When Knuckles the cat’s family adopted him, they knew he had been diagnosed with pectus excavatum, a chest compression or malformation that can cause breathing problems, and would need some extra attention. This was especially true as it pertained to weight gain–if Knuckles gained too much weight, breathing could become extremely difficult. His family knew they’d have to come up with a solution, but what they didn’t expect was that Knuckles would come up with it himself.
After Knuckles was adopted, he saw his dad take to the stationary bike in his basement for workouts. While Dad was on the bike, Knuckles developed a taste for treadmill, and now loves it so much that he even has a preferred speed of 1.4 miles per hour. For Knuckles, staying a trim feline just became that much easier, and according to his mom, he now asks to take the treadmill for a spin "six to seven times a day."
Pectus excavatum in cats can range from mild to severe, where milder symptoms “cause no appreciable respiratory distress, and require no specific treatment,” as Dr. Craig Ruaux wrote in the 2011 textbook Small Animal Pediatrics, adding that “severely affected individuals may require surgical management.” Though the disease is rare, many cats can experience both pain and danger from chest formations like those brought on by pectus excavatum and require surgery as kittens. Luckily, Knuckles was in the former, mild category, and maintaining his weight on the treadmill has kept him sprightly and sunny.
Unless the treadmill is on the wrong speed. If the treadmill is under his desired speed, even at 1.3 miles per hour, he’ll stare at the machine until it’s changed, his mom told The Dodo, and if it's above at 1.5 miles per hour he’ll hop right off. Other than that, he mews for the treadmill all day and will even use it alongside his mom and dad, as if he too knows he's keeping himself in shape.
Interestingly, cats like Knuckles may also be able to help humans one day. In hopping on the treadmill, Knuckles has also hopped on a trend of scientific testing that uses cats on treadmills to “better understand how the spinal cord works to help humans with partial spinal cord damage walk and maintain balance,” according to Georgia Tech.
As recorded in an article entitled “Sensory Perturbations From Hindlimb Cutaneous Afferents Generate Coordinated Functional Responses in All Four Limbs During Locomotion in Intact Cats,” published in the December 2022 edition of scientific journal eNeuro, in a combined study between Georgia Tech, Drexel University, and Canada’s University of Sherbrooke, cats were trained “to walk on a treadmill at a pace consistent with human gait” so their muscle and spinal responses could be understood, Georgia Tech shared. While previous similar studies had been conducted on mice, scientists believe there’s actually more of a correlation between humans and cats because the latter two “cannot maintain balance or even move if they lose sensory information about limb motion,” where mice can. As the study continues, scientists’ findings could potentially help them understand how to better help humans with spinal issues in the future.
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21 products that are gaslighting us into thinking they’re essential when they’re not
Some things in life are actually necessary—clean water, decent healthcare, basic human decency. But then there are the things that feel like they’re gaslighting us. The things we’re told we can’t live without, even though we survived just fine before they existed. Things like "smart" fridges, lawn fertilizer services, and yes—whole body deodorant.
Recently, our sister-site Upworthy asked their Facebook audience the question: What's a product or service that feels like it's gaslighting all of us into thinking it's necessary? More than 8,000 responses poured in. The answers were passionate, funny, and surprisingly unified.
Here are 21 products, services, and systems people called out for pretending to be essential—when they might actually be optional, overpriced, or flat-out invented.
1. Whole body deodorant
"Take a shower," said Shannon H.
“How did we ever manage all those years without it!! 😂😵💫” added Karen R.
Others noted it may help people with medical conditions—but for the average person, it's definitely a marketing creation.
2. Health insurance
It topped the list. Erica L. explained: “My doctor prescribes, the pharmacist issues meds, nurses care for people, surgeons do surgery—Health Insurance stands between health care and patients and says no, exclusively on whether they think it’s financially effective to treat you.”
Important note: Health insurance can provide life-saving access for many—but what people are frustrated by here is the profit-first system, not care itself.
3. The wedding industry
Multiple people slammed the high cost of modern weddings.
JoElla B. put it plainly: “We spend too much time and money planning one day, and not enough thought on how to blend two lives in a mutually beneficial one.”
Others called out expensive dresses, venues, and pressure to perform for social media.
4. Bottled water
Carole D. said: “Water in plastic bottles! Get a cup!”
While bottled water has value in emergencies, it’s often just filtered tap water—sold for profit in plastic.
5. Baby product overload
“Most baby products,” wrote Kelli O. “They really aren’t as needy and complicated as companies want us to think.”
6. Fabric softener
“It’s bad for clothes, bad for the Earth, bad for the wallet, and totally unnecessary,” said Gail H.
Some experts agree—many softeners contain chemicals that can reduce fabric lifespan and irritate skin.
7. Smart appliances
“Adding ‘phone controls’ to every appliance instead of making them last as long as they used to,” wrote Sherry S.
When your fridge needs a software update, something’s gone off the rails.
8. Makeup and anti-aging products
“Anything anti-aging,” said Melissa T., “Please just let me age into the gargoyle I was meant to become.”
Others questioned products designed to “fix” eyelashes, eyebrows, pores, and graying hair.
April S. added, “Products that women are convinced they MUST have in order to be ‘beautiful’ and therefore ‘loved.’”
9. Cosmetic surgery
Ron P. called out the industry as a whole. And while body autonomy matters, many commenters questioned whether insecurities are being commodified and sold back to us.
10. Ticketmaster and “convenience fees”
“Let’s go back to waiting in line at a record store,” wrote Nicole C.
Zaida B. added: “Convenience fee for online purchases—then charging $10 more at the actual event.”
11. Engagement rings
James P. didn’t mince words: “Engagement rings.”
The diamond industry has long been criticized for manufactured scarcity and marketing-fueled necessity.
12. Lawn chemicals and services
“Plant native grasses and you don’t have the pests or need for constant watering,” wrote Jamie B.
Environmental groups have raised similar concerns over runoff and unnecessary pesticide use.
13. AI and generative tech
“This stuff squeezes the lifeblood and individuality out of the human experience,” said Teresa L.
Saskia D. and others echoed skepticism about its necessity, even as many of us are being pushed to use it.
14. Funeral services
Amy W. shared: “My parents both have already paid to have themselves cremated and are very adamant that they do not want anything big done for them. In their words, ‘I won’t care, I’m dead.’”
Of course, some families find comfort in tradition—but the cost and pressure can feel overwhelming and predatory.
15. Rinse and repeat
Amy D. nailed it: “It’s just to sell more. Not even sure you need it at all.”
16. Credit Card Surcharges
Shawn S. took aim at the extra fees popping up at checkout: “That is the cost of doing business and shouldn’t be the burden of the purchaser.”
Many questioned why customers are increasingly being asked to pay extra simply for the convenience of using a card.
17. Constant phone upgrades
“Apple are notorious for releasing the same shit every year,” said Steph S.
Diana H. added, “Needing to upgrade our phones so frequently.”
Built-in obsolescence and marketing cycles drive most of the demand.
18. Vitamins and supplements
“If I took every supplement they say I NEED I wouldn’t need food. Nor could I afford it,” said Tausha L.
19. Fake pockets on women’s pants
Jessica W. said, “I have to buy men’s pants for work because women’s pants would just get torn up too fast!”
Form over function, and then they charge more for it.
20. Disposable everything
“The ‘convenience’ of disposable everything,” said Rick R.
It’s killing the planet—and draining wallets.
21. Tipping
“I’m sick of supplementing for corporations that refuse to pay a living wage,” wrote Susan V.
Tipping culture has evolved into something far removed from its original intent, and for many, it now feels like a burden shifted onto the customer.
The bigger picture
People aren’t saying all these things should vanish tomorrow. But when we start seeing convenience sold as necessity, and insecurity turned into billion-dollar markets, it's worth asking: who benefits from all of this?
And more importantly—who pays?
This article originally appeared earlier this year.