February 1 - 28, 2025: Issue 639

Sweeping reform of the electoral laws puts democracy at risk. They shouldn’t be changed on a whim

Joshua Black, Australian National University

The Albanese government is trying once more to legislate wide-ranging changes to the way federal elections are administered.

The 200-page Electoral Reform Bill, if passed, would transform the electoral donation rules by imposing donation and spending caps, increasing public funding, and improving transparency.

As noble as it sounds, the bill in its current form would undermine Australian democracy by favouring established parties over independent candidates and other new players.

Competitive disadvantage

The proposed donation caps are a case in point.

Donors could give A$20,000 per year, per recipient, to a branch of a party or candidate for electioneering purposes. In practice, that means donors could give no more than $20,000 per year to an independent but could contribute $180,000 to the Labor Party via each of its state and federal branches, or $160,000 to the Liberal Party (which has one less branch than the ALP).

The donation cap would reset annually and after each federal election, allowing a single donor to give $720,000 to the Labor Party in one election cycle or $640,000 to the Liberals, but no more than $20,000 to an independent who declares their candidacy in the year of an election.

Avoiding the American road

There are welcome components in the bill. Faster disclosure and lower donation thresholds would make the system more transparent. Given the large amount of undisclosed funding – “dark money ” – currently propping up political parties, this would be a significant improvement.

But democracy is not cheap.

Last year, the Financial Times reported Donald Trump and Kamala Harris spent a combined US$3.5 billion (A$5.6 billion) on their presidential races. This kind of money helps to sustain an American two-party system largely immune to challengers.

Australian campaigns look nothing like this, but there has been increased interest in the money spent in particular seats in recent years.

Former Labor minister Kim Carr revealed in his recent book Labor spent $1 million to defeat the Greens in the Melbourne electorate of Batman in 2018, while the LNP reportedly spent $600,000 campaigning to retain the affluent electorate of Fadden in 2023.

The bill before Parliament would cap election spending at $800,000 in each lower house seat. But the major parties could promote their generic party brand or a frontbench MP (in a seat other than their own) without affecting their capped spending.

These unfair discrepancies would reward the major parties while kneecapping independents whose first hurdle is to get their name “out there”.

Haunted by billionaires

The government argues its bill limits the influence of “big money” in politics, namely mining boss Clive Palmer, who spent $117 million at the last election.

For the Coalition, it is the community independents and their Climate 200 supporters who represent a kind of money “without precedent in the Australian political system” according to departing MP Paul Fletcher.

Rather than getting big money out of politics, this bill would make the major parties’ own funding pipelines the only money that matters.

The bill recognises “nominated entities” whose payments to associated political parties would not be limited by donation caps. Independents would not have this privilege.

Meanwhile, the long delay before the commencement of the bill in 2026 would give wealthy donors time to get their ducks in order. They could amass their own war chests before the new laws are due to come in to force and then register them as nominated entities at a later date.

Who pays? The taxpayer, of course!

Parties and candidates with more than 4% of the primary vote currently receive public election funding. The Hawke government introduced this measure as a “small insurance” against corruption.

The bill would raise the return to $5 per vote, which would mean an extra $41 million in funding, on top of the $71 million handed over after the 2022 election. Most of this money would go to the major parties.

The windfall would come with no extra guardrails or guidelines about how those funds could be spent. There are no laws to guarantee truth in political advertising at the federal level. Voters may well be paying for more political advertising that lies to them.

Closed consultations

Labor’s current strategy is to seek Coalition support for these changes to the rules of democracy.

Special Minister of State Don Farrell claims to have consulted widely on the design of the bill, but that came as news to independents David Pocock and Kate Chaney when asked about it last week.

The government’s haste and secrecy suggest it wants neither the bill nor its motives closely scrutinised.

Australians care about the quality of their democracy. Polling research by the Australia Institute last November showed four in five Australians expect electoral changes to be reviewed by a multi-party committee.

That’s what is needed for this bill. To do otherwise would threaten the integrity of Australian elections – or invite a High Court challenge that may overturn the entire system if the court rules freedom of political expression is at stake.

Democracy matters. The rules must not be changed on a whim.The Conversation

Joshua Black, Visitor, School of History, Australian National University

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

Misleading and false election ads are legal in Australia. We need national truth in political advertising laws

An ad falsely depicting independent candidate Alex Dyson as a Greens member. ABC News/Supplied
Yee-Fui Ng, Monash University

The highly pertinent case of a little-known independent candidate in the Victorian seat of Wannon has exposed a gaping hole in Australia’s electoral laws, which allow for misleading political advertisements in the lead-up to an election campaign. It’s all entirely legal and is already being exploited to try to shape the outcome of the coming federal election.

Conservative activist group Advance Australia has widely distributed digitally altered flyers attacking independent Alex Dyson, who is challenging senior frontbencher Dan Tehan.

It’s part of a campaign to damage Dyson’s electoral prospects after he helped slash the Liberal Party’s margin in the seat at the last election to less than 4%.

The material depicts Dyson ripping open his shirt in a “Superman” pose, to reveal a t-shirt bearing the official Greens party logo.

Dyson is not a Greens candidate. So why are the ads permissible? And what does it tell us about the urgent need for truth in political advertising laws to prohibit material that lies to voters?

Why are misleading ads allowed?

Section 329 of the Electoral Act prohibits the publication of material likely to mislead or deceive an elector in casting their vote.

But in a narrow interpretation by the Electoral Commission, the ban only applies after an election has been called by the prime minister.

That means the Wannon ad, and maybe countless others like them from across the political spectrum, could be distributed for months without repercussion.

Advance Australia has form when it comes to misleading material.

At the 2022 election, it displayed placards that falsely depicted independents David Pocock and Zali Steggall as Greens candidates.

In that case, the Electoral Commission ruled that because the corflutes were deployed during the campaign proper, they breached the electoral laws.

It is absurd and dangerous to democracy to have a law that only bans ads that mislead voters in casting their vote during the official election period, and allows them to proliferate unchecked at other times.

It should not be permissible to lie to voters just because of a technicality. In an era of permanent campaigning, voters can be influenced by political messages received well before a campaign officially starts.

Furthermore, there is little justification for allowing political parties to mislead while banning corporations from engaging in misleading and deceptive conduct. If consumers and shareholders are protected from fraudulent and dishonest claims, why not electors, who have the solemn task of deciding who runs the country?

How can the electoral laws be fixed?

There are available remedies to the problem, starting with reforming the Electoral Act. It should be clearly specified that the provision on misleading electors applies to any material calculated to affect the result of an election, regardless of when it is distributed.

Broader truth in political advertising provisions should also be introduced. This would cover a wider range of factually misleading ads beyond the existing narrow ambit of misleading a voter in the casting of their vote.

If the Electoral Commission determines the material is false or misleading to a material extent, it would order a withdrawal and a retraction.

Importantly, the laws would be confined to false or misleading statements of fact. Parties and other political players would still be free to express their opinions. Freedom of speech would not be impeded.

Parliamentary stalemate

The Albanese government has taken tentative steps to fix the problem. Truth in advertising laws introduced to parliament last year would have forced Advance Australia to retract and correct its dishonest flyers in Wannon.

However, the bill was pulled due to a lack of support.

Any doubters on the opposition benches should look to the experience in South Australia and the ACT, which have both enacted truth in advertising laws.

My research has shown these laws operate effectively in both jurisdictions.

What’s at stake

Spreading political lies has the potential to cause harm on multiple fronts.

The first is the damage to the candidate or political party in terms of their reputation and electoral prospects.

The second danger is to the integrity of the electoral process if lies cause people to switch their votes to such an extent that it changes election outcomes.

The spread of disinformation has become prevalent in an era of “fake news” and “alternative facts”, exacerbated by the rise of social media.

In 2024, the World Economic Forum’s Global Risks Report ranked misinformation and disinformation as the most severe risk facing the world over the next two years.

False information can alter elections, affect voting participation, silence minorities, and polarise the electorate. It is time to reform our electoral laws to mitigate the significant dangers to our democratic system.The Conversation

Yee-Fui Ng, Associate Professor, Faculty of Law, Monash University

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

Current cultural citizens: the importance of creating spaces in art galleries for young people

Naomi Zouwer, University of Canberra and Olivia Hamilton, RMIT University

Galleries and art museums can be intimidating and alienating even for adults. Imagine it from a child’s point of view. Stern security guards in uniforms stationed the doors, bags checked, snacks banned and people hushed. It’s no wonder that kids groan when an excursion to the gallery comes up.

An increasing number of galleries are rethinking their approach, asking what it takes to be welcoming and engaging for the younger generation. Children should be welcomed and visible in gallery spaces. Their experiences now shape the citizens they will become in the future. Viewing art helps develop their identity and creativity, and a more nuanced understanding of the world.

The first step in making change is to recognise that children are current and active cultural citizens who can offer valuable perspectives, ideas and youthful energy. Through thoughtful design and programming, the younger generation is told their presence in the gallery is valued.

Here are some ways galleries are rising to the challenge and making children more welcome – and more valued – in our cultural spaces.

Setting the tone

The entrance to a gallery sets the tone for a young visitor. Are they greeted warmly and made to feel welcome, or does their arrival feel like an intrusion?

Some simple adjustments such as less intimidating bag checks, clear signage, and designated stroller parking create a more welcoming environment. Replacing uniformed security guards with friendly guides and training reception staff to acknowledge and engage with young visitors make a huge difference.

Children in a white room, sticking colourful dots on a fridge.
Visitors in Obliteration Room 2002, the Kids for Kusama exhibition at NGV International, Melbourne until 21 April 2025. © YAYOI KUSAMA. Photo: Eugene Hyland

Inciting curiosity and interaction at the front door is another way to invite children into the space. Displaying eye-catching and intriguing sculptural works at the entry or in the foyer builds a sense of anticipation and interest.

The iconic water wall at the National Gallery of Victoria signals to children that there are wonders to touch and explore inside.

Children don’t come alone

Children come to galleries with parents, siblings, schools or community groups. Galleries that consider how these varied age groups move through the space can greatly enhance the overall experience.

Programming designed with the whole family in mind means parents and kids can share cultural experiences. Well designed workshops, interactive exhibits and events appeal to mixed aged groups.

Children watch a band play.
Lucky Lartey and friends perform as part of the Hive Festival 2024 at the Art Gallery of New South Wales. Photo © Art Gallery of New South Wales, Christopher Snee

The Art Gallery of New South Wales regularly stages all-ages concerts with popular DJs and live music, building positive associations with the gallery for the whole family.

Incorporating a variety of spaces and experiences extend the duration and frequency of family visits. Some children need low sensory sessions with reduced stimuli to enjoy their visit. Others can use adjacent outdoor spaces and robust sculpture gardens to burn off excess energy, share lunch or even splash in some pink water.

Is there a place for me?

Does your local gallery have a dedicated children’s gallery?

These spaces are designed with kids in mind, engaging the senses and creating participatory ways of experiencing art. The way children encounter the work helps young children learn about the diverse and creative approaches and perspectives of artists in an engaging context.

The interactive experiences and programming mean children can explore their imagination and creativity and form a personal connections with the arts.

What about the older kids? Can they see themselves in the gallery? Teens need to connect, collaborate and to be included in cultural narratives in ways that are relevant to them.

Programs tailored for teens, such as workshops or art-making sessions, move beyond passive observation and encourage self expression and participation.

A woman walks through a gallery.
Installation view of Top Arts 2024 on display at The Ian Potter Centre: NGV Australia from 14 March to 14 July. Photo: Kate Shanasy

Ambitious teen programs, like the out-of-hours teen parties in the National Gallery of Victoria or the youth council at the National Gallery of Australia, empower young people to interact with art and the institution in ways that are meaningful for them.

Exhibiting the best artwork from the year 12 graduating students is another effective way to demonstrate to teens their perspectives and presence matters. Seeing creative work by their age group displayed in a gallery builds confidence and demonstrates to older adults how much the younger generation have to contribute.

Growing lifelong learners

Galleries are unique learning environments, able to engage with and activate the school curriculum and develop essential skills like social and emotional capabilities and creative and critical thinking skills.

New institutions can consider how to meaningfully engage with children in the design phase, but even existing galleries can reconfigure and retrofit their spaces and exhibitions to enable kids to learn.

Teenagers drawing in an art gallery.
Neo at the Art Gallery of South Australia, Adelaide. Photo: Sam Roberts

Specifically designed studios, creative technology, classrooms and presentation areas open the doors to cultural exploration. Positive exposure fosters a sense of stewardship ensuring that future generations value and support the arts.

Galleries are doing a great job welcoming kids but even more can be done. By embracing children as current cultural citizens, galleries can create a more inclusive, creative, and culturally aware society.

Intentionally designed spaces and programming ensure that children are not only welcomed but inspired to return – again and again – throughout their lives.The Conversation

Naomi Zouwer, Visual Artist and Lecturer in Teacher Education, University of Canberra and Olivia Hamilton, Associate Dean of Learning and Teaching- RMIT School of Architecture and Urban Design. Senior Lecture in Interior Design, RMIT University

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

Central Coast program benefits breast cancer patients across NSW

February 4, 2025
Patients who have surgery for breast cancer across NSW are benefiting from an innovative, patient-centred program developed by a team on the Central Coast which is detecting and preventing chronic lymphoedema.

Patients who undergo surgery for breast cancer and have their lymph nodes removed are at heightened risk of developing chronic lymphoedema, a condition which involves painful swelling of the limbs and trunk and requires lifelong treatment.

A team of physiotherapists at Central Coast Local Health District saw an opportunity to prevent or halt the progression of lymphoedema through early detection. The program enrols patients at the time of their cancer diagnosis and provides ongoing monitoring, education, and intervention throughout their cancer treatment and for up to two years after surgery.

Traditionally up to 30 per cent of patients will develop lymphoedema after breast cancer surgery however under this new model of care, CCLHD reduced chronic lymphoedema to less than five per cent of enrolled patients, paving the way for the program to be rolled out across NSW.

The program is available at 32 clinical sites across 13 local health districts in NSW. Since 2021, more than 6,500 patients have been part of the program. Evidence shows it has successfully prevented chronic lymphoedema in more than 700 patients, with only four per cent developing the condition.

As well as delivering life-changing benefits for patients, an economic evaluation of the program showed for every dollar invested in the prevention program, approximately $8 were saved in treatment costs for patients who would otherwise have developed chronic lymphoedema.

The program is funded through the Commonwealth Government's Lymphoedema Garments and Allied Health Therapy Program.

NSW Minister for Regional Health, Ryan Park stated:

“This proactive, early intervention program is a wonderful example of patient-centred care and it's great to see a project so successful at a local level, developed and rolled out and benefiting patients right across NSW.

“This is the first time an early monitoring and lymphoedema prevention program has been implemented on this scale anywhere in the world.

“It's really important on World Cancer Day to recognise this fantastic work, which is having a really positive impact on the lives of people who have been treated for breast cancer."

Minister for the Central Coast, David Harris said:

“This world leading early intervention program highlights the life changing work being done by healthcare professionals on the Central Coast.

“We have already seen how effective this program has been in detection and prevention, with statistics showing the number of patients developing chronic lymphoedema has reduced.

“This World Cancer Day it is important that we recognise the important work that is having a direct impact in our community."

Federal Assistant Minister for Rural and Regional Health, Emma McBride, stated:

“The Albanese Labor Government's Lymphoedema Garments and Allied Health Therapy Program is empowering this life-saving work in our community.

“A cancer diagnosis can be one of the most difficult times in a person's life.

“Earlier intervention better supports patients to properly understand their diagnosis and prepare for their journey ahead.

“I'm pleased this program is delivering better outcomes for patients on the Central Coast."

Federal Member for Robertson, Dr Gordon Reid MP stated:

“It is fantastic to see world leading intervention programs taking place right here on the Central Coast and then being rolled out across NSW.

“Our local health professionals are outstanding and I commend them on their work developing this program.

“I look forward to this program continuing to support patients across the Central Coast."

Central Coast Local Health District Senior Physiotherapist and Lymphoedema Practitioner, Courtney Clapham said:

“In the past, many patients had no knowledge of lymphoedema until they were told they had it.

“Our patients are supported and well-informed, with the program giving them the chance to take some control of their cancer journey and health outcomes going forward.

“I'm so proud that the program has not only improved outcomes for our patients here on the Central Coast, but across NSW."

Central Coast Local Health District patient Christine Walker said:

“Learning you have a cancer diagnosis is an anxiety-fuelled time, so when I learnt that I was at risk of developing lymphoedema after my surgery, I was extremely worried.

“I had an amazing experience with the early intervention program. My treatment is personalised, I have regular check ins and I have exercises to do at home. I believe the more information you have, the better, it means that I know what's next and how to deal with it. For me, the program has been very reassuring."

ACCC sweep uncovers concerning online shopping return policies and terms and conditions

February 4, 2025
The ACCC has conducted a sweep of more than two thousand Australian retail websites and has found some businesses using terms and conditions that may contravene the Australian Consumer Law (ACL).

As part of this sweep, business’ return policies and website terms and conditions were reviewed, some of which raised concerns as being potentially misleading for consumers.

“Our sweep has found numerous examples of practices that could potentially mislead or deceive consumers regarding their rights to exchange, refund or return a product,” ACCC Deputy Chair Catriona Lowe said.

“Under the Australian Consumer Law consumers have basic rights when buying products and services, known as consumer guarantees. These rights are separate from any warranties offered by a business and cannot be taken away by anything a business says or does.”

The sweep identified several potentially misleading statements in the terms and conditions of a number of the websites reviewed, including:
  • imposing time-limits for returning a faulty product;
  • imposing blanket ‘no refund’ conditions on sales or specialised items;
  • referring to manufacturer warranties as the only avenue for consumers to claim remedies for faulty goods, and;
  • placing restrictions on consumers’ right to a remedy, including stating that delivery fees paid for faulty items were non-refundable and charging restocking fees if customers returned faulty items.
Problematic statements found during the sweep included:
  • “Items that have been opened and used cannot be exchanged or refunded”;
  • “Made to order products cannot be returned”;
  • “Sale items cannot be returned, exchanged or refunded” and;
  • “In the unlikely event that your item arrives damaged or faulty, please notify the store within 30 days of delivery to receive a replacement”.
As a result of the sweep’s findings, the ACCC sent warning letters to several businesses whose returns policies or terms and conditions raised concerns under the ACL.

“Our action led to the majority of businesses changing or removing concerning statements from their websites and improving consumer guarantee messages to consumers,” Ms Lowe said.

“While we did identify some concerning practices during this sweep, we were pleased to find that many websites had information that advised consumers of their consumer guarantee rights under the Australian Consumer Law.”

Under the ACL, businesses should not be making statements, written or verbally, to the following effect about faulty products:
  • No refunds are permitted under any circumstances;
  • No refunds are provided for sale or specialised items;
  • To be eligible for a refund, the consumer has a limited timeframe, from receipt of the good, to return the product;
  • Returns will be subject to a processing, restocking or repair fee;
  • No refunds are provided for opened or used items under any circumstances;
  • Delivery fees are non-refundable;
  • Customers must pay for delivery for returned items.
“The ACCC is committed to improving business compliance with consumer guarantees and will continue to actively monitor this area, and where appropriate, take enforcement action,” Ms Lowe said.

“We encourage all businesses to review their return policies and terms and conditions to ensure they comply with the law.”

Consumers should report any potentially misleading or deceiving statements to the ACCC: Report a consumer issue

Around 3% of us will develop a brain aneurysm in our lives. So what is it and how do you treat it?

Elif Bayraktar/Shutterstock
Theresa Larkin, University of Wollongong and Jessica Nealon, University of Wollongong

Australian radio host Kyle Sandilands announced on air yesterday that he has a brain aneurysm and needs urgent brain surgery.

Typically an aneurysm occurs when a part of the wall of an artery (a type of blood vessel) becomes stretched and bulges out.

You can get an aneurysm in any blood vessel, but they are most common in the brain’s arteries and the aorta, the large artery that leaves the heart.

Many people can have a brain aneurysm and never know. But a brain (or aortic) aneurysm that ruptures and bursts can be fatal.

So, what causes a brain aneurysm? And what’s the risk of rupture?

Weakness in the artery wall

Our arteries need strong walls because blood is constantly pumped through them and pushed against the walls.

An aneurysm can develop if there is a weak part of an artery wall.

The walls of arteries are made of three layers: an inner lining of cells, a middle layer of muscle and elastic fibres, and a tough outer layer of mostly collagen (a type of protein). Damage to any of these layers causes the wall to become thin and stretched. It can then balloon outward, leading to an aneurysm.

Genetics and certain inherited disorders can cause weak artery walls and brain aneurysms in some people.

For all of us, our artery walls become weaker as we age, and brain aneurysms are more common as we get older. The average age for a brain aneurysm to be detected is 50 (Sandilands is 53).

Females have a higher risk of brain aneurysm than males after about age 50. Declining oestrogen around menopause reduces the collagen in the artery wall, causing it to become weaker.

An illustration showing a brain aneurysm.
A brain aneurysm occurs when a part of the wall of an artery balloons out. Alfmaler/Shutterstock

High blood pressure can increase the risk of a brain aneurysm. In someone with high blood pressure, blood inside the arteries is pushed against the walls with greater force. This can stretch and weaken the artery walls.

Another common condition called atherosclerosis can also cause brain aneurysms. In atherosclerosis, plaques made mostly of fat build up in arteries and stick to the artery walls. This directly damages the cell lining, and weakens the muscle and elastic fibres in the middle layer of the artery wall.

Several lifestyle factors increase risk

Anything that increases inflammation or causes atherosclerosis or high blood pressure in turn increases your risk of a brain aneurysm.

Smoking and heavy drinking affect all of these, and nicotine directly damages the artery wall.

Sandilands mentioned his cocaine use in discussing his diagnosis. He said:

The facts are, a life of cocaine abuse and partying are not the way to go.

Indeed, cocaine abuse increases the risk of a brain aneurysm. It causes very high blood pressure because it causes arteries to spasm and constrict. Cocaine use is also linked to worse outcomes if a brain aneurysm ruptures.

Stress and a high-fat diet also increase inflammation. High cholesterol can also cause atherosclerosis. And being overweight increases your blood pressure.

A study of more than 60,000 people found smoking and high blood pressure were the strongest risk factors for a brain aneurysm.

Is it always a medical emergency?

About three in 100 people will have a brain aneurysm, varying in size from less than 5mm to more than 25mm in diameter. The majority are only discovered while undergoing imaging for something else (for example, head trauma), because small aneurysms may not cause any symptoms.

Larger aneurysms can cause symptoms because they can press against brain tissues and nerves.

Sandilands described “a lot of headache problems” leading up to his diagnosis. Headaches can be due to minor leaks of blood from the aneurysm. They indicate a risk of the aneurysm rupturing in subsequent days or weeks.

Less than one in 100 brain aneurysms will rupture, often called a “brain bleed”. This causes a subarachnoid haemorrhage, which is a type of stroke.

If it does occur, rupture of a brain aneurysm is life-threatening: nearly one in four people will die within 24 hours, and one in two within three months.

If someone’s brain aneurysm ruptures, they usually experience a sudden, severe headache, often described as a “thunderclap headache”. They may also have other symptoms of a stroke such as changes in vision, loss of movement, nausea, vomiting and loss of consciousness.

Surgeons performing brain surgery under lights.
Surgery can repair a brain aneurysm, and stop it from rupturing. Roman Zaiets/Shutterstock

Surgery can prevent a rupture

Whether surgery will be used to treat a brain aneurysm depends on its size and location, as well as the age and health of the patient. The medical team will balance the potential benefits with the risks of the surgery.

A small aneurysm with low risk of rupture will usually just be monitored.

However, once a brain aneurysm reaches 7mm or more, surgery is generally needed.

In surgery to repair a brain aneurysm, the surgeon will temporarily remove a small part of the skull, then cut through the coverings of the brain to place a tiny metal clip to close off the bulging part of the aneurysm.

Another option is endovascular (meaning within the vessel) coiling. A surgeon can pass a catheter into the femoral artery in the thigh, through the aorta to the brain. They can then place a coil inside the aneurysm which forms a clot to close off the aneurysm sac.

After either surgery, usually the person will stay in hospital for up to a week. It can take 6–8 weeks for full recovery, though doctors may continue monitoring with annual imaging tests for a few years afterwards.

You can lower your risk of a brain aneurysm by not smoking, moderating alcohol intake, eating a healthy diet, exercising regularly and maintaining a healthy weight.The Conversation

Theresa Larkin, Associate Professor of Medical Sciences, University of Wollongong and Jessica Nealon, Senior Lecturer in Medical Sciences (Neuroscience), University of Wollongong

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

What are cooling blankets? Can they really help me sleep?

EGHStock/Shutterstock
Linda Grosser, University of South Australia and Luana Main, Deakin University

You wake up exhausted from yet another hot night of tossing and turning, with very little sleep.

So you might be tempted to buy a “cooling blanket” after reading rave reviews on social media. Or you might have read online articles with taglines such as:

Stop waking up in a puddle of sweat with our roundup of the best cooling blankets – including a top-rated option from Amazon that ‘actually works’.

But what are cooling blankets? And can they help you get a restful night?

We know a cooler bedroom is best

First, let’s look at why a cooler environment helps us sleep better at night.

Our body’s internal temperature has a circadian rhythm, meaning it fluctuates throughout the day. A couple of hours before bed, it drops about 0.31°C to help you fall asleep. It will drop about another 2°C across the night to help you stay asleep.

During sleep, your internal temperature and skin work together to achieve a balance between losing and producing heat. Your skin has sensors that pick-up changes in the environment around you. If it gets too warm, these sensors let your body know, which may cause you to kick-off blankets or bed clothes and wake more often leading to poorer sleep quality.

Sleep quality is an important component of sleep health ensuring you get the physical, mental and emotional benefits that come from a good night’s sleep.

The ideal temperature for sleep varies depending on the season and type of bedding you have but falls between 17°C and 28°C. Keeping your sleeping environment within this range will help you to get the best night’s rest.

So what are cooling blankets?

Cooling blankets are designed to help regulate your body temperature while you sleep.

Different technologies and materials are used in their design and construction.

We’re not talking about hospital-grade cooling blankets that are used to reduce fever and prevent injury to the nervous system. These use gel pads with circulating water, or air-cooling systems, connected to automatic thermostats to monitor someone’s temperature.

Instead, the type of consumer-grade cooling blankets you might see advertised use a blend of lightweight, breathable materials that draw moisture away from the skin to help you stay cool and dry through the night. They look like regular blankets.

Common materials include cotton, bamboo, silk or the fibre Lyocell, all of which absorb moisture.

Manufacturers typically use a thread count of 300-500, creating air pockets that enhance airflow and moisture evaporation.

Some blankets feature a Q-Max rating, which indicates how cool the fabric feels against your skin. The higher the value, the cooler the fabric feels.

Others feature phase change materials. These materials were developed by NASA for space suits to keep astronauts comfortable during a spacewalk where temperatures are from roughly -157°C to 121°C. Phase change materials in cooling blankets absorb and hold heat producing a cooling effect.

Astronaut performing spacewalk while servicing satellite
Some cooling blankets use NASA technology developed for space suits. Summit Art Creations/NASA/Shutterstock

Do they work?

If you believe online reviews, yes, cooling blankets can cool you down and help you sleep better in warmer weather or if you get too hot using normal sheets and blankets.

However, there is little scientific research to see if these consumer-grade products work.

In a 2021 study exploring sleep quality, 20 participants slept for three nights under two different conditions.

First, they slept with regular bed sheets in an air-conditioned room with the temperature set to their preference. Then, they used cooling bed sheets in an air-conditioned room where the temperature was set 3°C higher than their preference.

Participants reported good sleep quality in both conditions but preferred the warmer room with its cooling sheets.

This may suggest the use of cooling bedding may help provide a more comfortable night’s sleep.

But everyone’s cooling needs varies depending on things like age, health, body temperature, the space you sleep in, and personal preferences.

So while these products may work for some people who may be motivated to leave a good review, they may not necessarily work for you.

Are they worth it?

There’s a wide variety of cooling blankets available at different prices to suit various budgets. Positive customer reviews might encourage a purchase, especially for individuals experiencing disrupted sleep at night due to heat.

Yet, these cooling blankets have limited scientific research to show they work and to say if they’re worth it. So it’s up to you.

Cooling blankets for sale
Lots of choice, but little scientific evidence to back them. Screenshot Google Shopping

What else can I do if I’m a hot sleeper?

If a cooling blanket isn’t for you, there are other things you can do to stay cool at night, such as:

  • using air conditioning or a fan

  • placing a damp towel under or over you

  • wearing lightweight or minimal sleepwear and avoiding thick or synthetic fabrics, such as nylon, that can trap heat

  • if you usually share a bed, on hot nights, consider sleeping by yourself to avoid excess body heat from your partner.

On a final note, if you often struggle with hot, disturbed sleep, you can check in with your health-care provider. They can see if there is a medical explanation for your disturbed sleep and advise what to try next.The Conversation

Linda Grosser, Research Associate, Behaviour-Brain-Body Research Centre, University of South Australia and Luana Main, Associate Professor in Applied Sport Science, Deakin University

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

New evidence confirms our Indigenous languages have a common source, but how they spread remains a mystery

SolStock/Getty Images
Mark Harvey, University of Newcastle and Robert Mailhammer, Western Sydney University

Have you ever wondered how Australia’s many Indigenous languages relate to one another and how far back the connections go?

The Australian continent has been settled by Indigenous people for at least 50,000 years, but just how old are the languages spoken today and where did they originate? Our research provides some answers to these questions – and the answers throw up new and interesting puzzles.

There is a long-standing proposal that all the Indigenous languages of continental Australia come from one language, called Proto-Australian. This hypothesis is based on observations, going back to the 19th century, that many Indigenous languages show similarities in grammar and vocabulary.

However, without proper testing, it is not possible to know whether these similarities are best explained as inheritances from a single ancestor language or in some other way, such as borrowing, which would not require a single ancestor language.

Our recent research – the first evaluation of the Proto-Australian hypothesis – shows it is supported. Proto-Australian was most likely spoken about 6,000 years ago in the Top End of the Northern Territory. When it spread across mainland Australia it displaced all the other languages spoken before.

One big question is how this spread took place. Language spread is usually associated with population movements or economic and technological change. But there is no clear evidence for population movement or economic and technological change in the past 10,000 years.

This suggests we need to develop new models of how language spreads, and of Australian prehistory.

Language families

Relationships between languages are established by finding similar or shared words. Languages that share similar forms are members of a language family; languages that do not share those forms are not part of that family.

Language families can be grouped into hierarchies of mother and daughter language families. Within Australia, Proto-Pama-Nyungan (PPN), one of the daughter families of Proto-Australian is much more widespread than the others. It occupies 90% of the continent, the lighter area on Map 1.

The other daughter languages of Proto-Australian are called Non-Pama-Nyungan (NPN). Some of these form small families. Others, with no close relatives, are isolates, the white areas on Map 2.

The area with the most isolates has the greatest diversity. Within Australia, that area is the Top End. As a general principle, the area with the greatest diversity is the most likely homeland for a proto-language. Therefore, the Top End is the most likely homeland for Proto-Australian.

Though there is considerable diversity, we find similar words across both Proto-Pama-Nyungan and Non-Pama-Nyungan. In Proto-Pama-Nyungan, for example, the word for hand is marla. In Non-Pama-Nyungan languages, we find several variations:

Amurdak: mara

Bardi: marla

Gajirrabeng: marla

Ganggalida: marl

Gija: marla

Gooniyandi: marla

Kayardild: marl

Lardil: marl

Ngandi: mar

Nyulnyul: marl

Yawuru: marla

Finding similarities does not provide exact timelines for when the proto-language was spoken as a single language, but there are no reliable examples dating back more than 10,000 years.

Diversification is an inherent feature of language. With sufficient time all similarities will be lost. Given that the continent has been continuously occupied for at least 50,000 years, the prediction is that there would be many unrelated languages across Australia.

This prediction is borne out in two critical cases: Tasmania, which separated from the mainland 14,000 years ago, and the Tiwi Islands, which separated 6,000 years ago, thereby preventing language spread to either of these islands after these dates.

Neither the Tasmanian nor Tiwi languages are related to the mainland languages. This accords with the prediction from standard rates of language diversification that similarities should be lost.

Standard rates of diversification predict there should be many unrelated languages on the mainland. But this is not the case. This means that Proto-Australian must have spread continent-wide after the separation of the Tiwi Islands.

A big question

Why and how one language spread with such a success is a big question. Accompanying language spread, there would usually be evidence of social change. This social change might be population increase or movement; it might be economic or technological change. But there is no direct evidence for this.

Hypotheses about population movements can be evaluated against genetic studies, while hypotheses about population increase or economic and technological change can be evaluated against the archaeological record.

There is considerable variation in the genetics literature, but no suggestion of significant changes in the last 10,000 years.

One theory is that there was a single founding population, which differentiated between 33,000 and 10,000 years ago, with gene flow from the north-east to much of the rest of the continent during the last 10,000 years.

Another theory proposes a founding group at 50,000 years ago, which spread rapidly to all coastal areas by 45,000 years ago. This rapid spread was followed by ongoing in-situ diversification, with no evidence for significant population movements.

Yet another theory proposes divergence 26,000-35,000 years ago, with little evidence of migration.

There are also differing interpretations of the archaeological record. Variation in climate may have had effects on population levels, with significant increases during the last 10,000 years. But while the evidence supports significant fluctuations in land use over the last 10,000 years in various regions, it has also been argued that the evidence does not generally support either synchronised continent-wide fluctuations or unidirectional change.

The one example of a continent-wide change that offered an economic advantage was the introduction of the dingo 4,000-8,000 years ago. But it is very unlikely that one economic change would lead to continent-wide language replacement. Further, dingoes are native to the Tiwi Islands, suggesting that the spread of the dingo does not correlate with the spread of Proto-Australian.

A final puzzle is that language spread does not automatically lead to a total eclipse of pre-existing languages. In Europe, where Indo-European languages spread through trade and military might, some languages from before that time are still around – Basque and Sámi, for example. There are also traces of older languages in words and place names.

But in mainland Australia, there are only languages that are daughter languages of Proto-Australian. That is quite unusual. Therefore, we have a good question, but no good answers, which means our models need revision.The Conversation

Mark Harvey, Conjoint Associate Professor, Linguistics, University of Newcastle and Robert Mailhammer, Professor of Linguistics, Western Sydney University

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

Why we should all try to eat like people in rural Papua New Guinea – new study

Tanya Keisha/Shutterstock
Jens Walter, University College Cork

Western diets – high in processed foods and low in fibre – are associated with obesity, diabetes and heart disease. These diets don’t only harm our bodies, they also harm our gut microbiomes, the complex community of bacteria, fungi and viruses found in our intestinal tract that are important for our health.

Scientists, including my colleagues and me, are actively searching for ways to create healthy microbiomes to prevent chronic diseases. And my search has taken me to Papua New Guinea.

I have long been fascinated by this country, with its remote valleys almost untouched by the modern world until 1930, more than 800 languages, an ancient system of sustenance agriculture and entire communities living a non-industrialised lifestyle. This fascination kicked off a thrilling nine-year research project involving researchers from eight countries, which led to a paper published in the scientific journal Cell.

In previous research, my team studied the gut microbiomes of rural Papua New Guineans. We discovered microbiomes that are more diverse than their westernised counterparts, enriched in bacteria that thrive on dietary fibre, and with lower levels of inflammation-causing bacteria that are typically found in people who eat highly processed foods.

This information provided hints on how to perhaps redress the damage caused to our gut microbiomes.

The traditional diet in rural Papua New Guinea is rich in unprocessed plant-based foods that are full of fibre but low in sugar and calories, something I was able to see for myself on a field trip to Papua New Guinea. Determined to create something everyone could use to benefit their health, our team took what we saw in Papua New Guinea and other non-industrialised societies to create a new diet we call the NiMe (non-industrialised microbiome restore) diet.

What sets NiMe apart from other diets is that it is dominated by vegetables (such as leafy greens) and legumes (such as beans) and fruit. It only contains one small serving of animal protein per day (salmon, chicken or pork), and it avoids highly processed foods.

Dairy, beef and wheat were excluded from the human trial because they are not part of the traditional diet in rural Papua New Guinea. The other characteristic distinction of the diet is a substantial dietary fibre content. In our trial, we went for around 45g of fibre a day, which exceeds the recommendations in dietary guidelines.

One of my PhD students got creative in the kitchen designing recipes that would appeal to a person used to typical western dishes. These meals allowed us to develop a meal plan that could be tested in a strictly controlled study in healthy Canadian adults.

Remarkable results

We saw remarkable results including weight loss (although participants didn’t change their regular calorie intake), a drop in bad cholesterol by 17%, decreased blood sugar by 6%, and a 14% reduction in a marker for inflammation and heart disease called C-reactive protein. These benefits were directly linked to improvements in the participants’ gut microbiome, specifically, microbiome features damaged by industrialisation.

On a western diet low in dietary fibre, the gut microbiome degrades the mucus layer in the gut, which leads to inflammation. The NiMe diet prevented this process, which was linked to a reduction in inflammation.

The diet also increased beneficial bacterial metabolites (byproducts) in the gut, such as short-chain fatty acids, and in the blood, such as indole-3-propionic acid – a metabolite that has been shown to protect against type 2 diabetes and nerve damage.

Research also shows that low dietary fibre leads to gut microbes ramping up protein fermentation, which generates harmful byproducts that may contribute to colon cancer.

In fact, there is a worrying trend of increased colon cancer in younger people, which may be caused by recent trends towards high-protein diets or supplements. The NiMe diet increased carbohydrate fermentation at the expense of protein fermentation, and it reduced bacterial molecules in the participants’ blood that are linked to cancer.

The findings from our research show that a dietary intervention targeted towards restoring the gut microbiome can improve health and reduce disease risk. The NiMe diet offers a practical roadmap to achieve this, by providing recipes that were used in our study. It allows anyone interested in healthy eating to improve their diet to feed their human cells and their microbiome.The Conversation

Jens Walter, Professor at the School of Microbiology, University College Cork

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

Why the WHO has recommended switching to a healthier salt alternative

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Xiaoyue (Luna) Xu, UNSW Sydney and Bruce Neal, George Institute for Global Health

This week the World Health Organization (WHO) released new guidelines recommending people switch the regular salt they use at home for substitutes containing less sodium.

But what exactly are these salt alternatives? And why is the WHO recommending this? Let’s take a look.

A new solution to an old problem

Advice to eat less salt (sodium chloride) is not new. It has been part of international and Australian guidelines for decades. This is because evidence clearly shows the sodium in salt can harm our health when we eat too much of it.

Excess sodium increases the risk of high blood pressure, which affects millions of Australians (around one in three adults). High blood pressure (hypertension) in turn increases the risk of heart disease, stroke and kidney disease, among other conditions.

The WHO estimates 1.9 million deaths globally each year can be attributed to eating too much salt.

The WHO recommends consuming no more than 2g of sodium daily. However people eat on average more than double this, around 4.3g a day.

In 2013, WHO member states committed to reducing population sodium intake by 30% by 2025. But cutting salt intake has proved very hard. Most countries, including Australia, will not meet the WHO’s goal for reducing sodium intake by 2025. The WHO has since set the same target for 2030.

The difficulty is that eating less salt means accepting a less salty taste. It also requires changes to established ways of preparing food. This has proved too much to ask of people making food at home, and too much for the food industry.

A salt shaker spilling onto a table.
There’s been little progress on efforts to cut sodium intake. snezhana k/Shutterstock

Enter potassium-enriched salt

The main lower-sodium salt substitute is called potassium-enriched salt. This is salt where some of the sodium chloride has been replaced with potassium chloride.

Potassium is an essential mineral, playing a key role in all the body’s functions. The high potassium content of fresh fruit and vegetables is one of the main reasons they’re so good for you. While people are eating more sodium than they should, many don’t get enough potassium.

The WHO recommends a daily potassium intake of 3.5g, but on the whole, people in most countries consume significantly less than this.

Potassium-enriched salt benefits our health by cutting the amount of sodium we consume, and increasing the amount of potassium in our diets. Both help to lower blood pressure.

Switching regular salt for potassium-enriched salt has been shown to reduce the risk of heart disease, stroke and premature death in large trials around the world.

Modelling studies have projected that population-wide switches to potassium-enriched salt use would prevent hundreds of thousands of deaths from cardiovascular disease (such as heart attack and stroke) each year in China and India alone.

The key advantage of switching rather than cutting salt intake is that potassium-enriched salt can be used as a direct one-for-one swap for regular salt. It looks the same, works for seasoning and in recipes, and most people don’t notice any important difference in taste.

In the largest trial of potassium-enriched salt to date, more than 90% of people were still using the product after five years.

A female nurse taking a senior man's blood pressure.
Excess sodium intake increases the risk of high blood pressure, which can cause a range of health problems. PeopleImages.com - Yuri A/Shutterstock

Making the switch: some challenges

If fully implemented, this could be one of the most consequential pieces of advice the WHO has ever provided.

Millions of strokes and heart attacks could be prevented worldwide each year with a simple switch to the way we prepare foods. But there are some obstacles to overcome before we get to this point.

First, it will be important to balance the benefits and the risks. For example, people with advanced kidney disease don’t handle potassium well and so these products are not suitable for them. This is only a small proportion of the population, but we need to ensure potassium-enriched salt products are labelled with appropriate warnings.

A key challenge will be making potassium-enriched salt more affordable and accessible. Potassium chloride is more expensive to produce than sodium chloride, and at present, potassium-enriched salt is mostly sold as a niche health product at a premium price.

If you’re looking for it, salt substitutes may also be called low-sodium salt, potassium salt, heart salt, mineral salt, or sodium-reduced salt.

A review published in 2021 found low sodium salts were marketed in only 47 countries, mostly high-income ones. Prices ranged from the same as regular salt to almost 15 times higher.

An expanded supply chain that produces much more food-grade potassium chloride will be needed to enable wider availability of the product. And we’ll need to see potassium-enriched salt on the shelves next to regular salt so it’s easy for people to find.

In countries like Australia, about 80% of the salt we eat comes from processed foods. The WHO guideline falls short by not explicitly prioritising a switch for the salt used in food manufacturing.

Stakeholders working with government to encourage food industry uptake will be essential for maximising the health benefits.The Conversation

Xiaoyue (Luna) Xu, Scientia Lecturer, School of Population Health, UNSW Sydney and Bruce Neal, Executive Director, George Institute Australia, George Institute for Global Health

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

Mastercard plans to get rid of credit card numbers. We could be heading towards the end of cards

Antonina St/Shutterstock
Gary Mortimer, Queensland University of Technology and Cassandra Cross, Queensland University of Technology

Mastercard has announced plans to remove the 16-digit number from their credit and debit cards by 2030 in a move designed to stamp out identity theft and fraudulent use of cards.

The numbers currently used to identify cards will be replaced with tokenisation and biometric authentication

In 2022, Mastercard added biometric options enabling payments to be made with a smile or wave of the hand.

Tokenisation converts the 16-digit card number into a different number – or token – stored on your device, so card information is never shared when you tap your card or phone or make payments online.

The first rollout of these numberless cards will be through a partnership with AMP Bank, but it is expected other banks will follow in the coming 12 months.

Why card security is important

There is nothing quite like the sinking feeling after receiving a call or text from your bank asking about the legitimacy of a card transaction.

In 2023-2024 the total value of card fraud in Australia was A$868 million, up from $677.5 million the previous financial year.

Credit card numbers and payment details are often exposed in major data breaches affecting large and small businesses.

A man sitting at a laptop hold a phone in one hand and a credit card in the other
The cost of credit card fraud in Australia rose by almost $200 million last financial year. CC7/Shutterstock

Late last year, the US Federal Trade Commission took action against the Marriott and Starwood Hotels for lax data security. More than 300 million customers worldwide were affected.

Event ticketing company Ticketmaster was also hacked last year. The details of several hundred million customers, including names, addresses, credit card numbers, phone numbers and payment details were illegally accessed.

So-called “card-not-present fraud”, where an offender processes an unauthorised transaction without having the card in their physical possession, accounts for 92% of all card fraud in Australia. This rose 29% in the last financial year.

The Card Verification Value (CVV) (or three-digit number on the back of a credit card) aimed to ensure the person making the transaction had the physical card in their hands. But it is clearly ineffective.

Benefits of removing credit card numbers

Removing the credit card number is the latest attempt to curb fraud. Removing numbers stops fraudsters processing unauthorised card-not-present transactions.

It also reduces the potential for financial damage of victims exposed in data breaches, if organisations are no longer able to store these payment details.

Man walking between large computer servers
Companies will no longer be able to store card data, reducing the risk of data breaches. ESBProfessional/Shutterstock

The storage of personal information is a contested issue. For example, the 2022 Optus data breach exposed information from customers who had previously held accounts with the telco back in 2018.

Removing the ability of organisations to store payment details in the first place, removes the risk of this information being exposed in any future attack.

While any efforts to reduce fraud are welcome, this new approach raises some new issues to consider.

Potential problems with the new system

Mastercard has said customers will use tokens generated by the customer’s banking app or biometric authentication instead of card numbers.

This is likely to be an easy transition for customers who use mobile banking.

However, the use of digital banking is not universal. Many senior consumers and those with a disability don’t use digital banking services. They would be excluded from the new protections.

While strengthening the security attached to credit cards, removing numbers shifts the vulnerability to mobile phones and telecommunication providers.

Offenders already access victims’ phones through mobile porting and impersonation scams. These attacks are likely to escalate as new ways to exploit potential vulnerabilities are found.

There are also concerns about biometrics. Unlike credit card details, which can be replaced when exposed in a data breach, biometrics are fixed. Shifting a focus to biometrics will increase the attractiveness of this data, and potentially opens victims up to ongoing, irreversible damage.

While not as common, breaches of biometric data do occur.

For example, web-based security platform BioStar 2 in the UK exposed the fingerprints and facial recognition details of over one million people. Closer to home, IT provider to entertainment companies Outabox is alleged to have exposed facial recognition data of more than one million Australians.

Will we really need cards in the future?

While removing the numbers may reduce credit card fraud, emerging smart retail technologies may remove the need for cards all together.

Smartphone payments are already becoming the norm, removing the need for physical cards. GlobalData revealed a 58% growth in mobile wallet payments in Australia in 2023, to $146.9 billion. In October 2024, 44% of payments were “device-present” transactions.

Amazon’s innovative “Just-Walk-Out” technology has also removed the need for consumers to bring a physical credit or debit card all together.

Amazon Go and the world’s most advanced shopping technology.

This technology is available at more than 70 Amazon-owned stores, and at more than 85 third-party locations across the US, UK, and Australia. These include sports stadiums, airports, grocery stores, convenience stores and college campuses.

The technology uses cameras, weight sensors and a combination of advanced AI technologies to enable shoppers in physical stores make purchases without having to swipe or tap their cards at the checkout line.

Such technology is now being offered by a variety of other vendors including Trigo, Cognizant and Grabango. It is also being trialled across other international retailers, including supermarket chains Tesco and ALDI.

While Just-Walk-Out removes the need to carry a physical card, at some point consumers still need to enter their cards details into an app. So, to avoid cards and numbers completely, smart retail tech providers are moving to biometric alternatives, like facial recognition payments.

Considering the speed at which smart retail and payment technology is entering the marketplace, it is likely physical credit cards, numberless or not, will soon become redundant, replaced by biometric payment options.The Conversation

Gary Mortimer, Professor of Marketing and Consumer Behaviour, Queensland University of Technology and Cassandra Cross, Associate Dean (Learning & Teaching) Faculty of Creative Industries, Education and Social Justice, Queensland University of Technology

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

Dating apps could have negative effects on body image and mental health, our research shows

Dikushin Dmitry/Shutterstock
Zac Bowman, Flinders University

Around 350 million people globally use dating apps, and they amass an estimated annual revenue of more than US$5 billion. In Australia, 49% of adults report using at least one online dating app or website, with a further 27% having done so in the past.

But while dating apps have helped many people find romantic partners, they’re not all good news.

In a recent review, my colleagues and I found using dating apps may be linked to poorer body image, mental health and wellbeing.

We collated the evidence

Our study was a systematic review, where we collated the results of 45 studies that looked at dating app use and how this was linked to body image, mental health or wellbeing.

Body image refers to the perceptions or feelings a person has towards their own appearance, often relating to body size, shape and attractiveness.

Most of the studies we included were published in 2020 onwards. The majority were carried out in Western countries (such as the United States, the United Kingdom and Australia). Just under half of studies included participants of all genders. Interestingly, 44% of studies observed men exclusively, while only 7% included just women.

Of the 45 studies, 29 looked at the impact of dating apps on mental health and wellbeing and 22 considered the impact on body image (some looked at both). Some studies examined differences between users and non-users of dating apps, while others looked at whether intensity of dating app use (how often they’re used, how many apps are used, and so on) makes a difference.

More than 85% of studies (19 of 22) looking at body image found significant negative relationships between dating app use and body image. Just under half of studies (14 of 29) observed negative relationships with mental health and wellbeing.

The studies noted links with problems including body dissatisfaction, disordered eating, depression, anxiety and low self-esteem.

A man leaning against large windows of an apartment.
Dating apps are becoming increasingly common. But could their use harm mental health? Rachata Teyparsit/Shutterstock

It’s important to note our research has a few limitations. For example, almost all studies included in the review were cross-sectional – studies that analyse data at a particular point in time.

This means researchers were unable to discern whether dating apps actually cause body image, mental health and wellbeing concerns over time, or whether there is simply a correlation. They can’t rule out that in some cases the relationship may go the other way, meaning poor mental health or body image increases a person’s likelihood of using dating apps.

Also, the studies included in the review were mostly conducted in Western regions with predominantly white participants, limiting our ability to generalise the findings to all populations.

Why are dating apps linked to poor body image and mental health?

Despite these limitations, there are plausible reasons to expect there may be a link between dating apps and poorer body image, mental health and wellbeing.

Like a lot of social media, dating apps are overwhelmingly image-centric, meaning they have an emphasis on pictures or videos. Dating app users are initially exposed primarily to photos when browsing, with information such as interests or hobbies accessible only after manually clicking through to profiles.

Because of this, users often evaluate profiles based primarily on the photos attached. Even when a user does click through to another person’s profile, whether or not they “like” someone may still often be determined primarily on the basis of physical appearance.

This emphasis on visual content on dating apps can, in turn, cause users to view their appearance as more important than who they are as a person. This process is called self-objectification.

People who experience self-objectification are more likely to scrutinise their appearance, potentially leading to body dissatisfaction, body shame, or other issues pertaining to body image.

A woman using a dating app.
Dating apps are overwhelmingly image-centric. Studio Romantic/Shutterstock

There could be several reasons why mental health and wellbeing may be impacted by dating apps, many of which may centre around rejection.

Rejection can come in many forms on dating apps. It can be implied, such as having a lack of matches, or it can be explicit, such as discrimination or abuse. Users who encounter rejection frequently on dating apps may be more likely to experience poorer self-esteem, depressive symptoms or anxiety.

And if rejection is perceived to be based on appearance, this could lead again to body image concerns.

What’s more, the convenience and game-like nature of dating apps may lead people who could benefit from taking a break to keep swiping.

What can app developers do? What can you do?

Developers of dating apps should be seeking ways to protect users against these possible harms. This could, for example, include reducing the prominence of photos on user profiles, and increasing the moderation of discrimination and abuse on their platforms.

The Australian government has developed a code of conduct – to be enforced from April 1 this year – to help moderate and reduce discrimination and abuse on online dating platforms. This is a positive step.

Despite the possible negatives, research has also found dating apps can help build confidence and help users meet new people.

If you use dating apps, my colleagues and I recommend choosing profile images you feel display your personality or interests, or photos with friends, rather than semi-clothed images and selfies. Engage in positive conversations with other users, and block and report anyone who is abusive or discriminatory.

It’s also sensible to take breaks from the apps, particularly if you’re feeling overwhelmed or dejected.

If this article has raised issues for you, or if you’re concerned about someone you know, call Lifeline on 13 11 14. The Butterfly Foundation provides support for eating disorders and body image issues, and can be reached on 1800 334 673.The Conversation

Zac Bowman, PhD Candidate, College of Education, Psychology & Social Work, Flinders University

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

Some vegetables are pretty low in fibre. So which veggies are high-fibre heroes?

Valentina_G/Shutterstock
Lauren Ball, The University of Queensland and Emily Burch, Southern Cross University

Many people looking to improve their health try to boost fibre intake by eating more vegetables.

But while all veggies offer health benefits, not all are particularly high in fibre. You can eat loads of salads and vegetables and still fall short of your recommended daily fibre intake.

So, which vegetables pack the biggest fibre punch? Here’s what you need to know.

What is fibre and how much am I supposed to be getting?

Fibre, or dietary fibre, refers to the parts of plant foods that our bodies cannot digest or absorb.

It passes mostly unchanged through our stomach and intestines, then gets removed from the body through our stool.

There are two types of fibre which have different functions and health benefits: soluble and insoluble.

Soluble fibre dissolves in water and can help lower blood cholesterol levels. Food sources include fruit, vegetables and legumes.

Insoluble fibre adds bulk to the stool which helps move food through the bowels. Food sources include nuts, seeds and wholegrains.

Both types are beneficial.

Australia’s healthy eating guidelines recommend women consume 25 grams of fibre a day and men consume 30 grams a day.

However, research shows most people do not eat enough fibre. Most adults get about 21 grams a day.

4 big reasons to increase fibre

Boosting fibre intake is a manageable and effective way to improve your overall health.

Making small changes to eat more fibrous vegetables can lead to:

1. Better digestion

Fibre helps maintain regular bowel movements and can alleviate constipation.

2. Better heart health

Increasing soluble fibre (by eating foods such as fruit and vegetables) can help lower cholesterol levels, which can reduce your risk of heart disease.

3. Weight management

High-fibre foods are filling, which can help people feel fuller for longer and prevent overeating.

4. Reducing diabetes risk and boosting wellbeing

Fibre-rich diets are linked to a reduced risk of chronic conditions such as type 2 diabetes and colorectal cancer.

Recent research published in prestigious medical journal The Lancet provided some eye-opening stats on why fibre matters.

The researchers, who combined evidence from clinical trials, found people who ate 25–29 grams of fibre per day had a 15–30% lower risk of life-threatening conditions like heart disease, stroke, high blood pressure, and type 2 diabetes compared to those who consumed fewer than 15 grams of fibre per day.

An older woman harvests some carrots from her garden.
Getting plenty of fibre can help us as we age. Iryna Inshyna/Shutterstock

So which vegetables are highest in fibre?

Vegetables are excellent sources of both soluble and insoluble fibre, along with essential vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants.

The following veggies are some of the highest in fibre:

  • green peas
  • avocado
  • artichokes
  • parsnips
  • brussels sprouts
  • kale
  • sweet potatoes
  • beetroot
  • carrots
  • broccoli
  • pumpkin

Which vegetables are low in fibre?

Comparatively lower fibre veggies include:

  • asparagus
  • spinach (raw)
  • cauliflower
  • mushrooms
  • capsicum
  • tomato
  • lettuce
  • cucumber

These vegetables have lots of health benefits. But if meeting a fibre goal is your aim then don’t forget to complement these veggies with other higher-fibre ones, too.

A veggie box is shot from above.
Vegetables are excellent sources of both soluble and insoluble fibre – but some have more fibre than others. anna.q/Shutterstock

Does it matter how I prepare or cook the vegetables?

Yes.

The way we prepare vegetables can impact their fibre content, as cooking can cause structural changes in the dietary fibre components.

Some research has shown pressure cooking reduces fibre levels more greatly than roasting or microwave cooking.

For optimal health, it’s important to include a mix of both cooked and raw vegetables in your diet.

It’s worth noting that juicing removes most of the fibre from vegetables, leaving mostly sugars and water.

For improved fibre intake, it’s better to eat whole vegetables rather than relying on juices.

What about other, non-vegetable sources of fibre?

To meet your fibre recommendations each day, you can chose from a variety of fibre-rich foods (not only vegetables) including:

  • legumes and pulses (such as kidney beans and chickpeas)
  • wholegrain flour and bread
  • fruits
  • wholegrains (such oats, brown rice, quinoa, barley)
  • nuts and seeds (such as flaxseeds and chia seeds)

A fibre-rich day that meets a recommended 30 grams would include:

  • breakfast: 1⁄2 cup of rolled oats with milk and 1⁄2 cup of berries = about 6 grams of fibre
  • snack: one banana = about 2 grams
  • lunch: two cups of salad vegetables, 1⁄2 cup of four-bean mix, and canned tuna = about 9 grams
  • snack: 30 grams of almonds = about 3 grams
  • dinner: 1.5 cups of stir-fried vegetables with tofu or chicken, one cup of cooked brown rice = about 10 grams
  • supper: 1⁄2 a punnet of strawberries with some yoghurt = about 3 grams.

Bringing it all together

Vegetables are a key part of a healthy, balanced diet, packed with fibre that supports digestion, blood glucose control, weight management, and reduces risk of chronic disease.

However, the nutritional value of them can vary depending on the type and the cooking method used.

By understanding the fibre content in different veggies and how preparation methods affect it, we can make informed dietary choices to improve our overall health.The Conversation

Lauren Ball, Professor of Community Health and Wellbeing, The University of Queensland and Emily Burch, Accredited Practising Dietitian and Lecturer, Southern Cross University

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

Disclaimer: These articles are not intended to provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment.  Views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of Pittwater Online News or its staff.