Do you really know?

You may remember we talked about whether or not opposites attract in a recent episode of Do You Really Know. As it turns out, more often than not, couples tend to share a lot of characteristics, and it’s relatively rare for them to be substantially different. When you think about it, it kind of makes sense. After all, it's often easier to be in a relationship and share your life with someone who s...

When it comes to cold weather we're not all in the same boat. Some of us can cope with low temperatures, while others are super sensitive, especially on their hands and feet. For some people extremities can become  numb, painful, change colour or even develop into frostbite.  Usually, when it's cold, vasoconstriction  helps to protect us against low temperatures, by prioritising blood flow to vita...

Polish-American man Leo Gerstenzang is credited with inventing the humble cotton bud in the 1920s, an item which has since gone on to be used for many different purposes, having originally been thought up as a baby hygiene product. Yougov research from 2019 found that 62% of Brits use cotton buds to clean their ears, and 22% of us only use them for that purpose. That’s particularly true for men, g...

Many of the shady or downright forms of toxic forms of behaviour seen in modern relationships are actually nothing new, but the emergence of specific terms has helped us to pinpoint them better. Once you're in the know, it's much easier to spot them. With that in mind, let’s move on to the topic of today’s episode. As a single guy or girl, it's not uncommon to have someone you flirt with on and of...

You know the feeling: you’re running, cycling, or doing some other physical activity, and suddenly you feel a sharp pain in your side, just below your chest. It’s like someone is stabbing you with a needle, and it makes you want to stop and catch your breath. Although there is no precise definition of exactly what a stitch is, everyone knows how to recognise it. This pain, which often prevents you...

As much as society might tell us the opposite, sex isn't actually always about pleasure. And that's especially true for men affected by the condition we're going to talk about today. It's known as postorgasmic illness syndrome, or POIS for short, and it's considered a rare disease. According to a review published in Sexual Medicine Reviews journal in 2018, there were only 50 recorded diagnoses, bu...

Have you ever noticed how revisiting films from your childhood, listening to old tunes, or flipping through cherished books can bring on a certain sense of solace. Your past is intricately woven into your present; it shapes who you are and influences the person you go on to become. With its comforting embrace of fond memories, nostalgia seems to breathe new life into past moments, giving us a boos...

It's becoming a more common topic of discussion. According to BUPA.co.uk, “around one in every 10 older children and adults are thought to have lactose intolerance”. It might be thought of as a disease by some, but in fact it’s quite the opposite. Lactose intolerance is due to a natural process, which sees people’s bodies produce less of an enzyme called lactase as they age. Lactose is a natural s...

Single women in your late 20s or early 30s, has anyone ever suggested that you absolutely must find a partner or you’ll end up being a “cat lady”? What an annoying, not to mention ignorant, stereotype, right? It might be tempting to explain all that to the person saying it, but do they really deserve your attention? Let’s talk about where the cat lady character actually comes from. Isn’t there a ‘...

She's one of the most influential women in the world. Taylor Swift, a country star in the United States who has become a global pop star, is shattering all records. She has been named the Personality of 2023, and has won Album of the Year for the record-breaking 4th time. In November 2024, Joe Biden, the President of the United States, is standing for re-election. His main opponent is still Donald...

Despite its many benefits, sex can also bring on a bit of stress at times. You feel like you have to fit into a certain mould. Have sex often enough, but not too much or you might seem overly fixated. Don't lose your virginity too early, but don't wait too long either. Even sexual performance is expected to meet certain standards. Ultimately, sex, which is supposed to be one of the most intimate a...

“Birds of a feather flock together”, the old saying goes. But does that apply when it comes to romantic relationships? After all, we also say that opposites tend to attract, an idea which has been sold to us through Disney fairytales, romcoms and countless love songs over the years. But in 2023, a group of British and American scientists decided to put this notion to the test, by delving into a va...

When someone tells you not to do something it often becomes even more tempting, which is why, as a teenager, when your parents forbade you from seeing a certain boyfriend or girlfriend you felt even more passionate about them. Now psychologist have looked into what causes this so-called  ‘Romeo and Juliet effect’. Psychologists at the University of Colorado chose the name of Shakespeare's play fol...

Have you ever fallen head over heels for someone as soon as you met them? It certainly doesn’t happen to us on a regular basis, but it’s pretty common for a person to say they’ve experienced love at first sight at some point in their lives.  Psychcentral.com references a a survey of over 5,000 adults, which found that four in ten of them had had a love-at-first-sight experience, while psychologist...

Valentine's day is here and Do you really know is ready to celebrate love! Is there really such a thing as love at first sight? What is Romeo and Juliet syndrome? It's time to decipher some of the preconceived ideas that we have in society and rarely call into question. Let's separate reality from myth in this series of dedicated episodes! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adcho...

You know how ginger and oysters are said to rev up your sex drive? We’ve talked about aphrodisiacs in the past on Do You Really Know but today we’re going to talk about foods and drinks that can do the exact opposite. They're called anaphrodisiacs, and they're known for putting a damper on your libido. Well, topping the list is alcohol. Despite its reputation as a social lubricant, it's actually t...

The question asked in the title of today’s episode might seem a little strange. After all, we all sit the same way on the toilet, right? Straight up with our knees at a 90-degree angle. But in fact that might not be the best for our digestive system.  Stomach doctors, also known as gastroenterologists, suggest that this position can actually make it harder to go. And that’s not the only reason why...

Making a slip-up at work might not seem like a big deal most of the time, but on occasion it can lead to disappointment and frustration. And no matter how careful we try to be, all it takes is a moment of distraction or a misunderstanding, and boom – mistake made.  The thing is it happens to all of us, every day. Posting on Linkedin in 2016, Leading Edge Safety Systems CEO Graham Edkins wrote that...

Muscle pain generally occurs after an intense sports session. "They are due either to unusual muscular work, or to an increase in the intensity of a workout, or to the resumption of a sporting activity after a break". According to Sports coach William Chanconie. In fact, muscle soreness results from micro-lesions in the muscle fibres and signals that the muscle has been damaged.  When you feel pai...

The World Health Organisation says that children between the ages of two and five should get no more than one hour of sedentary screen time per day, while children under two shouldn’t get any at all. But the general consensus is that many parents don’t enforce those guidelines, and many toddlers end up overexposed to digital devices as a result. Increasingly, early childhood professionals are repo...

During winter, we tend to huddle indoors in an understandable bid to stay warm. But while this makes for a cosy setting, it also becomes a major breeding ground for virus transmission. The dry air in offices, public transport and our homes can strip the moisture from our nasal passages, leaving us more susceptible to infections. The nose, mouth, and eyes serve as the primary gateways for viruses t...

You may have heard of AI art generators, tools that use artificial intelligence to create images based on language prompts. For example, you can type “a picture of Elmo from Sesame Street in the style of Pablo Picasso”. These tools are fun and impressive, but they also pose a serious threat to artists who share their work online. AI art generators rely on large datasets of existing images to learn...

Did you get roped into taking care of your neighbour's dog again? End up laughing at a colleague’s awkward joke about your outfit? Or say yes to a last-minute task that your boss dropped on you out of nowhere? Your instinct may have been screaming "no," but as usual, you found yourself chuckling uncomfortably and reluctantly saying "yes" through clenched teeth.  This compulsion to avoid disappoint...

When it comes to what proportion of people speak more than one language, estimates vary but the general consensus is that at least half of the world’s population do so. If you're bilingual, you may well have encountered a fascinating phenomenon: that a new personality seems to emerge when you switch languages. In March 2017, Quartz ran an article on the subject, written by Nicola Prentis. Prentis...

In November 2023, a spooky makeup trend took TikTok by storm. Users posted images of themselves with full-coverage, pale foundation for a ghostly vibe, intense grey contouring, hidden eyebrows, and pencil-altered lips. The aim behind those creative efforts was actually to resemble humanoid creatures, and elicit a particular reaction known as “uncanny valley” from viewers. And the trend garnered a...