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Wellness

Wellness
Latest news and features on wellness, including diet, mental health trends, exercise, fitness, medicine and diseases.
last updated:
9 September, 2024
A barista pours a freshly made coffee. Photo: Shutterstock
Disease

That morning coffee is doing wonders for your health, says new study

Researchers at Tulane University have found drinking coffee in the morning appears to be better for health outcomes than caffeinating throughout the day – though they don’t know why.

How to age well

3 fitness trends for 2025, including advances in wearable tech

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Hong Kong

Run clubs have arrived in Hong Kong to combine exercise and community

Healthy eating

Iodine deficiency has made a comeback. The risks, and how to get enough

Iodised salt all but eradicated iodine deficiency years ago, but cases are now rising. Pregnant women and children are especially vulnerable.

A swelling of the neck, known as a goitre, is a telltale sign of iodine deficiency. Photo: Shutterstock
Healthy eating

Explainer | What are functional foods and should you be having them?

Functional foods claiming to provide all kinds of health benefits are blowing up on social media, but few examples have scientific backing.

Mental health

AI mirror on the wall, who’s the most stressed of all? Tech at CES says you

A robot to combat loneliness, a mirror that spots fatigue – a look at the mental health tech on show at the 2025 Consumer Electronics Show.

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Meditation & Mindfulness

How Transcendental Meditation transformed my life, as it did for The Beatles

It’s a simple yet profound way to achieve inner peace and reduce stress, using a personal mantra to guide the mind towards a calmer state – no wonder Hugh Jackman and David Lynch are fans.

The Beatles with the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, in Rishikesh, India, in 1968. Photo: Getty Images
What to do in Hong Kong

5 of the best things to do in Hong Kong this weekend, January 10-12

Indulge in some self-care, do yoga in a museum, get inspired by a Hong Kong ultra-running film and stock up on some half-price sports gear.

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Healthy eating

How a Japanese electric spoon could help reduce the salt in your diet

The spoon uses an electric current to make food taste saltier, so you don’t feel the need to add more, and the risks of salt overconsumption.

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Health & Fitness

3 top wellness trends to make 2025 a better year

In the advent of artificial intelligence, cutting-edge wellness technology and a growing awareness of holistic health practices, there are now more ways than ever to get in, and stay in, tip-top shape.

Participants compete at the Hyrox Open Asian Championships at AsiaWorld-Expo in Hong Kong, in November 2024. Photo: Edmond So
Luxury travel

5 wellness retreat trends in 2025, from sexual healing to psychedelics

Want to restore your libido, get help conceiving, or find relief from stress and addiction? Here is what’s trending in wellness tourism.

SHA Wellness Clinic in Spain and Mexico offers a Sexual Wellbeing package - one of several wellness trends this year. Photo: Instagram/shawellness
Food and Drinks

On the Menu | Eating for work is a dream job with health risks. How I’m finding balance

Dining out often is great, but can lead to various health issues. Here’s how I’ll rein it in 2025 without compromising too much.

Drugs

Inside Myanmar drug rehab centre where tough love is the prescription

Weightlifting, karate drills and tug-of-war contests are all activities at the facility in a country that produces huge amounts of narcotics.

Fame and celebrity

Why Golden Globe winner Demi Moore still looks so good at 62

Demi Moore’s latest film The Substance may be about the dangers of fame and one woman’s search for eternal youth, but in real life, Demi Moore has overcome negativity to find her healthiest self.

Demi Moore in the 1996 film Striptease (L), and attending the 2024 Academy Museum Gala (R). Photo: @demimoore/Instagram
Mental health

How writing therapy can help you get to know yourself better

Done right, therapeutic writing can be a tool for psychotherapy and self-help. But who is it suitable for and how can you get started?

Writing therapy takes different forms, but essentially is about putting down your thoughts on paper either in a random way or through structured questions. Done right, therapeutic writing is a tool for psychotherapy and self-help. Photo: Shutterstock
Cancer

Coffee drinkers less at risk of head and neck cancers, new study finds

People who drink more than four cups of coffee a day are less at risk and even decaf coffee is found to have benefits, the analysis says.

Art

South Korean artist Geumhyung Jeong challenges our relationship with beauty

In Geumhyung Jeong’s recent exhibition ‘Spa & Beauty’, the performance artist and choreographer explores beauty and body-care products, and our complicated relationships to them.

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Science

Divisive study finds link between fluoride and childhood IQ loss

New report in JAMA Pediatrics combines data from 74 studies on fluoride exposure and children’s IQ.

Adding fluoride to community drinking water is credited with reducing the average number of teeth with cavities. File photo: AFP
Dementia

5 simple checks for dementia, starting with a clock drawing test

Is it dementia? A popular neurologist uses five simple tests of cognitive function to help gauge the health of a patient’s brain.

Smoking and vaping

Time to stop smoking? Study shows a smartwatch app could help

Smartwatch app detects movements that indicate smoking, sends vibration alert, a text offering moral support and tally of cigarettes smoked.

Hong Kong society

Letters | Standardise sizes at eateries to make Hong Kong healthier

Readers discuss ways to optimise food portion sizes in Hong Kong, the city’s first breast milk bank, and the benefits of admitting we’re not perfect.

Customers line up at a two-dish rice counter in a shopping mall in Central district on November 22. Photo: Alexander Mak
Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM)

Hong Kong researcher on how TCM could be used to fight dementia

A neuroscientist describes how traditional Chinese medicine may provide modern solutions to preserving cognitive function as we age.

Researchers, including in Hong Kong, have been looking at the potential of traditional Chinese medicine to treat dementia, cases of which are forecast to rise as the elderly population grows. Photo: Yik Yeung-man
Mental health

What I realised reading my dad’s letters to my late mom as he lay dying

It took all her courage, but Barbara J. Ferraro read the wartime letters aloud to her father as his body withered, and finally understood.

Mental health

5 million people. 1 psychiatric hospital. Many patients are chained to beds

At Mauritania’s Nouakchott Centre for Specialised Medicine, most patients stay for only a few days as beds and staff are too scarce.

Veganism and vegetarianism

A pole dancer’s journey from meat-eating athlete to vegan pastry chef

This month is Veganuary, a good time to try a plant-based diet. A convert, and experts, describe its many health benefits.

Linda Vongdara was a competitive pole dancer and teacher before she gave it up upon the birth of her daughter. Photo: Linda Vongdara
Asia travel

Will Japan’s hot spring culture be added to Unesco list in 2028?

A group of governors is lobbying to get the centuries-old Japanese onsen practice included on Unesco’s intangible cultural heritage list.

A woman enjoys a hot bath at an onsen resort in Japan. Photo: Shutterstock
What to do in Hong Kong

5 of the best things to do in Hong Kong this weekend, January 3-5

Catch some bargains at a Hong Kong products expo, see a Korean artist’s pop-up show of paintings, learn how to map your body, and more.

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Icons and Influencers

Mocha Mousse, the warming rich brown that’s taking over 2025

This versatile shade adds depth to make-up looks and complements a range of skin tones, highlighting a cosy aesthetic – and when used as a blush, it helps create that perfect sun-kissed flush.

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