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Life Kit

Tools To Help You Get It Together
A photograph shows hot coffee being poured simultaneously into two burnt orange coffee mugs on a white countertop. Steam rises from the mugs.

One tiny tweak you can make in your routine? Live in harmony with the season by switching from iced coffee to hot coffee. Heck, sprinkle in a little cinnamon on top while you're at it. Stefania Pelfini la Waziya/Getty Images hide caption

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Stefania Pelfini la Waziya/Getty Images

8 low-effort ways to make Spooky Season feel cozy and festive

Feeling exhausted this fall but still want to celebrate all the good things the season brings? We've got a list of simple ideas to make your lead-up to Halloween feel warm, restful and a little eerie.

Illustration of a group of people putting together a large scale puzzle on the floor. The image on the puzzle is the health care cross. Medications surround the people putting the puzzle together.
Subin Yang for NPR

Life Kit

The key to choosing the right health insurance? Demystifying the lingo

Open enrollment is back again and with it, its confusing health insurance jargon. Here are some of those terms defined to help you choose the best plan for you.

Perplexed by health insurance terms? This guide can help

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Prue Leith is a judge on the British television baking competition The Great British Baking Show and the author of the cookbook, Life's Too Short To Stuff a Mushroom.

Chef and TV host Prue Leith shares tasty and easy-to-make recipes in her new cookbook, Life's Too Short to Stuff A Mushroom — along with dozens of cooking hacks from her 65-year culinary career. Ant Duncan/Carnival Publishing hide caption

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Ant Duncan/Carnival Publishing

8 kitchen hacks from 'Baking Show' judge Prue Leith: No points docked for using 'em!

In her new cookbook, "Life's Too Short to Stuff a Mushroom," chef and TV host Prue Leith reveals clever cooking tricks and shortcuts from her 65-year culinary career.

Clever kitchen hacks from 'Bake Off' judge Prue Leith

Listen · 16:21
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An illustration shows a man in an orange pajama set tangled up like a pretzel in the middle of his large bed. His limbs are askew, clutching pillows, and his face is in a grimace, illustrating the concept of neck pain arising from poor sleep posture. His bed and room are rendered in cool tones, purple, blue, and green. And he is surrounded by lush plants, geometric art, and striped pillows. Nightstands flank his bed, and a cat tower sits to the right of his bed.

Sleeping in an awkward position for many hours at night can cause morning aches and pains. One way to guard against them is to focus on your sleep posture, say medical experts. Meredith Miotke for NPR hide caption

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Meredith Miotke for NPR

Life Kit's Guide to Better Sleep

Want fewer morning aches? You might need to change the way you sleep

Whether you're a back, side or stomach sleeper, medical professionals explain how to position your body to guard against neck cricks, shoulder aches and other body pain and soreness.  

Studio photograph showing a blue paper umbrella propped up in a mound of coins on sand in front of a pink and orange gradient backdrop

You can see the world and save money — it just takes a little savvy planning. Photograph by Tsering Bista and Beck Harlan hide caption

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Photograph by Tsering Bista and Beck Harlan

5 money-draining mistakes travelers make when planning a vacation

People get a lot wrong when it comes to paying for vacation, say travel experts, and that can cost serious cash. Here's how to plan a trip that's safe, adventurous and under budget.

How to travel on a budget

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A grid of four black-and-white photos annotated with hand drawn doodles and selective coloring show safety do's and don'ts for pedestrians and bikers, including: not crossing the street where there isn't a crosswalk, using marked crosswalks and sidewalks, using bike lights and bright, reflective clothing, and paying attention to your surroundings.

The basics of road safety might seem obvious, but they can save your life. DON'T cross the street where drivers might not expect you. DO use sidewalks, bike paths and safe pedestrian crossings. DO make yourself visible with bike lights. DO look up from your phone when walking.
Photo Illustration by Beck Harlan/NPR hide caption

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Photo Illustration by Beck Harlan/NPR

8 walking and biking safety tips that just might save your life

In 2024, 7,100 pedestrians were killed on the road, and in recent years, more than 1,000 cyclists have been hit and killed annually. Safety experts explain how bikers and walkers can stay safe.

A close-up photo of various over-the-counter pain medicines, including Tylenol, Aspirin, Ibuprofen and Aleve, on a yellow background, hit from behind.
Photo illustration by Beck Harlan/NPR

How does acetaminophen work? Over-the-counter Painkillers 101

The president and his deputies tied autism to acetaminophen use during pregnancy. Refresh your knowledge on safe and effective use of common painkillers with these tips from health professionals.

Over-the-counter pain medications 101

Listen · 22:14
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An illustration depicts a preteen boy with white skin and blond hair, wearing a backward baseball hat. He sits cross-legged on the floor with over-the-ear headphones pulled down around his neck, while he stares down at a tablet in his hands. Speech bubbles, emojis, an exclamation point and a question mark emanate from the screen, off to either side of him. A hand reaches into the frame as his parent puts a hand on his shoulder, symbolizing discussing the use of AI with your children and teens.

Parents should broach the AI conversation with their children when they are elementary school-age, before they encounter AI through their friends at school or in other spaces, says Marc Watkins, a lecturer at the University of Mississippi who researches AI and its impact on education. Eva Redamonti for NPR hide caption

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Eva Redamonti for NPR

How to talk to your teen about AI

Many teens are using artificial intelligence chatbots like ChatGPT for everything from homework to relationship advice. Experts say parents must lead the way in helping them understand the technology.

Photograph of a woman wearing a yellow backpack and leaning backward in joy as she walks on a sidewalk against the backdrop of a concrete wall. The photograph is taken from a low angle and depicts excitement and joy.

Back-to-school season can still be an opportunity for a refresh, even if you're not headed back to the classroom. Maria Korneeva/Getty Images/Moment RF hide caption

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Maria Korneeva/Getty Images/Moment RF

6 ways grown-ups can recreate that fresh, buzzy feeling of a new school year

Refreshing ideas that harness the excitement of going back to school — like learning new things, packing a school lunch and playing at recess — updated for the adult version of you. 

A collage shows a calendar with four dates circled in red, symbolizing birthdays. A hand, colored in red, points to one of the dates, and colorfully-wrapped birthday gifts fall down from the sky in the background.

When disagreements centered around money arise between loved ones, watch out for "relationship challenges masquerading as money challenges," says Katie Gatti Tassin, author of Rich Girl Nation: Taking Charge of Our Financial Futures. Mininyx Doodle/Getty Images; Anna Efetova/Getty Images/Collage by NPR hide caption

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Mininyx Doodle/Getty Images; Anna Efetova/Getty Images/Collage by NPR

Dear Life Kit: Do I have to buy birthday gifts for my 18 nieces and nephews?

Experts answer a round of finance questions from NPR's audience, including how to financially support a friend with Stage 4 cancer and how to stop paying for your parents. 

A photo collage shows three surreal characters isolated in a green landscape with clouds in the background. Each character has a human body depicted in black-and-white but a head that is replaced with a colored shape containing a large black-and-white eye, mouth, and ear, respectively.
Deagreez/Getty Images

Life Kit

LISTEN: Give your body a fall reset with these head-to-toe health tips

It’s not just school kids who could use a back-to-school reset. Your body could use one too. This episode of Life Kit, medical professionals share advice to help you care for your ears, eyes, teeth, feet and skin. We hope these tips leave you feeling healthy and strong as the fall season begins.

A head to toe check in for the fall

Listen · 22:54
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