Harvard Health Content API

A 2023 study involving 300 people suggested that people who kept a garden for one year ate about two more grams of fiber per day, had less stress and anxiety, and did more moderate-to-vigorous exercise per day than people who didn’t do any gardening.

A 2023 study involving more than 29,000 older adults without dementia, followed for 10 years, suggested that people who stuck to at least four healthy lifestyle habits had significantly slower memory decline than people who didn’t practice any healthy habits.

A 2023 study found that playing an 18-hole round of golf on foot (pulling golf clubs) had greater immediate effects on blood sugar and cholesterol than walking briskly for one hour or doing Nordic walking for one hour.

Daily brisk walking is great for health, and adding a few simple moves or tools can make it even better. To boost balance, it helps to occasionally walk heel-to-toe during the walk or turn sideways and take 10 side steps. To promote healthy bones and muscles, it helps to wear a weighted vest on a walk. To boost heart health, it helps to add arm raises during the walk or periodically jog for 30 seconds to a minute.

The options for places to have blood drawn are increasing. Options include hospital outpatient labs, freestanding labs, drugstore clinics, and urgent care centers. Mobile blood collection services will go to someone’s home or office to do the blood draw. Before choosing a place to have blood drawn, it’s important to ask where the results will be sent, whether the person collecting the sample will be a trained and certified phlebotomist, and how much the service will cost. Insurance companies usually require a doctor’s order to cover costs.