WHAT A SHRINKING POPULATION WILL MEAN FOR EAST ASIA

In the decades immediately ahead, East Asia will experience the modern world’s most dramatic demographic shift. All of the region’s main states—China, Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan—are about to enter an era of depopulation, in which they will age dramatically and lose millions of people. 

According to projections from the Population Division of the UN Department of Economic Social Affairs, China’s and Japan’s populations are set to fall by eight percent and 18 percent, respectively, between 2020 and 2050. South Korea’s population is poised to shrink by 12 percent. And Taiwan’s will go down by an estimated eight percent. The U.S. population, by contrast, is on track to increase by 12 percent.

So what, you might ask? Well, they will find it harder to generate economic growth, accumulate investments, and build wealth; to fund their social safety nets; and to mobilize their armed forces. They will face mounting pressure to cope with domestic or internal challenges. Accordingly, Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan will be prone to look inward. China, meanwhile, will face a growing—and likely unbridgeable—gap between its ambitions and capabilities.

Source: Foreign Affairs

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HALF A TABLESPOON OF OLIVE OIL DAILY CUTS DEMENTIA RATES

A study has linked 7 gm of olive oil a day to a huge reduction in dementia-related death, highlighting its benefit to not only heart health, but also brain health. Researchers from Harvard University found that people who consumed just over half a tablespoon daily have a 28 per cent lower risk of dementia-related death than those who never or rarely consumed it.

The study found that some antioxidant compounds in olive oil can cross the blood-brain barrier, potentially having a direct effect on the brain. The study examined the self-reported results of 60,000 women and 32,000 men from 1990 to 2018. From 1990, participants of a decades-old health survey run by nurses measured their dietary intake every four years.

Olive oil has been extracted and used in many cultures, with the earliest known oils being created about 4000 BC. Extra virgin is generally considered the most healthy type of olive oil, above both refined or virgin. Its anti-inflammatory properties come from a high amount of antioxidants, and olive oils also contain healthy fats that help the heart.

Source: The  New Daily

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THIS MIGHT CAUSE PRESIDENT BIDEN PROBLEMS

For the first time in post-war America, real per capita incomes in the US are lower today, at $53,000, than they were in 2020, at $60,000, according to data from the Federal Reserve.

It is no surprise therefore that, according to the latest FT-Michigan Ross poll done in March, 42% of Americans feel they are worse off under President Biden compared with only 20% who feel they are better off. 

The poll found that inflation remained the biggest source of stress for 80% of voters, down only marginally from 82% in November.

Source: Daily Maverick 

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THE POLLEN SEASON IS GETTING WORSE AND LONGER

The world’s allergy season is getting worse. When the temperatures rise, plants produce more pollen. Not only do seasons now start 20 days earlier than they did in 1990, there’s about 20% more pollen filling the air, largely thanks to climate change. In the US, a quarter of adults and nearly 20% of children are impacted by allergies, a figure that’s set to grow as the world gets hotter. An analysis of asthma patients in Maryland found that very early-onset spring led to a 17% increase in hospitalizations.

Wildfires are also causing increasing problems.  Wildfire seasons are set to start sooner and end later and potentially be more explosive than last year. Children, senior citizens and people with asthma and other underlying health issues can be harmed by relatively low concentrations of wildfire smoke, and the toxic stew of chemicals, delivered in particles small enough to enter the bloodstream are dangerous for us all.

The costs associated with climate-caused health complications are not insignificant. Sweden, for instance, found that allergies cost the country of 9.5 million people upwards of 1.3 billion euros per year, thanks to treatments, doctors’ visits and hospitalizations. And in the US, wildfire fumes could cause as many as 27,800 deaths per year by 2050 — and an annual economic cost of $244 billion.

Source: Bloomberg 

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HOW NEOLIBERALISM FAILED THE UK

The “neoliberal” policy approach adopted by Margaret Thatcher in the 1980s was a key inflection point towards today’s economic malaise. How different the realities are from the neoliberals’ promises of greater individual freedom through lower taxation, smaller government and the privatisation of inefficient state monopolies.

Instead of reduced taxation, the Office for National Statistics is forecasting that by 2027-28 the UK will have the highest level of taxation since the second world war. Rather than a smaller government, UK government spending as a percentage of GDP is higher now than it was at the start of the 1980s.

Instead of deregulation unleashing dynamic “free markets”, many industries are dominated by monopolies or oligopolies. Widening income inequality, declining social mobility and reduced life expectancies are further examples of this policy failure.

Source: The Conversation 

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GREAT YEAR FOR NEW WIND ENERGY

2023 was a huge year for wind energy. More than 117 gigawatts of new capacity was installed around the world, up 50% on the previous year’s figure and reversing two years of stalling progress, according to a new report from the Global Wind Energy Council (GWEC). 

However, the GWEC did warn that the goal to triple installed renewable energy generation by 2030 — which was agreed by more than 100 governments at COP28 last year — would require growth within the industry to “rapidly accelerate”. New capacity would need to reach 320 GW a year by the end of the decade to track towards the goal.

The world has been increasingly turning to turbines as a source of renewable energy, with wind now accounting for more than 10% of utility-scale electricity generation in the US. That shift is expected to continue too: according to the International Energy Agency, wind and solar will account for 95% of all renewable growth until 2028.  100 gigawatts of new energy is enough to power 22.5-30M homes each year.

Source: Chatr

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THE WORLD’S GROWING APPETITE

The global population, which is expected to grow by ~2 billion people by 2050, will require the agriculture industry to produce more food in the next 3-4 decades than it did in the last 8,000 years.

Source: Bank of America Institute 

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JUST HOW BENEFICIAL IS APPLE CIDER VINEGAR?

Apple cider vinegar is a natural product made of fermented apple juice that has gone sour. The best stuff is cloudy and has sediment, known as the “mother”, where the good bacteria lives. Without the mother, there’s unlikely to be much benefit to taking apple cider vinegar.

Vinegar has a long history as a surface decontaminant. So in salad dressings, as well as adding flavour, it may kill micro-organisms on raw vegetables. That decontaminant quality could also help in the human gut. Our stomachs produce acid, which acts as a natural barrier to infection. Research suggests that apple cider vinegar delays stomach emptying. Thus, increased time in contact with stomach acid might account for the claimed protective effect against enteric infections.

There are plenty of anecdotal claims that apple cider vinegar can aid weight loss, supported by limited evidence from several small studies. A randomized controlled trial published in early 2024 showed significant reductions in weight and waist size of 120 overweight and obese young people. There were also reductions in serum triglycerides – blood fats that can raise the risk of heart disease if levels are too high – and cholesterol over the three-month follow-up period.

Another systematic review from 2021 – looking at dietary supplementation with acetic acid from all vinegar types – found evidence of significant reductions in fasting blood glucose particularly in individuals with type 2 diabetes. The study also showed benefits in reducing serum triglycerides and cholesterol.

Apple cider vinegar is thought to cause weight loss through its effect on the delay of gastric emptying. This increases a sense of fullness and reduces appetite. Reduced calorific intake will lead to weight loss. 

Blood glucose levels are controlled by insulin. In type 2 diabetes there is a reduction in sensitivity to insulin which in turn leads to a reduced uptake of glucose by cells. There is some evidence that apple cider vinegar – and other sources of acetic acid – improves insulin sensitivity. 

Raised blood lipids are a risk factor for cardiovascular diseases such as myocardial infarction and stroke. But there is no scientific evidence that vinegar consumption of any kind reduces cardiovascular morbidity. 

Finally, one of the more outrageous claims of benefits of daily apple cider vinegar consumption is that it may prevent or treat cancer. A frequently quoted case-control study from China found that an increased consumption of vinegar was associated with a reduced incidence of oesophageal cancer. Mind you, the same study found that eating beans and vegetables was also found to be protective.

Source: The Conversation 

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NEVER MIND THE COWS, IT’S THE LANDFILLS THAT ARE POISONING US

When it comes to methane emissions, stop blaming cows—blame trash. Landfills emit the greenhouse gas at almost three times the rate previously reported to regulators, according to a new study published in Science.

Using a new technology called imaging spectrometers, scientists collected data from 20% of the largest landfills in the US by flying over them and measuring the concentration of methane in the air. Previous estimates of methane emissions were based mostly on computer models, not real data, because of the dangers of manually measuring emissions, which required workers to walk around active dump sites with handheld sensors.

The new study found that over half the landfills tested were emission hotspots known as methane plumes caused by decades’ worth of decomposing trash. Methane has 80 times the warming capacity of carbon dioxide in the short term. Most climate change policies that target methane emissions focus primarily on the oil and gas industry, but the scientists behind the study argue that their data proves landfills should also be considered. 

Source:  Morning Brew

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IT’S HARD TO MAKE A BUCK THESE DAYS

A new study has found that nearly half of U.S. parents provide some kind of financial support to their adult children. Despite low unemployment and (slightly) declining inflation, young, working-class Americans are trying to scrape by amid a much higher cost of living than their parents dealt with. 

The average age of adults receiving financial help from their parents was 22, but many were supporting their kids beyond the age of 25. Of parents providing support, 21% were helping millennials (age 28-43) or Gen X (age 44-59). Those adult children were given an average of between $907 and $960 each month by their parents.

Source: Guardian

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