Women Are Most Beautiful at 31: Study

(NEWSER) - After a year tracking the American obsession with looking younger, veteran journalist Beth Teitell reached a sobering conclusion: "Age is the new fat." But the author of the newly released book Drinking Problems at the Fountain of Youth kept her head and her sense of humor. Teitell, 47, tells Time: "The real trick to the fountain of youth is not working on your own appearance, but actually blinding others to your flaws." More»

(NEWSER) - Whether it’s hormones, increased self-esteem or stepping out on their spouses, 40-something women are experiencing the best sex of their lives, reports the Guardian. "It's one of the best-kept secrets of women's lives," noted one expert. Of 2,000 women polled in a recent survey, 77% said that their sex life was best in their 40s. More»

Stress causes grays and wrinkles, but nobody agrees whether presidents die early

(NEWSER) - Four to eight years as leader of the free world gave George W. plenty of wrinkles and gray hairs—but just what are the presidency’s long-term aging effects? One doctor found that presidents generally have shorter-than-average lifespans, the Boston Globe reports, while another pegs two years for every one spent in the Oval Office. "For eight years in office, they age 16 years,” he argues. More»

If it's really all in your head, show your head your birth certificate

(NEWSER) - Most men have two ages, theorizes author Douglas Coupland of Generation X fame: "the age we really are, and the age we are in our heads," which he pegs at "about 31 or 32." Coupland explains in in Best Life magazine: "When middle-aged men look in the mirror they think, 'I'm sorry, but there's been a horrible mistake.'" More»

Donda West and the pressure to be perfect

(NEWSER) - The American public that slammed Britney Spears for daring to show a little cellulite is just as rabidly eviscerating Donda West as vain for succumbing to our culture of perfection, reflects Robin Givhan of the Washington Post in the wake of West's death. Our dysfunctional relationship with beauty cuts deep, Givhan writes, yet it's surprising that it reached West. More»