bodylines

Can't feel your feet?

The Raynaud's & Scleroderma Association is staging an awareness campaign this week for Raynaud's disease - an extreme form of cold hands and feet that can lead to numbness. The condition affects up to one in 10 women at some time in their lives and can be a symptom of a more serious disorder, such as scleroderma (thickening of the skin).

For information send a large SAE to the Raynaud's and Scleroderma Association, 112 Crewe Road, Alsager, Cheshire ST7 2JA.

Monday morning sickness

A US study found that back injuries are 25 per cent more likely to occur on Mondays than on any other day, and heart attacks are 33 per cent more likely then. Sounds like the perfect opportunity to ring in sick after the weekend.

Cosmetic cruelty

Animals continue to be used in cosmetic experiments. In 1994, according to the British Union for the Abolition of Vivisection, 3,520 experiments took place. Although this is a small decrease on 1993, the total number of animal experiments rose by nearly 15,000 to 2,842,361. The BUAV is particularly concerned about the use of transgenic animals (whose genetic make-up has been deliberately manipulated), which it cites as the fastest-growing area of vivisection in the UK.

BUAV, 16a Crane Grove, London, N7 8LB.

By the book

Pain Relief in Childbirth (pounds 6.99, HarperCollins) by Nikki Bradford and Geoffrey Chamberlain

Seventy thousand words on the joys of labour may make childbirth seem even more scary. But if you're pregnant and your attitude is to arm yourself with as much practical knowledge as possible, then get reading. The book is full of sound, unbiased advice on everything from epidurals to acupuncture and - thankfully - manages to steer clear of the "You're pregnant so you've lost the use of your brain" attitude.

Baby Massage (pounds 9.99, Piatkus) by Peter Walker

Indulge yourself and your new-born bundle. Even if the closest you've been to massage before is stroking the cat, you'll find the step-by-step advice and illustrations in this book easy to follow, informative and effective.

The Guide To Vegetarian Living (pounds 14.99, Bloomsbury) by Peter Cox

This practical book is a must for anyone who likes to know just how much riboflavin their miso contains, or anyone itching to get their hands on a recipe for mung bean dahl. It lists, alphabetically, the world's best vegetarian foods (from canned ackees to watermelon), interspersed with a wealth of useful lifestyle and nutritional advice, such as how to say "I don't eat meat" in Indonesian ("Saya tidak makan daging").