Winning the lottery sends women rushing off to the divorce court. Men stay married

Small grants give expectant families a boost, but the impact of larger sums depends a lot on the recipient’s gender

The secret of happiness? Embrace the boring, lay claim to the mundane and rejoice in repetition

In everything from family life to careers, it doesn’t pay to constantly seek the next exciting thing, writes Adrian Chiles

A winter of the mind: how to escape survival mode

For many of us, it has been a cold and traumatic year. But, as one reader found, difficult times can lead to new and revolutionary ways of thinking

Why you should make the most of the extra daylight when the clocks change

Daylight helps to regulate hormones and the immune system. It’s good for sleep and can help with depression. So be glad of the extra daylight when it comes

Mind over matter: can meditation soothe my troubled insides?

Meditating Buddhist monks have been shown to have healthier gut microbiomes and more effective metabolisms than non-meditators. Could an app make mine happier?

Chew slowly, keep moving and eat 30 plants a week: 12 rules for gut health

What to eat, when, how to do it properly – and what to avoid. Experts lay out the food habits that will make a real difference to your health

A trip to my mother’s native Sweden helped me recapture my childhood

It was a nostalgic journey to rediscover my family roots, but it was also great fun and reminded me how much I missed this beautiful land

What are the real signs of a healthy gut? A user’s guide

It’s a huge organ that gives us the energy to live, grow and repair. But how does it work – and how do you keep it healthy? Our science editor unravels its astonishing job

At long last, some recognition of the pain after childbirth. Why is women’s suffering so ignored?

Research shows opioid painkillers are unlikely to harm breastfed babies – but history shows how often women have had to sacrifice their own health, says historian Agnes Arnold-Foster

Weight Watchers wins when our diets fail – it won’t change society’s broken thinking around food

The diet industry benefits if you become a customer for life: its profits soar with our failures, says psychotherapist, psychoanalyst and social critic Susie Orbach