases should my puppy be vaccinated against?

A: Dogs are vaccinated against five diseases: canine distemper, canine infectious hepatitis, parvovirus, bordetella and parainfluenza. The first vaccination is carried out at six to eight weeks, followed by one or two boosters, depending on vaccine used, between 12 and 18 weeks.

Belly nuisance

Q: If a pup has a hernia what does it mean?

A: Hernias are small holes due to a separation of muscle tissue. The umbilical hernia, which occurs where the belly button would be, is the most common and can usually be fixed at desexing surgery. Larger hernias, where the tissues in the abdomen can fall through, need to be fixed promptly.

Missing Mum

Q: Our puppy still cries at night. How can we stop this?

A: Having a good routine is the best way to settle a puppy. Find a safe, private area for your pup to sleep - not on the end of your bed. Try putting a ticking clock in her bedding, which will remind her of her mother's heartbeat. A radio playing softly will also help to reassure her.

Work, rest and play

Q: How long should my puppy normally sleep for?

A: Puppies need lots of short sleeps during the day followed by short, sharp bursts of activity. They should sleep most of the night.

Pooch provisions

Q: What's the best type of food to feed our puppy?

A: At first, feed your puppy the same as they were getting at the pet shop or breeder's. If you want to change their diet, wait until your pup's settled, which is usually about two weeks, then gradually introduce a new one. Sudden changes can result in upset stomachs.

There are many options for feeding. Raw food diets or dry food alternatives are fine as long as they're balanced. Get the best food you can afford.

He's misbehaving

Q: Our puppy won't obey us and occasionally urinates in the house. What can we do?

A: Smacking or yelling at him will make him nervous and the problem will get worse, especially urinating and defecating in the house. Ignore bad behaviour and reward your dog when he's good. Create a toilet area outside and put him there regularly, praising him when he goes. After dinner, take him to his toilet so he can go.

Worm worries

Q: If our puppy gets worms are we at risk too?

A: It's possible, but very rare. Puppies contract hookworm from their mother's placenta before birth or from their milk. Hookworms can burrow deep into human skin and cause a severe itch or even intestinal inflammation. For this to happen, a human would have to have contact with heavily infested soil, which would be unlikely.

To catch the common tapeworm from your dog, you'd have to eat a flea or infested faeces. Good hygiene around the house and garden and flea control is crucial.

The bare bones

Q: I've been told that exercising our labrador puppy could cause her to have arthritis in later life - is this true?

A: Veterinary orthopaedic specialist Dr Steven Fernside recommends taking your puppy for a good run, but don't exercise her to the point of exhaustion. When this happens, her muscles will collapse and her joints will bear all the weight, which can do damage.

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Puppies are full of energy and are naturally curious, but this can lead to trouble if the bundles of joy are left unsupervised. Make sure your place is safe before you bring Fido home.

Indoors

Puppies will want to inspect indoor pot plants and have a chew on them, so keep them out of reach. Some plants such as azaleas and lily varieties are toxic to dogs.

Many pups will also enjoy snacking from the cat litter tray. Dogs love to eat cat poo, but doing so can result in worms, while litter can cause intestinal blocks. Also:

* Store medications and supplements up high. Even if they’re in plastic containers, many puppies will chew through them.
* Put all bins well out of reach. Puppies love the taste and smell of garbage.
* Put the toilet lid down. The toilet bowl is a drowning hazard and many toilet bowl fresheners are poisonous.
* Ensure curtain cords are out of reach.
* Keep your puppy away when you’re using cleaning sprays and disinfectants so they don’t get chemicals in their sensitive eyes or inhale any harmful vapours.
* Keep all tobacco products, which can be fatal, secure and out of reach.
* Place small objects out of harm’s way.
* Close doors and windows.

Outdoors

It’s important you inspect your fence well and repair any holes or loose planks so your puppy can’t jump or dig under it. Also:

* Never leave your puppy wandering around outside without supervision.
Designate an area for the puppy’s toilet and make it attractive (use sand as a substrate). Fence off areas where the kids play, so your puppy can’t use those spots to go to the toilet.
* Keep shed doors closed.
* Never use snail bait or rat poison. Instead, leave ‘beer traps’ in the soil for snails.

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If it takes your breath away during the day, watch out for its reflection in the water at night. A visit to this temple, that's resounding with gurbani, is an amazing experience

You might have read about it several times and seen it in movies as well, but when you reach the spot your reaction will still be of awe. Made of marble and enveloped in a patina of gold, glistening in the sharp sun, a mere glimpse of the Golden Temple is a stunning sight to behold.

For Sikhs there is no place as sacred as this beautiful and serene temple, also known as Harmandir Sahib, meaning House of God. It contains the Guru Granth Sahib, the holiest literature for Sikhs, which is always worshipped here.

Rising from amidst the water contained in the tank, which is believed to have been dug by Guru Ram Das, the temple has a spectacular backdrop as well. Inside the compound, there are many other shrines dedicated to Sikh gurus and martyrs. The holy book is read continuously and it is peaceful to just sit there for some time and listen to the chants. The Golden Temple is also an oasis of sharing and spirituality. The langar dishes out mouth-watering vegetarian food for thousands of devotees. Even if you don't have a sweet tooth you will develop one, after tasting the kara prasad that's oozing with ghee. It is said that anyone who comes to the temple, no matter what religion they belong to, is never turned away on an empty stomach. While you are wandering the streets of Amritsar don't forget to taste the famous kulcha chhole and Amritsari fish.

Major attractions: Baisakhi, in April, is the best time to visit the temple. It marks the beginning of a new year for Sikhs. The temple is lit up, and thousands of devotees take a holy dip and offer prayers here

Getting there: Fly to Amritsar from any metro city. From the airport it will take you about one hour to reach the temple. Plenty of trains ply to Amritsar.

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Each one wanted to look at astonishing Oscars of this year, and it was certainly a night so that the actresses honour the red carpet in red or a certain nuance with white. Some made it right, whereas others left much to be desired.

Here our selections for better and worse of the mode of Oscar:

The best

Sarah Jessica Parker: The loves of star of sex and the city to resemble a ballerina, but with it can do it right and to ensure itself seems to it sexy.

Natalie Portman: Breaking the tendency of the night of red and white, it revealed in the pink shocking. Portman seemed sophisticated and fresh.

Marion Cotillard: Sequins and Tulle can be an exposure of horror, but Marion French and is thus made its dress of part to work.

Pattinson Zac Efron and Robert: These types can work a tux and a shouted model of Hollywood of old man-school.

Angelina Jolie: It did not carry a muumuu. More, the combination of its black dress installed with these green earrings was shocking good manners.

Worst

Miley Cyrus: Decorated outside in a scintillating white dress and with steps, it looked as it auditioned for the role of Cinderella to the magic kingdom.

Kate Winslet: She likes the dress of binding-model, but in this moment, she obtains one little tired. And to detail strange lace and sequined was not an improvement.

Tilda Swinton: She never embraces traditional models and seems sometimes odd. More, its hair, the skin and the higher half of its dress very matched.

Beyonc: It resembled the couch of my large aunt!

Amy Adams: Its red dress with detailing black geometrical was strange and not flatteringly. How disappointing!

What did you think of the red-carpet mode? Are you of agreement with our choices, or we missed the mark?

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If you and your friend had dated during three months or three years, it deserves to have one marvellous present of you all the times that it celebrates his birthday.

of Well-thought the gifts outside are always a great manner of showing your affection and love for your friend. Some men cannot be as open with emotion as women, but your friend surely could not resist to give you a kiss or a pressure in the exchange of every hour and effort which you put in finding the gift of perfect birthday for him.

Here some large and romantic ideas of gift to give the special man in your life on its birthday:

1. Something romantic.

A gift of birthday should not always be something expensive. Be creator in the thought with a gift of romantic birthday
for your friend. If it always gave does flower you you front, why put 't that you return the favour by giving him dozen red roses? He will encourage it to remember to you as an only girl who to him forever given pinks for his birthday.

A little effort would go a long way, too. Make cuirele its dish preferred and invite it more for a picnic or a romantic dinner. Make it a birthday cake, invite to cook with the furnace his/her friends more and astonish it with a festival by birthday.

Pour to it with notes of love, or made its special entirety of day by giving him a different gift the morning, midday and the night. Be creator in the thought with something recreation, romantic and special to give him a birthday which it is not likely to forget.

2. Something which he wants.

If your special somebody is in instruments, give him this instrument of play or player of music about which he always speaks. If he is an enthusiast of car, obtain to him a large accessory of car. Or, rent a vehicle of sports or its r�veuse car so that it leads on its birthday. Leave and spend one day being delivered to the sport this it likes just.

3. Something unpleasant.

the Rougeoyer-in-the-dark shorts of boxer are a manner sour-fire of tickling its imagination. A intimate however the funny gift will point out it the intimate moments which you shared together like couple.

4. Something nice and traditional.

A basket of gift
with all the things which he likes on a delicious package also led to a large gift of birthday for your friend 'birthday of S. a basketful of the chocolates or wine is a gift of marvellous birthday.

If he is a director, obtain to him a expensive tie, nice bonds of cuff or an interesting wrist watch. Give him a whole of his Cologne, perfume and after-shave lotion preferred. If he likes to sail, obtain to him an ancient compass that he can use.

5. Something which indicates I love you.

You can literally give him an article with the message in the way in which you feel. Give him a keychain for his car and place the keys with a engraved message. Even the small articles as this would create your special sensation of friend.

You point out that it is not always the cost which counts when to give outside presents for your friend on his birthday.

Of well-thought a gift outside which would point out your friend the way in which the special one it is with you will send the good message on its birthday.

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