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National Geographic
3 days ago
- Health
- National Geographic
What your noisy knees are trying to tell you
Joint sounds like cracking and popping are often harmless—but when paired with pain or stiffness, they may signal early arthritis. Experts say age isn't the only factor—diet, inflammation, and movement play a big role in how your joints hold up over time. Illustration by Ruslanas Baranauskas, Science Photo Library From gas bubbles to worn cartilage, here's what makes your joints pop—and how to know if it's something to worry about. Snap. Crackle. Pop. If your knees sound like a bowl of cereal every time you stand, you're not alone. 'Those cracking or popping sounds people hear are really common. We call it 'crepitus' in the medical world and, most of the time, it's just a normal part of joint mechanics,' says Mitchell McDowell, an orthopedic surgeon, osteopathic physician, and president of M Bone and Joint. 'It could be tiny gas bubbles in the joint fluid popping, or even tendons or ligaments shifting a bit as you move.' However, when the noise accompanies pain or stiffness, it may signal something more serious. Starting as early as your thirties, the smooth, springy padding inside your joints—called cartilage—can begin to wear down. That doesn't mean arthritis is inevitable, but without that shock-absorbing layer inside your joints, your bones may start to grind instead of glide—leading to pain, stiffness, and reduced mobility. And while age plays a role, emerging research suggests that lifestyle, diet, and inflammation may also play a part. Here's what researchers are learning about why joints get creaky—and what you can do now to stay limber for life. Is your stiffness a sign of aging? Joint wear tends to become more noticeable in your 40s and 50s, says Barry L. Bently, an associate professor in bioengineering at Cardiff Metropolitan University. Roughly 30 percent of Americans between 45 and 64—and over 50 percent of those 65 and older—have arthritis, according to the CDC. But it's not as simple as ticking off birthdays. What you put in your body can have a big impact on what you keep in your head. 'Chronological age, or the number of years since birth, is only loosely correlated with biological age and the accumulation of physiological damage,' Bentley explains. 'It is far from straightforward to define what should be considered 'normal' aging.' Genetics, past injuries, and lifestyle habits all influence when joint problems show up—and how severe they become. (The overlooked key to fitness? Strengthening your joints and tendons.) So, how can you tell the difference between natural stiffness and something more serious? 'Most of us feel a bit stiff now and then, especially after sitting too long or waking up in the morning, and that kind of stiffness usually eases up once you get moving,' says McDowell. 'But with early arthritis, the stiffness tends to hang around longer, sometimes even getting worse with activity.' A 2021 study in Rheumatology found that morning stiffness lasting an hour or more is a key warning sign of arthritis. If that stiffness is accompanied by swelling, pain, or a nagging ache that doesn't go away, 'it's smart to get it looked at early,' says McDowell. 'It's always easier to manage arthritis in the beginning stages.' Why do your joints wear down over time? 'For significant joint wear that leads to osteoarthritis, there have been some studies showing that chronological age only accounts for about half the risk, with the other half being attributable to modifiable environmental and lifestyle factors,' says Bentley. That includes physical stress. 'There is ample evidence that activities that place repetitive or excessive loads on the joints can lead to cartilage wear and bone changes,' says Bentley. High-impact activities, such as running on hard surfaces, manual labor, or heavy lifting, can overburden joints, especially if you're not recovering sufficiently. (Here's why double-jointed people are more likely to have health problems.) But it's not just wear and tear. Low-grade, chronic inflammation plays a major role in joint aging. 'Consuming a diet high in processed foods, excessive alcohol consumption, and smoking, can play a significant role in accelerating biological aging, including exacerbating joint damage,' explains Bentley. 'Those behaviors promote systemic inflammation, which impairs cartilage repair mechanisms and accelerates tissue degradation.' How to protect your joints in your 40s and beyond The good news? You can take action to protect your joints—even if they're already a little creaky. 'I see a lot of patients who worry it's 'too late' to do something about their joints, but that's just not true,' McDowell. 'Even in your 40s or 50s, small changes can make a big difference.' Those changes can include maintaining a healthy weight to take pressure off your joints or eating a nutrient-rich diet that contains omega-3 fatty acids—found in fatty fish like salmon—which have anti-inflammatory effects. Antioxidants like vitamins C and E help protect cartilage from oxidative damage, while calcium and vitamin D support both bones and cartilage. In addition, McDowell recommends cutting back on nicotine, which limits blood flow to the joints, and excessive alcohol consumption, which depletes the body of nutrients. (This is why mobility should be a key part of your fitness routine.) Consistent, low-impact activities like walking, swimming, tai chi, or cycling are gentle on your joints while helping improve strength and flexibility. Strength training is also key, says McDowell. Stronger muscles stabilize the joints and act as shock absorbers, especially in key areas such as the hips and knees. A 2021 study in Frontiers in Physiology found that regular exercise can slow cartilage degeneration, reduce inflammation, and prevent bone loss in people with osteoarthritis. Another 2019 study in Arthritis & Rheumatology suggests it may even reduce the risk of developing rheumatoid arthritis. 'Think of the joints like tires on a car,' says McDowell. 'If you drive 300 miles a day, especially if you're carrying some extra cargo, the tires wear out quickly. It's even worse if there was trauma or the alignment is off.' He continues, 'On the other hand, if you park the car in the garage, you lose air pressure/ belts bend and the engine stops working. It's all about balance.'
National Geographic
4 days ago
- Science
- National Geographic
8 night sky events to see in July, from a ‘buck moon‘ to a rare view of Pluto
One of the closest and brightest globular clusters visible from Earth, M22 contains hundreds of thousands of stars packed into a tight, elliptical shape about 10,000 light-years away. Photograph by John Chumack, Science Photo Library Get your binoculars ready for dark skies, elusive planets, and a sky show spanning the entire month. Stargazers, get ready to take in some awe-inspiring sights. This month offers a parade of star clusters, meteors, and various planet sightings, including the difficult-to-spot dwarf planet Pluto. Here's what to look for in the July night sky. A globular cluster in prime view—July 1 The globular cluster Messier 22 (M22) reaches its highest point in the sky around midnight local time, specifically for observers south of 46° N latitude, since M22's position favors the Southern Hemisphere. Located about 10,000 light-years away in the constellation Sagittarius, M22 is one of the brightest globular clusters visible from Earth. Under dark skies, M22 appears as a faint smudge with the naked eye. But binoculars or a small telescope reveal its stunning structure—a densely packed sphere of hundreds of thousands of stars. Mercury is notoriously difficult to see from Earth, thanks to its proximity to the Sun. But on July 4, Mercury reaches its greatest eastern elongation, meaning the planet will be at its farthest apparent distance from the Sun in the evening sky. This event marks one of the best chances to see the elusive planet this year. Look west-northwest just after sunset, keeping your gaze close to the horizon. Mercury should be visible during the evening twilight hours. If it's cloudy, don't worry—you'll still be able to see Mercury for a few more weeks. The 'buck moon'—July 10 The full 'buck moon,' named for the time of year when male deer begin regrowing their antlers, rises behind the Temple of Poseidon in Sounion on July 20, 2024. Photograph by Costas Baltas/Anadolu, Getty Images Nicknamed the 'buck moon,' July's full moon occurs on the 10th. The moniker, drawn from Indigenous and colonial traditions in North America and popularized by the Farmer's Almanac, refers to the time of year when male deer, or bucks, begin to regrow their antlers. (Yes, they shed them annually.) (Learn the origins of the many names given to each full moon.) If you have a pair of binoculars, take a close look at the lunar surface. The bright rays radiating from Tycho crater and the dark basalt plains known as maria, the Latin word for 'seas,' are especially striking during a full moon. In the predawn hours of July 16, skywatchers can catch a triple encounter: the waning gibbous moon will sweep past Saturn and Neptune in the constellation Pisces. Saturn, the brighter of the two, is visible to the naked eye. Neptune, far dimmer, requires a telescope. Just three days prior, Saturn will have entered retrograde motion, appearing to move west across the sky rather than east. A partial lunar eclipse unfolds beneath the Pleiades star cluster in November 2021. Photograph by Alan Dyer/VW Pics, Getty Images Crescent moon near the Pleiades star cluster—July 20 Before sunrise on July 20, the crescent moon will pass within a degree of the Pleiades, a bright open cluster also known as the Seven Sisters or Messier 45 (M45). Though home to more than 1,000 young, hot stars, most people can spot just six with the naked eye. (These are the best stargazing sites in North America.) The Pleiades shine brightest from November to March, but determined stargazers can spot them in late July, too. Their pairing with the moon on July 20 creates a picturesque scene, especially when viewed through binoculars, which frame the glittering stars and glowing crescent in the same field of view. On July 25, Pluto will lie directly opposite the Sun from Earth's perspective. Simultaneously, it will also reach perigee, its closest distance to Earth in its orbit. Although still nearly three billion miles away, it will shine slightly brighter than usual—making this the best chance to view the dwarf planet this year. (Did Pluto ever actually stop being a planet? Experts debate.) That said, Pluto remains a faint speck, even at its best. You'll need a reasonably powerful telescope and a detailed star chart to locate it in the constellation Sagittarius around midnight local time. Moon and Mars conjunction—July 29 On the evening of July 29, the moon will pass close to Mars in the constellation Taurus. Visibility may be limited in some locations, as the pair will appear low on the horizon and could be washed out by sunlight. If skies are clear, look for the waxing crescent moon and Mars's distinctive reddish glow. The Southern delta Aquariids meteor shower, active from July 18 to August 12, is expected to peak overnight from July 29 to 30. This year, the waning crescent moon will set early during the peak, leaving skies dark for optimal meteor viewing. (Here are nine must-see night sky events to look forward to in 2025.) Southern delta Aquariids meteors tend to be faint, and you might not see more than a dozen or two shooting stars per hour at most. For a more dramatic display, wait for August, when the delta Aquariids overlap with the brighter Perseids.
The Irish Sun
6 days ago
- Science
- The Irish Sun
ChatGPT bosses fear its AI will be used to create devastating new ‘bioweapons' and warns app will ‘hit that level' soon
THE company behind ChatGPT has warned that future versions of its artificial intelligence (AI) tool could be used to create bioweapons. AI has long been hailed for its potential in future medical breakthroughs, by helping scientists create new drugs and faster vaccines. 3 Anthrax under the microscope Credit: Science Photo Library But in a recent That includes, according to OpenAI, the ability to "assist highly skilled actors in creating bioweapons." "Physical access to labs and sensitive materials remains a barrier," the blog post continued. "However those barriers are not absolute." Since its initial release in late 2022, ChatGPT has only gotten smarter. READ MORE ON CHATGPT Bosses believe upcoming models will reach "'high' levels of capability in biology". That's why they say they are taking precautions to prevent ChatGPT from helping to build a bio-threat. Bioweapons are devices or agents that cause disease, injury or death to humans, livestock and even plants. "We don't think it's acceptable to wait and see whether a bio threat event occurs before deciding on a sufficient level of safeguards," the company wrote. Most read in Tech In a However, the AI chatbot might still be advanced enough to help amateurs do so. China's new cheap AI DeepSeek sparks ALARM as it outperforms West's models like ChatGPT amid race to superintelligence "We're not yet in the world where there's like novel, completely unknown creation of biothreats that have not existed before," Heidecke said. "We are more worried about replicating things that experts already are very familiar with." OpenAI said it has worked with experts on biosecurity, bioweapons, and bioterrorism to shape ChatGPT and the information it can give users. The 2001 anthrax attacks in the US, where letters containing deadly anthrax spores were mailed to several news outlet offices, are the most recent confirmed use of a bioweapon. To prevent a scenario where a novice can develop a bioweapon with the helping hand of ChatGPT, future models need to be programmed to "near perfection" to both recognise and alert human monitors to any dangers, Heidecke explained. "This is not something where like 99 percent or even one in 100,000 performance is sufficient," he said. Last year, top scientists warned that The report they co-authored said governments have a responsibility to stop , such that could be used in biological or nuclear warfare. What is ChatGPT? ChatGPT is an artificial intelligence (AI) tool created by San Francisco-based startup OpenAI. After launching in November 2022, the AI chatbot has since exploded in both popularity and its own clever abilities. It can converse, generate readable text on demand and produce images and video based on what has been learned from a vast database of digital books, online writings and other media. ChatGPT essentially works like a written dialogue between the AI system and the person asking it questions. Although it now has a GPT stands for Generative Pre-Trained Transformer and describes the type of model that can create AI-generated content. If you prompt it, for example ask it to 'write a short poem about flowers,' it will create a chunk of text based on that request. It can handle very complicated prompts and is even being used by businesses to help with work. But note that it might not always tell you the truth. 'ChatGPT is incredibly limited, but good enough at some things to create a misleading impression of greatness,' OpenAI CEO Sam Altman said in 2022. 3 Bosses believe upcoming models will reach "'high' levels of capability in biology" Credit: Getty 3 OpenAI said it has worked with experts on biosecurity, bioweapons, and bioterrorism to shape ChatGPT and the information it can give users Credit: Getty
National Geographic
20-06-2025
- Health
- National Geographic
Statin drugs are an Internet villain. Do they deserve it?
Cholesterol-lowering medicines are some of the most commonly prescribed, effective drugs. Influencers on TikTok have other ideas. The cholesterol-lowering drug Simvastatin. Like other statins, this drug reduces the levels of low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol in the body. Over 40 million Americans currently take statins. Photograph by James King-Holmes, Science Photo Library Inside the average doctor's office, statins aren't controversial; they're a crucial lifesaving tool used to lower dangerously high cholesterol levels, reducing risk of heart attack. But on social media, the drug is often villainized, painted as a poison pill, or a symptom of a diseased medical system. Recently, influencers have claimed that statins cause more harm than good and have endless side effects. Others take even bigger swings, claiming that the fundamental science behind cholesterol is a myth, one that's used simply to sell more statins . 'If you only went online,' Spencer Nadolsky says, 'you would never want to have a statin.' Nadolsky, a physician who specializes in obesity and lipids, is familiar with the social media critiques. 'It's one of the most fear-mongered yet amazing drugs of our time,' he says. How did boring generic pharmaceutical—a drug prescribed to 200 million people worldwide—become controversial? Part of the answer is influencers who proselytize ketogenic and carnivore diets, promising weight loss and other health benefits through the consumption of high fat consumption and limited carbohydrates. When adhering to one of these diets, the body uses fat as its main fuel source instead of carbohydrates, which can lead to loss of body fat while maintaining muscle mass. The success of these diets is often bolstered by fit social media influencers eating red meat off a cutting board, touting the benefits of their preferred version of a low-carbohydrate, high-fat diet. One influencer even claimed that her transition from a vegan diet to a carnivore diet cured her of everything from brain fog to flatulence. But keto and carnivore have been associated with dramatic increases in low density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol—the cholesterol most strongly associated with heart disease, often called the 'bad' cholesterol. Rejecting the lipid hypothesis, many influencers cast doubt on the widely accepted concept that cholesterol contributes to atherosclerosis, which is the buildup of fats and cholesterol in and on the artery walls. The head of a 60 year old patient with high blood pressure and high blood cholesterol. The blood vessels are the result of atherosclerosis which is the buildup of fats and cholesterol in and on the artery walls. Image by Zephyr/Science Photo Library Clinical lipidologist Tom Dayspring describes claims like these as 'ketogenic nonsense.' He says that patients might not experience any symptoms of atherosclerosis until it's too late. What some people don't understand, Dayspring explains, is that heart disease only presents symptoms like chest pain and arrhythmia in very late stages of progression. Symptoms, Dayspring notes, can't be used to diagnosis the disease. 'Most people are dropping dead before they get any symptoms of heart disease,' he says. A scent, a touch, or a sip can be just what you need to lock an important moment into your mind forever. Dayspring says that LDL levels in the United States follow a bell curve. In general, doctors want to get their patients to the 20th percentile or lower, or around 100 mg of LDL cholesterol per deciliter of blood. Once you go above the 20th percentile, the exponential risk becomes a 'straight line to heaven,' Dayspring says. The only way to reduce serious medical issues like heart attacks, heart failure, and strokes brought on by plaque accumulation in the arteries is to achieve very low levels of LDL cholesterol. Dayspring describes it as 'an illegal dump job of cholesterol in your artery wall.' A lipid can only travel through plasma when it's wrapped in a protein known as a lipoprotein. 'Some lipoproteins, for whatever reason, leave plasma, crash the artery wall, and dump their cholesterol.' That's where statins can help. Low-density lipoproteins, or LDLs, are molecules that are a combination of fat and protein and are the form in which lipids are transported in the blood. LDLs transport cholesterol from the liver to the tissues of the body, including the arteries, which has lead LDL being known as "bad" cholesterol. Micrograph by Science Photo Library A colored transmission electron micrograph of high density lipoprotein (HDL), or 'good' cholesterol. HDL cholesterol plays a role in fat metabolism and contributes to cardiovascular health Micrograph by Lennart Nilsson, TT/Science Photo Library Approved in the United States in 1987, statins work by blocking an enzyme in the liver—where most of the body's cholesterol is produced—which prevents LDL production. Statins reduce the risk of heart attack, stroke, and heart disease, which is still the leading cause of death in the United States. Over 40 million Americans currently take statins. Until the early 2000s, statins were the only game in town for managing cholesterol, Dayspring says. Now, there are newer drugs that can also help. One class of drugs, PCSK9 inhibitors, lowers LDL cholesterol by blocking the protein that binds to LDL receptors, keeping these receptors available to clear LDL cholesterol from the blood stream. Unlike statins, these drugs haven't been vilified by. While LDL is often referred to as the 'bad' cholesterol because it can contribute to plaques, and HDL is called the 'good' cholesterol for clearing excess cholesterol from the arteries, it's not black and white. The body requires LDL to function since it assists in cellular construction and repair and serves as a building block for many essential hormones. 'I tell patients up front, [LDL] is the delivery cholesterol, because every tissue in your body needs tens of thousands of doses of cholesterol every day,' says Stephen Kopecky, a preventative cardiologist and the director of the Mayo Clinic's Statin Intolerance Clinic in Minnesota. 'If you didn't have it, you'd be dead,' Kopecky explains. 'So it can't be that bad. There's a sweet spot.' But LDL is just one measure of cholesterol. Dayspring thinks the most measurement to pay attention to is apolipoprotein B, or ApoB, the protein component found in several lipids, including LDL, but not HDL. ApoB, involved in cholesterol transport, is considered superior to LDL cholesterol to assess the risk of heart disease. Unlike LDL cholesterol, ApoB captures a more complete picture of all potentially plaque-causing particles in the blood. For example, a person with normal LDL cholesterol but high ApoB would still be at risk for heart disease. Looking at ApoB is relatively new in the United States, which has historically used LDL. But the rest of the world uses this measurement, says Kopecky. Statin side effects and intolerance Like all medication, statins have side effects. On social media, these side effects are often front-and-center, used by influencers to show that the drug is inefficient or steer followers from considering the medication altogether. The most common are muscle aches, headaches, digestive issues. More seriously, for people with insulin resistance, there's an increased risk to develop Type 2 diabetes (though the American Diabetes Association advises that people with diabetes go on a statin if they're older than 40). To Nadolsky, the benefits outweigh the risks. He compares taking statin to taking daily multivitamin. In his practice, he's able to convince skeptical patients who've bought into the influencer-driven narrative around statins with some basic facts. If the patient claims that LDL cholesterol is not the cause of development of plaque in the arteries, he'll point out that the association is 'one of the most grounded scientific things we know.' Nadolsky's claims are backed up by a trove of evidence, including a 2017 a meta-analysis in the European Heart Journal. That paper found that the totality of evidence 'unequivocally establishes' that LDL causes atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ACSVD.) In 2020, the panel restated its conclusion, and also identified emerging evidence for ApoB's role in ASCVD. Some patients, however, are statin intolerant. A 2022 meta-analysis drawing on 4.1 million patients found statin intolerance within 9.1 percent of this population. By Kopecky's estimation, there are three types of statin intolerant patients: those who experience body aches on the medication, and who cycle their use on and off to manage their cholesterol. Kopecky is part of this group. He experiences muscle aches after several months on a statin. Doctors will sometimes temporarily discontinue a patient's statins and then add statins back to their regimen with either modified doses or a different statin to curb side effects. A second group experiences 'these weird symptoms that aren't really related to when they take the medicine.' Researchers have observed a nocebo effect, or negative placebo effect associated with statins, and one 2020 study found this effect might be increasing. The third group, which Kopecky finds most concerning, are those worried about potential statin intolerance, who won't ever visit Kopecky's office. Many patients, he says, will come in and say, 'I don't want to take this drug. I've been on the Internet. I know that's bad for me, doctor.' A statin's effects on the brain are another concern around the medication. Statins are the only drug that can cross the blood-brain barrier and inhibit cholesterol synthesis in the brain, which is the body's most cholesterol-rich organ, Dayspring explains. Cholesterol is required for the brain to operate, but excess cholesterol in the brain can cause neurodegenerative diseases, including Alzheimer's. Dayspring points to the evidence which, he says, shows that 'statins do not hurt the brain in any way, but they actually improve dementia a little bit.' For the exceedingly rare group of people who experience brain fog while on statins, he theorizes that they've over-suppressed the brain's synthesis of cholesterol. But since the brain makes its own cholesterol, drugs that lower cholesterol levels in the liver do not affect the brain's cholesterol levels. Self-guided research on cholesterol and statins can lead to conflicting advice. A quick scan of the best-selling heart health books on Amazon shows titles like The Great Cholesterol Myth and The Cholesterol Hoax, and other offerings that advise readers to load up on red meat, Kopecky says. These books capitalize on a well-established formula. Diet books, Malcolm Gladwell wrote in the New Yorker more than two decades ago, are 'selling something that people want to buy: the idea that they can eat whatever they want.' Beyond misinformation, part of the mistrust around statins is that drug companies didn't initially provide all the information about the drug's side effects, leading doctors, including Kopecky, to pass on incomplete information to patients. It took 20 years before doctors realized that statins can cause a minor increase in blood glucose, which can lead to type 2 diabetes. The lagging response, Kopecky says, has led to some patients to distrust their doctors on this specific treatment. Cholesterol deposits causing the narrowing of a blood vessel which raises blood pressure and puts strain on the heart. Atherosclerosis is the main cause of heart attacks. Photograph by Lennart Nilsson, Boehringer Ingelheim/TT/Science Photo Library Colored coronary angiogram of a 53 year old patient with severe narrowing of the circumflex coronary artery. Photograph by Zephy/Science Photo Library Regardless of claims on the internet, the only lifestyle change that can help control LDL cholesterol is significantly reducing the consumption of saturated fats, Dayspring says. For people with cardiovascular risk that can't be controlled by lifestyle factors, pharmacological intervention is the only option. And the first drug doctors reach for is statins. Lifestyle, Kopecky says, is incredibly important. While a large portion a person's cholesterol is genetic, any positive change is welcome, according to the data. 'Nothing you do to improve your health is ever too little, and nothing you do to improve your health is ever too late in your life,' he says. But he's bearish on keto. 'You just can't eat a keto diet forever,' Kopecky says. There is a healthy version of the diet, he notes—one that relies on extra virgin olive oil, nuts, and avocado oils as the primary fat sources, with just one ounce of red meat per day—but that's a far cry from the steak-loaded cutting boards influencers tout on social media. The carnivore diet often conjures mental images of predators in the wild, consuming double-digit pounds of meat per day. There is even one strict regimen of red meat, salt, and water, is known as the 'Lion Diet.' But despite the image of a diet bridging the gap to our animalistic nature, only humans have high cholesterol, Dayspring notes. 'Things that eat meat all day long, have LDL cholesterols of 15 to 20.' One criticism of statins is that they're overprescribed. And a recent study published in JAMA Internal Medicine found that's likely the case, but it didn't question the benefits of statins or their necessity. According to the study, '50 million US adults aged 40 years and older meet criteria for elevated ASCVD risk,' for a statin prescription, even by the study's revised numbers. To convince wary patients, Nadolsky shares a personal datapoint: he's on a statin. 'I practice what I preach,' he says. Statins are one of the best medicines in use, according to Nadolsky. 'It's just a shame that people aren't utilizing them, due to the fear mongering that is done online.' A 2019 study published in JAMA Cardiology showed less adherence to taking statin medication was associated with more incidences of death for patients with ASCVD. Kopecky, too, is concerned with patients who explicitly say they don't want to take statins after reading about them on the internet. In response, his clinic polled 1,200 of these patients to see what would tip the scales to change their minds about statins. The patients wanted to know three things: cholesterol is involved in heart disease, doctors have a way to lower risk of heart disease, and the treatment is safe. As a result, Kopecky and the Mayo Clinic released a series of videos to address each of these three points. Still, medical misinformation still runs rampant on social media and even crops up next to reputable professionals on social media. When viewing a YouTube video of Kopecky discussing statin misinformation on Mayo Clinic Radio, two of the recommended videos in the sidebar were a video purporting to reveal the 'big pharma' conspiracy behind statins and a second one claiming that LDL cholesterol is a myth. 'LDL is not a myth, and you have to look at the totality of evidence,' Kopecky says. He thinks anyone with high cholesterol should seek treatment for it but understands they might not want to: 'You can't make everybody drink the Kool-Aid.'
WIRED
20-06-2025
- Automotive
- WIRED
How to Convert an Analog Bike to an Electric Bike
Michael Venutolo-Mantovani You can save yourself thousands of dollars on an electric bike by upgrading your current ride. Let us walk (or cycle!) you through it. Courtesy of Science Photo Library via Getty Images All products featured on WIRED are independently selected by our editors. However, we may receive compensation from retailers and/or from purchases of products through these links. Say you want to get a bicycle up and down hills with a minimal amount of pedal power. What do you do? The first option is simple: buy an electric bike. However, ebikes aren't cheap. These days, the least expensive but still reliable ebike you can buy is Aventon Soltera 2.5, which costs around $1,200. You can rent an ebike, or find a city bike program that uses them, or, if you're really lucky, find an ebike in a lending library. Or you can just make your regular bike into an electric bike. That is, you can slap an aftermarket unit on your traditional bike, creating a motor-assisted ebike with little more than your bicycle and any of a variety of aftermarket power sources. What used to be a very niche field with only a small handful of offerings has become a cottage industry full of contenders and pretenders, and any number of startups offering a readymade conversion for your bike. So how do you turn your traditional bike into an ebike? And what are some of the best offerings out there? We'll walk you through it. If you don't see anything you like, make sure you check out our guides to the Best Electric Bikes or the Best Electric Scooters. Hot to Throt Well, first, you need to decide what kind of conversion you want. There are two basic kinds of ebikes, pedal-assist and throttle, with many newer models boasting some combination of both. Pedal assist is a mechanism that provides an added boost of electric power when you're pedaling. Via the use of cadence and/or torque sensors (how fast your pedals are rotating and the power that's being applied to them, respectively), pedal-assist units kick on at a certain point, making pedaling easier. Sometimes pedal assist can be so minimal, it's difficult to tell just how much work you're doing versus how much of the load your bike is handling. Throttle units act more like a motorcycle or moped, allowing the rider to either twist a tube mounted near the handgrip or use a thumb-based knob to deliver immediate power to the wheels. Throttle-based ebikes can be ridden without pedaling. When it comes to ebike conversions, where your power comes from and how it's delivered can look several different ways. Some mechanisms deliver power to either your bicycle's rear or front hub. Others are situated in the bottom bracket (that is, where the cranks meet the bike frame). And some newer conversion kits act something like a treadmill mounted to your bike, using rollers to help propel your wheel forward. Roll the Clip Photograph: Stephanie Pearson Having said all that, it's important to consider your level of bicycle know-how when it comes to what kind of ebike conversion you want to undertake. If you're a wrencher, the conversion process is generally straightforward, regardless of the type of unit. If you can change a tire or swap out your cassette, you'll probably be fine with a bit of trial and error and the help of YouTube tutorials. If you're asking yourself, 'What's a cassette?' it's probably best to visit your local bike shop and have a pro handle the work. Those 'treadmill' style conversion kits—such as the Rubbee X, Livall PikaBoost 2 rear-wheel units, or the Clip front-wheel unit—are typically the easiest to install, as you simply need to fix the machine to either your bike's seatpost frame or its fork, make sure its rollers are contacting your tire, and off you go. However, that 'contacting your tire' bit is a bit of a rub (pun intended), as the added contact with your rubber might lead to some extra wear. As disc brakes are becoming ever more the norm (as opposed to a traditional rim brake), Skarper offers a conversion unit that is equally as simple to install to your bike's disc-brake mounts and can be done by almost anyone who knows how to use an Allen wrench. The cool thing about each of these aforementioned units is the ease with which they can be attached and removed, meaning your ebike conversion isn't permanent. With them, you can use your road bike as a commuter during the week, yet keep on with your weekend group rides on the weekend. Hub It Out If you're looking for something more permanent (and way more powerful), units such as the Bafang M-Series replace your traditional bottom bracket with a motor that can deliver up to 1,000 watts of added power to the crank arms of your bike. However, as replacing a bottom bracket is one of the more involved things you can do on a bike, this isn't something you'll want to swap in and out. Somewhere in between the clip-on ease of units like the PikaBoost and the more permanent solution the M-Series offers, are the aforementioned hub-based power units, which tuck motors into the hubs of your wheels. Many of these units also offer battery packs that are meant to be attached to your bike's existing bottle cage mounts. Among the many options for hub-based power units, it's hard to beat the Zehus, which requires nothing more than replacing your existing rear wheel with a Zehus-outfitted wheel. Similarly, Cytronex, one of the earliest and longest-standing ebike brands around, offers a hub-based conversion kit that, while a bit more involved, should take no more than a few minutes of setup. With the explosion in popularity in ebikes, this list is barely scratching the surface. For each of the units mentioned here, there are a dozen or more aftermarket competitors offering similar products. Do your research, talk to the experts at your local bike shop, and decide which unit is right for you and your needs. Once you do that, keep the rubber side down! Power up with unlimited access to WIRED . Get best-in-class reporting that's too important to ignore for just $2.50 $1 per month for 1 year. Includes unlimited digital access and exclusive subscriber-only content. Subscribe Today .
