Four Questions, Four Papers

// Mailbag 01

“I train at seven and study at night. Does the four hour gap run backwards?”

Nobody in that trial tried it that way round.

All three groups learned first. One rode straight after, one waited four hours, one skipped the bike.

Riding first was never tested, so I cannot tell you what it does.

On the evidence there is, put the hard effort after the learning. Swap your two blocks over if the day allows it.

↗ Source: van Dongen, Current Biology, 2016

// Mailbag 02

“I hate tea. What else carries the flavanols?”

Apples and berries do the same job in the British diet.

Those three are the main sources in Britain. Tea is only the biggest of them.

Keep the skin on the apple. A handful of berries most days covers a lot of ground.

Chocolate does not… ordinary processing strips most of the flavanols out.

↗ Source: University of Reading on the COSMOS trial, 2023

// Mailbag 03

“I am 58 and my hearing seems fine. Worth a test anyway?”

That trial cannot answer you, and it pays to know why.

Everyone in it was 70 to 84. All of them already had hearing loss.

So the 48% figure says nothing about a man of 58 with good ears.

A test still hands you a baseline for the next twenty years. That is worth an hour.

↗ Source: Lin, The Lancet, 2023

// Mailbag 04

“My mother is losing her central vision. Can she get that eye chip?”

Not yet, outside a trial… only 38 people have had one.

It is built for late macular disease, once the central vision has gone.

Nineteen of those 38 had a serious eye event. Most landed in the first two months.

Her eye doctor is the person to ask about trials. Bring the paper with you.

↗ Source: Holz, New England Journal of Medicine, 2025

// The Log

What I Ran This Fortnight

The bath went in four nights out of seven, at nine o’clock.

Steps averaged 6,900, and the slow lowers hold at 20 kg.

The Spanish deck runs at eight, with the hill ride near noon.

My ears got tested, and the numbers came back fine. One man, one log, no control group.

// Your Pick

Which answer landed best?

Pick one and hit send.

// Talk To Me

What should the next mailbag answer?