The start of a new year is a time for making changes and resolutions to improve your health and wellbeing. We look at some of the best tips that science has to offer.

With the arrival of another new year, you might be reflecting on what you’d like to achieve and the kind of person you want to be over the next 12 months.

But while roughly a third of us plan to make resolutions or set goals for ourselves in 2024, sticking to them is quite another matter. In previous years, surveys have revealed between 17% and 45% of us abandon these attempts after just the first month. The majority of people quit their resolutions by the middle of the year, according to one study. (Although if a recent YouGov poll is to be believed, Americans were somewhat better at sticking to their resolutions last year, with only 16% of resolution-makers giving up before the end of the year.)

These failures can lead to what some psychologists describe as an annual cycle of “false hope syndrome“. Instead, there’s some evidence that it might be better to set goals that are more achievable. Research suggests that approach-orientated goals – those that are realistic, specific and where success can be easily measured – tend to be more successful than those that focus on abstaining or avoiding something, such as giving up smoking or drinking.

Deciding what to focus on, however, can be tough. So, to help you make up your mind, here are seven aspects of your life that you could focus on in the first week of the new year using some science-based tips.