But dermatologists say products designed for these purposes are much better options and warn that toothpaste may exacerbate skin conditions.

Because toothpaste is not formulated for the skin, it can lead to dryness, irritation and inflammation, potentially delaying the pimple healing process or worsening acne, they say.

To prevent pimples or treat them, the American Academy of Dermatology recommends over-the-counter products containing adapalene, azelaic acid, benzoyl peroxide or salicylic acid.

Toothpaste is not an effective treatment for burns or to whiten fingernails, either. While toothpaste may have a cooling effect, one study showed that it can worsen burns. As for your fingernails, it can cause irritation.

So what are common symptoms in women?

Women often describe heart attack pain as pressure or tightness in the chest, rather than the sharp pains experienced by men.

Medical director of the Joan H. Tisch Centre for Women’s Health in NYU and cardiologist, Dr Nieca Goldberg, says that often women report abdominal pressure that feels like an elephant is sitting on your stomach. Other symptoms may include unusual fatigue, cold sweats and an overwhelming sense of exhaustion, or as Dr Goldberg says, “it can feel like you have run a marathon, but you didn’t move.”

Women and men can also feel discomfort in the neck, jaw, shoulders, upper back, or even the upper stomach. These symptoms can build gradually, making them easier to dismiss as something less serious.

When should you call for help?

Here is a startling fact: according to a study by Dr Rita f. Redberg, director of Women’s Cardiovascular Services for the University of California, women generally wait longer than men before going to the emergency room. It is understandable: few people would consider sweating and back pains to be serious, so when do we know when to call for medical assistance?

Well, the key is to acknowledge what feels unusual. If you have uncomfortable pressure in your chest which lasts for a few minutes, uncomfortable and irregular discomfort in your arms, back, neck, jaw or stomach, shortness of breath, cold sweat and nausea, you should call emergency services immediately.

When it comes to your heart, waiting is a risk you cannot afford to take.

9. Empty all the small bins.

10. Do a speed tidy – even just one room at a time.

While cleaning may not be your idea of fun, you would be surprised at how much you can get done in just five minutes, leaving you plenty of time to kick back and relax in your newly tidy space.

Lead author Associate Professor Lukas Parker said date labels were widely misused by people because they were confusing.

“Consumers want clear, consistent and easy-to-read information,” he said.

“Date labels should be in a large font with contrasting colours so that they are easy to find and interpret.”

Parker said a solution could be labels with practical tips on properly storing food and sealing packaging, as the study found advice such as ‘store in a cool, dry place’ was interpreted as vague and unhelpful.

“Including specific temperature guidelines for storage on packaging would help,” he said. “Particularly in a cost-of-living crisis, people need information on how to properly store and prolong the shelf life of food.”

How do you define your own values?

At the heart of it, values are what matters most to you. Things like being creative, having integrity, or being kind are all values.

It can be hard when you first sit down to think about values to come up with a list without a guide. You will find many value lists online.

Once you have identified your top five values, it is worth thinking about how closely you are living to those values right now. If you find things are not matching up, think about why that is and what you can do to get back on track. Values may shift a little across your life, but your core values will generally be your guideposts as you move through different stages.

Steve Hays, co-founder of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy shares: ‘Values are like a compass: they help us navigate through the challenges of life’.

5 questions to define your values

Try asking yourself these questions to get started on your values quest:

1. Who do I admire and why?

2. What am I passionate about?

3. When am I at my happiest or most fulfilled?

4. What would I stand up for, even if it was unpopular?

5. How do I want to be remembered by the people I love?

These questions will help you dig deeper on what really matters to you.

To make things simple, consider breaking your life into quadrants: work, relationships, leisure and health. Take the time to outline how you would like to show up in each area of your life, then for each of these domains reflect on:

1. The challenges you faced last year.

2. The wins you had.

3. What you want more of in each area.

4. What you are grateful for.

5. What you need to let go of.

If you see a gap between what you want your life to be like and how you are actually living, think through what obstacles might be getting in the way and what action you can take to close that gap.

Using this information, set a simple intention for each life zone that will provide guidance for your year ahead.

Done well, reflection exercises help you get clear on your values and your personal circumstances so you can set intentions for the year ahead that are meaningful to you.

How to give a compliment

The best compliments are specific rather than general, says Smiling Mind. Rather than saying ‘good job!’ or ‘nice one!’, think through what you would like to say.

• Make it personal to your workmate by highlighting what skills or qualities they showed, and when and how they displayed them.
• Be authentic. Use words and body language that is typical for your relationship with that person.
• Keep the compliment to the point. Brief, specific compliments will appear more genuine that lots of general praise.

Go ahead and give a compliment today. It is the gift that will cost you nothing.

What is more, even small amounts are harmful.

“Half of all alcohol-attributable cancers in the WHO European Region are caused by “light” and “moderate” alcohol consumption – less than 1.5 litres of wine or less than 3.5 litres of beer or less than 450 millilitres of spirits per week,” says WHO.

While 1.5 litres of wine may seem a lot, over a week it is less than one and a half glasses per day, or around one “home pour” in a regular wine glass per day.

Dr Carina Ferreira-Borges, Regional Advisor for Alcohol and Illicit Drugs in the WHO Regional Office for Europe, says, “It does not matter how much you drink – the risk to the drinker’s health starts from the first drop of any alcoholic beverage. The only thing that we can say for sure is that the more you drink, the more harmful it is – or, in other words, the less you drink, the safer it is.”

If you are looking for a non-alcoholic drink, there is no shortage of alternatives to lemonade and cola. ‘Functional’ beverages promise mental and physical benefits beyond quenching your thirst and the niche newcomers to the market are nootropics.

Nootropics are a broad category of so-called “smart drugs’ with cognitive benefits. Some are only available on prescription but others you can buy as supplements, and it is these that are also added to drinks.

Some common ingredients you will find in nootropic drinks include the herbs ashwagandha, ginkgo biloba, guarana and chamomile, anthocyanins (flavonoids), enzogenol (pine bark extract), and L-theanine (an amino acid found in black and green tea).

How healthy are they?

The claims are not all hype. Evidence does suggest that the ingredients in nootropic drinks can improve cognitive performance, memory and learning, or aid relaxation, although studies tend to be small with larger studies needed to confirm the findings.

However, benefits are still unclear. Connecting an ingredient to its supposed health benefits can be problematic, says Debbie Fetter, an assistant professor of teaching nutrition at University of California, Davis. Plant-based compounds exist alongside other compounds, and their interactions can boost, neutralise or diminish each other’s effectiveness. She says untangling any single ingredient’s role, and then recreating that effect in a beverage, is difficult.

Too much caffeine can cause headaches, increase anxiety, make you restless and impair your sleep.

Sugar content varies between the drinks too. Some are sugar free, others are low in sugar, while some provide nearly 30 per cent of an adult’s maximum daily sugar intake. It is worth checking the labels if you are looking for a low sugar option.

It is unlikely you will come to any harm with natural nootropics, although medication interactions and health complications are possible, and the long-term effects of regularly drinking them have not been well studied. If you are pregnant or breastfeeding, it is best to avoid them.

Are coffee and tea nootropic drinks?

Yes. Most of us have nootropic drinks every day in the form of tea and coffee. Over 30 per cent of world drinks coffee regularly, while even more drink tea regularly.

Caffeine, found in coffee and tea, is classified as a nootropic because it can increase alertness, energy and concentration. Green and black tea also contain L-theanine, an amino acid that may affect the levels of certain chemicals in the brain, including serotonin and dopamine. These influence mood, sleep and emotion, as well as cortisol, which helps the body deal with stress.