Latest news with #AngliaRuskinUniversity
The Guardian
16 hours ago
- Business
- The Guardian
A good deal or a good deal of waste? How to be more conscious about your consumption during sales periods
Whether the discount is offered on social media, via email or in a banner on your favourite website, if a business you've ever been a patron of is having a sale you can be sure they'll find a way to tell you. 'Temporary sales events are aimed at leveraging FOMO,' says Jason Pallant, a senior lecturer in marketing at RMIT University. 'The idea is to make consumers feel like they will miss out on a great bargain if they don't buy something right away.' While it can feel good to click 'buy now' in the moment, ending up with piles of barely used impulse purchases leads to a particular kind of shame, regret (and clutter). With the end-of-financial-year sales period upon us, here are some strategies to ensure you are being conscious about your on-sale consumption. Believe it or not, our brains are wired to encourage us to buy things at a reduced price, especially when there is a sense of urgency – ie during sales and promotions. Cathrine Jansson-Boyd, a professor of consumer psychology at Anglia Ruskin University, says this is because of three things. 'When we see a price tag that we perceive as a good deal, the part of our brains that deals with pleasure is activated,' she says. Then, when we make a purchase, we get a dopamine hit that makes us feel good and, finally, when there is a time limit on the availability of the discounted price, it triggers heightened adrenaline. This combination means sales shopping can make people 'feel giddy with excitement'. Being aware of this dynamic and recognising it when temptation arises is the first step to exercising self-control and resisting the urge to make an impulse purchase. The second step is to take 'a calm pause between looking at an item and purchasing', says Dr Kate Luckins, the author of Live More With Less. This should help to 'counter the frenzy of the sale'. If you're shopping in store, one way to do this is by holding on to the item while you continue browsing and delay heading to the checkout. Or, if you're shopping online, stand up and walk away from your computer or put down your phone and do something else to see if the shine of the product wears off. Alternatively, sleep on it. 'In that pause, you will either obsess over the item you're considering, or you will move on and forget about it,' Luckins says. So as not to miss out on the savings promotional periods offer, Stephanie Atto from Australian Consumer and Retail Studies recommends keeping a list of products you are looking to buy and sticking to the list during sales periods. 'To resist sales pressures, consumers should focus on being informed and assertive,' she says. 'Be prepared by understanding your needs, doing your research and setting a budget.' The popularity of this strategy is borne out by data. Pallant says the increased frequency of sales periods has trained consumers to wait to make purchases. 'A recent shopper survey from Mailchimp suggests 76% of consumers use these events to buy products they were planning to buy anyway.' Although it might feel like being increasingly online gives retailers an advantage, Pallant suggests inverting this dynamic by keeping track of what you want to buy, what a good price is and gathering your own data. 'Do your research about how often these brands or products go on sale and what a good discount really is,' he says. 'There are so many sales events now that if you miss out on one, you might only have to wait a couple of weeks for another.' Given the frequency of email and social media marketing, you can do yourself a favour ahead of time by 'setting tech limits', Atto says. This can be as simple as running through your inbox and unsubscribing from brands and retailers that always seem to be communicating promotions, or unfollowing social media accounts that do the same. As the designer and poet William Morris said: 'Have nothing in your houses that you do not know to be useful or believe to be beautiful.' Regardless of how much your dopamine-hungry brain is calculating you will save with the purchase of an item, once you've bought it, it's yours – so it's worth assessing whether it is a good investment. Try exercising some reverse Marie Kondo (the decluttering expert) and ask before the purchase: Does this item truly bring me joy? In six months, when I am cleaning out my cupboards, is its quality so good that I will still be proud to own it? The flip side of this is that shopping on sale can be an opportunity to buy something of beautiful quality or craftsmanship that might normally be out of your budget. 'Buying one piece or product we love rather than a bunch we kind of like at a discount is much more satisfying in the long term,' Luckins says. If you're having trouble using the form, click here. Read terms of service here.
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Business Standard
3 days ago
- Health
- Business Standard
New data shows just how powerful the next weight-loss drugs may be
Doctors call the new weight-loss drugs revolutionary. Game-changing. Unprecedented. Soon, they may also call them obsolete. Drugmakers are racing to develop the next wave of obesity and diabetes medications that they hope will be even more powerful than those currently on the market. 'I think what we are going to see very quickly is that Wegovy has received a lot of the press attention, because it got there first,' said Simon Cork, a senior lecturer at Anglia Ruskin University in England who has studied obesity. 'But it will be rapidly overtaken by much more potent medications.' On Saturday, researchers presented data at an annual meeting of the American Diabetes Association on perhaps the most anticipated of these medications: a daily pill. A late-stage study showed that the drug, called orforglipron, appeared to be about as effective as a weekly Ozempic injection at inducing weight loss and lowering blood sugar. It is just one of over a dozen experimental medications that researchers will share data about at the conference this weekend. Some of these drugs are still in early trials, but others could hit the market as soon as next year. They include medications that may lead to more weight loss than the roughly 15 to 20 percent body weight people lose on existing drugs. They may also be easier to take than weekly injections and help people shed pounds without dropping as much muscle. More competition — and, in the case of the pill, lower manufacturing costs — might also mean that, eventually, patients pay less. 'A lot of people are like, 'Oh, we have Ozempic, everything's good now,'' said Megan Capozzi, a research assistant professor at the University of Washington Medicine who studies treatments for diabetes and obesity. 'But I think there are so many more things to improve on.' More convenience, less muscle loss By some estimates, one in eight adults in the United States has already taken a medication like Wegovy or Zepbound. But researchers believe far more people would use — and stick with — weight-loss drugs that did not require weekly injections. Simply put, Dr. Capozzi said, 'people would rather takes pills than shots.' That's why doctors and investors are so excited about orforglipron. Like Ozempic and other drugs on the market, orforglipron mimics a hormone that regulates blood sugar and curbs appetite. In the data presented at the conference, researchers who followed over 500 patients with Type 2 diabetes reported that those who took the highest dose lost an average of around 16 pounds after nine months. Around two-thirds of people who took the drug also saw their blood sugar levels fall to a target range. If the drug is more broadly used in people with obesity and not just diabetes, those with higher body weights may see even more weight loss, since people with diabetes alone tend to lose less on these kinds of drugs, said Dr. Scott Hagan, an assistant professor of medicine at the University of Washington. Eli Lilly, the pharmaceutical company that makes the pill, will release data from additional studies in orforglipron in people with obesity later this year. The company will seek regulatory approval for the drug first as an obesity treatment and later for Type 2 diabetes. It could be available as soon as next year. The company has not said how much orforglipron will cost, but it's generally cheaper to mass-produce pills than shots. If it does have a significantly lower price tag than the currently available drugs, which can cost hundreds or even around a thousand dollars a month, more patients could afford the medication. More insurers might even cover it. Over the next few days, researchers will also present data on other, earlier-stage drugs that could be more convenient than weekly shots. This includes MariTide, an injectable drug made by the biopharmaceutical company Amgen that patients could take once a month. Some new medications in development are also trying to solve for a persistent side effect of existing drugs: Patients who lose fat also tend to lose muscle. This can be particularly dangerous for older adults because it makes them more likely to fall and can worsen osteoporosis. One experimental drug combines the substance in Ozempic and a compound that blocks the receptors that regulate skeletal muscle and fat mass. Several others simulate the hormone amylin, which has been shown in rodent studies to preserve some lean muscle tissue, though more data is needed in humans. Some researchers remain skeptical that any drug can lead to significant weight loss without sacrificing at least some muscle. Potential for even more weight loss While the incoming generation of drugs might offer more convenience or help safeguard muscle, it's still unclear whether they would offer significantly greater weight loss. Investors and doctors had high hopes for a drug called CagriSema, which is a weekly injection that combines the substance in Ozempic with a new compound. Novo Nordisk, the company that makes the drug, had set a goal of 25 percent weight loss, but the early results fell short, showing that people with obesity who took the drug lost nearly 23 percent of their body weight after over a year. That was not enough for analysts to consider the drug a clear winner over Zepbound, which is widely considered the most effective option on the market. 'The threshold for a slam dunk is now getting just higher and higher,' Dr. Hagan said. But some drugs that are less far along in development look more promising, including retatrutide, a weekly injection that beat the Zepbound results in early trials. That medication is still long away from potential approval, however. Even if some medications that hit the market soon deliver only equivalent weight loss, or nearly as much, their arrival could have a big impact, for a few reasons. The biggest of these is that a cheaper or more convenient medication could help more patients stay on a weight-loss drug for longer. People are supposed to stay on weight-loss drugs for the rest of their lives — if patients stop taking a drug, they often regain weight. But by some estimates, over half of patients go off these drugs within a year, sometimes because of insurance issues, side effects or intermittent shortages of the medications. These interruptions help explain why people lose much less weight in the real world than they do in carefully controlled clinical trials. 'We're going to turn around in three to five years and find out that the vast majority of people were only on these drugs for eight or nine months, gone off these drugs and gained back the weight,' said Dr. David Kessler, a former commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration who has written a book about weight-loss drugs. 'We're going to conclude that this has been one big failure — unless we can figure out how to use these drugs in the real world,' he added. Many of the medications in development also work slightly differently from those currently on the market. This might mean that individual people will respond better to them, Dr. Hagan said. By some estimates, around 15 percent of people do not lose substantial weight on the drugs available now. The more options there are, the better doctors can make sure patients are getting the drug best suited for them, Dr. Hagan said. 'We're starting to shift out of the initial phase where, 'Oh, wow, we finally have some drugs that are safe and effective,'' he said. 'We have a menu of them.'
RTÉ News
3 days ago
- Health
- RTÉ News
Why it can be harder to sleep during the summer
Analysis: Seasonal insomnia means summer sleeping for many of us is a time of tossing, turning and early waking By Timothy Hearn, Anglia Ruskin University As the days stretch long and the sun lingers late into the evening, most of us welcome summer with open arms. Yet for a surprising number of people, this season brings an unwelcome guest: insomnia. For these people, summer is a time of tossing and turning, early waking – or simply not feeling sleepy when they should. Far from just being a nuisance, this seasonal insomnia may chip away at mood, concentration and metabolic health. From RTÉ 2FM Morning with Laura Fox, sleep expert Síne Dunne on getting off to sleep But why does insomnia spike in summer — and more importantly, what can be done about it? The answer lies in the light. Every tissue in the body owns a molecular "clock". However, these clocks take their cue from a central timekeeper – the brain's suprachiasmatic nucleus. This cluster of about 20,000 neurons synchronises the myriad cellular clocks to a near 24-hour cycle. It uses the external light detected by the eyes as a cue, driving the release of two different hormones: melatonin, which makes us sleepy and a pre-dawn surge cortisol to help us wake. In winter, this light cue is short and sharp. But in June and July, daylight can stretch on for 16 or 17 hours in the mid‑latitudes. That extra dose matters because evening light is the most potent signal for pushing the central timekeeper later. In summer melatonin shifts by roughly 30 minutes to an hour later, while dawn light floods bedrooms early and kills the hormone off sooner. From RTÉ Brainstorm, the A to Zzzzz of sleep This can have a big effect on the amount of sleep we get. One study monitored the sleep of 188 participants in the lab on three nights at different times of the year. The researchers found that total sleep was about an hour shorter in summer than winter. Rapid eye movement (REM) sleep — the sleep stage most strongly linked to emotional regulation and the consolidation of emotionally charged memories — accounted for roughly half the sleep loss in summer. The same team later tracked 377 patients over two consecutive years and showed that sleep length and REM sleep began a five‑month decline soon after the last freezing night of spring. Sleep length shrank by an average of 62 minutes, while REM decreased by about 24 minutes. Slow-wave sleep – the phase most critical for tissue repair, immune regulation and the consolidation of factual memories – reached its annual low around the autumn equinox. Both studies took place in a city bathed in artificial light – suggesting that even in modern environments our sleep remains seasonally affected. From RTÉ Radio 1's Drivetime, you may be sleeping well, but are you actually getting rest? Big population surveys echo these findings. Among more than 30,000 middle‑aged Canadians, volunteers interviewed in midsummer said they slept eight minutes less than those interviewed in midwinter. The summer interviewees also reported greater insomnia symptoms in the fortnight after the autumn clock change – suggesting the abrupt time shift exacerbates underlying seasonal misalignment. One study also compared the effect of summer sleep in people living at very different latitudes – such as near the equator, where there's little change in day length in the summer, and near the Arctic circle, where the differences are extreme. The study found that for people living in Tromsø, Norway, their self-reported insomnia and daytime fatigue rose markedly in summer. But for people living in Accra, Ghana (near the equator), these measures barely budged. This show just how strongly daylight – and the amount of daylight hours we experience – can affect our sleep quality. But it isn't the only culprit of poor summertime sleep. Temperature is another factor that can spoil sleep during the summer months. Just before we fall asleep, our core body temperature begins a steep descent of roughly 1°C to help us fall asleep. It reaches its lowest point during the first half of the night. On muggy summer nights this can make falling asleep difficult. Laboratory experiments show that even a rise from 26°C to about 32°C increases wakefulness and reduces both slow-wave and REM sleep. Different people are also more vulnerable to summer insomnia than others. This has to do with your unique "chronotype" – your natural preference to rise early or sleep late. Evening chronotypes – "night owls" – already lean towards later bedtimes. They may stay up even later when it stays bright past ten o'clock. Morning chronotypes, on the other hand, may find themselves waking up even earlier than they normally do because of when the sun rises in the summer. From RTE Radio 1's Drivetime, sleep physiologist Motty Varghese on sleeping 14 hours a day Mood can amplify the effect. Research found people who suffered with mental health issues were more likely to experience difficulty sleeping in summer. Chronic anxiety, alcohol use and certain prescription drugs — notably beta blockers, which suppress melatonin — can all make sleep more elusive in summer. 4 ways to reclaim your summer sleep Happily, there are many ways of fixing the issue. Get some morning sunshine. Try to step outside within an hour of waking up – even if it's just for 15 minutes. This tells the clock that the day has begun and nudges it to finish earlier that evening. Create an artificial dusk. Around two hours before bed, close the curtains, turn off the lights and reduce the intensity of your phone screen's blue light to help your melatonin rise on time. Don't let the dawn light in. Being exposed to the dawn light too early will wake you up. Blackout curtains or a contoured eye-mask can ensure you don't wake before you're rested. Keep things cool. Fans, breathable cotton or linen sheets or a lukewarm shower before bed all help the body to achieve that crucial one-degree drop in core temperature needed to get a good night's sleep. The deeper lesson here from chronobiology is that humans remain, biologically speaking, seasonal animals. While our industrialised lives flatten the calendar, our cells still measure day length and temperature just as plants and migratory birds do. By adapting and aligning our habits with those light signals, we might just be able to recapture some sleep – even during the warmer months.
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
TV farmer warns of 'obesity epidemic' in UK
Celebrity farmer Jimmy Doherty has warned the nation is facing an "obesity epidemic" during an event for schoolchildren. The presenter said he wanted to bridge "a massive divide" between consumers and producers as he met with pupils on Tuesday. Thousands of children, from 72 primary schools across Essex, gathered at Anglia Ruskin University's campus in Writtle for the educational festival. Doherty, a visiting professor at the university, said it was a "brilliant showcase" that would better people's understanding of the farming industry. "It's absolutely vital that we have that interaction because we've got an obesity epidemic in this country," he told the BBC. The event was organised by the Essex Agricultural Society, which estimated 3,000 children were in attendance. It featured the chance to get up close with livestock and watch tractors and combine harvesters in action. "We have a massive divide between the consumers and producers," said Doherty, who became a household name after his Jimmy's Farm documentary aired in 2004. "We need a better understanding of how our food is produced, what goes into it and also the importance of our farmers." Children were inspired to be curious about healthy eating and sustainability during the day, as well as being taught how to pursue an agricultural career. Andrea Farrant, head teacher of Blackmore Primary School in Ingatestone, said she wanted pupils to see what was grown in Essex. She said they enjoyed seeing how food "gets to our plates". Follow Essex news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X. How can I get to this year's Royal Norfolk Show? Zoos much more than entertainment, say leaders TV presenter takes on new role at university
BBC News
3 days ago
- Health
- BBC News
Jimmy Doherty warns of 'obesity epidemic' during Writtle event
Celebrity farmer Jimmy Doherty has warned the nation is facing an "obesity epidemic" during an event for presenter said he wanted to bridge "a massive divide" between consumers and producers as he met with pupils on of children, from 72 primary schools across Essex, gathered at Anglia Ruskin University's campus in Writtle for the educational a visiting professor at the university, said it was a "brilliant showcase" that would better people's understanding of the farming industry. "It's absolutely vital that we have that interaction because we've got an obesity epidemic in this country," he told the BBC. The event was organised by the Essex Agricultural Society, which estimated 3,000 children were in featured the chance to get up close with livestock and watch tractors and combine harvesters in action."We have a massive divide between the consumers and producers," said Doherty, who became a household name after his Jimmy's Farm documentary aired in 2004."We need a better understanding of how our food is produced, what goes into it and also the importance of our farmers." Children were inspired to be curious about healthy eating and sustainability during the day, as well as being taught how to pursue an agricultural Farrant, head teacher of Blackmore Primary School in Ingatestone, said she wanted pupils to see what was grown in said they enjoyed seeing how food "gets to our plates". Follow Essex news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.
