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For many of us, driving is as much a part of the daily routine as brushing our teeth or cooking dinner. So it makes sense that your mind might wander while you’re on the road. Unfortunately, new research shows that the tendency to daydream and drive could be putting you—and your fellow commuters—in harm’s way. Individuals who let their minds wander while driving are at an increased risk of getting in a car accident, finds a study from the University of Bordeaux in France....

In a new Penn State study, researchers found that people who possessed variants of the taste receptor gene TAS2R—including the TAS2R38 variant, which is present in about 25% of the population—were much more sensitive to bitter flavors. In this case, they showed an aversion to hoppier beers, but TAS2R38 has also been linked to distaste for bitter veggies, too. In one previous study, people with the gene variant consumed an average of 200 fewer servings of veggies per year....

Thanks, Mom! Today, Dr. Bryant is one of the nation’s foremost explorers of a delicious subgenre of happiness research: the art and science of mining the joy and wonder in life’s good moments. And studies show that there’s plenty to savor. Savoring equals happiness: In 2012, Dr. Bryant, along with researchers from New Zealand’s Victoria University of Wellington, asked 101 women and men to keep diaries for 30 days. They recorded “pleasant events” and how much they savored or squelched them....

A: No matter what your goal is—lowering breast cancer risk, shedding weight, or cutting back on alcohol—it’s all about creating sustainable habits. The more you make health-promoting habits automatic, the greater your protection from breast and other cancers and chronic diseases. At first, many of my patients think that habits stifle their spontaneity. Yet once they get started, they’re thrilled to find that creating routines actually sets them free. Science confirms it....

MORE: 4 Conditions That Are More Painful For Women Than Men Another reason children get ear infections is that the nerves to the area may not be fully developed in some babies, which can affect the eustachian tubes. Also, children in daycare get more colds, which can lead to ear infections. In adults, the stage is set for a middle-ear infection when sinuses get clogged as a result of allergies or a head cold, or when the eustachian tubes become blocked by air pressure during an airplane descent....

“Better sleep on it” may be the best advice you’ve ever heard when it comes to making a big decision. New research from Yale University reveals the role emotions play in decision making—and how a stressful meeting or a tiff with your husband might have a sneaky influence on the choices you make. The connection comes down to what’s known as “emotion-understanding ability.” Put simply, it’s your talent for spotting the connections between your emotions and their sources, explains study co-author Jeremy Yip, PhD, a post-doctoral fellow in Yale’s Department of Psychology....

Here’s what you’ll need: Photos by Mitch Mandel Here’s how to put them together:Heat a little olive oil in a skillet. Cut sausage links into chunks and brown in the oil. Add a 15-ounce can of tomato sauce and 1 cup of canned chickpeas (rinsed well and drained) and heat through. Spoon into 4 rolls. Serves 4. NUTRITION (per serving) 420 cal, 29 g pro, 46 g carb, 8 g fiber, 12 g sugars, 15 g fat, 5 g sat fat, 1400 mg sodium Media Platforms Design Team Photos by Hallie Burton MORE: Almost-Instant Italian Fish

Acne can be damaging to your self-image. As director of the Acne Clinic of Newport Beach, CA, I hear the heartache in my clinical practice, from the 18-year-old boy who couldn’t ask girls out because “they’ll think I’m a zit freak” to the 36-year-old lawyer who didn’t think she’d make partner because “the acne makes me look like an overgrown kid.” But acne is not something you have to live with....

Tons of people are walking around tired. But you may not realize just how tired you really are or recognize the exact ways in which you’re exhausted. After all, fatigue can take many forms. One woman feels chronically wiped out with a pervasive tiredness that isn’t relieved by getting enough sleep, while another starts the day with plenty of vim and vigor but runs out of energy quickly. Meanwhile, another woman has a vague but enduring sense of malaise or listlessness, and still another feels physically weak, apathetic, and emotionally vulnerable on a regular basis....

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Coconut-Mango Gelato Puree 1 lb frozen mango chunks with 1 cup chilled canned coconut milk and a pinch of salt in food processor, frequently scraping down sides of bowl, just until mixture reaches the consistency of gelato and is mostly smooth, 2 to 4 minutes. (Be careful not to overprocess and melt the gelato.) Sweeten with honey to taste, if desired, and pulse to combine. Divide among bowls and serve immediately....

Ever since I was a kid, I’ve been aware of the importance of eating healthy. I was raised in a forward-thinking family that understood the value of good food. We ate organic whenever possible and even spoke out against trans fats before it was popular to do so. But once I was living on my own, things started to slip. This was at the height of the low-fat diet craze, and I thought that some of what I was eating was healthy, though in hindsight, it wasn’t....

The Best Herbal Remedies During Pregnancy [The New York Times] Up to half of pregnant women use at least one herbal remedy during pregnancy, often to address health woes without the potential side effects of conventional pharmaceuticals. But are herbs and natural supplements safe for mom and baby? The verdict is still out, according to a new report, published in The Journal of Maternal-Fetal and Neonatal Medicine, that criticizes design flaws in existing studies, and notes a paucity of rigorous research on the subject....

Why Are You Tired All The Time? A team from the Mayo Clinic Cancer Center asked 360 people—about half of whom were breast cancer patients—to rate their levels of daily fatigue on a scale of 1 to 100. After eight weeks of taking either a 2000-milligram pure ginseng root supplement or a placebo, those who took ginseng reported about a 20-point drop in their fatigue levels. Pure ginseng root, which has long been administered in traditional Chinese medicine, works by both reducing inflammation and improving cortisol hormone levels naturally, says study author Debra Barton, PhD, an oncologist and nurse administrator at the Mayo Clinic....

Top stylists break down what’s true—and what’s oh-so false—when it comes to your mane. The myth: Getting regular trims will help your hair grow faster.The reality: Hair normally grows a half inch every four weeks, says Jae Cardenas, a celebrity hairstylist at Sally Hershberger Downtown Salon in New York City—and getting a fresh cut every 2 weeks won’t speed up that process. However, “Trimming your ends [every 6 to 8 weeks] will help you maintain your hair’s shape and prevent splitting the hair shaft,” says Nicole Cichocki, senior stylist and lead educator at Bumble and Bumble Salon in New York City....

The verdict is in: Organic fruits and veggies can significantly boost your overall health, according to a recent meta-analysis from the British Journal of Nutrition. The reason: more antioxidants, fewer pesticides. “Smart lifestyle choices, like eating organic, are the best way to deal with all the stresses, strains, and pathogens of modern-day life,” says study coauthor Charles Benbrook, a sustainability expert at Washington State University. Here’s how the science stacks up: Photo by Mitch Mandel All-organic diets deliver the antioxidant equivalent of 2 extra servings of fruits and veggies daily, compared with conventional eating styles....

People exposed to organic foods are more likely to exhibit judgmental attitudes, according to a new study from Loyola University. Researchers split 60 people into three groups and showed them pictures of either organic foods, comfort foods like brownies and cookies, or non-organic, non-comfort foods, such as rice and mustard. Researchers then determined participants’ moral judgment by asking them how many minutes they’d be willing to spend helping a stranger, and how harshly they judged fictional situations....

Here’s how to make bean soup in 4 simple steps: CHOOSE navy, great Northern, black, pinto, or white beans. They’ll all work in our master recipe, though the cooking time may vary. COOK beans at the barest simmer because boiling will break the skins and disintegrate the insides into the cooking water. ADD salt and tomato paste halfway through the cooking, or later. Salt and acid toughen the skins, which can making cooking time much longer....

Their doctors, of course, haven’t either. What that means for Sernekos’s clients and the 15% of American women who suffer from CPP is that nothing can be taken for granted: not walking, sitting, having sex, going to the bathroom, even wearing a favorite pair of tight-fitting jeans, which can press in all the wrong places. “Thank God I love hippie skirts,” says Sernekos. But unlike 1960s-inspired fashion, chronic pelvic pain is ready to be resigned to the past....