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"I'm not ready to go yet": Leading Aussie doctor given months to live

Leading melanoma researcher and Australian of the Year recipient Professor Richard Scolyer has revealed that he has only months to live following the return of his brain cancer. Diagnosed with incurable glioblastoma two years ago, Professor Scolyer chose to <a href="https://www.oversixty.com.au/health/caring/doctor-beats-cancer-using-his-own-treatment" target="_blank" rel="noopener">undergo an experimental immunotherapy treatment</a>, defying his initial six-month prognosis. His remarkable journey was documented in a study published in late February, detailing the innovative approach he helped pioneer. However, after undergoing surgery last week, doctors confirmed that the aggressive cancer had returned. “Unfortunately, there is a larger volume of quickly growing brain cancer (glioblastoma, IDH WT, unmethylated etc.) in my left brain,” Professor Scolyer shared in an emotional social media post on Monday. “The prognosis is poor. Whilst some of my recurrent tumour was removed last week, some of it couldn’t be because of its site.” Despite the devastating news, Professor Scolyer remains hopeful that the experimental treatment he volunteered for could pave the way for future medical breakthroughs. Alongside his colleague and friend, Professor Georgina Long, he was named a 2024 Australian of the Year for their groundbreaking work in melanoma research and immunotherapy advancements. “I greatly appreciate the support of all my family, friends, and colleagues who have been looking after me so well and the incredible research that has been performed,” he said. “I hope the latter will change the field and patient outcomes in the not too distant future.” In a heartfelt interview on A Current Affair with Ally Langdon on Monday, the father-of-three shared his decision to forgo further experimental treatments, choosing instead to spend his remaining time with his loved ones. “It could help, but my heart’s not in the same place as what it was before,” he admitted. “It’s not fair, but there’s a lesson for everyone … make the most of every day because you don’t know what’s around the corner.” “I’m not ready to go yet. I love my life,” he said. “I guess I feel lucky that I’ve been able to go for so long without a recurrence of it.” Images: A Current Affair

Caring

Man who saved the lives of over 2 million babies dies aged 88

James Harrison OAM, the famous Australian blood donor who saved the lives of 2.4 million babies by donating his rare plasma, has died aged 88. Australian Red Cross Lifeblood has confirmed that Harrison died "peacefully" on February 17 at Peninsula Village Nursing Home on the NSW Central Coast. Harrison, also known as the Man with the Golden Arm, began donating in the 1950s became the world's most prolific blood and plasma donor thanks to his rare antibody, Anti-D, which helps mothers who are at risk of passing on deadly antibodies to their babies. Since he started donating at the age of 18, Harrison has donated 1173 times, continuing his kind act up until his retirement in 2018 aged 81. His family have since paid tribute to him, with his daughter Tracey Mellowship, remembering him as a generous soul. "James was a humanitarian at heart, but also very funny," she said. "In his last years, he was immensely proud to become a great grandfather to two beautiful grandchildren, Trey and Addison. "As an Anti-D recipient myself, he has left behind a family that may not have existed without his precious donations." Lifeblood Chief Executive Officer Stephen Cornelissen added that Harrison's impact has made a difference all around the world. "James was a remarkable, stoically kind, and generous person who was committed to a lifetime of giving and he captured the hearts of many people around the world," Cornelissen said. "It was James' belief that his donations were no more important than any other donors', and that everyone can be special in the same way that he was. "James extended his arm to help others and babies he would never know a remarkable 1173 times and expected nothing in return." "He leaves behind an incredible legacy, and it was his hope that one day, someone in Australia would beat his donation record," he added. "On behalf of Lifeblood, and the entire Australian community, we thank James for the incredible life- saving contribution he made and the millions of lives he saved." Harrison's rare blood and plasma may continue to save lives even after his death, with researches hoping they would be able to use his blood to develop lab-grown Anti-D. Image: Nine News

Caring

Oscars 2025: who will likely win, who should win, and who barely deserves to be there

<div class="theconversation-article-body"><a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/ari-mattes-97857">Ari Mattes</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-notre-dame-australia-852">University of Notre Dame Australia</a> We’ve probably all had a moment when we stopped taking the Oscars too seriously. For me, it was when Denzel Washington <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/timlammers/2024/05/02/why-denzel-washington-once-told-a-co-star-losing-an-oscar-is-better/#:%7E:text=Washington's%20second%20Oscar%20win%20%E2%80%94%20which,called%20at%20the%20Academy%20podium.">won best actor</a> for Training Day (2001), a crime film in which he displays virtually none of his acting chops. And as popular cinema becomes uglier (it’s mostly shot on digital video now, which almost never looks as good as film) and streamers (or logistics companies such as Amazon) take over film production, it’s becoming increasingly difficult to appreciate the point of the ceremony. From this year’s ten nominees for best picture, The Brutalist, Conclave and I’m Still Here are good – while (most of) the other nominees are only okay. <h2>Some well-made films, but nothing outstanding</h2> Writer-director Sean Baker’s Anora is nominated for best picture this year, after already <a href="https://aframe.oscars.org/news/post/2024-cannes-film-festival-winners-list-palme-dor">winning the Palme d’Or</a>. It’s a moderately sweet film in the tradition of Pretty Woman – having more nudity and sex, and a disappointing ending, doesn’t automatically make it edgier. It’s too long by at least half an hour, with some okay performances. It’s certainly not bad, but the idea that this is one of the “best pictures” of 2024 is alarming – or would be, if I wasn’t already so cynical. Most importantly, there’s nothing formally or aesthetically compelling about it, in which case I might have forgiven the silly (anti) Cinderella story. <figure><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/vgrXTvL_l_c?wmode=transparent&start=0" width="440" height="260" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe></figure> Another nominee, A Complete Unknown, is similarly well-made. Timothée Chalamet gives a predictably moody performance as Bob Dylan, and it’s fun to learn something about the relationships between Dylan and musical legends Joan Baez and Pete Seeger. But there’s also something fundamentally weird about watching a memoir about a person as iconic as Dylan. It veers too often into the terrain of impersonation, and this is even more off-putting given Dylan is still alive. Throw in Chalamet’s (certainly accomplished) singing of Dylan’s songs, and it feels like we’re watching someone do karaoke really well. <figure><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/FdV-Cs5o8mc?wmode=transparent&start=0" width="440" height="260" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe></figure> The Substance tries to shock and titillate the viewer with its caricature of celebrity in an era of body modification and mega-media corporations. Demi Moore, Margaret Qualley and Dennis Quaid try hard to be funny, but the whole thing plays like an undergraduate essay that makes the same point ad nauseam. Though the actors surely had fun, there’s nothing compelling about their guffawing. This is also the problem with messy hybrid musical-thriller Emilia Pérez, the other over-the-top genre film tipped by some to win the award. The film, following a cartel leader who disappears and transitions into a woman, is overly dependent on making a point about the world outside of itself. This point is so obvious that it rapidly becomes tedious, with insufficient attention given to the formal and narrative tensions and ambiguities that compel an audience to engage with a film on a serious, visceral level. Dune: Part Two sounds and looks good, but is more meandering than Part One in developing Herbert’s unwieldy epic. If you liked Part One, you’ll probably like Part Two, but it’s not exactly cutting-edge material. <figure><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Qlbr7gJgBus?wmode=transparent&start=0" width="440" height="260" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe></figure> Nickel Boys is a low-key, sentimental rendition of Colson Whitehead’s novel about two African American boys sent to a reform school in Florida in the early 1960s, and their coming of age as they survive myriad abuses. It’s watchable, if not particularly memorable. Finally, Wicked is, well … Wicked. If you like the musical you may like the film (although the live aspect of musicals makes this one play better on the stage than on the screen, unlike The Wizard of Oz, which was made for the screen). In any case, it’s not ridiculously bad, even though it is too long. <h2>A few top contenders</h2> Walter Salles’ I’m Still Here – which traces the struggle of an activist in Brazil after the forced disappearance of her husband in 1970 – works well in its evocation of place and time, and should soften the heart of even the most cynical viewer. Based on Marcelo Rubens Paiva’s 2015 memoir, the entire film is washed over with a faint scent of nostalgia that complements the idea of failing to find, and then remembering, that which is missing. <figure><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/gDunV808Yf4?wmode=transparent&start=0" width="440" height="260" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe></figure> Conclave, adapted from Robert Harris’ novel, is another solidly made affair. It follows the political machinations of the Vatican as the Dean of Cardinals sets up a conclave to elect a new pope after the previous one dies of a heart attack. Ralph Fiennes is as effective and sombre as usual in the lead role as Cardinal Lawrence and various twists and turns keep us watching throughout. But one suspects the primary pleasure of the film is that it seems to offer an insider’s view of the Vatican, including all the fetishistic processes and rituals. Despite its serious tone, Conclave is a fun romp. And what a pleasure it is to watch Isabella Rossellini on the big screen once again. <h2>The strongest nominee</h2> The film that is most classically like a best picture nominee is The Brutalist – an epic, visually-magnificent study of the struggles of (fictional) architect László Toth, a Hungarian Jew who moves to America following the Holocaust. <figure><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/GdRXPAHIEW4?wmode=transparent&start=0" width="440" height="260" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe></figure> Testament to the technical accomplishments of the film, and its superb creation of a coherent world, The Brutalist runs close to four hours (thankfully with an intermission) without becoming tedious. It chugs along with the relentless momentum of a steam engine. Adrien Brody is charming as Toth, endowing the character with a roguish and playful quality, and the supporting cast are solid. Akin to one of Toth’s constructions (as we hear in the epilogue section), the film neither indicates nor tells us anything beyond itself. There may be conclusions to be drawn regarding the relationship between art, power and capitalism, but the film gives you the space to devise these yourself. The film is, in a sense, beautifully mute. Out of all the nominations, The Brutalist is the only one that feels like a genuine best picture contender (with something of the grandeur of classical Hollywood cinema about it). Although many critics <a href="https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-features/oscars-2025-who-will-win-should-win-1236146220/">are</a> <a href="https://variety.com/lists/2025-oscars-predictions/">predicting</a> Anora will win, The Brutalist is the strongest of the nominees. That said, my pick for the best film of 2024 goes to a production that didn’t get a best picture nomination (as usual). Magnus von Horn’s The Girl With the Needle is a stunning Danish expressionistic nightmare that seamlessly integrates formal experimentation with a thrilling and horrific true crime narrative. It is absolutely sensational – the kind of thing you never forget. Thankfully, it has been recognised through its nomination for best international feature film.<img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/250783/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /> <figure><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/NdjhUNH5v3Q?wmode=transparent&start=0" width="440" height="260" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe></figure> <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/ari-mattes-97857">Ari Mattes</a>, Lecturer in Communications and Media, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-notre-dame-australia-852">University of Notre Dame Australia</a> Image credits: Brookstreet Pictures This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/oscars-2025-who-will-likely-win-who-should-win-and-who-barely-deserves-to-be-there-250783">original article</a>. </div>

Movies

Most retirees who rent live in poverty. Here’s how boosting rent assistance could help lift them out of it

<div class="theconversation-article-body"><a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/brendan-coates-154644">Brendan Coates</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/grattan-institute-1168">Grattan Institute</a>; <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/joey-moloney-1334959">Joey Moloney</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/grattan-institute-1168">Grattan Institute</a>, and <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/matthew-bowes-2316740">Matthew Bowes</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/grattan-institute-1168">Grattan Institute</a> Most Australians can look forward to a comfortable retirement. More than three in four retirees own their own home, most report feeling comfortable financially, and few suffer financial stress. But our new Grattan Institute <a href="https://grattan.edu.au/report/renting-in-retirement-why-rent-assistance-needs-to-rise/">report</a> paints a sobering picture for one group: retirees who rent in the private market. Two-thirds of this group live in poverty, including more than three in four single women who live alone. <hr /> <iframe id="x2VND" class="tc-infographic-datawrapper" style="border: 0;" src="https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/x2VND/" width="100%" height="400px" frameborder="0" scrolling="no"></iframe> <hr /> Retirees who rent often have little in the way of retirement savings: more than half have less than A$25,000 stashed away. And a growing number of older Australians are at risk of becoming homeless. But our research also shows just how much we’d need to boost Commonwealth Rent Assistance to make housing more affordable and ensure all renters are able to retire with dignity. <h2>Today’s renters, tomorrow’s renting retirees</h2> Home ownership is falling among poorer Australians who are approaching retirement. Between 1981 and 2021, home ownership rates among the poorest 40% of 45–54-year-olds fell from 68% to just 54%. Today’s low-income renters are tomorrow’s renting retirees. Age pensioners need at least $40,000 in savings to afford to spend $350 a week in rent, together with the <a href="https://www.servicesaustralia.gov.au/age-pension">Age Pension</a> and <a href="https://www.servicesaustralia.gov.au/rent-assistance">Rent Assistance</a>. That’s enough to afford the cheapest 25% of one-bedroom homes in capital cities. But Australians who are renting as they approach retirement tend to have little in the way of retirement savings. 40% of renting households aged 55-64 have net financial wealth less than $40,000. <h2>Rent assistance is too low</h2> Our <a href="https://grattan.edu.au/report/renting-in-retirement-why-rent-assistance-needs-to-rise/">research</a> shows that Commonwealth Rent Assistance, which supplements the Age Pension for poorer retirees who rent, is inadequate. The federal government has <a href="https://ministers.treasury.gov.au/ministers/jim-chalmers-2022/speeches/budget-speech-2024-25">lifted the maximum rate of Rent Assistance</a> by 27% – over and above inflation – in the past two budgets. But the payment remains too low. A typical single retiree needs at least $379 per week to afford essential non-housing costs such as food, transport and energy. But we found a single pensioner who relies solely on income support can afford to rent just 4% of one-bedroom homes in Sydney, 13% in Brisbane, and 14% in Melbourne, after covering these basic living expenses. With Rent Assistance indexed to inflation, rather than low-income earners’ housing costs, the maximum rate of the payment has increased by 136% since 2001, while the rents paid by recipients have increased by 193%. <h2>A boost is needed</h2> Our analysis suggests that to solve this problem, the federal government should increase the maximum rate of Rent Assistance by 50% for singles and 40% for couples. The payment should also be indexed to changes in rents for the cheapest 25% of homes in our capital cities. These increases would boost the maximum rate of Rent Assistance by $53 a week ($2,750 a year) for singles, and $40 a week ($2,080 a year) for couples. This would ensure single retirees could afford to spend $350 a week on rent, enough to rent the cheapest 25% of one-bedroom homes across Australian capital cities, while still affording other essentials. Similarly, retired couples would be able to afford to spend $390 a week on rent, enough to rent the cheapest 25% of all one- and two-bedroom homes. <hr /> <iframe id="EZBuw" class="tc-infographic-datawrapper" style="border: 0;" src="https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/EZBuw/" width="100%" height="400px" frameborder="0" scrolling="no"></iframe> <hr /> <h2>Unlikely to push up rents</h2> One common concern is that increasing Rent Assistance will just lead landlords to hike rents. But we find little evidence that this is the case. International studies suggest that more than five in six dollars of any extra Rent Assistance paid would benefit renters, rather than landlords. <hr /> <iframe id="qGxQE" class="tc-infographic-datawrapper" style="border: 0;" src="https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/qGxQE/" width="100%" height="400px" frameborder="0" scrolling="no"></iframe> <hr /> In Australia, there’s little evidence that recent increases in Rent Assistance have pushed up rents. Our analysis of NSW rental bond lodgement data suggests areas with higher concentrations of Rent Assistance recipients did not see larger rent increases in the year after the payment was boosted. That’s not surprising. Rent Assistance is paid to tenants, not landlords, which means tenants are likely to spend only a small portion of any extra income on housing. Since rates of financial stress are even higher among younger renters, we propose that any increase to Rent Assistance should also apply to working-age households. Boosting Rent Assistance for all recipients would cost about $2 billion a year, with about $500 million of this going to retirees. These increases could be paid for by further <a href="https://grattan.edu.au/report/super-savings-practical-policies-for-fairer-superannuation-and-a-stronger-budget/">tightening superannuation tax breaks</a>, <a href="https://grattan.edu.au/report/housing-affordability-re-imagining-the-australian-dream/">curbing negative gearing and halving the capital gains tax discount</a>, or counting more of the value of the family home in the Age Pension assets test.<img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/249134/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /> <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/brendan-coates-154644">Brendan Coates</a>, Program Director, Housing and Economic Security, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/grattan-institute-1168">Grattan Institute</a>; <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/joey-moloney-1334959">Joey Moloney</a>, Deputy Program Director, Housing and Economic Security, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/grattan-institute-1168">Grattan Institute</a>, and <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/matthew-bowes-2316740">Matthew Bowes</a>, Associate, Housing and Economic Security, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/grattan-institute-1168">Grattan Institute</a> Image credits: Shutterstock This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/most-retirees-who-rent-live-in-poverty-heres-how-boosting-rent-assistance-could-help-lift-them-out-of-it-249134">original article</a>. </div>

Money & Banking

Aussie mums rally behind woman who confronted daughter's bully

A group of mums have rallied behind a pregnant woman who <a href="https://oversixty.com.au/lifestyle/family-pets/mother-breaks-silence-after-confronting-daughter-s-bully" target="_blank" rel="noopener">stormed</a> into her daughter's classroom to confront the 12-year-old who was bullying her. The mother from Adelaide made headlines after she walked into her daughter's classroom at St Paul's College in Gillies Plains, north-east Adelaide, on Monday, where she launched into an expletive-ridden tirade at her daughter's bully. The mother told <a href="https://7news.com.au/news/sa/mother-of-adelaide-bullying-victim-speaks-out-after-angry-st-pauls-college-spray-caught-on-social-media--c-17621578" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Seven News</a> that she and her husband had pleaded with the school to intervene in her daughter's alleged bullying, but said that fell on deaf ears. "I don't want my daughter to be another statistic. I don't want to have to bury my child," she said. "She was crying, she was devastated that this child told her to go and hang herself." After the woman lashed out at her daughter's bully, she issued an apology saying, "What everybody has seen of me is not who I am as a mother or as a person." However, many thought she had nothing to apologise for, as many women rallied behind her online saying they would have done the same thing if their child was being bullied. Young mum and personal trainer Jess Dickson stood up for the woman, saying for a mum to "lose her s**** like that" shows that she genuinely believed her daughter's life was at stake. "The tonality, and the frustration, and the fear, and just the 'f*** you' in her voice it really shows that this was a final straw for this mum," she said in a TikTok video. "Now in the past year, multiple children have committed suicide because of bullying because no one stands up for them. Teachers and parents might not see it, and the parents of the bullies probably just say, 'Oh no, that's not my kid'." Many agreed with Ms Dickson's take, saying they would "rather attend court than their child's funeral". "Team Mumma Bear all the way... Personally, I would have been right there beside her if my kid was in the same school," one mum wrote. "Soooo on team Mama Bear. I fear I would be a bit more psychotic," another agreed. Image credits: Seven News

Family & Pets

Readers response: Who is your favourite Australian artist, writer, or musician?

We asked our readers who their favourite Australian artist, writer, or musicians are, and the response was overwhelming. Here's what they said about their favourite homegrown talents. Greg Curtin - Judith Durham. Her voice had an amazing quality. Julie Richardson - Australia has a number of top artists, my personal favourite is John Farnham. Gail Ladds - Russell Morris. Absolutely brilliant voice. Denise Houlihan - Such a tough one, so many great musicians, one under the radar was Mark Gillespie, he always made good music. Top of the voices would have to be John Farnham, but so many! Neil Watt - So many brilliant artists in this country. Joe Camilleri is a particular fave. Faye Inskip - My favourite writer is Fiona Macintosh...her books are well researched and well written. Catherine Borthwick - Any member of Powderfinger for sure! They were all brilliant. Vicki Coulta - John Farnham, Shirley from Skyhooks, Jimmy Barnes, Russell Morris, Michael Hutchence from INXS, Bon Scott from AC/DC and so many more! Dianne Strachan - John Williamson. Sue Pentecost - Delta Goodrem! Great singer. Image credits: Shutterstock

Music

Why the WHO has recommended switching to a healthier salt alternative

<div class="theconversation-article-body"> <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/xiaoyue-luna-xu-1388807">Xiaoyue (Luna) Xu</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/unsw-sydney-1414">UNSW Sydney</a> and <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/bruce-neal-69">Bruce Neal</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/george-institute-for-global-health-874">George Institute for Global Health</a> This week the <a href="https://www.who.int/news-room/events/detail/2025/01/27/default-calendar/launch-of-the-who-guideline-on-the-use-of-lower-sodium-salt-substitutes">World Health Organization</a> (WHO) released new guidelines recommending people switch the regular salt they use at home for substitutes containing less sodium. But what exactly are these salt alternatives? And why is the WHO recommending this? Let’s take a look. <h2>A new solution to an old problem</h2> Advice to eat less salt (sodium chloride) is not new. It has been part of international and Australian guidelines <a href="https://www.ahajournals.org/doi/full/10.1161/HYPERTENSIONAHA.123.21343?rfr_dat=cr_pub++0pubmed&url_ver=Z39.88-2003&rfr_id=ori%3Arid%3Acrossref.org">for decades</a>. This is because evidence clearly shows the sodium in salt can <a href="https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/salt-reduction">harm our health</a> when we eat too much of it. Excess sodium increases the risk of high blood pressure, which affects millions of Australians (around <a href="https://www.aihw.gov.au/reports/risk-factors/high-blood-pressure/contents/summary">one in three adults</a>). High blood pressure (<a href="https://www.healthdirect.gov.au/high-blood-pressure-hypertension">hypertension</a>) in turn increases the risk of heart disease, stroke and kidney disease, among other conditions. The WHO estimates <a href="https://www.who.int/news-room/events/detail/2025/01/27/default-calendar/launch-of-the-who-guideline-on-the-use-of-lower-sodium-salt-substitutes">1.9 million deaths</a> globally each year can be attributed to eating too much salt. The WHO recommends consuming no more than <a href="https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/salt-reduction">2g of sodium daily</a>. However people eat on average more than double this, around <a href="https://www.who.int/news-room/events/detail/2025/01/27/default-calendar/launch-of-the-who-guideline-on-the-use-of-lower-sodium-salt-substitutes">4.3g a day</a>. In 2013, WHO member states <a href="https://iris.who.int/bitstream/handle/10665/366393/9789240069985-eng.pdf?sequence=1">committed to reducing</a> population sodium intake <a href="https://www.who.int/news/item/09-03-2023-massive-efforts-needed-to-reduce-salt-intake-and-protect-lives">by 30% by 2025</a>. But cutting salt intake has proved very hard. Most countries, including Australia, will not meet the WHO’s goal for reducing sodium intake <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2161831322004690?via%3Dihub_">by 2025</a>. The WHO has since <a href="https://www.who.int/news-room/events/detail/2025/01/27/default-calendar/launch-of-the-who-guideline-on-the-use-of-lower-sodium-salt-substitutes">set the same target for 2030</a>. The difficulty is that eating less salt means accepting a less salty taste. It also requires changes to established ways of preparing food. This has proved too much to ask of people making food at home, and too much for the food industry. <h2>Enter potassium-enriched salt</h2> The main lower-sodium salt substitute is called potassium-enriched salt. This is salt where some of the sodium chloride has been replaced with potassium chloride. Potassium is an <a href="https://www.healthdirect.gov.au/potassium">essential mineral</a>, playing a key role in all the body’s functions. The high potassium content of fresh fruit and vegetables is one of the main reasons they’re so good for you. While people are eating more sodium than they should, many don’t get enough potassium. The WHO recommends a daily potassium intake of 3.5g, but on the whole, people in most countries consume significantly <a href="https://www.ahajournals.org/doi/full/10.1161/HYPERTENSIONAHA.123.21343?rfr_dat=cr_pub++0pubmed&url_ver=Z39.88-2003&rfr_id=ori%3Arid%3Acrossref.org">less than this</a>. Potassium-enriched salt benefits our health by cutting the amount of sodium we consume, and increasing the amount of potassium in our diets. Both help to <a href="https://theconversation.com/this-salt-alternative-could-help-reduce-blood-pressure-so-why-are-so-few-people-using-it-221409">lower blood pressure</a>. Switching regular salt for potassium-enriched salt has been shown to <a href="https://heart.bmj.com/content/108/20/1608">reduce the risk</a> of heart disease, stroke and premature death in large trials around the world. Modelling studies have projected that population-wide switches to potassium-enriched salt use would prevent hundreds of thousands of deaths from cardiovascular disease (such as heart attack and stroke) each year in <a href="https://www.bmj.com/content/369/bmj.m824.long">China</a> and <a href="https://www.ahajournals.org/doi/10.1161/HYPERTENSIONAHA.122.19072?url_ver=Z39.88-2003&rfr_id=ori:rid:crossref.org&rfr_dat=cr_pub%20%200pubme">India</a> alone. The key advantage of switching rather than cutting salt intake is that potassium-enriched salt can be used as a direct one-for-one swap for regular salt. It looks the same, works for seasoning and in recipes, and most people don’t notice any important <a href="https://theconversation.com/this-salt-alternative-could-help-reduce-blood-pressure-so-why-are-so-few-people-using-it-221409">difference in taste</a>. In the <a href="https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMoa2105675">largest trial</a> of potassium-enriched salt to date, more than 90% of people were still using the product after five years. <h2>Making the switch: some challenges</h2> If fully implemented, this could be one of the most consequential pieces of advice the WHO has ever provided. Millions of strokes and heart attacks could be prevented worldwide each year with a simple switch to the way we prepare foods. But there are some obstacles to overcome before we get to this point. First, it will be important to balance the benefits and the risks. For example, people with <a href="https://www.ahajournals.org/doi/full/10.1161/HYPERTENSIONAHA.123.21343?rfr_dat=cr_pub++0pubmed&url_ver=Z39.88-2003&rfr_id=ori%3Arid%3Acrossref.org">advanced kidney disease</a> don’t handle potassium well and so these products are not suitable for them. This is only <a href="https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC8177747/">a small proportion</a> of the population, but we need to ensure potassium-enriched salt products are labelled with appropriate warnings. A key challenge will be making potassium-enriched salt more affordable and accessible. Potassium chloride is more expensive to produce than sodium chloride, and at present, potassium-enriched salt is mostly sold as a niche health product at a <a href="https://publichealth.jmir.org/2021/7/e27423">premium price</a>. If you’re looking for it, <a href="https://www.georgeinstitute.org/switchthesalt#card-with-text-2166">salt substitutes</a> may also be called low-sodium salt, potassium salt, heart salt, mineral salt, or sodium-reduced salt. A <a href="https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC8319774/">review published in 2021</a> found low sodium salts were marketed in only 47 countries, mostly high-income ones. Prices ranged from the same as regular salt to almost 15 times higher. An expanded supply chain that produces much more food-grade potassium chloride will be needed to enable wider availability of the product. And we’ll need to see potassium-enriched salt on the shelves next to regular salt so it’s easy for people to find. In countries like Australia, about 80% of the salt we eat comes from <a href="https://www.foodstandards.gov.au/consumer/nutrition/sodium-salt/salthowmuch">processed foods</a>. The WHO guideline falls short by not explicitly prioritising a switch for the salt used in food manufacturing. Stakeholders working with government to encourage food industry uptake will be essential for maximising the health benefits.<img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/248436/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /> <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/xiaoyue-luna-xu-1388807">Xiaoyue (Luna) Xu</a>, Scientia Lecturer, School of Population Health, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/unsw-sydney-1414">UNSW Sydney</a> and <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/bruce-neal-69">Bruce Neal</a>, Executive Director, George Institute Australia, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/george-institute-for-global-health-874">George Institute for Global Health</a> Image credits: Shutterstock This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/why-the-who-has-recommended-switching-to-a-healthier-salt-alternative-248436">original article</a>. </div>

Body

Readers response: Who's your favourite vocalist of all time?

We asked our readers who their favourite vocalist of all time is, and the response was overwhelming. Here's what they said. Regina Johnson - Barbra Streisand. Vicki Bell - Roy Orbison, hands down. Anne Denise Houghton - I think it’s a tie between Roy Orbison and Freddie Mercury. Christine Phillips - Elvis Presley. That was voice straight out of heaven. Barbara Moretti - Luciano Pavarotti and Barbra Streisand. Marilyn Sheldrick - Tom Jones. Sue McKinnon - Eric Clapton, plus his guitar ability! Kristeen Collison - John Farnham! Australian legend. Lyn Gardiner - Male: Elvis. Female: Karen Carpenter and Linda Ronstadt. Can't separate them. Mary Bartlett - Don Williams, the gentle giant. Deb Wagner - Leonard Cohen. Cheryl Barrett - Freddie Mercury hands down. Peter Brady - Aretha Franklin. Karen Turner - Rod Stewart, Robbie Williams and John Farnham. Image credits: Shutterstock

Music

Man who worked on Harbour Bridge climbs iconic landmark

An elderly man who worked on the Sydney Harbour Bridge 60 years ago has returned to Australia to climb the iconic landmark. Irishman Patrick Lonergan, 82, was part of a team of men who painted the Harbour Bridge in the 1960s as part of its yearly maintenance. Lonergan then returned to his native Ireland after his work in Sydney and has dreamed of returning ever since. Now in his 80s, the Sydney Bridge Climb official Instagram page has shared that Patrick has ticked off his bucket list dream of climbing the Harbour Bridge. "We’re honoured to have played a small role in helping him relive those special memories and capture a new photo on the Bridge," the account wrote. <blockquote class="instagram-media" style="background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/p/DE4XDIMvCgm/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="14"> <div style="padding: 16px;"> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;"> </div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;"> </div> </div> </div> <div style="padding: 19% 0;"> </div> <div style="display: block; height: 50px; margin: 0 auto 12px; width: 50px;"> </div> <div style="padding-top: 8px;"> <div style="color: #3897f0; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;">View this post on Instagram</div> </div> <div style="padding: 12.5% 0;"> </div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; margin-bottom: 14px; align-items: center;"> <div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(0px) translateY(7px);"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; height: 12.5px; transform: rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px); width: 12.5px; flex-grow: 0; margin-right: 14px; margin-left: 2px;"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(9px) translateY(-18px);"> </div> </div> <div style="margin-left: 8px;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 20px; width: 20px;"> </div> <div style="width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 2px solid transparent; border-left: 6px solid #f4f4f4; border-bottom: 2px solid transparent; transform: translateX(16px) translateY(-4px) rotate(30deg);"> </div> </div> <div style="margin-left: auto;"> <div style="width: 0px; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-right: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(16px);"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12px; width: 16px; transform: translateY(-4px);"> </div> <div style="width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-left: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(-4px) translateX(8px);"> </div> </div> </div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 24px;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 224px;"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 144px;"> </div> </div> <p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><a style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;" href="https://www.instagram.com/p/DE4XDIMvCgm/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank" rel="noopener">A post shared by BridgeClimb Sydney (@bridgeclimb)</a> </div> </blockquote> The Instagram page then shared a photo of Patrick from when he was in his 20s standing atop the bridge when he was enlisted to paint, and also a photo snapped after he completed his climb. The post racked up thousands of likes, with dozens of comments praising Patrick's efforts for completing the climb. One person wrote, "Blimey!!! No OH&S precautions back in those days! Welcome back to Oz, Paddy," while another added, "What a fantastic story. Well done Patrick!" Image credits: Instagram - Bridge Climb

International Travel

Does ‘made with love’ sell? Research reveals who values handmade products the most

<div class="theconversation-article-body"><a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/tuba-degirmenci-2291455">Tuba Degirmenci</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/queensland-university-of-technology-847">Queensland University of Technology</a>; <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/frank-mathmann-703900">Frank Mathmann</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/queensland-university-of-technology-847">Queensland University of Technology</a>, and <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/gary-mortimer-1322">Gary Mortimer</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/queensland-university-of-technology-847">Queensland University of Technology</a> We’ve all seen the marketing message “handmade with love”. It’s designed to tug at our heartstrings, suggesting extra care and affection went into crafting a product. As Valentine’s Day approaches, many businesses will ramp up such messaging in their advertising. Handmade gifts are often cast as more thoughtful, special options than their mass-produced, machine-made alternatives. But does “love” actually sell? Our new <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/cb.2455">research</a>, published in the Journal of Consumer Behaviour, reveals not everyone feels the same way about these labels. Why do some people feel handmade products are made with love, while others don’t really care? We found it’s all about how they approach purchase decisions. <h2>A deeper, human connection</h2> Why do businesses market products as handmade? Previous research has shown handmade labels can lead to higher positive emotions. This tendency is known as the “<a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1509/jm.14.0018">handmade effect</a>”. In a world of seemingly perfect and polished products, <a href="https://www.emerald.com/insight/content/doi/10.1108/09590551211267593/full/html">research</a> shows consumers increasingly prefer human (as opposed to machine) interactions, including in their shopping experiences. It’s also been shown that giving handmade gifts can <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11002-024-09722-w">promote social relationships</a>. We often associated handmade products with smaller “cottage” retailers. But many major global retailers – including <a href="https://www.amazon.com/b?ie=UTF8&node=120955898011">Amazon</a> and <a href="https://www.ikea.com/au/en/new/handcrafted-textiles-for-a-better-future-pub6fc26570/">IKEA</a> – have strategically introduced handmade products, aiming to connect on a deeper emotional level with their consumers. Our research found not all consumers respond in the same way to these marketing messages. <figure><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/kYn-xUjv_qs?wmode=transparent&start=0" width="440" height="260" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe><figcaption>IKEA has previously run a dedicated handmade marketing campaign.</figcaption></figure> <h2>Who cares about love?</h2> Across two studies, we found that the response to marketing products as “handmade” depends on a consumer’s locomotion orientation – put simply, how they approach decisions and other actions. <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0022435917300155">Low-locomotion individuals</a> take things more slowly. They take their time and can thoroughly consider their purchase decisions. Think of them as the “mindful”. In contrast, high-locomotion individuals are “doers”. They like to get things done quickly without getting stuck in the details. They are the “grab-and-go” shopper. When the way they perform an action – such as making a purchase – matches their fast-paced mindset, something remarkable happens: they experience what’s called “<a href="https://myscp.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/jcpy.1317">regulatory fit</a>”. This fit boosts their emotions and engagement. <h2>Our first study</h2> In our first study, participants imagined buying a gift for a loved one. They were split into three groups and presented with a photo of the same mug. One group was informed that the mug was “handmade”, one group informed it was “machine-made”, and the last group was not offered any “production cue”. We also asked and measured how much “love” they felt the mug contained – and how much they would pay for it. The handmade mug evoked more love and led to a higher willingness to pay – but only for those with a “low-locomotion” orientation. High-locomotion individuals didn’t react in the same way. For these “doers”, the backstory of how the mug had been made wasn’t as important as just getting a product they needed. For the “doers”, the benefits of marketing the mug as handmade actually backfired. They felt more love for the mug if it had no label at all. <h2>Our second study</h2> By communicating with consumers on social media, marketers can trigger a mindset called “regulatory locomotion mode”. Put simply, this is the mode where we take action and make progress toward goals. Marketers can do this by using <a href="https://psycnet.apa.org/doiLanding?doi=10.1037%2F0022-3514.79.5.793">locomotion-activating</a> words such as “move” and “go” to encourage active decision-making. To borrow one famous example from Nike: “<a href="https://psycnet.apa.org/doiLanding?doi=10.1037%2F0022-3514.79.5.793">Just Do It</a>”. Our second study examined the marketer-generated content of over 9,000 Facebook posts from the verified <a href="https://www.facebook.com/Etsy">Etsy</a> Facebook page. We analysed how locomotion-activating words in social media posts for handmade products influence consumer engagement. In other words, we wanted to understand how these words affected social media engagement with the potential consumers reading them, particularly in terms of social media shares. We found the higher an individual’s locomotion orientation was, the fewer social media “shares” for handmade products occurred. <h2>So, does handmade really matter?</h2> As we get closer to Valentine’s Day, understanding these differences can help retailers tailor their marketing strategies. For “mindful” customers, retailers should highlight the story of the craftsmanship, care, and love behind a handmade product for Valentine’s Day. Use emotional language such as “made with love”. But be aware this mightn’t work on everyone. For a customer base of “doers”, keep it simple, leaving out unnecessary details about production methods. There are a range of <a href="https://marketingplatform.google.com/about/">website analytical tools</a> that can help retailers identify how their customers approach their purchase decision-making. Do they browse quickly, hopping from one product to the next, opting for “<a href="https://www.business.com/articles/one-click-purchasing-how-click-to-buy-is-revolutionizing-ecommerce/">one-click</a>” purchasing? Or do they take their time, browsing slowly and considering their product selection? Personalised marketing messages can then be crafted to emphasise the aspects – love or efficiency – that matter most to each group. The key lies in knowing who you’re speaking to.<img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/247351/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /> <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/tuba-degirmenci-2291455">Tuba Degirmenci</a>, PhD Candidate School of Advertising, Marketing and Public Relations, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/queensland-university-of-technology-847">Queensland University of Technology</a>; <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/frank-mathmann-703900">Frank Mathmann</a>, Lecturer (Assistant Professor), <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/queensland-university-of-technology-847">Queensland University of Technology</a>, and <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/gary-mortimer-1322">Gary Mortimer</a>, Professor of Marketing and Consumer Behaviour, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/queensland-university-of-technology-847">Queensland University of Technology</a> Image credits: Shutterstock This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/does-made-with-love-sell-research-reveals-who-values-handmade-products-the-most-247351">original article</a>. </div>

Money & Banking

Research suggests those who use buy-now-pay-later services end up spending more

<div class="theconversation-article-body"><a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/ashish-kumar-1056067">Ashish Kumar</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/rmit-university-1063">RMIT University</a> Once, borrowing money to make a purchase was a relatively tedious process, not a spur-of-the-moment thing. True, some stores offered lay-by plans that would let you pay for goods in instalments. But if they didn’t, and you didn’t already have a credit card, you’d have to go to a bank and apply for one. That would mean providing a range of supporting documents, negotiating an appropriate credit limit, and waiting for approval. It’s unlikely you’d apply for credit just for a single, small purchase. In recent years, though, the financial technology or “fintech” revolution in the customer credit market has changed all that, with the meteoric rise of buy-now-pay-later (BNPL) services. BNPL credit allows consumers to split their purchases into smaller, interest-free instalments. It is often directly integrated into online checkouts with fast approval, making it easy to purchase something instantly and spread the cost over coming months. There are some obvious risks. Many BNPL providers charge less visible fees, such as late payment fees and account maintenance fees. In many countries, the BNPL sector is also less regulated than traditional credit. But does it also change our spending habits? Our recent <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jretai.2024.09.004">research</a> uncovered a concerning insight: consumers who use BNPL services end up spending more money online than those who don’t. This effect is particularly strong among younger shoppers and those with lower incomes. <h2>Our research</h2> We <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jretai.2024.09.004">analysed</a> data from an online retailer in the Nordic region that offered customers three payment options for online purchases: card, pay on delivery and BNPL. We found that consumers who used BNPL spent an average of 6.42% more than those who didn’t. This increase was particularly noticeable for low-ticket items, suggesting that BNPL may encourage customers to buy more when shopping for smaller, everyday things. Why might this be the case? For one, BPNL spending is constrained by the size of the loans on offer. In the US, the average BNPL loan amount is <a href="https://files.consumerfinance.gov/f/documents/cfpb_consumer-use-of-buy-now-pay-later_2023-03.pdf">US$135</a> (A$217). It may also be related to what’s known in economics as the “<a href="https://www.theguardian.com/business/2008/dec/22/recession-cosmetics-lipstick">lipstick effect</a>”, where customers under financial strain tend to reduce spending on big-ticket items in favour of lower-priced luxuries. Selling such low-ticket items doesn’t always give online retailers the biggest profit margins. But it can play a crucial role in acquiring and retaining customers, and creating opportunities to upsell. Our research also showed that younger, lower-income customers were more likely to spend more when using BNPL services, likely because it provides them with additional “liquidity” – access to cash. <h2>Why might they be spending more?</h2> It’s easy to see why so many consumers like BNPL. Some even think of it as more of a way of payment than a form of credit. The core feature of such services - offering interest-free instalment payments for online purchases - has a significant psychological impact on customers. It leverages the principle that the perceived benefit of spending in the present outweighs the displeasure associated with future payments. This behaviour aligns with theories of “hyperbolic discounting” – our preference for smaller immediate rewards over larger later ones – and the related “<a href="https://www.behavioraleconomics.com/resources/mini-encyclopedia-of-be/present-bias/">present bias</a>” phenomenon. Our results also suggest customers with high category experience – that is, more familiar with the larger product categories carried by a retailer – and those more sensitive to deals and promotions are likely to spend more when online retailers provide BNPL as a payment option. <h2>A growing influence on spending</h2> The economic impact of BNPL is substantial in the countries that have pioneered its adoption. In Australia, birthplace of Afterpay, Zip, Openpay, and Latitude, it’s <a href="https://www.oxfordeconomics.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/AFIA_BNPL_Research_Report-1.pdf">estimated</a> that (allowing for flow-on effects) BNPL services contributed A$14.3 billion to gross domestic product (GDP) in the 2021 financial year. Industry research firm Juniper Research <a href="https://www.juniperresearch.com/press/pressreleasesbuy-now-pay-later-users-to-exceed-670-million-globally/">projects</a> the number of BNPL users will exceed 670 million globally by 2028, an increase of more than 100% on current levels. Substantial projected growth in the sector is attributed to multiple factors. These include increasing e-commerce usage, economic pressures, the flexibility of payment options and widespread adoption by merchants. <h2>Buyer, beware</h2> BNPL services can be a convenient way to pay for online purchases. But it’s important to use them responsibly. That means understanding the potential risks and benefits to make your own informed decisions. Be mindful of your spending. Don’t let the allure of easy payments let you get carried away. Customers should explore beyond the marketing tactics of interest-free split payments and pay close attention to terms and conditions, including any fees and penalties. They should treat BNPL like any other form of credit. Whether you’re a shopper considering using BNPL or a business thinking about offering it, our research highlights that it may have the power to significantly influence spending patterns – for better or worse.<img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/246686/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /> <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/ashish-kumar-1056067">Ashish Kumar</a>, Senior Lecturer, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/rmit-university-1063">RMIT University</a> Image credits: Shutterstock This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/research-suggests-those-who-use-buy-now-pay-later-services-end-up-spending-more-246686">original article</a>. </div>

Money & Banking

Fears for cruise ship passenger who fell overboard

A passenger onboard the Ruby Princess cruise ship is feared dead after he was nowhere to be found when the ship docked. The alarm was raised when the 72-year-old American man, who was travelling alone, was unable to be locked when ship docked in San Francisco after a five-day voyage around Mexico. A major search for the man has been launched, with fears he fell overboard during the expedition. Princess Cruises told the New York Post that CCTV on the ship has been reviewed and other possibilities for his disappearance have been ruled out. “Princess worked throughout the day with local authorities. CCTV footage has also been extensively reviewed and the ship was searched thoroughly several times without success,” a spokesperson said. “Having ruled out other possibilities, this is being treated as a man overboard incident.” “We extend our heartfelt condolences to the family and friends of the guest who was travelling alone,” the spokesperson added. According to local media outlets, US Customs and Border Protection have taken over the investigation and have dispatched a plane to conduct an air search for the missing man. Image credits: Shutterstock

Travel Trouble

Teen photographer who shared special moment with Kate Middleton dies

Liz Hatton, a teenager who inspired Kate Middleton while pursuing her photography bucket list, has sadly passed away following her battle with a rare form of cancer. The 17-year-old made headlines around the world when she was photographed <a href="https://www.oversixty.com.au/health/caring/kate-middleton-helps-teen-with-cancer-fulfill-bucket-list-dream" target="_blank" rel="noopener">embracing the Princess of Wales</a> during a private meeting inside Windsor Castle in early October. Liz's mother, Vicky Robayna, confirmed that the teenager had passed away in the early hours of Wednesday morning. Robanya wrote on X, formerly Twitter, that Liz had "remained determined to the last" and was still making plans for her future on Tuesday. "We are so very proud of the kindness, empathy and courage she has shown in the last year," she wrote. Liz began pursuing her photography bucket list in January after being diagnosed with desmoplastic small round cell tumour, a rare and aggressive form of cancer and given between six months and three years to live by doctors. She had dropped her formal studies in favour of following her dream of photography, and in October, she was invited by the Prince of Wales to take photos at an investiture. The teenager also had a 30-minute personal chat with the royal couple, and her photos at Windsor Castle were later published by Kensington Palace. In a personal message, the Prince and Princess of Wales described Liz as a "talented young photographer whose creativity and strength has inspired us both". Liz's mother also wrote that not only was she "a phenomenal photographer, she was the best human and the most wonderful daughter and big sister we could ever have asked for". "No-one could have fought harder for life than she did," she said. "There is a gaping Liz-shaped hole in our lives that I am not sure how we will ever fill." She also thanked everyone who helped the teenager fulfil her dreams in her final months, and for those who supported her work. "You ensured Liz's last two months were her very best. She flew high until the end." There is currently no standard treatment for the type of cancer Liz had, and no charity specialising in the disease in the UK. Roboyna said that there were "two last favours to ask", and they included sharing one of Liz's photos in tribute and "help us with a mission to raise money to fund research into Desmoplastic Small Round Cell Tumour". "Whether you can share, donate or raise funds – please be our village one more time," her mother said. "Let's make this the last item on her bucket list and make sure other families don't face a similar fate." Image: Kensington Palace/ X

Caring

Cop who fatally tasered grandmother learns fate

A jury has found a police officer guilty of manslaughter after he fatally tasered a grandmother in a care home. Senior Constable Kristian James Samuel White, 34, discharged his stun gun at 95-year-old Clare Nowland in a treatment room at Yallambee Lodge aged-care home in the southern NSW town of Cooma during the early hours of May 17th 2023. In video footage played at his NSW Supreme Court trial, he was heard saying “nah, bugger it” before shooting the great-grandmother, who was holding a knife, in the torso. Nowland fell and hit her head, and died in hospital a week later. During the trial, the jurors heard eight days of evidence and submissions in the trial, including from the nursing staff, paramedics and White’s police supervisor who were there at the time he fired. After deliberating for 20 hours, a 12-person jury returned with a guilty verdict of manslaughter on Wednesday in the NSW Supreme Court. The offence of manslaughter carries a maximum sentence of 25 years in prison in New South Wales. The Crown has applied for White to be taken in custody ahead of sentencing, with the application to be determined on Thursday. The family of Clare Nowland issued a statement through their lawyer Sam Tierney, which read, “The Nowland family were present in court today when Kristian White was convicted of the manslaughter of their beloved mother, grandmother and great-grandmother Clare.” “The family will take some time to come to terms with the jury’s confirmation that Clare’s death at the hands of a serving NSW police officer was a criminal and unjustified act. The family would like to thank the Judge and jury for carefully considering the matter and the DPP prosecution team for their hard work.” Image credits: 9News

Legal

From eye exams to blood tests and surgery: how doctors use light to diagnose disease

<div class="theconversation-article-body"><a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/matthew-griffith-1539353">Matthew Griffith</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-south-australia-1180">University of South Australia</a> You’re not feeling well. You’ve had a pounding headache all week, dizzy spells and have vomited up your past few meals. You visit your GP to get some answers and sit while they shine a light in your eyes, order a blood test and request some medical imaging. Everything your GP just did relies on light. These are just some of the optical technologies that have had an enormous impact in how we diagnose disease. <h2>1. On-the-spot tests</h2> Point-of-care diagnostics allow doctors to test patients on the spot and get answers in minutes, rather than sending samples to a lab for analysis. The “flashlight” your GP uses to view the inside of your eye (known as an <a href="https://medlineplus.gov/ency/article/003881.htm">ophthalmoscope</a>) is a great example. This allows doctors to detect abnormal blood flow in the eye, deformations of the cornea (the outermost clear layer of the eye), or swollen optical discs (a round section at the back of the eye where the nerve link to the brain begins). Swollen discs are a sign of elevated pressure inside your head (or in the worst case, a brain tumour) that could be <a href="https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/conditions-and-diseases/headache/increased-intracranial-pressure-icp-headache">causing your headaches</a>. The invention of <a href="https://openmedscience.com/lighting-the-way-in-healthcare-the-transformative-role-of-lasers-in-medicine/">lasers and LEDs</a> has enabled many other miniaturised technologies to be provided at the bedside or clinic rather than in the lab. <a href="https://theconversation.com/whats-a-pulse-oximeter-should-i-buy-one-to-monitor-covid-at-home-174457">Pulse oximetry</a> is a famous example, where a clip attached to your finger reports how well your blood is oxygenated. It does this by <a href="https://www.howequipmentworks.com/pulse_oximeter/">measuring</a> the different responses of oxygenated and de-oxygenated blood to different colours of light. Pulse oximetry is used at hospitals (and <a href="https://theconversation.com/whats-a-pulse-oximeter-should-i-buy-one-to-monitor-covid-at-home-174457">sometimes at home</a>) to monitor your respiratory and heart health. In hospitals, it is also a valuable tool for detecting <a href="https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(12)60107-X/fulltext">heart defects in babies</a>. <h2>2. Looking at molecules</h2> Now, back to that blood test. Analysing a small amount of your blood can diagnose <a href="https://theconversation.com/blood-tests-and-diagnosing-illness-what-can-blood-tell-us-about-whats-happening-in-our-body-80327">many different diseases</a>. A machine called an automated “full blood count analyser” tests for general markers of your health. This machine directs focused beams of light through blood samples held in small glass tubes. It counts the number of blood cells, determines their specific type, and reports the level of haemoglobin (the protein in red blood cells that distributes oxygen around your body). In minutes, this machine can provide a <a href="https://www.nuffieldhealth.com/article/inside-the-pathology-lab-what-happens-to-my-blood">snapshot</a> of your overall health. For more specific disease markers, blood serum is separated from the heavier cells by spinning in a rotating instrument called a centrifuge. The serum is then exposed to special chemical stains and enzyme assays that change colour depending on whether specific molecules, which may be the sign of a disease, are present. These colour changes can’t be detected with the naked eye. However, a light beam from an instrument called a <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5476943/#R88">spectrometer</a> can detect tiny amounts of these substances in the blood and determine if the biomarkers for diseases are present, and at what levels. <h2>3. Medical imaging</h2> Let’s re-visit those medical images your GP ordered. The development of fibre-optic technology, made famous for transforming high-speed digital communications (such as the NBN), allows light to get inside the body. The result? High-resolution optical imaging. A common example is an <a href="https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/153737#risks-and-side-effects">endoscope</a>, where fibres with a tiny camera on the end are inserted into the body’s natural openings (such as your mouth or anus) to examine your gut or respiratory tracts. Surgeons can insert the same technology through tiny cuts to view the inside of the body on a video screen during <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9553337/">laparoscopic surgery</a> (also known as keyhole surgery) to diagnose and treat disease. <h2>How about the future?</h2> Progress in nanotechnology and a better understanding of the interactions of light with our tissues are leading to new light-based tools to help diagnose disease. These include: <ul> <li> <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/advs.201903441">nanomaterials</a> (materials on an extremely small scale, many thousands of times smaller than the width of a human hair). These are being used in next-generation sensors and new diagnostic tests </li> <li> <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41587-019-0045-y">wearable optical biosensors</a> the size of your fingernail can be included in devices such as watches, contact lenses or finger wraps. These devices allow non-invasive measurements of sweat, tears and saliva, in real time </li> <li> AI tools to analyse how blood serum scatters infrared light. This has allowed researchers to build a <a href="https://www.advancedsciencenews.com/powerful-diagnostic-approach-uses-light-to-detect-virtually-all-forms-of-cancer/">comprehensive database</a> of scatter patterns to detect <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/aisy.202300006">any cancer</a> </li> <li> a type of non-invasive imaging called <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK554044/">optical coherence tomography</a> for more detailed imaging of the eye, heart and skin </li> <li> fibre optic technology to deliver a tiny microscope into the body on the <a href="https://www.uwa.edu.au/projects/microscope-in-a-needle">tip of a needle</a>. </li> </ul> So the next time you’re at the GP and they perform (or order) some tests, chances are that at least one of those tests depend on light to help diagnose disease.<img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/231379/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /> <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/matthew-griffith-1539353">Matthew Griffith</a>, Associate Professor and ARC Future Fellow and Director, UniSA Microscopy and Microanalysis Facilities, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-south-australia-1180">University of South Australia</a> Image credits: Shutterstock This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/from-eye-exams-to-blood-tests-and-surgery-how-doctors-use-light-to-diagnose-disease-231379">original article</a>. </div>

Body

Doctor defies terminal cancer diagnosis with breakthrough therapy

Dr Tina Willits was told she had just 24 months to live after being diagnosed with breast cancer, but against all odds she is now in remission. The mother-of-five's disease was "everywhere" with three golf-ball sized tumors in her breast and cancerous masses in her ribs, spine, lymph nodes and legs. "When my cancer was detected, it was pretty past a stage four diagnosis and I was too far gone for a mastectomy," she told the Daily Mail. She was placed on end-of-care chemotherapy and was told to "enjoy the time you have left". That was nearly three years ago. Now, the 53-year-old US mum is in remission thanks to a breakthrough cancer therapy that uses cold gases and the body's own cells to freeze and fight tumors. "I was devastated, but I was also like no, I was not ok with that diagnosis. I felt I had to do something," she recalled. "I was just really determined that I did not want to live my life with this cancer, even if they could stop it progressing, I didn't want that, I just wanted it gone." Dr Willits' cancer was HER2 positive, which account for about 20 percent of all diagnoses, and she had no family history of the disease. She underwent four rounds of chemotherapy before she sought alternative treatment at the Williams Cancer Institute. The institute sent her a list of supplements to begin taking and advised her to avoid sugar, which some researchers believe can help reduce inflammation and slow down the growth of cancer cells. She then underwent a treatment regimen that is not yet fully approved in the US, with cryoablation as the first step. Cryoablation is the process where doctors insert a small metal probe through the skin and into the tumor, extremely cold gasses are then released directly into the mass to kill its cells. In the second phase of her treatment, she received immunotherapy, where eight drugs were administered directly into her tumor, which doctors say can prompt the immune system to recognise cancer cells as a threat and trigger an immune response. Dr Willits told the Dailymail that she was shocked when she got the results from her six-week scan after the treatment. "There were none, no tumors. They were just completely gone," she said. "All the metastasis (cancerous growths outside the breast) had completely healed, and the cancer in my lymph nodes was no longer there." After the treatment she had another four rounds of chemotherapy, and still undergoes PET scans every six months. So far the cancer has not been detected in her body since the treatment, and will need to wait for five years of clear results before she can be declared cancer free. Dr Williams, the founder of the institute, developed the treatment regimen over several years, and believes it could offer a better way to treat cancer. He is currently running a trial of the treatment in hard-to-treat prostate cancer patients, although he did not reveal how long the study had been going on for or how many rounds of treatment the patients had received. Since going into remission Dr Willits has travelled to Honduras and Colorado, tried mountain biking and is training for a 5k marathon for breast cancer awareness. "I wouldn't appreciate life like this if I had not gone through the cancer," she said. "No one on their deathbed says I wish I had worked more or got that job, you all say I wish I had spent more time with my parents and kids or gone to that place I had always wanted to." Images: DailyMail

Caring

Who dies in a heat wave? How to help protect the vulnerable in our communities

<div class="theconversation-article-body"><a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/myles-david-sergeant-1542267">Myles David Sergeant</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/mcmaster-university-930">McMaster University</a> Extreme heat is a silent killer. From time to time, we hear about shocking cases of <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/sep/24/football-player-heat-deaths-athlete">football players</a> and other athletes who die suddenly while exerting themselves on hot days. Those deaths are certainly tragic, but statistically they are very rare. Most deaths from extreme heat <a href="https://www.epa.gov/climate-indicators/climate-change-indicators-heat-related-deaths">are in older people</a>, who frequently die alone inside their homes. They often die slowly, as the heat creeps up to and sometimes past body temperature, especially when heat domes park themselves over cities and keep the temperature high all day and all night. When such deaths happen, they rarely make the news. Of all the climate change disasters our world is already experiencing, heat is the top killer, <a href="https://library.wmo.int/viewer/68500/download?file=1335_WMO-Climate-services-Health_en.pdf&type=pdf&navigator=1">as the World Meteorological Organization reported</a>. The planet was more than <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/article/2024/jul/08/temperatures-1-point-5c-above-pre-industrial-era-average-for-12-months-data-shows">1.5 C above the pre-industrial baseline</a> for 12 consecutive months from July 2023 to June 2024. In July this year, we saw the hottest three days ever on record, prompting <a href="https://www.un.org/sg/en/content/sg/press-encounter/2024-07-25/secretary-generals-press-conference-extreme-heat">a special statement from United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres</a>. <h2>Health risks and heat</h2> <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK499843/">Our bodies are made to dump excess heat</a> when we are too warm, but that process goes into reverse when the air is warmer than our core temperature. Our other main defence, sweating, doesn’t help when humidity saturates the air, making it impossible for our own moisture to evaporate. For the frail and elderly, who are more likely to be labouring with heart troubles, COPD or other challenges, simply sitting still in a heat wave requires an effort equivalent to walking on a treadmill. The effort is not great, but it is <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cjco.2021.10.002">steady and relentless</a>. It exhausts the body, sometimes to the <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/S2542-5196(22)00117-6">point of no return</a>. Tracking heat-related deaths is challenging, and it’s changing as authorities become more aware of heat as a contributing or underlying factor to deaths by other causes. <a href="https://doi.org/10.2105/AJPH.2006.100081">A paper published by the American Journal of Public Health</a> points out that the 1995 heat wave in Chicago likely contributed to hundreds more deaths than had first been attributed to heat itself. <h2>Who is at risk?</h2> Many people lack air conditioning or a way to get to a place that has it, such as a library, recreation centre or shopping mall. As a result, too many people in cities are forced to <a href="https://wmo.int/publication-series/2023-state-of-climate-services-health">endure long waves of heat</a> — waves that are occurring more frequently, lasting longer, and reaching higher temperatures — in a trend that appears set to continue getting worse. Air conditioning, <a href="https://www.lpm.org/news/2015-07-24/the-history-of-movie-theaters-and-air-conditioning-that-keeps-film-lovers-cool">once a luxury that drew people to summertime movie theatres on hot nights</a>, has become a necessity. Increasingly, it is also a legal requirement, as cities pass bylaws requiring landlords not to allow the temperature in their tenants’ quarters to rise above a certain level. Toronto has <a href="https://www.toronto.ca/home/311-toronto-at-your-service/find-service-information/article/?kb=kA06g000001xvbiCAA">such a bylaw</a> for rental units that have air conditioning available, capping indoor temps at 26 C between June 2 and Sept. 14. Such laws recognize the vulnerability of tenants who lack control over the temperature in their rental units, making heat death an especially urban tragedy, as confirmed in <a href="https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/en/pub/82-003-x/2024006/article/00001-eng.pdf?st=e6jLNMuq">a recent Statistics Canada study</a> between 2000 and 2020. Deaths from extreme heat were more likely in cities with a higher percentage of renter households. During a single week-long heat wave in June 2021 — the year after the period captured in the Statistics Canada study — <a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/bc-heat-dome-sudden-deaths-570-1.6122316">B.C.’s chief coroner found that 570 people died from heat-related causes</a> — 79 per cent of them were seniors. <h2>Taking action at the community level</h2> From this Global North perspective, the community members who are most likely to die from extreme heat included: <ul> <li>Those over 65</li> <li>Those with more than one chronic condition (including hypertension, mental health, diabetes, heart disease, lung disease)</li> <li>Socially disadvantaged populations in our communities</li> <li>Those with mobility issues</li> <li>Those experiencing social isolation (living alone)</li> <li>Tenants with lack of air conditioning</li> <li>Those living in an urban heat island</li> </ul> This problem is not going away. Some of the <a href="https://www.intactcentreclimateadaptation.ca/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/UoW_ICCA_2022_04-Irreversible-Extreme-Heat.pdf">actions we can take</a> to protect our most vulnerable community members include: <ul> <li>Increase awareness that excessive heat is not merely uncomfortable, but dangerous.</li> <li>Make sure people are warned about impending heat waves.</li> <li>Advocate for everyone to have access to air conditioning.</li> <li>Check on and support people who live alone, especially those with no air conditioning.</li> <li>Invite people over if you have air conditioning, or help them get to community cooling stations.</li> <li>Help vulnerable people who do not have air conditioning to improvise, by freezing wet cloths, for example, to take out and hang around their necks. Doing this, especially with a fan blowing, can be surprisingly effective.</li> <li>Learn and share the <a href="https://www.canada.ca/en/health-canada/services/publications/healthy-living/fact-sheet-staying-healthy-heat.html">warning signs of heat-related illness</a>.</li> <li>Make sure they drink plenty of water and other replenishing fluids.</li> </ul> While we must do our best to limit climate change to keep our planet from getting ever hotter, we must also make every effort to protect the vulnerable from the impacts of the heat that is already here.<img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/236829/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /> <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/myles-david-sergeant-1542267">Myles David Sergeant</a>, Assistant Clinical Professor, Department of Family Medicine, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/mcmaster-university-930">McMaster University</a> Image credits: Shutterstock This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/who-dies-in-a-heat-wave-how-to-help-protect-the-vulnerable-in-our-communities-236829">original article</a>. </div>

Caring

Are older adults more vulnerable to scams? What psychologists have learned about who’s most susceptible, and when

<div class="theconversation-article-body"><a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/natalie-c-ebner-1527554">Natalie C. Ebner</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-florida-1392">University of Florida</a> and <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/didem-pehlivanoglu-1527551">Didem Pehlivanoglu</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-florida-1392">University of Florida</a> About 1 in 6 Americans <a href="https://www.census.gov/library/stories/2023/05/2020-census-united-states-older-population-grew.html">are age 65 or older</a>, and that percentage <a href="https://www.ncoa.org/article/get-the-facts-on-older-americans">is projected to grow</a>. Older adults often hold positions of power, have retirement savings accumulated over the course of their lifetimes, and make important financial and health-related decisions – all of which makes them attractive targets for financial exploitation. In 2021, there were more than 90,000 older victims of fraud, according to the FBI. These cases resulted in <a href="https://www.ic3.gov/Media/PDF/AnnualReport/2021_IC3ElderFraudReport.pdf">US$1.7 billion in losses</a>, a 74% increase compared with 2020. Even so, that may be a significant undercount, since embarrassment or lack of awareness <a href="https://assets.aarp.org/rgcenter/econ/fraud-victims-11.pdf">keeps some victims from reporting</a>. <a href="https://ncea.acl.gov/elder-abuse#gsc.tab=0">Financial exploitation</a> represents one of the most common forms of elder abuse. Perpetrators are often individuals in the victims’ inner social circles – family members, caregivers or friends – but can also be strangers. When older adults experience financial fraud, they typically <a href="https://public.tableau.com/app/profile/federal.trade.commission/viz/AgeandFraud/Infographic">lose more money</a> than younger victims. Those losses can have <a href="https://doi.org/10.1057/sj.2012.11">devastating consequences</a>, especially since older adults have limited time to recoup – dramatically reducing their independence, health and well-being. But older adults have been largely neglected in research on this burgeoning type of crime. We are <a href="https://ebnerlab.psych.ufl.edu/natalie-c-ebner-phd/">psychologists who study social cognition</a> and <a href="https://ebnerlab.psych.ufl.edu/didem-pehlivanoglu/">decision-making</a>, and <a href="https://ebnerlab.psych.ufl.edu/">our research lab</a> at the University of Florida is aimed at understanding the factors that shape vulnerability to deception in adulthood and aging. <h2>Defining vulnerability</h2> Financial exploitation involves a variety of exploitative tactics, such as coercion, manipulation, undue influence and, frequently, some sort of deception. The majority of current research focuses on <a href="https://doi.org/10.1002/acp.3052">people’s ability to distinguish between truth and lies</a> during interpersonal communication. However, deception occurs in many contexts – increasingly, over the internet. Our lab conducts laboratory experiments and real-world studies to measure susceptibility under various conditions: investment games, lie/truth scenarios, phishing emails, text messages, fake news and deepfakes – fabricated videos or images that are created by artificial intelligence technology. To study how people respond to deception, we use measures like surveys, brain imaging, behavior, eye movement and heart rate. We also collect health-related biomarkers, such as being a carrier of <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/8346443/">gene variants</a> that increase risk for Alzheimer’s disease, to identify individuals with particular vulnerability. And <a href="https://doi.org/10.20900/agmr20230007">our work</a> shows that an older adult’s ability to detect deception is not just about their individual characteristics. It also depends on how they are being targeted. <figure class="align-center zoomable"><a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/593784/original/file-20240513-16-j9zy1i.png?ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/593784/original/file-20240513-16-j9zy1i.png?ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/593784/original/file-20240513-16-j9zy1i.png?ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=339&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/593784/original/file-20240513-16-j9zy1i.png?ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=339&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/593784/original/file-20240513-16-j9zy1i.png?ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=339&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/593784/original/file-20240513-16-j9zy1i.png?ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=426&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/593784/original/file-20240513-16-j9zy1i.png?ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=426&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/593784/original/file-20240513-16-j9zy1i.png?ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=426&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" alt="A figure with two circles and an arrow between them. One circle shows icons that symbolize individual susceptibility to deception -- like a brain, and a walking cane -- while the other has icons of types of deception, like mail or a text message." /></a><figcaption>Vulnerability depends not only on the person, but also the type of fraud being used. Natalie Ebner and Didem Pehlivanoglu</figcaption></figure> <h2>Individual risk factors</h2> Better cognition, social and emotional capacities, and brain health are all associated with less susceptibility to deception. Cognitive functions, such as how quickly our brain processes information and how well we remember it, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/1745691619827511">decline with age</a> and impact decision-making. For example, among people around 70 years of age or older, declines in analytical thinking are associated with <a href="https://doi.org/10.1037/xap0000426">reduced ability to detect false news stories</a>. Additionally, low memory function in aging is associated with <a href="https://doi.org/10.1093/geronb/gby036">greater susceptibility to email phishing</a>. Further, according to recent <a href="https://osf.io/preprints/osf/6f2y9">research</a>, this correlation is specifically pronounced among older adults who carry a gene variant that is a genetic risk factor for developing Alzheimer’s disease later in life. Indeed, some research suggests that greater financial exploitability may serve as <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neubiorev.2022.104773">an early marker</a> of disease-related cognitive decline. Social and emotional influences are also crucial. Negative mood can enhance somebody’s ability to detect lies, while <a href="https://doi.org/10.1037/xap0000426">positive mood in very old</a> age can impair a person’s ability to detect fake news. Lack of support and loneliness exacerbate susceptibility to deception. Social isolation during the COVID-19 pandemic has led to <a href="https://doi.org/10.1093/gerona/glaa077">increased reliance on online platforms</a>, and older adults with lower digital literacy are <a href="https://doi.org/10.1093/geront/gnac188">more vulnerable to fraudulent emails and robocalls</a>. Finally, an individual’s brain and body responses play a critical role in susceptibility to deception. One important factor is <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tins.2020.10.007">interoceptive awareness</a>: the ability to accurately read our own body’s signals, like a “gut feeling.” This awareness is correlated with <a href="https://doi.org/10.1093/geroni/igad104.3714">better lie detection</a> in older adults. According to <a href="https://doi.org/10.1093/gerona/glx051">a first study</a>, financially exploited older adults had a significantly smaller size of insula – a brain region key to integrating bodily signals with environmental cues – than older adults who had been exposed to the same threat but avoided it. Reduced insula activity is also related to greater difficulty <a href="https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1218518109">picking up on cues</a> that make someone appear less trustworthy. <h2>Types of effective fraud</h2> Not all deception is equally effective on everyone. <a href="https://doi.org/10.1145/3336141">Our findings</a> show that email phishing that relies on reciprocation – people’s tendency to repay what another person has provided them – was more effective on older adults. Younger adults, on the other hand, were more likely to fall for phishing emails that employed scarcity: people’s tendency to perceive an opportunity as more valuable if they are told its availability is limited. For example, an email might alert you that a coin collection from the 1950s has become available for a special reduced price if purchased within the next 24 hours. There is also evidence that as we age, we have greater difficulty detecting the “wolf in sheep’s clothing”: someone who appears trustworthy, but is not acting in a trustworthy way. In <a href="https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-023-50500-x">a card-based gambling game</a>, we found that compared with their younger counterparts, older adults are more likely to select decks presented with trustworthy-looking faces, even though those decks consistently resulted in negative payouts. Even after learning about untrustworthy behavior, older adults showed greater difficulty overcoming their initial impressions. <h2>Reducing vulnerability</h2> Identifying who is especially at risk for financial exploitation in aging is crucial for preventing victimization. We believe interventions should be tailored, instead of a one-size-fits-all approach. For example, perhaps machine learning algorithms could someday determine the most dangerous types of deceptive messages that certain groups encounter – such as in text messages, emails or social media platforms – and provide on-the-spot warnings. Black and Hispanic consumers are <a href="https://www.ftc.gov/system/files/documents/reports/combating-fraud-african-american-latino-communities-ftcs-comprehensive-strategic-plan-federal-trade/160615fraudreport.pdf">more likely to be victimized</a>, so there is also a dire need for interventions that resonate with their communities. Prevention efforts would benefit from taking a holistic approach to help older adults reduce their vulnerability to scams. Training in <a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/s40520-019-01259-7">financial, health</a> and <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-022-08437-0.pdf">digital literacy</a> are important, but so are programs to <a href="https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-021-10363-1">address loneliness</a>. People of all ages need to keep these lessons in mind when interacting with online content or strangers – but not only then. Unfortunately, financial exploitation often comes from individuals close to the victim.<img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/227991/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /> <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/natalie-c-ebner-1527554">Natalie C. Ebner</a>, Professor of Psychology, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-florida-1392">University of Florida</a> and <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/didem-pehlivanoglu-1527551">Didem Pehlivanoglu</a>, Postdoctoral Researcher, Psychology, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-florida-1392">University of Florida</a> Image credits: Shutterstock This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/are-older-adults-more-vulnerable-to-scams-what-psychologists-have-learned-about-whos-most-susceptible-and-when-227991">original article</a>. </div>

Money & Banking

Alleged motive of man who scalded baby revealed

A friend of the Chinese national man who has been accused of scalding nine-month-old baby Luka in a Brisbane park has revealed his potential motive. On August 27th, baby Luka was in Hanlon Park with his mother when a man approached them and poured hot coffee over the infant, leaving him with lifelong injuries. The man has since been <a href="https://oversixty.com.au/health/caring/man-accused-of-scalding-baby-in-park-identified" target="_blank" rel="noopener">identified</a> as a 33-year-old Chinese national who was in Australia on a student visa. Now, a friend of the man has claimed the horrific attack on the baby was because he sought “revenge on white people” after he was denied another Australian visa. “Finally, he vented his anger and [allegedly] hurt a baby before leaving Australia,” reported China’s New Tang Dynasty Television, adding that Luka was “probably [attacked] to take revenge on the white people.” As the man has now been identified by Queensland Police, Luka's parents, who have wished to remain anonymous throughout the ordeal, have new questions as they continue their fight for justice. “Where is he now? Is he in jail now that the media knows who he is over there? Is he just walking the streets?” the mother posed to 9News. Luka's father added, “We just want him to be punished, here or there, we just want him to be punished.” The man allegedly fled the scene after gravely injuring the child and drove over the state border to Sydney, where he flew out of the country on August 31st. Queensland Police have since put an arrest warrant out for the man for intending to cause grievous bodily harm, which carried a maximum penalty of a life sentence. Speaking to 4BC Radio on Thursday morning, Acting Assistant Police Commissioner Andrew Massingham said police were “very much committed” to arresting the man. “Our international search continues for the person that committed that horrendous crime,” he said. “That child will have those injuries for life.” Queensland Police Detective Inspector Paul Dalton previously revealed the man fled the country just 12 hours after they identified him. “Detectives are devastated that they missed this person by 12 hours. I was deflated, but that deflation quickly turns into determination and resilience to get the job done.” Image credits: Queensland Police

Caring

Medicare is covering less of specialist visits. But why are doctors’ fees so high in the first place?

<div class="theconversation-article-body"> <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/susan-j-mendez-2219444">Susan J. Méndez</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/the-university-of-melbourne-722">The University of Melbourne</a> Fees for medical specialists are going up faster than <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2024-09-25/medicare-rebates-only-covering-half-of-specialist-costs/104389360">Medicare rebates</a>, leading to a bigger gap for patients to pay. Recent data from the <a href="https://www.aihw.gov.au/reports/medicare/mbs-funded-services-data/contents/summary">Australian Institute of Health and Welfare</a> shows that in the first quarter of this year, Medicare rebates covered just over half (52%) of the total fees. This is <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2024-09-25/medicare-rebates-only-covering-half-of-specialist-costs/104389360">down from 72%</a> two decades ago, and the lowest proportion on record. Doctors can charge what they like, while the government determines the Medicare rebate. The difference between the two, or the gap, is what impacts patients. For GPs, the government provides an incentive for doctors to <a href="https://www.health.gov.au/our-work/increases-to-bulk-billing-incentive-payments#1-november-2023-changes">bulk bill</a>, but there’s no such incentive for other specialists. Doctors blame large gap payments on rebates being too low, and they’re partly right. After adjusting for inflation and increasing demand, the average dollar amount one person receives in Medicare rebates annually dropped from <a href="https://www.aihw.gov.au/reports/medical-specialists/referred-medical-specialist-attendances">A$349 to $341</a> over the past decade. But this is only a part of the problem. When many people can’t afford hundreds (if not thousands) of dollars for essential specialist care, we need to look at why fees are so high. <h2>How do specialists set their fees?</h2> Although general practice is technically a speciality, when we talk about medical specialists in this article, we’re talking about non-GP specialists. These might include paediatricians, oncologists, psychiatrists and dermatologists, among many others. In determining fees, specialists consider a combination of patient-level, doctor-level and system-level factors. Patient characteristics, such as the complexity of the patient’s medical condition, may increase the price. This is because more complex patients may require more time and resources. Specialists, based on their experience, perceived skill level, or ethical considerations, may charge more or less. For example, <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0277953623007104?via%3Dihub">some specialists report</a> they offer discounts to certain groups, such as children or pensioners. System-level factors including the cost of running a practice (such as employing staff) and practice location also play a role. Problems arise when prices vary considerably, as this often signals limited competition or excessive market power. This holds true for medical services, where patients have little control over prices and rely heavily on their doctors’ recommendations. In <a href="https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=4909881">recent research</a>, my colleagues and I found fees varied significantly between specialists in the same field. In some cases the most expensive specialist charged more than double what the cheapest one did. <h2>Doctor characteristics influence fee-setting</h2> My colleagues and I <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.healthpol.2024.105119">recently analysed</a> millions of private hospital claims from 2012 to 2019 in Australia. We found the wide variation in fees was largely due to differences between individual doctors, rather than factors such as patient complexity or the differences we’d expect to see between specialties. Up to 65% of the variance in total fees and 72% in out-of-pocket payments could be attributed to differences between doctors in the same field. To understand what doctor-level factors drive high fees, <a href="https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=4909881">we looked at</a> data from a representative survey of specialists. We found older specialists have lower fees and higher rates of bulk billing. Practice owners tended to charge higher fees. We also found doctors’ personalities affect how much they charge and how often they bulk bill patients. Doctors who scored more highly on the personality trait of agreeableness were more likely to bulk bill patients, while those who scored more highly on neuroticism tended to charge higher fees. What we couldn’t show is any evidence fees were associated with competition. <h2>Effects on patients</h2> This is not a competitive market. On the contrary, it has high entry restrictions (long training requirements) and a limited supply of specialists, particularly in <a href="https://www.aihw.gov.au/reports/workforce/health-workforce">rural and remote areas</a>. Meanwhile, patients’ access is controlled by the need for referrals which expire, generally after a year. Patients are often unable to shop around or make informed decisions about their care due to a lack of information about the true cost and quality of services. For private hospital services, the fee structure is complicated by the fact that several providers (for example, surgeon, anaesthetist, assistant surgeon) bill separately, making it difficult for patients to know the total cost upfront. Despite efforts to introduce price transparency in recent years, such as through the government’s <a href="https://medicalcostsfinder.health.gov.au/">Medical Costs Finder</a> website, the system remains far from clear. Reporting is voluntary and the <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.healthpol.2020.06.001">evidence is mixed</a> on whether these tools effectively reduce prices or increase competition. All of this contributes to high and unpredictable out-of-pocket costs, which can lead to financial strain for patients. About <a href="https://www.abs.gov.au/statistics/health/health-services/patient-experiences/latest-release#barriers-to-health-service-use">10.5% of Australians</a> reported cost was a reason for delaying or avoiding a specialist visit in 2022–23. This raises important questions about equity and the sustainability of Australia’s universal health-care system, which is built on the principle of equitable access to care for all citizens. <h2>What can be done?</h2> Patients can take steps to minimise their costs by proactively seeking information. This includes asking your GP for a range of options when you’re referred to a specialist. Note the referral from your GP can be used for any other doctor in the same specialty. Similarly, ask the specialist’s receptionist what the fee and rebate will be before making an appointment, or for a <a href="https://www.ama.com.au/articles/informed-financial-consent#Two">detailed quote</a> before going to hospital. Shop around if it’s too high. But responsibility doesn’t only lie with patients. For example, the government could seek to address this issue by increasing investment in public hospital outpatient care, which could boost competition for specialists. It could also publish the range of fees compared to the rebate for all Medicare-billed consultations, rather than relying on voluntary reporting by doctors. Price transparency alone is not enough. Patients also need quality information and better guidance to navigate the health-care system. So continued investment in improving health literacy and care coordination is important. If things don’t change, the financial burden on patients is likely to continue growing, undermining both individual health outcomes and the broader goals of equitable health-care access.<img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/239827/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /> <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/susan-j-mendez-2219444">Susan J. Méndez</a>, Senior Research Fellow, Melbourne Institute of Applied Economic and Social Research, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/the-university-of-melbourne-722">The University of Melbourne</a> Image credits: Shutterstock This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/medicare-is-covering-less-of-specialist-visits-but-why-are-doctors-fees-so-high-in-the-first-place-239827">original article</a>. </div>

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Medicare is covering less of specialist visits. But why are doctors’ fees so high in the first place?

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