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Two-Thirds Of People With Dementia Are Women. Experts Now Think They Might Know Why

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Alzheimer’s Research UK says that “Of all people with dementia in the UK, two in three (65%) are women.”

In fact, they write, women over 60 are twice as likely to develop dementia – the leading cause of death in the UK – than they are to get breast cancer.

It can be hard to get clear answers as to why that is. Part of it is likely to be that women simply live longer than men on average – old age is the greatest risk factor for dementia.

But in a recent episode of his podcast Dr Karan Explores, surgeon Dr Karan Rajan spoke to doctors Dean and Ayesha Sherzai, neurologists and codirectors of the Brain Health and Alzheimer’s Prevention Programme at Loma Linda University Medical Centre, who shared that there may be other factors at play too.

Why might women have higher instances of dementia?

“We know that lipid metabolism and how women’s bodies respond to vascular risk factors, whether it’s an abnormal cholesterol panel or abnormal blood pressure, is different” than men’s, Dr Ayesha Sherzai said.

Cleveland Clinic says that women “face unique risks, largely due to differences in anatomy and hormones,” such as narrower blood vessels and fewer red blood cells, when it comes to heart issues.

Heart health and dementia risk have long been linked.

“We also know that in the perimenopausal period, the woman’s body goes through a lot of physiological and neurological changes, because oestrogen is a very important factor in memory creation and in brain health,” the doctor added.

The jury is still out on whether or not oestrogen has protective factors for the brain, though some research done on rats showed that the hormone increased the connections in the memory part of their brain.

The combination of increased effects of vascular issues and the decline in oestrogen as women age “may increase the risk factors” of dementia for women, the expert says.

Any other reasons for the gender gap?

Harvard Health says that aside from the age difference, women are way more likely to develop Alzheimer’s than men. But they are not more likely to develop other kinds of dementia when you adjust for age.

Part of the reason for that may be that women are far more likely to experience autoimmune disorders than men.

That might be because women’s immune system is stronger, which may have the effect of creating more amyloid plaques in the body. These plaques have been linked to dementia.

The university’s site recommends taking aerobic exercise, like swimming, jogging, or dancing up for 30 minutes a day, at least five days a week, sleeping well, socialising, and eating well to mitigate the potential risks.

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How You Pronounce This Letter May Reveal Your Age, Linguist Says

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You might already know that how long you can stand on one leg has been linked to your brain age ― the position involves coordinating different parts of your body and mind, making it uniquely useful as a marker of ageing.

But not all the signs are medical, as anyone who’s ever looked at a festival lineup and thought “I don’t recognise a single name here” knows.

And recently, members of r/AskUK wondered whether or not the pronunciation of the letter “z” counts as one such marker.

“I was horrified to learn that a fully British colleague of mine says ‘zee’ for the letter zed and he says he always has. Is this now common and I have just lost touch?”, a now-deleted poster asked.

So, we spoke to clinical linguist and CEO of Dysolve, Dr Coral Hoh, about what was really going on.

Yep, it does seem to be an age thing

“Yes, it’s generational but not confined to the UK alone,” the linguist said of the Americanised pronunciation.

“It is also the case in other English-speaking regions,” she told HuffPost UK.

“For example, in Southeast Asia, in countries like Singapore and Malaysia, speakers in their 30s-40s may use ‘zee’ and ‘zed’ interchangeably.”

Meanwhile, she says, “their younger counterparts prefer the former, thanks to American influence.”

Indeed New Zealand magazine North And South have written about increased Americanisms among their younger people.

Growing up in Ireland, people in my Disney Channel-reared age group were constantly being accused of the same thing (I’ll admit I choose “zee” over “zed,” though my older relatives would never).

People think the trend is coming from media, including social media

“Americanisms are becoming more and more common, I blame YouTube,” Redditor u/Frst-Lengthiness-16 opined.

“My kids refuse to call biscuits by the correct name, calling them fucking ‘cookies.’”

Jane Setter, a professor of phonetics at the University of Reading, agrees, telling The Guardian: “For children, it could simply be because everyone is watching a particular trending YouTube influencer or group of influencers, or playing particular online interactive games, through word of mouth and a desire to fit in with their friends, that these people speak in a particular way, and the kids are using the features of those speakers with other kids to show they “belong” to that group.”

This may be part of the reason why Americanisms are so common among Gen Z (never said “Gen Zed,” I note) and younger…

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So THAT’s Why Easter Eggs Are So Expensive This Year

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Tough news for fellow chocolate lovers – consumer advocacy publication Which? says that Easter eggs are up to 50% more expensive this year.

That’s despite the fact that many of the seasonal treats have actually gotten smaller.

Chocolate prices have risen by a mammoth 16.4% in the past year, compared to an average 4.4% increase among other supermarket food and drink, they add.

So, we spoke to the former VP of International Trade at Barclays and current founder of personal finance platform Generation Money, Alex King, and Mark Owen, chief chocolatier at Pembrokeshire-based chocolate factory Wickedly Welsh Chocolate, about what was really going on.

It’s partly down to growing conditions

“Easter egg prices are noticeably higher this year, and unfortunately it’s not just a case of retailers hiking up costs – the entire chocolate industry is feeling the impact of a global cocoa crisis,” Mark told us.

“Cocoa prices have more than doubled since 2023, and we’re still paying over twice what we were just two years ago.”

Alex agreed, explaining that “Cocoa prices shot up in 2024 to record highs after three poor harvests in a row for cocoa producers in the Ivory Coast and Ghana – the world’s two largest cocoa-producing nations.

“This has had a direct impact on the price of Easter Eggs this year as cocoa is obviously a major ingredient in chocolate production.”

Dairy costs have also risen by 18%, the trading expert added.

And as if that wasn’t enough, “at the start of 2024, we also saw hedge funds pour into the cocoa market with bets that the price of cocoa would continue to rise – which it did throughout 2024.

“Although these hedge funds weren’t the main driver of increased prices, they helped to spike already, increasing prices even further.”

Oh good. Anything else?

Yup, unfortunately. Alex says energy and transport costs have risen too, affecting the supply chain and, by extension, retailers.

“Another factor hitting supermarket prices more generally in the UK is the rise in National Insurance in April, just before Easter,” he suggests.

“Retailers will have begun to increase prices in advance of this to cover the extra NI cost, so that’s another reason we’re seeing higher prices – not just in easter eggs.”

Worse news: Mark told HuffPost UK he doesn’t expect the problem to go away any time soon.

“With global stocks at an all-time low and no bumper harvest expected in the coming months, supply remains incredibly tight,” he shared.

“The reality is that chocolate makers of all sizes are being squeezed. As a small, independent factory, we’ve had to absorb as much of the cost as we can, but there’s no avoiding the fact that Easter eggs are more expensive to produce this year than ever before.”

Here’s hoping 2026 is a little easier on our wallets…

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Starmer Accused Of Dancing To ‘Farage’s Tune’ With Small Boats Crackdown

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Keir Starmer has been accused of “dancing” to Nigel Farage’s tune with his latest promise to cut back on illegal immigration.

While hosting more than 40 countries at a landmark illegal migration summit today in London, the prime minister unveiled £33 million of funding to help set up an international unit of the Crown Prosecution Service.

He said 24,000 people “who have no right to be here” were returned under Labour, which he claimed was the “highest return rate for eight years”.

He said the UK has been seen as a “soft touch on migration”.

Starmer also called on an international effort to stop the people-smuggling gangs, saying they should be treated as a global security threat, similar to terrorism.

But his announcements were soon slammed as “inhumane and ineffective”.

The Green Party’s co-leader Carla Denyer said in a statement: “The UK’s inhumane and ineffective approach to migration is costing lives, and yet Keir Starmer is choosing to dance to Nigel Farage’s tune rather than making the common sense changes needed to make the system safer and fairer.

“We urgently need to introduce safe routes for people fleeing war, violence or persecution to seek safety in the UK so that people aren’t forced into the hands of people smugglers.

“It’s shameful that this Labour government continues to ignore the only solution that will prevent people from dying during dangerous journeys to the UK, all because they are running scared of Farage’s Reform party.”

Reform UK leader Farage quickly criticised Starmer’s speech too.

In a message on X, he said: “Over 30,000 migrants have crossed the Channel since Labour came to power. More illegals crossed in the first three months of 2025 than the same period in 2024.

“He promised to smash the gangs but he’s smashing Rishi Sunak’s record instead.”

The Conservatives, on the other hand, claimed Labour should have kept their Rwanda deterrent – even though only four volunteers were ever deported via the scheme.

Shadow home secretary Chris Philp said: “The government’s plan to ‘smash the gangs’ already lies in tatters. We are about to see 30,000 illegal channel crossings since election reached this week, a 31% increase.

“This year so far has been the worst on record. This is a direct consequence of the government cancelling the Rwanda deterrent before it even started.

“Other countries, including Germany, Italy and the even the European Commission are looking at offshore processing as a deterrent, but Starmer’s Labour government has gone in the opposite direction. He has lost control of our borders as a result.”

Border security minister Angela Eagle told the media this morning Labour were “open-minded” when it came to looking at offshore processing.

But Philp added: “Today’s conference will make no difference to that – as the NCAA themselves said, law enforcement alone cannot stop illegal immigration. You need a removals deterrent.

“And Yvette Cooper admitted yesterday that the government is simply crossing its fingers and praying for bad weather to stop illegal migration across the channel. That is not a plan.”

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Jeremy Clarkson’s Grand Tour Replacement Could Be This TikTok Trainspotter

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Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond and James May parted ways with their Amazon Prime series The Grand Tour last year.

Co-star James May explained that this was because “I think Jeremy, Richard and I gave the format a really good thrashing and now it’s time to let a younger generation have a go.”

But working out who that “younger generation” may be seems to have proven difficult, with rumours of a replacement from The Sun only circulating a year on from when the last episode aired.

Francis Bourgeois
Francis Bourgeois

via Associated Press

The publication says a source told them TikTok sensation and train lover Francis Bourgeois was set to replace Jeremy (sorry, what?).

“Francis is a big noise online and Amazon producers are hoping to bring him into the mainstream,” the TV insider alleged.

“He is loved by everyone – from royals to rappers – and is sure to be a hit with Grand Tour viewers.

“Francis is not just a social media sensation but trained as a mechanical engineer so knows his stuff,” they told the publication.

Of course, this is all rumour at the moment – HuffPost UK has asked Amazon for comment to clarify – but that hasn’t stopped fans from having pretty strong reactions to the suggestion.

“April the 1st is not until Tuesday,” one X user wrote.

Still, it wouldn’t be Francis’ first dip into mainstream TV.

Channel 4′s Trainspotting With Francis Bourgeois starred big-name guests like Tom Daly, Aisling Bea, and Sam Ryder.

He also worked with Louis Theroux on YouTube series Scooting & Chatting with Francis Bourgeois.

Francis has also appeared in Clean Bandit, Anne-Marie, and David Guetta’s Cry Baby music video.

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He has also worked with brands like Gucci before.

Only time will tell if the sustainable transport lover will be able to add the car-obsessed show to his extensive CV too…

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