We learn as much about our mind and physical body when we don’t want to do something as when we do. It’s time we analyze what affects our moods and energy (especially as women) so we can improve our well-being inside and outside of the bedroom. Being able to fully enjoy sex (and achieve orgasm) goes well beyond intercourse: Full-body well-being means full participation and pleasure…but where do we start? A quality snooze (and thus quality sex) starts with the basics: Get screens out of the bedroom, establish a routine, regulate your body temperature, and be extra mindful of what you eat and drink prior to winding down....

“Think of your microfiber cloth as being a network of fibers that are not woven together most of the time,” Dimitri Deheyn, Ph.D., a marine biology researcher at Scripps Institution of Oceanography who has extensively studied microplastics, tells mbg. “They only stick together because they are entangled.” This makes these towels extra sensitive to wear and tear—and when their synthetic microfibers begin to shed, they emit microplastics into the surrounding environment....

On the macro level: The best thing you can do to curb mindless spending is to track your purchases and budget accordingly, as we’ve learned about keeping a money diary. This will help you be aware of patterns long term. “I’m a big fan of having people notice what is happening with their money. Physically writing down your purchases is creating an awareness that’s in the moment,” financial expert Lynne Somerman told us....

For example, you’ve probably had some variation of a conversation like this before: One person (the light sleeper) says, “Wow, that storm was so loud last night—it woke me up!” and the other person (the heavy sleeper) says, “I slept right through it.” Now, as sleep and health psychologist Joshua Tal, Ph.D., previously explained to mbg, waking up in the middle of the night isn’t necessarily a bad thing. “Usually you’re waking up between stages of sleep, so you’re not really interrupting anything,” and it’s naturally easier to wake up during the light sleep stages (stages 1 or 2) than the deeper ones....

What is interesting is that even the quality across all Manuka honeys can vary, which is why the Unique Manuka Honey Factor (UMF) was established. The UMF is a quality assurance grading system that tests the levels of methylglyoxal (MG) and dihydroxyacetone (DHA), the two chemical compounds responsible for the Manuka nectar’s uniqueness. The higher the concentration of both, the more pure and potent. The product is then graded for its authenticity and assigned a rating, ranging from UMF 5+ to UMF 20+....

The neem tree produces small white flowers and a yellow-green fruit, and literally every part of the tree has been used for medicine and therapeutic treatments. The neem tree has so many medicinal uses (it contains more than 100 pharmacologically active substances), in fact, that in India, it’s been called “the village pharmacy.” It’s no surprise, then, that neem oil has been used for hundreds of years in traditional Indian medicine and ayurveda1....

A new study1 published in the Journal of Sex & Marital Therapy offers some clues as to what’s going on with your libido: Apparently women who have difficulties with sexual desire tend to have stronger sexual concordance, meaning their mental and genital arousal levels generally tend to align. All of the women also completed a questionnaire to determine their sexual functioning, which refers to a person’s ability to experience sexual desire, get aroused, lubricate, have an orgasm, and engage in pleasurable, pain-free sex....