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Do you regularly cheat yourself out of a few hours of sleep just to prove to your friends, family and co-workers that you're an early-bird-getting-the-worm kind of person? Aside from the questionable nutritional benefits of those night crawlers, the Chicago Tribune reports that you may be increasing your risk of developing early diabetes, high blood pressure and other disorders.

A study conducted by the University of Chicago suggests that even an average of eight hours of sleep a night—the long-standing recommendation—may not be enough. The study recommends between nine and nine-and-one-half hours as optimal. Good night.

The thinking used to go that if a woman is trying to get pregnant, her husband should slip into boxers because briefs were thought to retain sperm-harming heat. Well, banish that thought and unpack those tidy whities, says Self magazine. Researchers at the State University of New York at Stony Brook found that scrotal temperatures for brief-wearing men were so similar to those of their boxer-loving buddies that the choice of undergarments really doesn't matter.

Dying for a romantic outing, but tired of being the one who takes the initiative and makes the decisions? The Romantic newsletter suggests sending your mate an invitation for a date. However, instead of outlining the specifics, make your indecisive spouse chart the course by giving him or her multiple selections to choose from. Here's a sample:

Let's go out on:

• Friday night
• Saturday afternoon
• Saturday night
• Sunday afternoon

For:

• Dinner and dancing at Alfredo's
• Lunch at the Bagel Hut
• A movie followed by dessert at the Copper Kettle
• Picnic lunch and a walk

Of course, you should create your own list. Feel free to make it as long or detailed as you like.

86%
of newlywed men
say they fell in love at first sight

41%
of newlywed women
say they did

Source: USA Today

Having trouble remembering whether your mother-in-law's birthday is coming up next Tuesday or snuck past you last week? The reason you struggle with annoying memory lapses may be as plain as the nose on your face. Or so says William Cone, Ph.D., author of Stop Memory Loss (Matteson Books).

To blow out the cobwebs, press one nostril closed with your finger. Then breathe eight times through the open nostril. If nothing happens, plug the other nostril and breathe eight times. Cone says changing your nasal breathing cycle can switch your brain's rhythms. When the left nostril is open, the right hemisphere is working hardest, and vice versa. The two sides store different information, so when you wake up the previously at-rest side of the brain, you may remember that your mother-in-law's birthday was actually last month.

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