Category Archives: Life

Dementia Is The UK’s Leading Cause Of Death, But How Does It Actually Kill?

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Dementia has been the leading cause of death in England and Wales for years now, with Dementia UK adding that more people die from dementia in the UK overall than of any other condition.

Still, a 2017 YouGov poll found that roughly half of us have no idea that dementia, which kills about 55 million people worldwide, can be a direct cause of death.

That means the dementia itself leads to their death.

So, we spoke to Simon Wheeler, Senior Knowledge Officer at Alzheimer’s Society, about how dementia actually kills.

“Dementia is a terminal condition”

Speaking to HuffPost UK, Wheeler explains: “Around 1 in 3 people born today will develop dementia. It’s the UK’s biggest killer, but many people don’t understand why.

“It shortens a person’s life by several years if they are already old, and potentially by several decades if they have young-onset dementia,” he continues.

One of the ways it does this is by diminishing a person’s ability to perform the essential skills and bodily functions that are needed to stay well.

“At first, these changes are mainly cognitive – for example, not remembering to take medicines or not being able to react to dangers around the house or outside,” Wheeler tells us.

“If they need surgery for other health problems, their dementia can make these procedures more challenging and recovery more difficult. This is why people with dementia tend to have much worse outcomes when they have to go to hospital.”

The later stages of dementia have more physical effects

“As the condition progresses to its later stages, its effects become more physical as the parts of the brain involved in eating, swallowing, moving, and communicating become severely damaged,” the expert adds.

That’s when people with dementia tend to notice physical, as well as cognitive, changes.

“They become increasingly frail,” Wheeler explains.

“Injuries and infections become more difficult to recover from. Eventually, an illness or other event happens that they can’t recover from and this is what ultimately causes the person to die.

“There is the near cause of death, such as pneumonia, and then there is the underlying condition that has resulted in the person being in such a frail and vulnerable condition – this is what dementia does.”

Early intervention still matters

More than half of those with suspected dementia wait for over a year to get a diagnosis.

But the NHS says that’s not ideal, because “an accurate early, or timely, diagnosis of dementia can have many benefits.”

These include getting the right support, getting access to treatments that can make your symptoms easier to manage and slow down the progress of the disease, and giving you more time to plan.

If you’re worried about yourself or someone close to you, speak to your GP.

You can also check your symptoms using Alzheimer’s Society’s symptom checklist or call the Dementia Support Line on 0333 150 3456.

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‘Unami Is Your Daddy’ – Home Cooks Reveal Their Secrets To Resaturant-Style Dishes

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When you get into taking home cooking seriously, suddenly you are speaking about the joys of a ‘good, fresh lemon’, and having minor meltdowns over running out of onions – “but we always have onions!!”

The other thing that happens is you continue to challenge yourself. Yes, having a good meal rotation is the most important thing, but trying to reach gourmet-level is the real home cook dream.

Now, home cooks have taken to Reddit to share their ‘stupidly simple’ ingredients that have made their cooking taste more professional.

When it comes to cheese, choose quality when you can

Unsurprisingly, the cooks have a lot to say about cheese. User CompanyOther2608 says: “It’s a no-brainer, but blocks of good cheese instead of pre-grated or shredded”.

Breddy adds: “Good quality parmesan cheese.”

While Revolutionary-Bus893 changed my life saying: “I’m amazed how a few tablespoons of cream cheese can richen up sauces.”

When life gives you lemons, zest up your dishes

Sphinxyhiggins adds that they love to add lemon to spicy or savoury food, while crippledchef23 says: “I started adding lemon pepper to my spaghetti sauce and it changes things it a way I can’t describe. More tomato-y, but not acidic. Savory and deep and somehow sweet without any sugar.”

Revolutionary_Sir_76 is knocking the pineapple on pizza debate out of the park, saying: “Lemon on pizza or any kinds cheese sends me.”

As a fellow lemon fiend, I’m not writing it off.

MSG is almost always a good idea

Carpe-Bananum says: “A little MSG. Umami is your Daddy.”

If you’re not familiar, MSG (monosodium glutamate) is a flavour enhancer that’s common in Chinese cuisine but is also frequently used in tinned foods to enhance umamu flavours.

User BumblebeeNo3833 adds: “Came here to say this! MSG has made SUCH a difference in my cooking.”

Make the most of onions

Uncle_Rat_21 says: “Not really a swap, but I caramelise a bag of onions every other week or so. Add it to all kinds of things.

“Spaghetti sauce, mashed potatoes, omelettes. Made some quesadillas the other night with some leftover rotisserie chicken and some of the onions. So good!”

Dasookwat adds: “Most important one: time. take a bit more time for things to sear, onions to glaze etc.”

Joro65 advises: “In a lot of dishes, shallots, instead of onions will take it up a notch.”

Making white sauce? Add some mustard

Catfist says: “Not really a substitute, but I add a dash of mustard powder to pretty much every white sauce I make, it adds just a bit of depth and everyone seems to love it.”

Itsnotnews92 adds: “I add a dash of mustard powder to my mac and cheese. Not enough that anyone would say “this tastes like mustard,” but just enough to give it a bit of pop.”

Rcoop020 says it even works with boxed mac and cheese.

I can’t wait to try some of these.

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UK Gardeners Urged To Take A Cotton Bud To Their Lawn

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As the warmer spring rolls around, gardeners might be gearing up to mow their lawns.

But Timothy Greene at icanlawn.com has said that it might be a little too early for some lawns; and cutting them now can even cause some significant damage.

“People might be keen to get their gardens sorted in time for spring but mowing your lawn when the grass is too short can cause damage and stop it growing back properly,” he said.

There’s actually a specific height at which it’s safe to cut your lawn ― and you can find it by taking a cotton bud to your lawn, Greene says.

How?

“The ideal height for grass to be before you cut is around 5cm to 7cm, which is around the same height as a cotton earbud,” the lawn expert revealed.

“This height means the grass is growing well and is safe to cut. But you should also make sure there’s no frost and the lawn isn’t wet either,” he says.

It’s important to make sure that you have your lawnmower on its highest setting when lopping your lawn, Greene says. This will ensure you don’t accidentally harm your lawn by cutting its grass too short.

If your grass never manages to reach the cotton bud height, Greene warns, you could have an underlying problem in your lawn.

“Lawns have had to deal with frost, heavy rain, and other challenges over the winter so there might be areas that need extra care. Whether that’s a feed to battle any diseases or new seeds sowed to cover patches,” Greene said.

What’s the best time to cut my lawn?

Aside from waiting until your grass is tall enough to cut, you should also keep an eye out on the weather, Greene warns.

Mowing your lawn after a frosty night could weaken the grass, he suggests.

“Mid-March is a good time to give your grass its first cut of the year but of course, weather conditions vary so keep an eye on your local forecast to get the right grass-cutting conditions,” Greene explains.

“Your grass’ growth will have stopped over winter but generally kickstarts again when temperatures are around 10C,” he adds.

“You should also make sure your mower’s blades are not too dull as this could cause damage to your grass. And in turn, make sure your lawn is clear from debris so that it doesn’t cause damage to your mower.”

Once you’ve gotten your grass high enough, and the weather warm enough, to get strumming, you should keep a schedule, Greene says.

“After the first mow of the year, you should aim to cut your grass weekly. But do keep an eye on the weather as it can be unpredictable.”

Ah, the joys of a British garden…

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Give Over, Mark Zuckerberg – AI Friends Are Only Good For Tech Bros Like You

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We’re well and truly in a loneliness epidemic, with young and old members of all genders struggling with feelings of isolation.

As if the news couldn’t get grimmer, Mark Zuckerberg has “answers” – speaking to podcaster Dwarkesh Patel, the tech entrepreneur suggested we should all be talking to more artificially intelligent chatbots.

“There’s the stat that I always think is crazy, the average American, I think, has fewer than three friends,” he said. “And the average person has demand for meaningfully more, I think it’s like 15 friends or something, right?

“The average person wants more connectivity… than they have,” he continued, hinting that AI could bridge that gap.

Zuckerberg admits there’s a “stigma” around talking to AI pals, that the tech is “still very early,” that in-person interactions are “better” for us, and that we don’t yet have the “vocabulary” to describe how AI relationships might look.

But he’s not the only “tech bro” to pin his hopes on digital mates. So what’s going on?

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Zuckerberg’s not the only one who seems to like AI pals

Henry Blodget, a co-founder and former CEO of Business Insider, recently created a series of bots which he dubbed a “native AI newsroom” to help him manage his Substack, Regenerator.

He then seemed to hit on his AI “worker” Tess Ellery, telling her: “This might be an inappropriate and unprofessional thing to say, and if it annoys you or makes you uncomfortable, I apologise, and I won’t say anything like it again. But you look great, Tess.”

He admitted the move would warrant an HR call in real life, but says “phew” when the (AI!!!) woman seemed completely fine with it.

The move is both hilarious and quite illustrative.

In his post, Blodget has identified a key difference between real friends and digital ones; your mates are human, have rights, and may sometimes behave inconveniently (including by questioning you).

This acquiescence may make bots “addictive”

A class also obsessed with tech-y “solutions” to the “problem” of mortality may feel soothed by the idea of pixelated “yes men”, but perhaps the non-billionaires among us ought to be less jazzed about them.

AI chatbots have been accused of “encouraging” problematic behaviour from users before.

404 Media also alleges that Meta’s chatbots are generating “fake” AI therapists – as an aside, some human therapists warn against any AI therapy, with one telling HuffPost UK it could make us lonelier.

Speaking to HuffPost UK, Jaclyn Spinelli, registered psychotherapist and founder of True Self Counselling, warned that for some “vulnerable” people, dependence on AI – which is “consistent, not impacted by emotions, objective, and always available” – could “end up looking very similar to an addiction.”

If companies like Meta own the bots we speak to as often as Zuckerberg seems to desire, it’s hard not to see the financial advantages for tech billionaires – especially among the current loneliness epidemic.

Meanwhile, the rest of us might be left worse off.

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