Grapes vs Strawberries – Which is Healthier?
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Our Verdict
When comparing strawberries to grapes, we picked the strawberries.
Why?
In terms of macros, grapes have more than 2x the carbs while strawberries have more than 2x the fiber, making this category an easy win for strawberries.
In the category of vitamins, grapes have more of vitamins A, B1, B2, B6, and K, while strawberries have more of vitamins B3, B5, B9, C, and E, making for a 5:5 tie with comparable margins of difference.
Looking at minerals, grapes have more potassium and manganese, while strawberries have more calcium, copper, iron, magnesium, phosphorus, selenium, and zinc. A clear win for strawberries here.
In other considerations, both of these fruits are abundant in many polyphenols, but it might interest you to know that strawberries have slightly more resveratrol than even red/black grapes! Still, it’s close, and there are many other polyphenols in both, and honestly we’re calling this category a tie.
Adding up the sections makes for a compelling overall win for strawberries, but by all means enjoy either or both; diversity is best!
Want to learn more?
You might like:
Can We Drink To Good Health? ← while there are polyphenols such as resveratrol in red wine that per se would boost heart health, there’s so little per glass that you may need 100–1000 glasses per day to get the dosage that provides benefits in mouse studies.
If you’re not a mouse, you might even need more than that!
To this end, many people prefer resveratrol supplementation ← link is to an example product on Amazon, but there are plenty more so feel free to shop around 😎
Enjoy!
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What is a ‘digital detox’ and will it make me healthier?
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Are you surrounded by screens?
Today, we rely on technology to do everything from sending emails to ordering food. But being constantly connected can leave us physically and mentally exhausted.
That’s why some people are doing “digital detoxes”, the practice of staying away from devices and social media for a set period of time.
The concept is gaining traction online, with supporters spruiking the health benefits of the “analogue lifestyle”. Some are even paying big bucks to go on “digital retreats”, with the aim of becoming healthier and happier.
But do digital detoxes actually work, or are they just another wellness trend?
SolStock/Getty What is a ‘digital detox’?
The term “digital detox” stems from detoxification, the process of safely getting a person off an addictive substance such as alcohol or drugs. This is usually done with support from a health-care professional.
So the idea of a digital detox is to step away from technology, to instead experience life with fewer distractions and foster relationships offline.
The trouble with tech
On average, young people in Australia look at screens for nine hours a day. Research suggests adults aren’t much better, with Australians aged between 45 and 64 spending up to six hours each day on screens.
As a result, more people are experiencing information overload, the idea of being physically and emotionally overwhelmed by an immense amount of data. A related concept is social media fatigue, a consequence of being constantly connected through online platforms.
But there are signs people are resisting the pull of technology. Some younger people are swapping screens for hands-on hobbies such as knitting, and joining chess clubs and other offline social activities.
They are also driving trends such as “raw-dogging boredom”, the practice of sitting through long haul flights without headphones. And friction-maxxing, the idea you can become a better, more resilient person by doing tasks that involve some level of difficulty, is also gaining traction online.
So in a sense, digital detoxes are just the latest online trend.
Do ‘digital detoxes’ work?
Current research suggests digital detoxes may have some benefits. But the evidence is far from conclusive.
One 2025 meta-analysis examined 20 randomised controlled trials, all looking at the effects of social media detoxes. It found taking a short break from social media had a small but positive effect on people’s feelings of life satisfaction and self-esteem. Participants also reported feeling less anxious, depressed and lonely.
In another 2025 study, researchers blocked participants’ smartphones so they could only receive calls and texts, over a two-week period. The results were striking. The researchers found this intervention had a greater positive effect on participants’ mental health than antidepressants. Importantly, this was because participants spent less time on their phones, but also spent this time doing beneficial activities such as socialising in person, exercising and being in nature.
Not for everyone
Digital detoxes may impact people differently, due to various factors.
One is cultural context. Research suggests people using social media in collectivist cultures such as Turkey may experience more social pressure to respond quickly and maintain extensive networks, compared to those in more individualistic societies. So people in collectivist cultures may benefit more from taking a break from social media.
Another is gender. Research suggests women mainly use social media to maintain relationships, and that they compare their physical appearance to others. This means they may benefit more from a digital detox, compared to men. One 2020 study found women who took a one-week break from Instagram felt significantly more satisfied with their life than women who stayed on it. However, the researchers did not see the same effect in men.
All about the approach
Current research suggests doing a digital detox may improve your mental health. But the way you approach it matters.
You shouldn’t just go cold turkey on technology. That’s because you’re less likely to sustain that change. One 2023 study found people who reduced their daily smartphone use by one hour experienced stronger and more lasting mental health benefits, compared to those who quit entirely.
Here are some tips to make your digital detox last:
- identify any unhelpful habits, for example checking your phone too often or bringing it everywhere
- make a plan to change those habits, for instance setting app time limits or only checking messages at certain times
- set specific goals, such as taking a break from Instagram for one week
- share your goals with family and friends, both so they can support you and understand why you may not reply to their messages
- monitor your progress, for example by reflecting on whether you feel less anxious or are sleeping better.
It’s hard to stay present and connected in our increasingly digital world. But doing a digital detox could help. Importantly, the aim is not to eliminate technology from your life, but to use it in a more conscious, deliberate way.
Joanne Orlando, Researcher, Digital Wellbeing, Western Sydney University
This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
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The Physical Exercises That Build Your Brain
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Jim Kwik: from broken brain to brain coach
Image from Kwik Learning This is Jim Kwik. He suffered a traumatic brain injury as a small child, and later taught himself to read and write by reading comic books. He became fascinated with the process of learning, and in his late 20s he set up Kwik Learning, to teach accelerated learning in classrooms and companies, which he continued until 2009 when he launched his online learning platform. His courses have now been enjoyed by people in 195 countries.
So, since accelerated learning is his thing, you might wonder…
What does he have to share that we can benefit from in the next five minutes?
Three brain exercises to improve memory and concentration
A lot of problems we have with working memory are a case of executive dysfunction, but there are tricks we can use to get our brains into gear and make them cumulatively stronger:
First exercise
You can strengthen your corpus callosum (the little bridge between the two hemispheres of the brain) by performing a simple kinesiological exercise, such as alternating touching your left elbow to your right knee, and touching your right elbow to your left knee.
Do it for about a minute, but the goal here is not a cardio exercise, it’s accuracy!
You want to touch your elbow and opposite knee to each other as precisely as possible each time. Not missing slightly off to the side, not falling slightly short, not hitting it too hard.
Second exercise
Put your hands out in front of you, as though you’re about to type at a keyboard. Now, turn your hands palm-upwards. Now back to where they were. Now palm-upwards again. Got it? Good.
That’s not the exercise, the exercise is:
You’re now going to do the same thing, but do it twice as quickly with one hand than the other. So they’ll still be flipping to the same basic “beat”, put it in musical terms, the tempo on one hand will now be twice that of the other. When you get the hang of that, switch hands and do the other side.
This is again about the corpus callosum, but it’s now adding an extra level of challenge because of holding the two rhythms separately, which is also working the frontal lobe of the cerebral cortex.
The pre-frontal cortex in particular is incredibly important to executive function, self-discipline, and being able to “do” delayed gratification. So this exercise is really important!
Third exercise
This one works the same features of the brain, but most people find it harder. So, consider it a level-up on the previous:
Imagine there’s a bicycle wheel in front of you (as though the bike is facing you at chest-height). Turn the wheel towards you with your hands, one on each side.
Now, do the same thing, but each of your hands is going in the opposite direction. So one is turning the wheel towards you; the other is turning it away from you.
Now, do the same thing, but one hand goes twice as quickly as the other.
Switch sides.
Why is this harder for most people than the previous? Because the previous involved processing discrete (distinct from each other) movements while this one involves analog continuous movements.
It’s like reading an analog clock vs a digital clock, but while using both halves of your brain, your corpus callosum, your pre-frontal cortex, and the motor cortex too.
Want to learn more?
You might enjoy his book, which as well as offering exercises like the above, also offers a lot about learning strategies, memory processes, and generally building a quicker more efficient brain:
Limitless: Upgrade Your Brain, Learn Anything Faster, and Unlock Your Exceptional Life
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Pine Nuts vs Peanuts – Which is Healthier?
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Our Verdict
When comparing pine nuts to peanuts, we picked the pine nuts.
Why?
An argument could be made for either, honestly, as it depends on what we prioritize the most. These are both very high-calorie foods, and/but are far from empty calories, as they both contain main nutrients. Obviously, if you are allergic to nuts, this one is just not a comparison for you, sorry.
Looking at the macros first, peanuts are higher in protein, carbs, and fiber, while pine nuts are higher in fats—though the fats are healthy, being mostly polyunsaturated, with about a third of the total fats monounsaturated, and a low amount of saturated fat (peanuts have nearly 2x the saturated fat). On balance, we’ll call the macros category a moderate win for peanuts, though.
In terms of vitamins, peanuts have more of vitamins B1, B3, B5, B6, and B9, while pine nuts have more of vitamins A, B2, C, E, K, and choline. All in all, a marginal win for pine nuts.
In the category of minerals, peanuts have more calcium and selenium, while pine nuts have more copper, iron, magnesium, manganese, phosphorus, and zinc. An easy win for pine nuts, even before we take into account that peanuts have nearly 10x as much sodium. And yes, we are talking about the raw nuts, not nuts that have been roasted and salted.
Adding up the categories gives a win for pine nuts—but if you have certain particular priorities, you might still prefer peanuts for the areas in which peanuts are stronger.
Of course, the best solution is to enjoy both!
Want to learn more?
You might like to read:
Why You Should Diversify Your Nuts!
Take care!
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Is Your Menopause App Spying On You?
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In your opinion, do companies collecting your data respect the notion of consent?
Or perhaps, like most of us, you’re getting a little jaded of being presented with options such as:
Let it also not go without mentioning, the number of times we, upon clicking to “personalize” privacy options (i.e., do damage limitation within what they allow), we see a text along the lines of:
“We at Company Inc. value your privacy. We and our 1,917 partners with whom we share your data—”
So, if that’s the baseline, what’s this about menopause apps now?
Periods may stop, but privacy violations sure don’t
While period/ovulation-tracking apps have come under much scrutiny lately for their privacy violations, menopause apps have received comparatively little regulatory (or research) attention.
So, researchers (Dr. Maryam Mehrnezhad et al.) conducted a modest yet significantly-sized survey (n=310) to examine privacy and safety issues in menopause-related digital technologies.
The problem is similar to that of the period/ovulation-tracking apps, in that most collect intimate health information—including emotional symptoms and sexual activity history—which could potentially be accessed or misused by employers, insurers, or scammers.
What Dr. Mehrnezhad and her team found is that many platforms lack adequate safeguards and are often rife with misinformation, to potentially add injury to insult (insofar as incorrect information can result in material harm).
This study was done in Europe, and many current apps fall well short of requirements under General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) because their privacy policies are difficult to find or understand (see the sort of obfuscations we gave examples of up top), and a cynical person might even say that this is intentional when they’re making money from selling that data (let’s be clear, when they say “we and our 1,917 partners”, they mean “we and the 1,917 companies we sell your data to”).
So, how about in the US? Well, the US doesn’t have Federal equivalent, although some states have privacy laws of their own (with California’s being the strongest, albeit still not close to GDPR).
In short: if you have such an app, check your app’s privacy policy, but chances are very high your data is being sold to not just the highest bidder, but really, to every vaguely compelling bidder.
You can read the study itself, here: User Risk Perceptions and Privacy Attitudes towards Menopause Data Collection and Use
Writer’s anecdote: not a menopause-tracker exactly, but I used to use the Finch self-care app; it’s a cute interface with a virtual pet that basically does CBT and DBT, as well as being a journalling app. One of the things I liked about it was that all my data stays on my device, and even if I make a manual back-up of my data, I can back it up to a drive of my own, not theirs. However, last year they changed to prompt every day to upload my personal data to “the cloud” (pro tip: “the cloud” is just someone else’s computer; in this case, theirs) and, ironically for a self-care app, weren’t willing to take “no” for an answer. So, I deleted my data and deleted the app.
What can we do to get the same features without such privacy violations?
There are tiers of privacy available:
- Purpose-built apps: negligible privacy. You would get more privacy if you nailed your personal data to your front door, Martin Luther-style.
- Multipurpose apps: if you go for something like a general purpose journalling app, then there is slightly better privacy, just because when your data is sold or leaked, it’s not already formatted in an easy-to-analyse way. However, on the flipside, it’s not so easy to use for you, either.
- Offline computer/device: here we mean one that does not have access to the internet and will never have access to the internet at a future point. For example, you bought a tablet without mobile internet, and immediately disabled the WiFi, Bluetooth, etc.
- Pen and paper: near complete privacy, unless your home is searched (as happened to some American women in the wake of Roe vs. Wade being overturned).
- Between your ears: perfect privacy, with the caveat that you may not have perfect recall.
A good compromise is to do something like a monthly self-check of all the aspects of health you find important and can check yourself at home, for example:
Your Health Audit, From Head To Toe ← these are all excellent areas to pay close attention to
Take care!
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The Fascinating Truth About Aspartame, Cancer, & Neurotoxicity
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Is Aspartame’s Reputation Well-Deserved?
In Tuesday’s newsletter, we asked you for your health-related opinions on aspartame, and got the above-depicted, below-described, set of responses:
- About 47% said “It is an evil carcinogenic neurotoxin”
- 20% said “It is safe-ish, but has health risks that are worse than sugar”
- About 19% said “It is not healthy, but better than sugar”
- About 15% said “It’s a perfectly healthy replacement for sugar”
But what does the science say?
Aspartame is carcinogenic: True or False?
False, assuming consuming it in moderation. In excess, almost anything can cause cancer (oxygen is a fine example). But for all meaningful purposes, aspartame does not appear to be carcinogenic. For example,
❝The results of these studies showed no evidence that these sweeteners cause cancer or other harms in people.❞
~ NIH | National Cancer Institute
Source: Artificial Sweeteners and Cancer
Plenty of studies and reviews have also confirmed this; here are some examples:
- Evaluation of aspartame cancer epidemiology studies based on quality appraisal criteria
- Aspartame, low-calorie sweeteners and disease: Regulatory safety and epidemiological issues
- Aspartame: A review of genotoxicity data
Why then do so many people believe it causes cancer, despite all the evidence against it?
Well, there was a small study involving giving megadoses to rats, which did increase their cancer risk. So of course, the popular press took that and ran with it.
But those results have not been achieved outside of rats, and human studies great and small have all been overwhelmingly conclusive that moderate consumption of aspartame has no effect on cancer risk.
Aspartame is a neurotoxin: True or False?
False, again assuming moderate consumption. If you’re a rat being injected with a megadose, your experience may vary. But a human enjoying a diet soda, the aspartame isn’t the part that’s doing you harm, so far as we know.
For example, the European Food Safety Agency’s scientific review panel concluded:
❝there is still no substantive evidence that aspartame can induce such effects❞
~ Dr. Atkin et al (it was a pan-European team of 21 experts in the field)
Source: Report on the Meeting on Aspartame with National Experts
See also,
❝The data from the extensive investigations into the possibility of neurotoxic effects of aspartame, in general, do not support the hypothesis that aspartame in the human diet will affect nervous system function, learning or behavior.
The weight of existing evidence is that aspartame is safe at current levels of consumption as a nonnutritive sweetener.❞
and
❝The safety testing of aspartame has gone well beyond that required to evaluate the safety of a food additive.
When all the research on aspartame, including evaluations in both the premarketing and postmarketing periods, is examined as a whole, it is clear that aspartame is safe, and there are no unresolved questions regarding its safety under conditions of intended use.❞
Source: Regulatory Toxicology & Pharmacology | Aspartame: Review of Safety
Why then do many people believe it is a neurotoxin? This one can be traced back to a chain letter hoax from about 26 years ago; you can read it here, but please be aware it is an entirely debunked hoax:
Urban Legends | Aspartame Hoax
Take care!
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A Surprisingly Accessible Treatment For Migraines
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…and other items from this week’s health news:
Cannabis’s very good stats for migraine relief
Migraine attacks are thought by many people to be “just a bad headache”, but in fact, there’s a lot more to it than that, and they’re also famously resistant to a lot of usual headache-relief medications and other remedies.
So, what’s new? Researchers (Dr. Dawn Buse et al.) tested cannabis vs placebo for the treatment of migraine, and got great results:
How it worked: 92 participants used vaporized cannabis containing 6% tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and 11% cannabidiol (CBD), which are considdered relatively low potencies.
And the results?
- 67% of participants experienced a reduction in migraine pain within two hours of treatment
- 35% of participants became completely pain-free after treatment
These benefits lasted for up to 48 hours across 247 treated migraine attacks, and in terms of safety, no serious adverse events were reported during the study.
Read in full: Cannabis shows anti-migraine benefits
Related: Migraine: When Headaches Are The Tip Of The Neurological Iceberg
Alcohol use disorder: what are the key factors affecting relapse?
Long-term relapse in alcohol use disorder was most strongly linked to a gradual reduction in recovery focus or vigilance, making it the most prevalent and potent risk factor. As for what this looked like, it often involved deprioritizing recovery-related attitudes and routines, alongside disengagement from mutual-help groups and other recovery supports.
In other words, rather than a sudden failure as such relapses are generally assumed to be, it was usually more of a slow erosion of commitment to ongoing recovery maintenance.
That, perhaps, explains why psychological and social factors also play a major role, particularly worsening mental health symptoms, loneliness, social isolation, and increased exposure to alcohol-related environments, generally increasing in the year leading up to relapse:
Read in full: Key risk factors identified for long-term relapse in alcohol use disorder
Related: Which Addiction-Quitting Methods Work Best?
Not “basically just steam” after all
Vapes have enjoyed a (so far, it seems, well-earned) reputation of being less harmful than cigarettes. One of the ways in which they are considered less bad healthwise is when it comes to passive consumption, i.e., second-hand smoke/vapour. In the case of smoke, it’s smoke, and whatever else is in it, everyone knows smoke is bad to inhale, right? Whereas vapour… Steam inhalation is good for the health, no?
And in this case: no
As it turns out, secondhand vape plumes can contain ultrafine particles loaded with metals and reactive peroxides that interact to form lung-damaging free radicals. Additionally, volatile organic compounds in vape vapor can react with indoor ozone to form peroxides, which then interact with metals to generate reactive radicals.
It gets worse: because ultrafine particles can penetrate deep into your lungs and reach fluid-lined alveoli, they may damage lung tissue and impair lower respiratory function. And, paradoxically, ultrafine particles carry higher proportions of metals and peroxides than larger particles.
Read in full: Secondhand vape plumes could form lung-damaging radicals
Related: Vaping: A Lot Of Hot Air?
Take care!
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