Business

Mommy brain may not be real and is unfair to moms, scientist say

Terms like baby brain, mommy brain and momnesia, are often used to describe the brain fog women might experience before or soon after giving birth.

But scientists say its time we stop using such language. Not only is the notion that motherhood causes a decline in cognitive abilities inaccurate, its also unfair to moms, according to an essay written by a team of scientists in JAMA Neurology.

Very few studies have investigated whether mothers actually suffer from memory loss during pregnancy and the postpartum period, the authors write. But those that have failed to find significant cognitive differences in the abilities of women who have children compared with women without children. Yet if you were to ask new moms whether they have experienced the memory loss and confusion popularly labeled mommy brain, around 80% would say yes.

So why is there a mismatch between women experiencing mommy brain in real-life but not under the microscope?

Being a mom is really distracting

Theres one very real aspect of being a mother which studies forget to include, according to the JAMA authors: A live, very distracting, attention-demanding newborn.

That might be one of the reasons why moms can feel very distracted in their every day lives, but studieswhich are often conducted in quiet settings with no baby to interferepick up any kind of cognitive difference, according to the essay authors.

Essentially, women with children perform just as well as their childless counterparts because their cognitive ability has not declined. New moms just dont have the distraction of a babbling baby taking-up brain space in a lab setting.

A damaging narrative

The prevalence of the mommy brain narrative could be bending perception of both society and researchers, according to the JAMA authors.

While complaints of mental fogginess should be taken seriously, it is likely the inescapable narrative of mommy brain contributes to these subjective reports, focusing pregnant womens (and researchers) attention on what may be a small decrease in particular aspects of cognitive function, while at the same time ignoring the faculties that are gained during this period of life, Dr. Clare McCormack, Dr. Bridget L. Callaghan and Dr. Jodi L. Pawluski write.

Everyone can experience a lapse in memoryespecially under extreme circumstances. But after being told to expect their cognitive ability to decline after pregnancy, expectant women may incorrectly deduce that something very normal, like misplacing the car keys, is down to momnesia.

Its the same reason society labels pregnant and postpartum women with mom brain while overlooking that they may simply be distracted from juggling motherhood with everything else going on in their life.

But society fails to recognize the abilities that women gain through pregnancy, according to the JAMA authors. They write that when mothers are tested on parenting tasks, they outperform women without kids. Not only that, but tests show that the experience of pregnancy or child-rearing actually improves long-term memory and boosts learning capabilities.

So, it might be high time mommy brain is given a rebrand to reflect that.

Learn how to navigate and strengthen trust in your business with The Trust Factor, a weekly newsletter examining what leaders need to succeed. Sign up here.

Americans are fed up with tippingbut theyre doing it more often

Americans arent letting inflation get in the way of leaving more tipsbut that doesnt mean theyre happy about it.

According to payment processing firm Square, people in the U.S. left gratuities more frequently in 2022 than they did a year earlier.

Food service business saw a rise in tipping frequency in the third quarter of last year, even on the heels of inflation hitting 40-year highs, data provided by Square showed.

While inflation cooled toward the end of the year, it still remains highbut apparently not high enough for consumers to cut back on how generous they are with hospitality staff.

In the final quarter of 2022, the frequency of tips left at full-service restaurants in the U.S. rose by 16.5% from a year earlier. At quick-service restaurantslike coffee houses and fast-food outletsthe rate at which Americans tipped staff increased by 16% year-on-year.

Frustration with expanding tipping culture

U.S. consumers may be tipping more often, but thats not to say theyre thrilled about how many businesses are now asking them to pay a gratuity on top of the price of a service.

Complaints have arisen over the past year about service providers from mortgage companies to locksmiths expecting tips, as workers who traditionally might not be given gratuities take advantage of digital payment methods to request a tip during transactions.

Last year, Starbucks rolled out a new tipping system that gave customers paying by credit or debit card to give their barista a $1, $2 or custom tip. The change was met with some backlash from customers who felt short changed.

I went through the Starbucks Drive through and got one drink and they now start asking if you want to tip as soon as you pull your card out to pay while looking at you, its so awkward, one Twitter user wrote at the time. Just pay these people a better wage.

Representatives for Starbucks were not available when contacted by Fortune.

The increase in digital tip prompts, which often ask consumers to leave gratuities as high as 30% of their bill, has sparked a debate around guilt tipping, with many disgruntled consumers taking to social media to air their grievances.

Im not going to tip you just because you turned the iPad around and I pushed a button, one person said on TikTok. For me its just companies trying to get away with not paying their employees what they deservethey have the assets to pay more but they just dont want to. They give you this option to tip, this social pressure to tip.

Tipping culture has gotten out of hand, another said in a video shared to the platform.

Today I went to Shake Shack and there was nobody at the counter, you go up to a little kiosk, a little computer screen, you push in everything youre going to order, and wouldnt you know it, the next screen that pops up is tip, he said, before jokingly adding: I work here nowyou should be tipping me.

Shake Shack did not immediately respond to Fortunes request for comment.

Others have described being pressured into tippingand have admitted feeling compelled to do so even when the service has been bad.

Increase in tip requests could backfire

According to one expert, many consumers in North America are experiencing tip fatigue, which has arisen from being bombarded with tipping requests more frequently.

Michael von Massow, an associate professor of food economics at the University of Guelph in Canada, wrote in an article last month that eventually, the increase in tip requests could backfire.

At the very least, tip fatigue means customers are leaving interactions that involve tipping with negative feelings, he speculated. But at the worst, tip fatigue could cause customers to tip less or stop altogether. Those pushing to increase tipping risk alienating consumers who find the amounts and the range of services expecting tips too much.

A spokesperson for Square told Fortune that it was possible restaurants who may not have asked for tips in the past were now turning on tipping functions at their tills as they expanded their businesses.

With this sort of expansion, businesses are wearing multiple hats, with tips reflecting the additional labor that is going into their services, they said. While your local market may not expect tips during normal grocery store hours, they might ask for tips in situations like hosting a pop-up dinner or a cheese-making workshop. Given the economic stresses of the pandemic and beyond, too, businesses are trying to find mechanisms to provide more support for their staff.

They added: As more payments go digital, so will the physical tip jar.

Learn how to navigate and strengthen trust in your business with The Trust Factor, a weekly newsletter examining what leaders need to succeed. Sign up here.

Biden vows to battle Ticketmaster and airlines for sky-high ticket prices hitting Americans

An extra $50 to sit with your child on your next flight? Another $40 in facility charges? Hidden fees are getting so out of control that President Joe Biden is calling for governmental action to reign them in.

Americans are tired of being played for suckers, Biden said during his State of the Union address Tuesday night, which touched on a variety of everyday financial concerns.

That includes the so-called junk fees Americans are paying on more and more expenditures, from concert tickets to bank and overdraft fees to airfare. Biden reiterated his support for banning the hidden surcharges.

Junk fees may not matter to the very wealthy, but they matter to most folks in homes like the one I grew up in. They add up to hundreds of dollars a month, Biden said during his speech. They make it harder for you to pay the bills or afford that family trip.

The White House defines junk fees as those that are designed either to confuse or deceive consumers or to take advantage of lock-in or other forms of situational market power. It does not include reasonable add-on fees for additional products or services, like upgrading to a nicer hotel room.

The policy Biden supportscalled the Junk Fee Prevention Actincludes requiring airlines to show customers the full cost of the ticket upfront (rather than tacking on opaque upcharges for seat assignments and baggage), and to refund travelers if a flight is delayed or canceled.

It would also ban airlines from charging families with children to sit together.

Baggage fees are bad enoughairlines cant treat your child like a piece of baggage, he said.

And Taylor Swift and Beyoncé fans will be happy to see that the president also wants to cap service fees on tickets to concerts and sporting events, and require companies to disclose all fees upfront, rather than when customers are checking out. Research cited by the White House finds that consumers often pay most attention to the base price of a good or servicewhen additional fees are added on, consumers end up paying more and have difficulty comparison shopping.

Another target: So-called resort fees levied by hotels. Biden is calling for these fees, which often arent disclosed in the initial cost of a room, to be included in the rate resorts advertise.

Bidens Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has also made it a priority to go after excessive credit card and overdraft fees. As a result, many major banks have changed their policies in recent years.

And the Federal Trade Commission announced in October that it is exploring a rule to crack down on junk fees proliferating throughout the economy, which could include addressing resort fees or event ticket processing fees. The agency is accepting public comments on the fees now.

If the Junk Fee Prevention Act gets any momentum, the bill could help Americans save hundreds to potentially thousands of dollars a year, depending on their budgets. Already, guidance issued by the CFPB to curb surprise overdraft fees is expected to save consumers more than $1 billion annually.

Learn how to navigate and strengthen trust in your business with The Trust Factor, a weekly newsletter examining what leaders need to succeed. Sign up here.

Unsure where to start investing? These apps can help beginners buy their first stocks

These days, investing the old fashioned way means using a web browser to access your portfolio. Research shows that the majority of people 18-24 now invest via mobile apps. Yet while you probably see advertisements promising all kinds of returns and advice, not all investing apps are created equal.

The Fortune Recommends editorial team ranked the top online brokerages which have mobile trading options, based on factors like the brokerages minimum amount required to open an account, stock trading fees, educational resources, margin trading accounts, and customer service options. If you are a novice investor, opening an account with these brokerages will allow you the greatest range of investing options, including buying various assets. Here are the top online brokerages that Fortune Recommends editors highlighted:

1. Interactive Brokers

Interactive Brokers scored the top spot on our list for offering the most expansive list of products compared to other online brokerages we ranked and of course for its zero-dollar account minimum and stock trading fee. It also offers margin trading and several educational resources in the form of webinars, podcasts, learning labs, and more to help investors learn about trading and the financial markets.

You can download the Interactive Brokers app for Android and Apple phones.

2. TradeStation

We think this brokerage is good for traders who want to trade on margin at a low rate. Tradestation also took a top spot on our list thanks to its stellar customer service support in addition to its $0 account minimums and stock trading fees. Investors can choose from a wide range of assets, including stocks, ETFs, options, futures, futures options, cryptocurrency, mutual funds, and bonds. TradeStation also offers margin trading accounts with interest rates as low as 3.5% to give investors increased buying power by leveraging their account assets.

You can download the TradeStation app for Android and Apple phones.

3. TD Ameritrade

This pick is good for traders who need all of the customer support at all times. TD Ameritrade took third spot on our list for their list of product offerings which includes stocks, options, ETFs, mutual funds, futures, forex, bonds, and CDs. TD Ameritrade also offers margin trading and educational demos, videos, quizzes, and more to help investors know whats what in the trading world.

You can download the TD Ameritade app for Android and Apple phones.

Yet for investors just beginning to learn about the market, there are also apps that financial advisors recommend that can help users fine tune their savings strategies or test the investing waters.

4. Acorn

This app is a great pick for novice investors who want to invest a small amount monthly while also learning about how the stock market functions. The app also has an automated savings feature that pushes users to save more and a user-friendly interface. The app gives stock recommendations based on the users preferences and investing goals. [Acorn] is great if you are young and just beginning your investing journey as you dont have to decide which individual company to invest in as the app will do all of the research for you, explained Nycole Freer, an advisor at Eden Financial. Yet unlike the online brokerages highlighted above, Acorn does not have live advisors users can connect with, and fees range from $3 to $5 a month.

5. Digit

This app is another great option for investors who are looking to save money and open different savings accounts for specific savings goals. What makes this app unique is that it can automatically pull from your savings account in small increments so you can reach your savings goals for a specific amount easily. Want to buy a new pair of shoes, or save for vacation, or tuck away your down payment on your first home? You can put various savings categories in the Digit App and you can even put a time frame on each category, allowing Digit to add more savings towards the item that is coming up sooner, explained Freer. Digit is free for the first six months, yet after that users have a $5 monthly fee. Digit also has fewer investment options than the online brokerages above; users can invest in ETFs and Roth IRAs, but not alternative assets.

While there are great online brokerages to choose from, advisors emphasized that beginners dont need investment apps to start trading, and that sometimes, these apps can even hinder users. For a beginner, the best investments are the simplest ones: broad equity funds that are diversified, and best if global. The most important lessons in investing: start early, do it regularly, diversify. There is no reason to complicate the investing process, explained George Gagliardi, advisor at Coromandel Wealth Management. He pointed out Robinhoods Options Trading Screen as an example of speculative investing advice that could mislead beginners and lead them to make poor choices. [Robinhood] gameifies the investment process to the point where it isnt even investing. Its speculation, he says.

And in the end, what do first time investors really need? Common sense, and fortitude, says Ray Benton, advisor at Lincoln Financial Advisors. So before being too impressed by the range of tech options, remember that time and patience may be the best gadgets at your disposal.

Learn how to navigate and strengthen trust in your business with The Trust Factor, a weekly newsletter examining what leaders need to succeed. Sign up here.

UK considers issuing a digital pound to protect against new forms of money

The United Kingdom may be coming around to the idea of a digital pound.

The Bank of England and the governments treasury office announced that they are considering issuing a blockchain-based central bank digital currency (CBDC) that would be akin to its pound sterling.

The cryptocurrency-like tender would be issued by the government in the same way as the physical pound sterling but would be stored in digital wallets created by private companies. It would not replace the physical pound but could still be used to pay for anything from a cup of coffee to an electrician, according to the Bank of Englands website.

While cash is here to stay, a digital pound issued and backed by the Bank of England could be a new way to pay thats trusted, accessible and easy to use, Jeremy Hunt the UKs chancellor of the exchequer said in a statement.

The governments plan is to design the CBDC over the next two to three years, but its unclear when it would be implemented, if at all. The Bank of England claims that issuing the digital pound would help the UK adapt to changing times, and protect its financial system from new forms of money that could pose risks to its stability.

We think the digital pound could help us maintain trust in money and protect our financial system, while also improving payments by increasing efficiency and enabling innovation, the UK central banks website said.

Countries like China, Nigeria, and The Bahamas have already instituted their own CBDC and several other countries are likewise considering it.

Advocates argue that the government-issued digital currencies can help extend the financial system to the unbanked and help the government send funds easily in emergency situations.

Detractors say issuing a digital version of a fiat currency gives governments too much power over individuals finances.

In both Nigeria and The Bahamas the population has been slow to fully embrace digital currency, and the collapse of the crypto exchange FTX last year has generated mistrust of cryptocurrency more broadly.

The U.S. is also still considering issuing a CBDC after President Joe Biden signed an executive order last year that called for urgency in researching and developing a digital currency, should it be deemed necessary.

From now until June 7, 2023, the UK government is asking the public for feedback on the idea of issuing a CBDC.

Learn how to navigate and strengthen trust in your business with The Trust Factor, a weekly newsletter examining what leaders need to succeed. Sign up here.

Companies are following the publics agenda, not politicsand its paying off

The politics of environmental, social, and governance (ESG) strategies and stakeholder capitalism have become fraught in the United States over the past year.

Lawmakers on the right are denouncing corporate actions as woke, while those on the left accuse companies of not doing enough. Many anticipate congressional hearings on corporate and investor positioning on ESG and stakeholder capitalism to intensify over the coming months. CEOs are becoming more circumspect about speaking out on divisive social issues. Some companies are reportedly green hushing, and choosing not to speak openly on sustainability goals for fear of being targeted or called out. One executive, as reported by The New York Times, said at the World Economic Forums Annual Meeting in Davos recently that he hopes ESG just goes away.

At the same time, it is becoming increasingly obvious that the world needs the private sectors leadership now more than ever. The general public, according to the latest Edelman Trust Barometer, continues to trust business ahead of other institutions to lead in a complex and divided world. Our own polling at JUST Capital shows its something the vast majority of Americans want. And as Fortunes Alan Murray pointed out in December and again from Davos, it seems that CEOs, deep down, are on board.

At the heart of this lies the concept of the stakeholder-led company, or as we call it, a just companya company that sees the creation of value for each of its principal stakeholders, including workers, customers, communities, and shareholders, and the planet itself as the path to competitive success, stronger returns, and lasting widespread prosperity.

JUST Capitals 2023 Rankings of Americas Most JUST Companies show how the largest U.S. companies are already doing this.

Each year, JUST Capital surveys Americans on a fully representative basis to identify what issues they see as most important for companies to tackle. The issues are also weighted by the public according to their relative importance. The JUST team then gathers data from multiple public sources to assess how the Russell 1000 (the 1,000 largest publicly traded companies in America) perform on each of the issues. The overall rankings reflect how the companies compare on a relative basis across every issue.

This year, paying a fair, living wage emerged as the most important issue in our polling for the third time in a row. Recent wage hikes from major employers like Walmart and Bank of America suggest that many companies understand the importance of this issue. And as our surveys show, Americans are increasingly looking for a job where their pay keeps up with inflation and other rising costs.

Many of the ranked companies have embraced the idea that listening to what the public wants, and acting accordingly, is the best way to create lasting competitive advantage. They also believe, as we do, that it can be a powerful unifying force. Across every demographic group that we surveyregardless of political affiliation, race, gender, age, or income groupAmericans are united in wanting companies to prioritize workers as the most important stakeholder and see paying a fair, living wage as the most important business issue.

The companies that perform well on the criteria we observe, on average, create more jobs, pay higher wages, provide more career development training, offer more paid parental leave, and outperform on myriad factors relative to their peers. Equally important: they have higher profit margins and return on equity than the Russell 1000 average and pay more in dividends. If an investor purchased an index tracking JUST 100 companies at its March 2019 inception, the index would have generated 13.3% in excess returns compared with the Russell 1000 by Dec. 30, 2022.

Far from seeing companies pulling back or reversing their commitments to their stakeholders, weve seen the opposite. The companies we engage with (we saw a record 350 participate in our 2023 rankings data review cycle, up by 41% from last year) continue to drill down on investments in human capital, climate and sustainability solutions, diversity, equity, and inclusion, and the needs of their customers and the communities where they operate.

Navigating todays complex social, economic, and political conditions while staying focused on core business operating priorities is perhaps the greatest challenge currently facing corporate leaders.

This is not about politics. Its not about adhering to some ESG label or doctrine. Its about business and markets driving competition to build a better future for all of us. And it all starts with the American public.

Martin Whittaker is the CEO of JUST Capital.

The opinions expressed in Fortune.com commentary pieces are solely the views of their authors and do not necessarily reflect the opinions and beliefs of Fortune.

More must-read commentary published by Fortune:

Learn how to navigate and strengthen trust in your business with The Trust Factor, a weekly newsletter examining what leaders need to succeed. Sign up here.

Wondering if inflation is cooling? One Fed official suggests keeping an eye on frozen lasagna prices

As inflation hit 40-year highs in 2022, market participants looked to the consumer price index to monitor how rapidly prices were changing.

However, one Federal Reserve official has revealed he has his own unconventional method for keeping an eye on inflationand its accessible to anyone.

Neel Kashkari, president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis, told CNN in an interview on Wednesday that he checks the price of frozen lasagna. He previously told his local newspaper, The Star Tribune, that he monitors Stouffers party-size offering.

I pay attention to grocery prices, Kashkari said on Wednesday. Theres this large tray of lasagna that I used to buy that used to cost $16, now its around $21. Thats my own little measuring stick of how inflation is going.

Stouffers did not immediately respond to Fortunes request for comment.

Food inflation has been a big driver in spiraling living costs over the past year, with grocery prices showing no signs of slowing down even as consumer spending cooled toward the end of 2022. The price of many staples, such as eggs, have skyrocketed.

Americans reluctant to make large purchases

With the cost of food remaining elevated, Americans are looking for other ways to cut their spending.

Purchases in stores, restaurants and online fell 1.1% between November and December, while overall consumer spending fell 0.2% between November and Decembersigns that the Feds interest rate hikes may be working to cool down the economy and fight inflation.

Meanwhile, data released by the Federal Reserve on Tuesday showed that U.S. consumers outstanding credit saw its lowest monthly growth in December since late 2020.

Were seeing a more cautious consumer, Ted Rossman, a senior analyst at Bankrate, told CNN in an interview on Tuesday. Consumer spending certainly isnt falling off a cliff, but we are seeing evidence that Americans are becoming reluctant to make certain purchases, especially larger expenses and acquiring physical goods.

Rossman isnt the only analyst to have noticed a shift in the consumer mindset from confident to cautious.

In a news release last week, Brittany Billings, EVP of strategic markets and marketing at consumer rewards company Shopkick, said her teams had noticed American shoppers were becoming more vigilant when it came to expenditure.

Shopkicks January survey of more than 11,000 consumers across the U.S. found that 70% were anxious about the economic climate, and 47% were planning to cut their spending over the next three months.

Consumers main goal in 2023 was to purchase only the essentials, such as groceries, toiletries, and medicine, the company said.

Consumerscontinue to be extremely wary of overspending and diligent about finding ways to save, Billings noted.

Which goods are Americans spendingand not spendingtheir money on?

Despite a spending slowdown in recent months, data published at the end of January by the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis showed that personal spending on goods increased by around 7% between Dec. 2021 and Dec. 2022.

Durable goods, like books and electronics, and clothing were among the items that saw the biggest spend increase.

However, more detailed data from the Census Bureau showed that spending on big-ticket goods like vehicles, furniture, appliances and electronics began to cool toward the end of the year.

In November, a Bankrate study found that the majority of Americans were delaying financial milestoneslike buying a home, getting married or having childrenbecause of economic anxiety.

Most of the studys 2,442 participants also said they had opted out of activities and events because of economic concerns, which meant avoiding expenses like taking a vacation, going to the movies or dining out with friends.

Learn how to navigate and strengthen trust in your business with The Trust Factor, a weekly newsletter examining what leaders need to succeed. Sign up here.