🍿 Poppin'

When electro band Hot Butter dropped Popcorn back in 1972, it was totally poppin’. The song quickly became an international hit, inspiring wacky dance moves around the world. You probably grooved to it in gym class 😂

According to the latest reports, many people have popcorn on their minds these days, but not the delicious buttery kind. Social media has fractured our attention span, resulting in what experts are calling ‘popcorn brain’.

What a crazy ride we’re on ;)

(Love nostalgia? Play today’s trivia below for a chance to win a $25 eGift Card!)

FEASTING FRIDAYS

Hershey kiss your moolah goodbye

Hershey announced it plans to raise prices for its chocolate bars by as much as double digit percentage points due to the sharp rise in cocoa costs.

According to a statement made by CEO Michele Buck last August, Hershey has “absorbed a lot of inflation already, but we do believe we need to pass some of it on.”

A spokesperson for the company reportedly informed retail partners of the plans last week, which will include major price hikes for favourites, including Hershey’s Kisses, Reese’s products, and more.

Chocolate accounts for two thirds of all Hershey products, and though the company formally asked the White House to exempt cocoa from President Trump’s tariff policies, Hershey maintains the imminent price hikes are not related to trade or tariffs.

At the same time, in a recent earnings call, executives told investors that Hershey spent between $15 million and $20 million on tariffs in Q2.

Buck has expressed plans to turn Hershey into a “snacking powerhouse,” which includes expanding more into gummies and other non-chocolate products, relieving some of the company’s dependence on cocoa.

MEDICINE

Pandemic aged our brains

According to a study published recently in Nature Communications, the years-long COVID pandemic caused people’s brains to age faster, regardless of whether or not they contracted the virus.

Researchers at the University of Nottingham School of Medicine, led by Ali-Reza Mohammadi-Nejad, studied brain scans of 1,000 people from before the pandemic and after. They determined brain-aging was sped up by 5.5 months during the COVID years, and it had more to do with stress and isolation.

“This finding was interesting and rather unexpected,” says Mohammadi-Nejad. He noted that other studies have found the virus itself could cause accelerated aging, but "we found that participants who simply lived through the pandemic period, regardless of infection, also showed signs of slightly accelerated brain aging. This highlights that the broader experience of the pandemic—including disruptions to daily life, stress, reduced social interactions, reduced activity, etc.,—may have had a measurable impact on brain health.”

Various groups appeared to be more impacted than others, such as men, the elderly, the less-educated or less-wealthy, and those with unstable housing circumstances.

HEALTH

It’s not how much you move, it’s what you eat

A new study published in PNAS analyzed the average daily calorie burn of 34 different cultures and countries, and found obesity rates were different everywhere, even when calorie burns were relatively the same.

"Surprisingly, what we find is that actually, the total calories burned per day is really similar across these populations, even though the lifestyle and the activity levels are really different," says Herman Pontzer, a professor of evolutionary biology and global health at Duke University, and the international study’s lead investigator.

Even when comparing more active societies made up of farmers and ranchers with the sedentary lifestyle of white collar workers, the calorie burns weren’t actually that different. This led Pontzer et al to believe diet quality has been historically understated when it comes to obesity rates.

"For decades we've been telling Americans that you're lazy, it's your fault, you're not moving enough, you're eating too much," says Dr. Dariush Mozaffarian, director of the Food is Medicine Institute at the Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy at Tufts University.

"And I think what this study shows is that there's really complicated biology happening and that our food is driving this."

MUSIC

Buckingham Nicks finally getting reissued

Buckingham Nicks was the only LP released by the duo of Lindsey Buckingham and Stevie Nicks. It debuted in 1973 with little traction ahead of the on-and-off lovers joining Fleetwood Mac in 1975.

However, the record became something special to fans as they fell in love with Fleetwood Mac, and has become particularly coveted and sought after in the years since its last official pressing in 1981.

The wait is over, though, and a remastered special edition reissue is set for release on Sept. 19. It will be released on vinyl, CD, and digitally; one vinyl edition will include 7” singles off the album, including Crying in the Night, Stephanie, Don't Let Me Down Again and Races Are Run.

Nicks and Buckingham teased the reissue on social media last week, with Nicks posting “and if you go forward,” and Buckingham posting “I’ll meet you there,” completing the lyric from the album’s last song, Frozen Love.

Fans began rabidly speculating, and though Nicks has ruled out any Fleetwood reunion since the death of Christine McVie, rumours are swirling about one more situationship with her musical soulmate to accompany the rerelease of Buckingham Nicks.

STAKE TRIVIA

Mystery game

We’re back with another round of trivia à la carte to close out this week. It’s a set of 10 random questions—the only thing that brings ’em together is that they’re relevant for all the cool kids born in the ’60s 😎 

Enjoy the blast from the past with today’s trivia! Complete the game and earn a shot at a $25 eGift Card ;)

Winner will be notified on Monday afternoon—keep an eye on your inbox!*

Have a great weekend Staker!

Today’s issue written by Michael Cowan, Joey Cowan, and Maureen Norman.


*SEE FULL STAKE TRIVIA CONTEST RULES HERE.