TODAY

If coming back to work on Monday seems extra dreadful, there’s a simple prescription to reduce job-related stress: enjoying the company of a small plant.

Office workers who cared for a plant on their desk and gazed at it for a few minutes when they felt tired experienced less anxiety than before they had one, a recent study found. Many also had a lower pulse.

The health benefits may come from the plant inducing “comfortable feelings,” like beauty and affection, that help a person get away from work-related thoughts.

Follow the link to find out why choosing the plant yourself and taking care of it are an important part of the therapeutic effect.

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Doctor shares his 12-step daily routine for healthy weight loss

Eating all of the items on his list is filling, but adds up to fewer calories than most people eat in a day.

Even when we know people’s names, why do we go for days without using them? By using someone’s name, you help them feel seen and acknowledged — and that’s an act of kindness. According to kindness.org’s research in collaboration with the University of Oxford, doing a kind act increases happiness, well-being, trust and compassion. And it can have the same powerful effect on those who receive the act. Try it, and put a smile on both your faces.

Breakfast or no breakfast? Mark Wahlberg takes on Dr. Oz

Mark Wahlberg is not on board with Dr. Oz's plan to "ban breakfast" in 2020.

8 hair masks that will help repair your hair this winter

Get your hair back on track.

Menopause, explained: What to know about sleep, hot flashes, more

Dr. Lauren Streicher, professor of obstetrics and gynecology and the medical director at Northwestern University, sits down with TODAY’s Hoda Kotb and Jenna Bush Hager to answer viewers’ questions about menopause.

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