Author: Adam Taylor, Professor of Anatomy, Lancaster University

Daria 'Bastet' Felis/Shutterstock.com The shape of your bottom cannot tell you anything about your hormones, whatever recent social media posts claim. The only way to find out your levels of cortisol, oestrogen or anything else is a blood test. A heart-shaped bottom, influencers say, signals healthy oestrogen, while an H shape means too much cortisol. […]

There are very few downsides to exercise. But a recent viral story highlighted one of the more embarrassing – and potentially dangerous – issues that can occur when your body reaches it limit with exercise. Joanna Wietrzyk, the winner of the recent women’s pro Hyrox race in Beijing (a challenging fitness race that blends running […]

NMK-Studio/Shutterstock.com Fillers are everywhere now – smoothing lines, plumping cheeks, adding volume around the eyes, nose and lips in clinics up and down the country. But some men are now having fillers injected into their penises to increase their size. These fillers often contain hyaluronic acid, a substance naturally found in the body that draws […]

AYO Production/ Shutterstock The myth that when women live together their menstrual cycles become synchronised has long persisted – despite research showing there’s no evidence that this so-called McClintock effect exists. Any overlap that does happen is probably just down to chance. However, just because this isn’t true doesn’t mean our bodies don’t sync with […]

Drazen Zigic/Shutterstock.com The White House is gearing up to host a UFC event as part of celebrations of 250 years of American independence. The fighters on the card are relying on body conditioning techniques that have been around for centuries to try to emerge victorious. Muay thai, karate and jiujitsu all use ancient practices that […]

Jeorge/Shutterstock.com Hip dips are having a moment. The perfectly normal indentations that sit below your hips on the outer thigh have become the latest body feature to be scrutinised, fixed and agonised over on social media. But what are they? Can you actually get rid of them? And should you even try? Formally known as […]

MDV Edwards/Shutterstock Whooping cough, medically known as pertussis, is a highly contagious bacterial infection that affects the airways. It gets its common name from the “whoop” sound that some infected children make when they take a deep, gasping breath after a severe coughing fit. The infection is caused by the bacterium bordetella pertussis, with research […]

The dominant nostril naturally switches multiple times a day. Daniel Hoz/ Shutterstock One of the most bothersome things about being sick or having seasonal allergies is that it makes your nose stuffy and blocked. This makes breathing in through your nostrils frustrating – if not altogether impossible. But even when you aren’t sick, perhaps you’ve […]

Some parents keep their baby’s umbilical cord as a sentimental keepsake after birth pu_kibun/Shutterstock Celebrity outfits and endorsements often dominate social media, but Elton John recently drew attention for a very different reason. The musician has been spotted wearing jewellery made from his own kneecaps. After a double knee replacement in 2024, he asked his […]

F15E fighter jet. CSWFoto / Shutterstock.com Three US F-15E fighter jets were shot down over Kuwait in the early hours of Monday (March 2) in an apparent friendly fire incident during Operation Epic Fury, the joint US-Israel campaign against Iran. All six crew members ejected safely and are in a stable condition – but “safely” […]