A new tool can now estimate how fast a person is aging. 

University of Otago scientists have found a way to use an MRI scan of the brain to quantify the rate of biological aging of middle-aged people to forecast risks of dementia, chronic disease, and death in older adulthood. 

The technology was developed using data from the Dunedin Study, a decades long health project tracking more than 1,000 people born in the early 70’s. 

Dunedin Study director Professor Moana Theodore joined Kerre Woodham to break down the findings of the study and how the tool works. 

LISTEN ABOVE 

A new tool can now estimate how fast a person is aging.&nbsp;
University of Otago scientists have found a way to use an MRI scan of the brain to quantify the rate of biological aging of middle-aged people to forecast risks of dementia, chronic disease, and death in older adulthood.&nbsp;
The technology was developed using data from the Dunedin Study, a decades long health project tracking more than 1,000 people born in the early 70’s.&nbsp;
Dunedin Study director Professor Moana Theodore joined Kerre Woodham to break down the findings of the study and how the tool works.&nbsp;
LISTEN ABOVE&nbsp;

Join Kerre Woodham one of New Zealand’s best loved personalities as she dishes up a bold, sharp and energetic show Monday to Friday 9am-12md on Newstalk ZB. News, opinion, analysis, lifestyle and entertainment – we’ve got your morning listening covered.

Kerre Woodham Mornings Podcast

Moana Theodore: Dunedin Study Director on the new tool that can estimate how fast someone's aging

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/7784f840-c291-422a-924b-ad9000bbad71/clips/c25d8b93-206f-4940-aab3-b30f001c9830/transcript

The government has confirmed major changes to New Zealand’s secondary school qualification system, officially replacing NCEA with a new subject-based model.

Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Education Minister Erica Stanford announced the shift in Orewa, saying the current NCEA system is too complex and doesn’t clearly show how well students have mastered their subjects.

From 2029, Year 12 students will begin the New Zealand Certificate of Education, followed by the New Zealand Advanced Certificate of Education for Year 13 in 2030. Level 1 will be removed in 2028.

Under the new structure, students will take at least five subjects, and must pass a minimum of three to earn the qualification. Every subject will include internal assessments and an exam, and results will be reported using a six-point grading scale from A+ to E. Certificates will list each subject and the grade achieved, with endorsement awards for top performers.

Year 11 students will face new compulsory subjects — science, English or te reo rangatira, and mathematics — and all students will need to pass the new literacy and numeracy Foundational Award.

The curriculum will also expand to include new subjects such as Civics, Politics and Philosophy, Advanced Mathematics, and Journalism and Media, alongside industry-developed subjects like building and construction and primary industries.

Stanford says the changes are designed to move students away from “credit crunching” and toward genuine learning progress.

Current Year 9 students will be the first full cohort to move through the new system.

So all the statistics point to NCEA failing but like all tools it's because of the people who used the system not exclusively because of the system

A common reaction amongst older New Zealander is how tis resembles the School C, UE system we grew up with so it was less of a revolution and more of a return to basics that were well understood

The easy criticism for older folk was the marking system.  For some reason parents and employers did not understand the Excellence, Merit and Acheived rankings when obviously Excellence means an A, Merit a b and Acheived a C.  The A to E system is one that parents grew up with but in the cold light of day is just as abstract as the NCEA rankings.

The real problem lay in the rorting of the credits with students choosing easy to pass subjects and avoiding anything that seemed challenging.  But the real responsibility for the credit crunching surely lies with the parents as well

And the strength of NCEA was recognising that there is not one education for all.  That some people don't cope with maths or English or Science and the system recognised what talents they had.

My youngest and I had a big to do over his Year 13 subject choice.  He detested maths and wanted to study photography.  I said you have to have maths.  he argued that he had as much maths as any average student would need for real life.  He won.  And now he is a successful photographer doing his own taxes and playing Sharesies particularly well. So he was right.  But I'm just lucky he's such a rounded individual

But while the new system re-emphasises 3 basic pillars of knowledge in English Maths and Science a lot of those BS credit crunching subjects remain.

Other arguments are amongst those who say exams are artificial and how do you sit an exam on Food Technology which is the new fangled name for cooking. Or photography which still exists.

The question exists is this a brave new world or will the old problems still remain.

Luxon also used the event to comment on global instability, national security, and recent speculation about a potential National–Labour coalition, dismissing the idea outright.

LISTEN ABOVE

The government has confirmed major changes to New Zealand’s secondary school qualification system, officially replacing NCEA with a new subject-based model.
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Education Minister Erica Stanford announced the shift in Orewa, saying the current NCEA system is too complex and doesn’t clearly show how well students have mastered their subjects.
From 2029, Year 12 students will begin the New Zealand Certificate of Education, followed by the New Zealand Advanced Certificate of Education for Year 13 in 2030. Level 1 will be removed in 2028.
Under the new structure, students will take at least five subjects, and must pass a minimum of three to earn the qualification. Every subject will include internal assessments and an exam, and results will be reported using a six-point grading scale from A+ to E. Certificates will list each subject and the grade achieved, with endorsement awards for top performers.
Year 11 students will face new compulsory subjects — science, English or te reo rangatira, and mathematics — and all students will need to pass the new literacy and numeracy Foundational Award.
The curriculum will also expand to include new subjects such as Civics, Politics and Philosophy, Advanced Mathematics, and Journalism and Media, alongside industry-developed subjects like building and construction and primary industries.
Stanford says the changes are designed to move students away from “credit crunching” and toward genuine learning progress.
Current Year 9 students will be the first full cohort to move through the new system.
So all the statistics point to NCEA failing but like all tools it's because of the people who used the system not exclusively because of the system
A common reaction amongst older New Zealander is how tis resembles the School C, UE system we grew up with so it was less of a revolution and more of a return to basics that were well understood
The easy criticism for older folk was the marking system. &nbsp;For some reason parents and employers did not understand the Excellence, Merit and Acheived rankings when obviously Excellence means an A, Merit a b and Acheived a C. &nbsp;The A to E system is one that parents grew up with but in the cold light of day is just as abstract as the NCEA rankings.
The real problem lay in the rorting of the credits with students choosing easy to pass subjects and avoiding anything that seemed challenging. &nbsp;But the real responsibility for the credit crunching surely lies with the parents as well
And the strength of NCEA was recognising that there is not one education for all. &nbsp;That some people don't cope with maths or English or Science and the system recognised what talents they had.
My youngest and I had a big to do over his Year 13 subject choice. &nbsp;He detested maths and wanted to study photography. &nbsp;I said you have to have maths. &nbsp;he argued that he had as much maths as any average student would need for real life. &nbsp;He won. &nbsp;And now he is a successful photographer doing his own taxes and playing Sharesies particularly well. So he was right. &nbsp;But I'm just lucky he's such a rounded individual
But while the new system re-emphasises 3 basic pillars of knowledge in English Maths and Science a lot of those BS credit crunching subjects remain.
Other arguments are amongst those who say exams are artificial and how do you sit an exam on Food Technology which is the new fangled name for cooking. Or photography which still exists.
The question exists is this a brave new world or will the old problems still remain.
Luxon also used the event to comment on global instability, national security, and recent speculation about a potential National–Labour coalition, dismissing the idea outright.
<blockquote>
LISTEN ABOVE
</blockquote>

Andrew Dickens: Parents are responsible for avoiding 'credit crunching'

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/7784f840-c291-422a-924b-ad9000bbad71/clips/e11b4fab-9f5d-47e5-babf-b44d01853237/transcript

The Blues are celebrating their 30th anniversary with their inaugural Blues Hall of Fame. 

It’ll honour the legends, stories, and defining moments that have shaped the club since its inception in 1996. 

The first class of inductees will be honoured at a formal lunch today. 

Former All Blacks coach and Blues board member John Hart told Kerre Woodham that initially, while they catch up on history, the Hall will focus on the players and coaches. 

But after that, he says, the ‘Guardians’ class will be added, which honours people like managers, administrators, supporters, or sponsors.  

LISTEN ABOVE 

The Blues are celebrating their 30th anniversary with their inaugural Blues Hall of Fame.&nbsp;
It’ll honour the legends, stories, and defining moments that have shaped the club since its inception in 1996.&nbsp;
The first class of inductees will be honoured at a formal lunch today.&nbsp;
Former All Blacks coach and Blues board member John Hart told Kerre Woodham that initially, while they catch up on history, the Hall will focus on the players and coaches.&nbsp;
But after that, he says, the ‘Guardians’ class will be added, which honours people like managers, administrators, supporters, or sponsors. &nbsp;
LISTEN ABOVE&nbsp;

John Hart: Blues Board Member on the inaugural Blues Hall of Fame

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/7784f840-c291-422a-924b-ad9000bbad71/clips/74e8be53-47d1-4049-a79e-b44b000cb45c/transcript

Obesity related illnesses, as you well know, cost this country a fortune. The direct healthcare costs of obesity, well, they estimated it at $2 billion per year, per year, and that was in 2021, so it'll be a hell of a lot more now. It's more difficult to calculate the total economic impact that obesity has on this country. Estimates range between $4 to $9 billion per year. It depends whether you include lost productivity and how you quantify the loss of quality of life. If you are chair bound and you're in your 20’s, how do you calculate the cost of that? Cardiovascular disease linked closely to obesity costs New Zealand a minimum of $13.8 billion.  

We're looking for hundreds of millions at the moment to try and balance the books with the Budget coming up – look at the billions being spent on healthcare costs. Type 2 diabetes, that costs an estimated $2.1 billion annually. Over two in three adults and nearly one third of children in New Zealand are overweight or obese, placing a severe strain on the health system. So it costs the country a lot. It would make a meaningful difference reducing the numbers of people who are obese and then see that obesity is triggering all kinds of health conditions. The cost in terms of New Zealanders not being able to live their lives, fulfil their potential, that too is staggering. So if there is a way to fix it, why wouldn't we fix it? If somebody said there's a pill for that, you'd take it. 

And indeed, turns out there is. Pharmac thinks we can and should solve the problem through medication. It has added the semaglutide drug to its list of medicines suitable for future funding. In a decision released yesterday, the drug funding agency confirmed it had added Wegovy, as you know it, to its list of options for investment. The options for investment includes all the medications Pharmac would fund if the budget allowed. It's currently unfunded, and if you want to buy it yourself, Wegovy costs someone about $400 a month. The order of Pharmac's list isn't made public for commercial reasons, as Radio New Zealand writes, but if chosen, the drug would be available to people with a BMI of more than 50 and also to those with a BMI of more than 35 with at least two comorbidities.  

There is a cure for obesity, but there will be a group of people, and you might be one of them as you're standing or sitting here listening to me, who don't want to fund obesity drugs despite the clear cost benefits, because you see fat as being a moral failing, and fat people as being inferior beings. You think it's simply a matter of willpower. There were no fat people during wars, food was scarce, and that's the end of that. Pull up your socks, go for a walk, say no, put down the fork, problem solved. Despite the fact that medical experts and psychiatrists say it is way more complicated than that. The ads we're running for weight loss drugs at the moment on this station give an indication of what it's like to see food as a reward and as an enemy. It's the voice chatter that Oprah Winfrey talked about when she went on Ozempic. She said the medication stopped the constant mental chatter about what to eat, what to resist, the constant negotiation about food, which was a feeling she'd experienced for 50 years. The okay, well, if I have an egg for breakfast, that's protein, that's good, but then there's the toast and that's carbs, should I try and put it on say a rice cracker? That doesn't feel very nice. Okay, I've been for a walk so I can reward myself with a piece of cake. Constant. And that's what the ads give an indication of, that's what Oprah Winfrey was talking about. She had an aha moment when she realised that overeating doesn't cause obesity, it's obesity that causes overeating. It is not a moral failing. And I know that when you exercise and when you restrict your food, you lose weight. I've done it before. I'll do it again. I'm in and out like an accordion – I can still hear the chatter sometimes, other times I let it go.  

But for some people, the chatter is so great that they simply don't have the option of going for a walk. Some people can't tie their own shoelaces. It's a psychological illness rather than a physical one. And that's what the experts say, that's not just me. And I know you feel smuggety smug smug smug smug when you're out there running in the early morning and having your chia and your sliced berries and that's your bag, or your marinated vegetables for breakfast, and you're feeling super fit. I used to feel smuggety smug smug smug too when I'd go for my early morning marathon training runs and you knew that people were lying in bed at 7:30 in the morning. Now I think, bloody who was the fool? But you go on feeling smug, you go on feeling smug and feeling superior, and in the meantime, there is a solution to a problem. It's a problem that affects a significant proportion of people. Some people can put down the fork, some people can reset their minds themselves. Great. Others need more assistance. As with many psychiatric illnesses, some people need to have their brain rebooted. And if we can do that and save ourselves billions, why would we not do that? 

Obesity related illnesses, as you well know, cost this country a fortune. The direct healthcare costs of obesity, well, they estimated it at $2 billion per year, per year, and that was in 2021, so it'll be a hell of a lot more now. It's more difficult to calculate the total economic impact that obesity has on this country. Estimates range between $4 to $9 billion per year. It depends whether you include lost productivity and how you quantify the loss of quality of life. If you are chair bound and you're in your 20’s, how do you calculate the cost of that? Cardiovascular disease linked closely to obesity costs New Zealand a minimum of $13.8 billion. &nbsp;
We're looking for hundreds of millions at the moment to try and balance the books with the Budget coming up – look at the billions being spent on healthcare costs. Type 2 diabetes, that costs an estimated $2.1 billion annually. Over two in three adults and nearly one third of children in New Zealand are overweight or obese, placing a severe strain on the health system. So it costs the country a lot. It would make a meaningful difference reducing the numbers of people who are obese and then see that obesity is triggering all kinds of health conditions. The cost in terms of New Zealanders not being able to live their lives, fulfil their potential, that too is staggering. So if there is a way to fix it, why wouldn't we fix it? If somebody said there's a pill for that, you'd take it.&nbsp;
And indeed, turns out there is. Pharmac thinks we can and should solve the problem through medication. It has added the semaglutide drug to its list of medicines suitable for future funding. In a decision released yesterday, the drug funding agency confirmed it had added Wegovy, as you know it, to its list of options for investment. The options for investment includes all the medications Pharmac would fund if the budget allowed. It's currently unfunded, and if you want to buy it yourself, Wegovy costs someone about $400 a month. The order of Pharmac's list isn't made public for commercial reasons, as Radio New Zealand writes, but if chosen, the drug would be available to people with a BMI of more than 50 and also to those with a BMI of more than 35 with at least two comorbidities. &nbsp;
There is a cure for obesity, but there will be a group of people, and you might be one of them as you're standing or sitting here listening to me, who don't want to fund obesity drugs despite the clear cost benefits, because you see fat as being a moral failing, and fat people as being inferior beings. You think it's simply a matter of willpower. There were no fat people during wars, food was scarce, and that's the end of that. Pull up your socks, go for a walk, say no, put down the fork, problem solved. Despite the fact that medical experts and psychiatrists say it is way more complicated than that. The ads we're running for weight loss drugs at the moment on this station give an indication of what it's like to see food as a reward and as an enemy. It's the voice chatter that Oprah Winfrey talked about when she went on Ozempic. She said the medication stopped the constant mental chatter about what to eat, what to resist, the constant negotiation about food, which was a feeling she'd experienced for 50 years. The okay, well, if I have an egg for breakfast, that's protein, that's good, but then there's the toast and that's carbs, should I try and put it on say a rice cracker? That doesn't feel very nice. Okay, I've been for a walk so I can reward myself with a piece of cake. Constant. And that's what the ads give an indication of, that's what Oprah Winfrey was talking about. She had an aha moment when she realised that overeating doesn't cause obesity, it's obesity that causes overeating. It is not a moral failing. And I know that when you exercise and when you restrict your food, you lose weight. I've done it before. I'll do it again. I'm in and out like an accordion – I can still hear the chatter sometimes, other times I let it go. &nbsp;
But for some people, the chatter is so great that they simply don't have the option of going for a walk. Some people can't tie their own shoelaces. It's a psychological illness rather than a physical one. And that's what the experts say, that's not just me. And I know you feel smuggety smug smug smug smug when you're out there running in the early morning and having your chia and your sliced berries and that's your bag, or your marinated vegetables for breakfast, and you're feeling super fit. I used to feel smuggety smug smug smug too when I'd go for my early morning marathon training runs and you knew that people were lying in bed at 7:30 in the morning. Now I think, bloody who was the fool? But you go on feeling smug, you go on feeling smug and feeling superior, and in the meantime, there is a solution to a problem. It's a problem that affects a significant proportion of people. Some people can put down the fork, some people can reset their minds themselves. Great. Others need more assistance. As with many psychiatric illnesses, some people need to have their brain rebooted. And if we can do that and save ourselves billions, why would we not do that?&nbsp;

Kerre Woodham: If there's a fix for obesity-related costs, why wouldn't we use it?

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/7784f840-c291-422a-924b-ad9000bbad71/clips/36f97756-1dc3-48d2-84ff-b44a01897437/transcript

Moana Theodore: Dunedin Study Director on the new tool that can estimate how fast someone's aging

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