TECATE, Mexico (AP) — White sage burning, Norma Meza Calles gathers guests at a Mexican wellness resort into a semicircle facing Kuuchamaa Mountain and asks everyone to close their eyes and feel its presence.
“This is sacred to us like a church for you all. The mountain is our healer, our psychologist,” said Meza Calles, a Kumeyaay Nation tribal leader who explains that in its creation story a shaman transformed into the mountain. “Here is where we gather strength to live in this difficult world.”
Then she calls for a moment of reflection. But the silence is pierced by the crushing of rock. U.S. federal contractors have been blasting and bulldozing Kuuchamaa, which straddles both countries, to make way for new sections of wall along the U.S.-Mexico border.
Indigenous leaders say that in the Trump administration’s rush to build border walls, contractors are desecrating Native American sacred places and cultural sites at an unprecedented pace, more than 170 years after the international boundary split the territories of dozens of tribes.
In California, explosions on Kuuchamaa send rocks hurtling down its Mexico side.
“We feel that in our DNA,” said Emily Burgueno, a California member of the Kumeyaay Nation, adding that “body” and “land” are the same word in the Kumeyaay language. Some tribal leaders met with DHS officials to urge them to protect Kuuchamaa and are looking into legal action.
“No one ever consented or supported the use of dynamite on the mountain,” Burgueno said.
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The nation consists of more than a dozen tribes in California and Mexico’s Baja California.
In Arizona, DHS contractors last month carved through a massive 1,000-year-old fish-shaped geoglyph called “Las Playas Intaglio.” The rare drawing, etched into the desert floor much like Peru’s Nazca Lines, was created on a lava field in what is now the Cabeza Prieta National Wildlife Refuge.
The Tohono O’odham Nation said it had pointed out the site on its ancestral land for contractors to avoid.
“This was a devastating and entirely avoidable loss,” Tohono O’odham Chairman Verlon Jose said in an April 30 statement. “There is nothing more important than our history, which is what makes us who we are as O’odham. The site was also an irreplaceable piece of the United States’ history, one none of us can ever get back.”
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Norma Meza Calles, a Kumeyaay Nation leader, touches a branch as she leads a guided tour of traditional Kumeyaay uses for local plants at a wellness center, Friday, May 1, 2026, in Tecate, Mexico. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)
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Norma Meza Calles, a Kumeyaay Nation leader, touches a branch as she leads a guided tour of traditional Kumeyaay uses for local plants at a wellness center, Friday, May 1, 2026, in Tecate, Mexico. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)
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U.S. Customs and Border Protection said in a statement that a contractor “inadvertently disturbed” the site west of Ajo, Arizona, on April 23, but it vowed to protect the remaining portion. CBP Commissioner Rodney Scott is talking to tribal leaders to determine next steps.
Members of the Inter-Tribal Association of Arizona, which represents 21 tribes, traveled to Washington last month to lobby against a 20-foot (6-meter) secondary wall being built along that section of the border, as well as a primary 30-foot (9-meter) bollard wall planned on Tohono O’odham tribal lands. They met with Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin, a Cherokee Nation member, who listened but made clear his intent is to build more border walls as fast as possible, the Tohono O’odham Nation said in a statement.
Hundreds of miles are under contract
The Trump administration says the barriers are necessary to keep people and drugs from entering the U.S. illegally. It wants walls to cover at least 1,400 miles (2,250 kilometers) of the border.
CBP has awarded contracts or begun construction on over 600 miles (966 kilometers) of new border wall, with companion surveillance technology. A double wall is planned or under construction along another 370 miles (596 kilometers).
Norma Meza Calles, a Kumeyaay Nation leader, gestures as she speaks of the sacred importance of Kuuchamaa Mountain, behind, at a wellness center, Friday, May 1, 2026, in Tecate, Mexico. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)
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Norma Meza Calles, a Kumeyaay Nation leader, gestures as she speaks of the sacred importance of Kuuchamaa Mountain, behind, at a wellness center, Friday, May 1, 2026, in Tecate, Mexico. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)
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In Arizona, where the Patagonia Mountains descend to the border, heavy machinery crawls along freshly graded roads to extend a double wall that could block a wildlife corridor for endangered ocelots and jaguars. Jaguars have long coexisted with the Tohono O’odham, who consider the species “spiritual guardians,” Austin Nunez, a tribal leader, said in a 2025 lawsuit that unsuccessfully challenged the DHS waivers.
In Sunland Park, on New Mexico’s border with Mexico, crews this year set off blasts on Mount Cristo Rey, a pilgrimage site topped with a limestone crucifix.
CBP is seeking to seize a strip of the mountain owned by the Roman Catholic Church for wall construction. The Diocese of Las Cruces asked a judge this month to deny the land transfer as an affront to religious liberties and the “faithful who seek to commune with God on Mount Cristo Rey.”
In western Texas, the federal government in February notified ranchers on the Rio Grande east of Big Bend National Park of its interest in their land that contains canyonland pictographs and petroglyphs, said Raymond Skiles, a retired Big Bend National Park ranger.
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“There are pictographs, paintings of shaman figures and various things that we don’t know how to interpret,” said Skiles, describing the drawings on his family’s ranchlands.
After community backlash, CBP’s online planning map showed the 30-foot-wall plans were scrapped for surveillance technology, patrols and some vehicle barriers. A segment in the national park and neighboring Big Bend Ranch State Park would rely on technology alone.
CBP says it recognizes the importance of natural and cultural resources and is working to minimize the construction’s impact, including leaving drainage gates open in wildlife corridors for animal passage. Illegal border crossings have littered, polluted and trampled sensitive habitat, the agency says.
CBP also says 535 miles (860 kilometers) of remote, rugged border terrain will solely rely on detection technology.
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Many tribes would prefer that to walls.
Desecrating Native American sites is a felony
Tribes along the border “are all experiencing the same tragic desecration of our cultural and sacred sites,” said Burgueno, chair of the Kumeyaay Diegueño Land Conservancy, a nonprofit organization in California that works to protect Kumeyaay lands. “This is a great example of the federal government not following federal laws.”
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Construction crews work on a new border wall segment on Kuuchamaa Mountain, Friday, April 24, 2026, seen from Tecate, Mexico. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)
Construction crews work on a new border wall segment on Kuuchamaa Mountain, Friday, April 24, 2026, seen from Tecate, Mexico. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)
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Desecrating a sacred Native American site on U.S. federal or tribal land is a felony, punishable by imprisonment and fines. In 1992, the National Park Service listed Kuuchamaa Mountain, also called Tecate Peak, in the National Register of Historic Places, giving it limited protection. It noted that “discarding or disturbing the mountain’s natural state would be sacrilegious.”
Rising 3,885 feet (1,184 meters) above sea level, Kuuchamaa has also captivated non-Native people.
Sarah Livia Brightwood Szekely said her father, Edmond Szekely, felt the mountain’s healing energy when he arrived in Tecate, Mexico, as a Hungarian Jewish refugee during World War II, and started the renowned wellness resort, Rancho La Puerta, which she now runs.
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“There are all of these people that have a deep relationship with the mountain,” she said.
Meza Calles leads walks at Rancho La Puerta to teach guests about Kuuchamaa.
Traditionally, young men would spend 40 days at its base in a coming-of-age ceremony before becoming warriors or shamans, she said. Today’s rituals are shorter. People suffering from a death, debt, divorce or other difficulty seek Kuuchamaa’s healing, she said.
“It’s sad they are ruining the mountain,” she said. “We’ll see how far they go. Destiny is destiny. But the fight is not over.”
It’s is hard to know where to start and where to end when talking about the Misfitsboxing circus on Saturday night in Manchester.
There is an image of little Tommy Fury avoiding the lunges of Eddie Hall, with his 80 inch chest, and of Big Stacks, the “Hardest Man in Britain”, turning away after four rounds of body sparring, or perhaps the moment when the rapper, Jordan McCann, got hit for the first time and also turned away in utter confusion. Take your pick.
It was crude, ugly, shameful in parts, but addictive in all sorts of ways. A crowd of nearly 20,000 left throwing wild punches, laughing and vowing to return. Misfits, the business, knows its audience.
Eddie Hall lost to Tommy Fury by decision in a Misfits exhibition bout (PA)
Fury’s real boxing experience was more than enough to beat Hall; it was rudimentary, but it was enough. The Stacks and McCann fights were ridiculous – it has to be said. It is not a criticism, just a fact: all four of the men in involved would have struggled to win a fight at the Haringey Box Cup, which took place over the same weekend.
Big Stacks is also known as Charlie Roberts and is perhaps best known as the self-proclaimed “Hardest Man in Britain”. Now, that is a serious title and Stacks, thankfully, has a sense of humour; I hope he does. His fight with Armz Korleone – the best name of the weekend – was nearly called off when McCann slapped Stacks at the press conference. The slap caused a cut, there were stitches, the doctors said “no fight”, a deal was done for the pair to hit each other to the body. It was dismal; Stacks, who claimed he was out all night, saved himself in the fourth. The rematch is coming soon.
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McCann was fighting the viral sensation, Ibiza Final Boss (his real name is Jack Kay); you will know him as the man with the odd haircut, dancing to music at clubs in Ibiza. Honest, that’s his fame; McCann threatened violence all week and then was hit after a few seconds and his body stiffened; he was, for a moment, out on his feet. He showed guts to stick with it; he found out that rapping about fighting and fighting are two very different vehicles. At the end of a thousand swings and four rounds, the man with the pudding-bowl haircut and immaculate teeth got the nod. The crowd loved it.
Ibiza Final Boss gets cracked by a punch from Jordan McCann (Getty)
In another fight, a boxer called Anthony Taylor dropped to his knees in frustration, claiming a substance had been rubbed into his eyes. It was dramatic and then he raced at his opponent and tried to rugby tackle about ten men. It was not the first and it will not be the last chaotic end to a Misfits fight. The crowd came for the skirmishes and they know that Taylor, a serial offender, often delivers a bit of anarchy.
When Misfits started in 2022, with KSI as one of the founding members, it had a fresh quality, an innocence in some ways. It was not a threat to the real boxing business. The thinking at the time was that traditional boxing could learn from the influencers, learn about having a social media presence, learn about marketing. That was a convenient theory.
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On Saturday, Misfits pushed right up to the thin crossover line between boxing and the glory days of wrestling. It’s not a threat to boxing, but the carnival on Saturday was not very dignified. They might not be very good at boxing but they are still judged as boxers and so is the event. Great business, not a great image for the sport.
Under new laws set to come into force later this month, North Yorkshire Council will remove councillors’ usual residential addresses from its website by default.
The changes follow the recent passing of new laws, which scrap the decades-old requirement for politicians to publish where they live.
The move comes amid mounting national concerns over councillor safety.
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Previously, members had to apply on a case-by-case basis to have their addresses redacted as a “sensitive interest” if they feared intimidation.
In North Yorkshire alone, 19 councillors have already withheld their home addresses under these safety rules.
Now, the authority’s standards and governance committee is set to meet on June 19 to rubber-stamp changes to its code of conduct to reflect the law.
Under the new rules, a councillor’s address will only be made public if they explicitly request it.
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Without that permission, the online register will simply state that the information is “withheld from publication”.
However, politicians must still register their addresses confidentially with the council’s monitoring officer to maintain transparency.
Barry Khan, the council’s monitoring officer, said in a report prepared ahead of the meeting: “The legal change aims to improve councillor safety, reduce risks of harassment, modernise transparency rules and ensure that personal data is handled proportionately.”
Parish and town councils in North Yorkshire are also being encouraged to review their codes of conduct regarding addresses.
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Officials say the change represents a modern, proportionate approach to personal data that prioritises the safety of elected officials without compromising local democracy.
The Government is working on new energy-efficiency rules that would ban new sales of or restrict more than a third of ‘space heating systems’ – including many towel rails, gas fires and under-floor heating systems
12:00, 15 Jun 2026Updated 12:05, 15 Jun 2026
The Government is drawing up plans that would prohibit devices such as underfloor heating and towel rails. Proposed new energy-efficiency regulations would also outlaw or place restrictions on half of all gas fires and storage heaters.
According to the Telegraph, the rules would render more than a third of ‘space heating systems’ illegal to sell. Devices would be required to feature heating controls and timing controls, meaning they could only operate for a specified number of hours and under conditions in which they function efficiently.
The EU has already implemented comparable restrictions. The change will follow a similar ban on tumble dryers.
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From January 19, 2027, the sale of new air-vented, condenser, and gas-fired tumble dryers will be prohibited in Great Britain. The regulations, introduced by the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero, set minimum energy performance standards so stringent that only highly efficient heat pump tumble dryers will be permitted for sale as new models.
Claire Coutinho, shadow energy secretary, told The Telegraph: “Ed Miliband wants to tell you how long your towel rail can be switched on. He’s already decided how you are allowed to dry your pyjamas and now he wants to make it harder to have underfloor heating in your home.”
The new regulations would prohibit approximately half of all current underfloor heating and towel rail systems, along with between 17 per cent and 27 per cent of gas heaters, reports the Mirror. The Government clarified that the ban applies solely to new sales, leaving existing systems and heaters already in use unaffected.
Under the new regulations, towel rails will be restricted to operating for no more than six hours daily, while fires and electric storage heaters will be required to feature temperature controls and power-saving modes.
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A Department for Energy Security and Net Zero spokesman said: “Our reforms will save households money by improving the energy efficiency of underfloor heating, towel rails and storage heaters.”
GP Dr Dawn Harper previously told HuffPost UK that she’s sceptical of “superfoods” – “there is no one single silver bullet that will enhance your chances of living a long and healthy life,” she said.
You might think that Dr Jennifer Di Noia, an Associate Professor of Sociology at William Paterson University, whose 2014 paper sought to find the best fruits and veg to reduce our disease risk, was more fond of terms like these.
But she had her own concerns. “Efforts to define… powerhouse fruits and vegetables (PFV), foods most strongly associated with reduced chronic disease risk… are lacking,” she wrote at the time.
So, the researcher set out research-backed terms.
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What counts as “powerhouse fruits and vegetables” or PFVs?
In her study, “powerhouse” fruits and vegetables had to offer at least 10% more of 17 nutrients per 100 calories than other foods.
These nutrients the study looked at were:
potassium,
fibre,
protein,
calcium,
iron,
thiamin,
riboflavin,
niacin,
folate,
zinc,
vitamin A,
vitamin B,
vitamin B,
vitamin C,
vitamin D,
vitamin E, and
vitamin K.
These nutrients had been deemed of public health importance by the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations and Institute of Medicine, the paper read.
The more of these a plant packed per calorie, the higher the PFV’s nutrient density score was.
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However, the paper stressed that these aren’t the only potentially health-boosting components of food; therefore, these metrics could miss some produce that’s great for us.
41 fruits and vegetables, ranked by disease-fighting potential
Of the 47 foods the study author looked at, 41 met her criteria for “PFV”. (The six that missed the mark were raspberries, tangerines, cranberries, garlic, onion, and blueberries).
In order, their nutrient density scores were:
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Watercress – 100.00
Napa cabbage – 91.99
Chard – 89.27
Beetroot greens – 87.08
Spinach – 86.43
Chicory – 73.36
Leaf lettuce – 70.73
Parsley – 65.59
Romaine lettuce – 63.48
Collard greens – 62.49
Turnip greens – 62.12
Mustard leaves – 61.39
Endive – 60.44
Chive – 54.80
Kale – 49.07
Dandelion leaves – 46.34
Red pepper – 41.26
Rocket – 37.65
Broccoli – 34.89
Pumpkin – 33.82
Brussels sprouts – 32.23
Spring onion – 27.35
Kohlrabi – 25.92
Cauliflower – 25.13
Cabbage – 24.51
Carrot – 22.60
Tomato – 20.37
Lemon – 18.72
Iceberg lettuce – 18.28
Strawberry – 17.59
Radish – 16.91
Winter squash (all varieties) – 13.89
Orange – 12.91
Lime – 12.23
Grapefruit (pink and red) – 11.64
Swede – 11.58
Turnip – 11.43
Blackberries – 11.39
Leeks – 10.69
Sweet potato – 10.51
Grapefruit (white) – 10.47.
With that said, the best approach for a healthy diet is eating a balance of healthy foods. Diets rich in fruits and vegetables of all different kinds is liked to better heart health, the British Heart Foundation has said.
Controversy over Reform UK candidate Robert Kenyon’s past comments about women has damaged his campaign in the tightly fought Makerfield by-election, according to new polling that suggests the contest could be too close to call.
Research conducted by Opinium for Forward Democracy, found that reports about Mr Kenyon’s comments, which have previously been described as ‘misogynistic’, are now widely known among voters and are having a significant impact on his candidacy.
Mr Kenyon’s previous posts included him responding to insulting comments directed at television presenter Carol Vorderman. As a result of the unearthed social media, Vorderman described Mr Kenyon as a ‘little coward’ and sent a letter to 6,000 female voters across the constituency.
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The Opinium survey of 543 voters, conducted between 3 and 11 June using a mixed online and face-to-face methodology, puts Burnham on 46 per cent and Kenyon on 41 per cent. However, the five-point gap is within the poll’s margin of error of just under five percentage points, meaning the race remains highly competitive.
The data also shows Mr Kenyon’s past comments appear to have cut through in the constituency.
When voters were asked whether things candidates had said or done during the campaign made them more or less likely to support them, Kenyon recorded a net score of minus eight points, with 30 per cent saying that they were less likely to vote for him compared with 22 per cent who said they were more likely to do so. By contrast, Labour candidateAndy Burnham recorded a small positive net score of plus two points.
The polling found that 73 per cent of voters had heard reports about Kenyon’s comments, including around 80 per cent of both Labour and Reform supporters. Among voters aware of the controversy, 45 per cent said it made them less likely to vote for him, compared with just 11 per cent who said it made them more likely to support him.
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The effect was particularly pronounced among younger voters and among those backing Burnham, while women were more likely than men to say the reports made them “much less likely” to support the Reform candidate.
Starbucks’ South Korean operation has announced it will close all its stores nationwide early on June 22 for mandatory history and social sensitivity training. The initiative comes after the coffee chain faced backlash for a marketing campaign widely perceived as mocking victims of a brutal military crackdown on pro-democracy protesters in 1980.
Shinsegae Group, which owns a 67.5 per cent stake in Starbucks Korea, confirmed that group executives and employees at Starbucks Korea’s headquarters will attend training led by history and sociology professors this Wednesday. All Starbucks stores across the country will close at 3pm next Monday, enabling staff to watch a recording of the session, according to a statement from Shinsegae.
The coffee chain triggered an uproar when it attempted to promote a series of stainless-steel tumblers it called “SS Tank” by declaring May 18 to be “Tank Day.” The date marks the anniversary of the 1980 pro-democracy uprising in the southern city of Gwangju. It was violently suppressed by Seoul’s military government at the time, which deployed troops, tanks and helicopters, leaving hundreds dead or injured.
The campaign further fueled outrage by using the slogan “Thwack it on the table!” which many read as a reference to a notorious 1987 police statement that attempted to cover up the torture death of student activist Park Jong-chol. Authorities had falsely said Park died after investigators “hit the desk with a thwack.”
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The campaign further fueled outrage by using the slogan “Thwack it on the table!” (AFP/Getty)
With the promotion sparking immediate backlash, Shinsegae canceled it within hours and fired the chief executive of Starbucks Korea. Shinsegae Chairman Chung Yong-jin later issued a nationally televised apology as police opened an investigation following complaints from relatives of the victims of the Gwangju crackdown. Chung will undergo separate training with the chief executives of Shinsegae affiliates on June 24.
Shinsegae said the decision to close all Starbucks stores early for the first time since the chain’s 1999 launch in South Korea and require companywide training shows “how seriously it views the marketing controversy and its determination to prevent a recurrence.”
The crackdown in Gwangju came months after General Chun Doo-hwan seized power in a coup in late 1979. Government records show about 200 people died in Gwangju, but activists say the true death toll was much higher. Chun’s government also imprisoned tens of thousands, saying it was rooting out social evils.
Public anger over Chun’s dictatorship led to massive nationwide protests in 1987, forcing him to accept a constitutional revision introducing direct presidential elections, which is widely seen as the start of South Korea’s transition to democracy.
Michelle shared new snaps of herself out and about with her little girl
Michelle Keegan has seemingly revealed an exciting milestone for her daughter, Palma, as her return to the small screen was also teased.
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While the actress and her husband, Mark Wright, largely keep their daughter out of the spotlight, over the weekend, Michelle did share new snaps of herself out and about with their little girl.
It was in March that the couple celebrated a year since they welcomed their daughter, Palma Elizabeth Wright, into the world. Fans may recall that the couple revealed to the world that they were expecting their first child together in a sweet pregnancy announcement just after Christmas 2024, which featured Michelle debuting her blossoming baby bump on a Spanish beach.
Michelle and Mark, both 39, then later announced they’d welcomed their daughter into the world on March 12, almost a week after she was born, as they confirmed their unique name for the first child.
And it seems Palma may soon be giving her parents the runaround, as in a number of photos posted to her Instagram Story on Sunday (June 14), Michelle could be seen holding her daughter’s hand as she toddled along next to her, hinting she has reached a special walking milestone.
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Meanwhile, Michelle has been seen for the first time in her ‘gripping’ new drama. The Stockport-born actress will be starring as DI Emma Crane in the new ITV crime drama, The Blame. Her character will investigate the death of a teenage figure skater, starring alongside Douglas Booth as DI Tom Radley.
According to ITV: “Set to air this autumn, The Blame is a gripping new series set to have audiences on the edge of their seats. Produced by acclaimed Quay Street Productions (part of ITV Studios), written, developed for television and executive produced by Megan Gallagher (All Her Fault, Wolf), the drama dives into secrets, suspicion, and systemic corruption – all under the surface of the seemingly quiet town, Wakestead.”
The six-part series is centred around DI Emma Crane and DI Tom Radley investigating a tragic murder in the fictional town of Wakestead. They quickly identify their main suspect, but as the case progresses, an unexpected lead comes to light. As Emma and Tom dig deeper, they uncover a web of lies, institutional cover-ups and moral compromise, which forces Emma to question the people closest to her.”
But now that the Easter eggs have been unwrapped and April Fool’s Day has passed, is it time to put the supplements down?
Not always, said Kyle Crowley, a chief product officer and nutritionist at Protein Works.
Who may still need vitamin D supplements in spring?
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“It’s suggested that optimal exposure to sunlight is between five and 30 minutes a day. Therefore, if you don’t hit these requirements each day, you may need to consider supplementing,” said Crowley.
“In fact, studies show that nearly half of UK adults have below-optimal levels of vitamin D. Most surprisingly, adults aged 18–29 have the lowest average. So, if you’re a student studying indoors or working all day indoors, this lifestyle will limit your daily exposure and taking vitamin D would be recommended.”
The NHS said that “People at high risk of not getting enough vitamin D, all children aged 1 to 4, and all babies (unless they’re having more than 500ml of infant formula a day) should take a daily supplement throughout the year.”
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They include people who are not often outdoors (e.g. those in care homes or who are housebound), those who wear clothes that cover most or all of their skin while outdoors, and those with darker skin in that “at-risk” category.
Crowley advised taking vitamin D3 supplements if you choose to, instead of vitamin D2 kinds, as vitamin D3 seems better for our immune systems.
What if I’m not sure whether I need vitamin D?
“It is important to note that there is a difference between having a vitamin D deficiency and being below optimal levels. A deficiency, which is usually a vitamin D level below 25 nmol/L, should be addressed by a medical professional,” Crowley stated.
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“The best way to find out about your vitamin D levels is to get a blood test. This is definitely worth it if you tend to get ill often, or generally feel like your health is not at its best.”
Neil and Katya Jones took to social media to detail the loss of their beloved dog, Crumble
Two Strictly Come Dancing stars have revealed that they have suffered a heartbreaking joint loss, years after their marriage came to an end.
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Fans of the BBC One dance show will already be aware that Neil and Katya Jones were once in a relationship. The two professional dancers married in August 2013, but after six years of marriage, in August 2019, they announced their separation.
The statement at the time read: “As our fans and loyal supporters, you are really important to us, and so we wanted to let you know some news. After 11 years, we have made the mutual decision to separate. We will always love each other, just in a different way as friends. This will never change what a great team we make and we are really proud of everything we have achieved together.
“Our shared love of dance means we will keep working and dancing together as well as exploring individual projects. No matter what we do we will always support and respect each other. We wish one another every happiness and we will remain the best of friends. We are really looking forward to getting back to the ballroom and can’t wait to keep on dancing. Lots of love from us both.”
The former couple have remained on good terms, continuing to work and perform together on Strictly, and they have also continued to share owner of their pet dogs, Chorizo and Crumble. An Instagram page for the pups reads: “Crumble -Chi x shit x poo SHE/HER, Chorizo (adopted) Chihuahua mix HE/HIS, parents @mr_njonesofficial and @katyajones.”
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But it was over the weekend that Neil confirmed the devastating death of Crumble. Alongside pictures of the adorable pooch, he shared: “Today we said goodbye to Crumble. She may have been small, but she had the biggest personality and brought so much joy to everyone who knew her.
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“She loved cuddles, belly rubs, and being close to the people she loved.” He added: “She will be missed more than words can say, but we find comfort in knowing she is finally at peace and no longer in pain. Sleep tight, Crumble.”
The post was quickly flooded with messages of love and support. Fellow dancer Karen Hauer said: “Oh Neil. I’m so sorry .. so sad .. she was a beautiful little girl. Sending all the love,” while Joanne Clifton replied: “It’s SO sad .. Sending love.” Former Strictly contestant Gemma Atkinson commented: “I’m so sorry Neil.”
Katya, meanwhile, shared a video to her Instagram Story of Crumble, and told her followers: “I know you are the sassiest girl up there [heart emoji].” She then shared pictures of her and her 2025 Strictly partner Lewis Cope back dancing together and commented: “Danced my way through this heartbreaking weekend [dog emoji].”
In a recent video, surgeon, author, and medical myth debunker Dr Karan Rajan said that the portfolio diet could “reduce your [low-density lipoprotein] LDL cholesterol as much as a statin”.
Statins are medications designed to lower a person’s LDL, or “bad”, cholesterol levels, thus reducing their risk of heart disease and stroke.
A 2003 study found that the portfolio reduced LDL cholesterol by almost 29%. In other words, it seemed about as good as low-dose statins (those which reduce LDL cholesterol by 30% or less) at lowering “bad” cholesterol.
The British Heart Foundation cautioned that statins may carry unique benefits and better-proven outcomes outside of just lowering LDL cholesterol. If you’ve been prescribed statins, keep taking them as long as your doctor advises.
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But if you’re trying to keep your LDL levels healthy in general, some research suggests the portfolio diet can reduce “bad” cholesterol by as much as 30%.
What is the portfolio diet?
The diet, which was invented in the early 2000s by Dr. David J.A. Jenkin, is designed to combine several LDL cholesterol-reducing foods into a single plan.
Speaking to Harvard Health, dietitian Andrea Glen – who was involved in 2023 research that showed sticking strictly to the Portfolio diet was linked to a 14% lower risk of heart disease – said: “A lot of different foods can lower LDL cholesterol, but only by a little bit – about 5% to 10%.
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“The idea behind the portfolio diet was to combine many of these foods together to get a larger reduction.”
How can I follow a portfolio diet?
The portfolio diet focuses on four main components:
Plant protein, especially soy protein, found in tofu, edamame beans, lentils, and tempeh. Consuming these has been linked to a 4-6% LDL cholesterol reduction, and the portfolio diet asks you to aim for least 35g a day.
Plant sterols, like those found in minimally processed olive, sunflower, and rapeseed oils and fortified products e.g. some margarines, milks, and yoghurts which say they help to lower cholesterol. A 2014 review of studies found that eating up to 3.3g a day of plant sterols a day lowered participants’ LDL cholesterol levels by 6-12% after four weeks, though consuming more did not lead to better results. The portfolio diet suggests 2g of plant sterols a day, which the British Heart Foundation says you probably won’t get from oils, fruits, veg, and grain alone: reach fof fortified foods for the most effective does.
Tree nuts, like almonds, Brazil nuts, hazelnuts, cashews, macadamia nuts, walnuts, and pistachios. These could help to reduce LDL cholesterol by anywhere from 3-19%. The portfolio diet asks you to eat a handful, or 42g, of tree nuts a day.
Soluble fiber, which you can get from fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and legumes (e.g. black beans, oats, Brussels sprouts, barely, sweet potatoes, carrots, avocado, and soft fruit, like apples and pears). Getting enough soluble fibre has been linked to 5-11 lower LDL cholesterol level points. The portfolio diet recommends 18g a day.
Taking psyllium husk can help if you’re struggling to reach your soluble fibre goals, while (as we mentioned) plant sterol-fortified yoghurts, spreads, and milk products are probably the best way to help you meet that target.
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