By . Mail On Sunday Reporter . After being criticised for her  ‘shrill’ voice, Margaret Thatcher, encouraged by actor Laurence Olivier, enlisted a vocal coach to help soften her speaking tone. She went on to win the 1979 General Election – and a study from British Columbia University hints at one reason why. According to researchers, women prefer softer ‘breathier’ voices to ‘creaky’ or sharp voices – associating the former with  youth and vitality. To be preferred: Women prefer Marilyn Monroe's softer, husky voice over Kim Kardashian's 'creaky' tones . Female participants in the study were played tapes of Marilyn Monroe and Kim Kardashian, and the majority said they preferred Monroe. The creakier Kardashian tones are associated with health issues such as smoking or a cold. Men preferred larger-sounding voices, such as that of Barry White. The findings were published in the journal Plos One. Best known to TV viewers as the  Oxo . Mum, actress Lynda Bellingham has given her support to a nutritional . supplement aimed at helping stroke and dementia patients. The powder was . created by aromatherapist Barbara Hobbs, 68, who suffered a stroke 12 . years ago. Now recovered, . Barbara worked with a biochemist to create Neurocare 21, which contains . extracts of vegetables she keeps in her garden. She credits the . supplement with returning her to health. Cooking up a cure: Lynda Bellingham, pictured in the Oxo commercial, credits nutritional supplement  Neurocare 21 with helping her recover from a stroke . Lynda – pictured with her screen husband from the Oxo ads – met Barbara when she handed her an Adult Achievement Award from the Stroke Association in 2007. Lynda was so impressed with Barbara’s work that she and husband Michael decided to invest in what eventually became Neurocare. Lynda, 65, says: ‘We agreed to provide the start-up costs and use my profile to endorse the product. 'It took three years to get licensed but now we’ve launched on the internet. It is not a miracle cure but it is a fantastic natural product to assist those suffering with stroke symptoms or dementia.’ Pecnominated: Fitness trainer Shaun Stafford . The Neknominate craze, where participants film themselves binge-drinking, has sparked a potentially dangerous spin-off. Personal trainers and ordinary gym-goers are attempting the Pecnominate challenge, in which they have one minute to lift their own body weight as many times as possible. The exercises take the form of a bench press, where the user lies flat and pushes a barbell containing the specified weight away from their body. This targets the pectoral, or chest, muscles – hence the name of the fad. Videos are being uploaded on websites such as YouTube. Celebrity trainer Shaun Stafford, who helped Made In Chelsea’s Spencer Matthews shed weight recently, joined the challenge. But lifting extreme weights carries a high risk of serious injury, as orthopaedic surgeon Adrian Wilson explains: ‘Losing control of the bar and dropping the weight on to your body could lead to a major injury  to the ribs or ripping of the chest tendons. 'It takes significant time to recover from these.’ A self-care ‘toolkit’ aimed at helping chronic pain sufferers cope better has been launched by the NHS. The tips on paintoolkit.org are also available as a smartphone app and offer advice to eight million Britons who are in persistent pain due to conditions such as arthritis and fibromyalgia. For children suffering from kidney stones a new, less invasive procedure has been introduced at Southampton General Hospital. A . tiny tube is inserted into the patient’s side to  ‘laser away’ the hard . deposits that can cause agony. Southampton is the only hospital outside . London using this method, called Ultra-Mini PCNL. The technique results in less bleeding and less pain relief is . required. Patients can be discharged after one night, instead of three. Two operations have already been performed and Stephen Griffin, . consultant paediatric surgeon, says the procedure will be of ‘great . benefit’.
Women prefer to have a softer 'breathier' voice, like Marilyn Monroe .
Study found women associated Monroe's voice with youth and vitality .
Kim Kardashian's 'creaky' tone is associated with smoking or a cold .
By . Mail On Sunday Reporter . After being criticised for her  ‘shrill’ voice, Margaret Thatcher, encouraged by actor Laurence Olivier, enlisted a vocal coach to help soften her speaking tone. She went on to win the 1979 General Election – and a study from British Columbia University hints at one reason why. According to researchers, women prefer softer ‘breathier’ voices to ‘creaky’ or sharp voices – associating the former with  youth and vitality. To be preferred: Women prefer Marilyn Monroe's softer, husky voice over Kim Kardashian's 'creaky' tones . Female participants in the study were played tapes of Marilyn Monroe and Kim Kardashian, and the majority said they preferred Monroe. The creakier Kardashian tones are associated with health issues such as smoking or a cold. Men preferred larger-sounding voices, such as that of Barry White. The findings were published in the journal Plos One. Best known to TV viewers as the  Oxo . Mum, actress Lynda Bellingham has given her support to a nutritional . supplement aimed at helping stroke and dementia patients. The powder was . created by aromatherapist Barbara Hobbs, 68, who suffered a stroke 12 . years ago. Now recovered, . Barbara worked with a biochemist to create Neurocare 21, which contains . extracts of vegetables she keeps in her garden. She credits the . supplement with returning her to health. Cooking up a cure: Lynda Bellingham, pictured in the Oxo commercial, credits nutritional supplement  Neurocare 21 with helping her recover from a stroke . Lynda – pictured with her screen husband from the Oxo ads – met Barbara when she handed her an Adult Achievement Award from the Stroke Association in 2007. Lynda was so impressed with Barbara’s work that she and husband Michael decided to invest in what eventually became Neurocare. Lynda, 65, says: ‘We agreed to provide the start-up costs and use my profile to endorse the product. 'It took three years to get licensed but now we’ve launched on the internet. It is not a miracle cure but it is a fantastic natural product to assist those suffering with stroke symptoms or dementia.’ Pecnominated: Fitness trainer Shaun Stafford . The Neknominate craze, where participants film themselves binge-drinking, has sparked a potentially dangerous spin-off. Personal trainers and ordinary gym-goers are attempting the Pecnominate challenge, in which they have one minute to lift their own body weight as many times as possible. The exercises take the form of a bench press, where the user lies flat and pushes a barbell containing the specified weight away from their body. This targets the pectoral, or chest, muscles – hence the name of the fad. Videos are being uploaded on websites such as YouTube. Celebrity trainer Shaun Stafford, who helped Made In Chelsea’s Spencer Matthews shed weight recently, joined the challenge. But lifting extreme weights carries a high risk of serious injury, as orthopaedic surgeon Adrian Wilson explains: ‘Losing control of the bar and dropping the weight on to your body could lead to a major injury  to the ribs or ripping of the chest tendons. 'It takes significant time to recover from these.’ A self-care ‘toolkit’ aimed at helping chronic pain sufferers cope better has been launched by the NHS. The tips on paintoolkit.org are also available as a smartphone app and offer advice to eight million Britons who are in persistent pain due to conditions such as arthritis and fibromyalgia. For children suffering from kidney stones a new, less invasive procedure has been introduced at Southampton General Hospital. A . tiny tube is inserted into the patient’s side to ‘laser away’ the hard . deposits that can cause agony. Southampton is the only hospital outside . London using this method, called Ultra-Mini PCNL. The technique results in less bleeding and less pain relief is . required. Patients can be discharged after one night, instead of three. Two operations have already been performed and Stephen Griffin, . consultant paediatric surgeon, says the procedure will be of ‘great . benefit’.
‘breathier’ voices to ‘creaky’ or sharp voices – associating the former with  youth and vitality. To be preferred: Women prefer Marilyn Monroe's softer, husky voice over Kim Kardashian's associated with health issues such as smoking or a cold. Men preferred larger-sounding voices,