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Sliced Bread Presents: Acupressure Mats

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Acupressure Mats

BBC Radio 4 - Sliced Bread, Acupressure Mats

Greg looks at the theory of acupressure, whether these spikey mats can do the same, and if they can really boost circulation, and promote relaxation.

Twelve year old Bradley got in touch with Sliced Bread after trying out his mum Jennifer’s acupressure mat. Jennifer says she swears by it, it relaxes her, and she even falls asleep on it! But after testing it out himself, he was less than convinced. 

He asked us to find out what these mats are meant to do, whether they work or if they’re a placebo effect, and whether paying more for one could mean better results?
Joining Greg in the studio to discuss them, is Clinical Acupuncturist Phil Trubshaw from the Manchester Movement Unit based at Manchester Metropolitan University, as well as the Director of Research at the Northern College of Acupuncture, Dr. Karen Charlesworth. 

Have you seen a product that claims to make you happier, healthier or greener? Want to know if it is SB or BS? Then please do send it over on email to sliced.bread@bbc.co.uk or drop us a message or voicenote on Whatsapp to 07543 306807.

PRESENTER: Greg Foot

PRODUCER: Kate Holdsworth

Sliced Bread Presents

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While Sliced Bread takes a break, we serve up... Toast.

While Sliced Bread takes a break, we serve up... Toast. Sean Farrington examines the spectacular failures of wonder products and businesses which had promised so much.

While Sliced Bread takes a break we serve up... Toast. A study of the spectacular failures of brands which had promised so much to consumers.    

In each episode, the presenter and BBC business journalist, Sean Farrington, examines one big idea. What did it promise? Why did people back it? Why did they get burnt?  

Some of the world's most successful businesses have also brought us some of the world's most remarkable failures. So, what led them to be toast? And what can we learn from their stories today? 

Sean unpicks all the early optimism, hype and ambition. He learns about the tremendous success of a brand before hearing how it faltered, with help from expert commentators and people who were directly involved. How do they view things now and what, if anything, could have been done differently? 

The self-made millionaire and serial entrepreneur, Sam White, is alongside him, analysing the missteps that changed a brand's fortunes and reaching her own, often instructive, conclusions.  

From big tech to high street retail and, of course, food, Toast tackles the business ideas that, one way or another, ended up cooked. 

Sliced Bread returns for a new batch of investigations in February. In the new series, Greg Foot will investigate more of the latest so-called wonder products to find out whether they really are the best thing since sliced bread. In the meantime, Toast is available in the Sliced Bread feed on BBC Sounds.

Toast is a BBC Audio North production for BBC Radio 4.

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