Mandy Oaklander | October 15, 2026

As a young person who danced every day, I was acutely aware of the importance of toe strength. It was essential for ballet—how else could you ever rise up en pointe?

But when I got older and hung up my toe shoes, I largely forgot about my toes. Tsk tsk, cautions my colleague Angela Haupt: grownups neglect their toes at their own peril.

In this edition, Angela walks us through the simple toe exercise you should be doing every day at your desk.

TODAY’S TOPICS

How to rescue a parakeet
The growing health risks of wildfires
A step-by-step guide to toe raises
The obscure profession that help caregivers manage aging

QUICK CHAT

Love at first chirp

I recently interviewed therapist Cheryl Fisher about creative ways to spend time in nature, but we had a third participant in our conversation: a very chatty parakeet. I could hear him chirping away in the background, and Fisher kept pausing to acknowledge his contributions. (“I know, I hear you, sweetheart.”)

Eventually, I had to ask about him. Turns out, his name is Ollie, and the story of how he came into her life is almost as delightful as he is. —Angela Haupt, Editor, Health & Wellness

This interview has been condensed and edited for clarity.

Ollie, courtesy of Cheryl Fisher

First of all, who is that very enthusiastic bird I keep hearing?

He's a parakeet I rescued from my bird feeder about five or six weeks ago. He's very vocal when I'm on the phone. It's so funny—he's like a kid! Sometimes I can almost hear him saying, “Yeah, yeah, tell her!”

Wait, you found a parakeet at your bird feeder? How did that happen?

He kept coming back for five days. Every time I'd go outside to try to get him, he'd fly away. I'm not even sure what I thought I was going to do with him, because I didn't have a cage. Eventually, I consulted with a rescue agency and my veterinarian, and I had a cage, food, and everything else DoorDashed to the house.

How did you finally persuade him to come inside?

We were getting ready for a terrible storm and there was a tornado warning. I put a sprig of millet in my hand and thought, “OK, dude, look. I've got some food. We've got a safe cage. Let's get you in the house, and we'll figure out the rest.”

And now he's officially part of the family?

Yes! I put him on my pet insurance policy, and I named him Ollie. We already have a wonderful dog who's a canine co-therapist, and she's looking at me like, “What is up with you?” But Ollie's been so funny to have around. I didn't know what I was missing.

BIG NUMBER

916 million

That’s how many people around the world were exposed to both extreme heat and poor air quality from wildfire smoke each year from 2000 to 2019, a new study found. The amount of exposure escalated significantly in the second decade. —Veronique Greenwood, Staff Writer

SOURCE: SCIENCE ADVANCES

ONE SMALL CHANGE

Bring your toes toward your nose

Toe raises come with a workout cue that sounds like it belongs in a nursery rhyme: Bring your toes toward your nose. Keep your heels planted and lift the fronts of your feet to strengthen the muscles along your shins—the ones that help your toes clear the ground when you walk.

Start with five to 10 slow reps a few days a week, either sitting at your desk or standing while holding the bathroom counter. Your shins may start burning—in a good way!—surprisingly quickly. —A.H.

Read the full story here.

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WHAT WE’RE READING

A new study highlights cases of a rare, lethal measles complication that arrives years after infection, writes Laine Bergeson for CIDRAP.
There's a little-known profession that can make caring for aging parents much easier. Paula Span at KFF Health News explains what aging life care managers do—and when families might need one.
Nonprofit hospitals that are supposed to give low-income people financial aid often make them pay upfront and will not offer refunds to patients, Melanie Evans reports for Tradeoffs.