Blog Posts by Oprah.com

Photo: ThinkstockBy Valerie Ross

Mixing Bleach with Pretty Much Anything
If your mother told you not to mix bleach with ammonia, listen: The two combine to create a toxic gas called chloramine, which at low levels causes wheezing, coughing, nausea and watery eyes, and at higher concentrations can do irreversible damage to the lungs. But mixing bleach with any acidic cleaner (regular old vinegar as well as many drain cleaners, toilet bowl cleaners, dishwasher rinses, rust removers and more) is just as dangerous. It also produces a toxic gas, chlorine, which can cause dizziness, coughing, and burning in the nose or eyes when you're exposed to a small amount and can be fatal at higher levels.

RELATED: Is Your Home Making You Sick


Photo: ThinkstockFalling Off a (Tiny) Ladder
You know that mucking out the gutters comes with a serious risk: Ladder-related injuries send 164,000 people in the U.S. to emergency rooms each year. But did you know that over 35,000 people were hurt while using stepladders in 2010?






Photo: ThinkstockCasually

Photo: Guy AmbrosinoBy Lynn Andriani

The One-Bite App

Use: Cherry tomatoes

These pesto-stuffed tomatoes are bright and beautiful, and offer a fresh alternative to tomato-basil-mozzarella skewers. Use cherry and not grape tomatoes; otherwise, they won't stand upright and the filling will spill out.

Ingredients

1 cup fresh basil leaves
3 to 4 cloves of garlic, peeled
5 Tbsp. pine nuts
1/2 tsp. sea salt, or to taste
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil, plus additional as needed
1/2 cup grated Pecorino Romano cheese
1 pound cherry tomatoes

Directions

Place the basil leaves, garlic, pine nuts, salt, olive oil, and Pecorino in a food processor or blender and process until smooth. If the pesto is too thick for your taste, add a little more olive oil.

Cut the tops off the tomatoes. With a small spoon (I use an espresso spoon), scoop out the seeds and pulp, taking care not to puncture the skin. Fill the tomatoes with the pesto and serve at room temperature.

From

Photo: ThinkstockBy Corrie Pikul

Small Tweaks Are Just as Effective as Big Changes

You've switched from mustard to mayo, and you're cutting back on Coke--yet these aren't foods that you eat every day. That could be why these occasional sacrifices aren't changing the numbers on the scale.

A better way to think about it: "You'll see more impressive results by focusing on changes that are part of a regular routine," says registered dietician Keri Glassman, the author of The New You (and Improved!) Diet. "Consistency is key." For example, if you drink an 8-ounce glass of soda every afternoon, switching to sparkling water could save 700 calories a week. But if you only drink soda at the movies, say, once a month, try to find a smarter substitution (the bagels you pick up on your way into the office, perhaps) with a bigger payoff.

RELATED: O's Eating Well Makeovers

Wait Until You're Really Hungry to Eat

It's the rare person who can confront a menu, a full plate or a bread basket on an empty stomach without

By Jena Pincott

Photo: Marko MetzingerBy Kate Arnold-Ratliff and Abbe Wright

Wendy Weston, founder of Perfect Picnic NYC, explains everything you need to ring in International Picnic Day (it's June 18).

Clockwise starting top left:

1. Upgraded H20
"To drink, just bring water flavored with lemon and mint. Refreshing, healthy, cheap!"

RELATED: 3 Inspired Eco-Friendly Products

2. A substantial salad
"I see people picnic with lettuce salad all the time, and I'm like, Guys, it's baking in the sun. Wilted salad is a picnic catastrophe! Bring more filling, grain-based salads--things like quinoa or farro are great. If you must do a green, go with kale. It's a hearty leaf, so it won't end up tragic."

3. Sandwich fixings
"Make your sandwich on-site, because soggy bread is a drag. Bring a baguette, a good cheese--Maggie's Round is the best--and a variety of ingredients so you can experiment with different combinations. I like Serrano ham with chives, but it's also good with blue cheese and pears--like, change-your-life good."

Photo: Marko Metzinger/Studio DBy Val Monroe

Now that BB creams --short for blemish or beauty balm--are a bona fide hit, cosmetics companies are moving down the alphabet: More than a dozen CC creams--short for color or complexion correcting--have launched this spring. Like BBs, they include sunscreen and moisturizers, but "CCs offer more pigment and, in general, a more matte finish," says the always discerning makeup artist Pati Dubroff. In other words, if BB creams are the near-twin sisters of tinted moisturizers (as we told you last year), then CCs share their DNA with full-coverage foundations. But while they can leave skin looking very even, they can also leave it looking a bit flat--so top them with a luminous cream blush or highlighter. And because CC creams are less sheer than BBs, you need to find a close color match.

RELATED: 22 Rules for Aging Brilliantly

Our favorites come in at least three shades (from left to right ):

Smashbox Camera Ready CC Cream SPF 30 ($42; smashbox.com )

Almay Smart Shade

Photo: ThinkstockBy Corrie Pikul

Improve Your Fitness (and Your Physique) in Less Than 30 Minutes*
Too many studies to ignore have shown that high-intensity interval training (HIIT) can boost muscular and cardiovascular fitness as effectively as steady-state cardio--in half the time. This HIIT routine was created for Oprah.com by Jessica Matthews, an exercise physiologist for the American Council on Exercise (ACE), and includes strengthening exercises that target the parts of you soon to be exposed in a swimsuit (i.e., almost all of your parts). Matthews recommends doing each move for 30 seconds, followed by 30 seconds of walking in circles to bring your heart rate down. After completing all seven exercises, rest for one minute. Repeat the circuit two to three times.

Warm Up
Matthews is a big fan of a dynamic warm-up to get the muscles psyched to work (remember, this is going to get intense). She suggests doing 5 minutes of arm circles, Frankenstein walks, half squats and any other moves that

Photo: ThinkstockBy Lynn Andriani

Wilted or Drying Herbs: A Savory Spread for Just About Anything

Blogger, writer and producer Rebecca Lando loves to eat seasonal, organic and local food but is determined not to waste any of it--even a $5 bunch of herbs. In The Working Class Foodies Cookbook, she explains that herb butter is a great way to give that bundle of not-so-fresh thyme, oregano, basil (or any other herb, really) one last chance. You can mix it into a stick of butter and heap the result on thick slices of baguette and broil it for a twist on garlic bread; toss it with hot pasta and Parmesan for a quick dinner, or with just-cooked fish or shellfish; slip a pat of it into a baked potato or on grilled or roasted vegetables or steak; or just spread it on toast.

Get the recipe: Herb Butter

Photo: Thinkstock

Random Bits of Cheese: A Dish That's Way Better Than a Sad-Looking Snack Platter

We've been there, too: you've got a small chunk of Gouda, a 2-inch piece of Swiss and a wedge of something you