Lots of research suggests that healthy hearts lower our risk of dementia.

But it seems gut changes might matter, too.

Dr David Vauzour, lead researcher of the paper published in Gut Microbes, said: “Even in people who had only just begun noticing mild memory changes, there were clear shifts in both their gut bacteria and the metabolites they release into the bloodstream”.

The researchers looked at stool samples from 150 adults aged 50 and over. Some were healthy, while others had mild cognitive impairment (MCI), sometimes seen as a precursor to dementia.

There was also a third group of people who performed normally on cognitive tests but who said they felt like something “wasn’t quite right” with their memory or cognition.

All participants gave the researchers both fasting blood samples (which were used to identify 33 key molecules made in our gut) and stool samples (used to identify the gut bacteria of participants).

“We explored whether specific combinations of these gut and diet-derived chemicals could separate the healthy from those experiencing early cognitive decline,” Dr Vazour said.

“What we found was really striking. Even in people who had only just begun noticing mild memory changes, there were clear shifts in both their gut bacteria and the metabolites they release into the bloodstream.”

They built a machine-learning model on just six of these metabolites. It was able to classify people into the three groups with 79% accuracy, and could tell cognitively healthy adults apart from those with mild cognitive impairment with over 80% accuracy.

The chemical changes seen in participants’ blood samples seemed to be linked to the bacteria present (or absent) in their stool, which Dr Vaxour said adds “weight to growing evidence that the so‑called gut–brain axis ― the communication network between our digestive system and the brain ― may play an important role in cognitive ageing”.

The study’s co-author, Dr Simon McArthur from Queen Mary University of London, has high hopes for the findings.

“While we’re not yet at the point of providing a diagnostic test, our work suggests we may be able to use dietary and microbial information to help catch the presence of dementia earlier in life, potentially even before significant brain damage has occurred,” he said.

“We hope this work will pave the way for simple, non-invasive blood tests capable of identifying people at higher risk of memory decline years before dementia is typically diagnosed.”

For his part, Dr Vauzor added, “If particular gut bacteria or the chemicals they produce contribute to early cognitive decline, treatments involving diet, probiotics, microbiome‑based therapies, or personalised nutrition could one day form part of dementia prevention strategies.”

However, writing for the Science Media Centre, Prof Eef Hogervorst, a Professor of Biological Psychology at Loughborough University, wasn’t as convinced.

He said, “It is an interesting finding and a very well-written paper with good theory and impressive statistical analyses, but with small groups and no follow-up, I think the conclusion that this can be an early diagnostic marker for cognitive decline and even dementia may be a little overstated.”

Donald Trump could be pressured to de-escalate tensions in Iran either by military leaders or Republicans in Congress, according to a US national security analyst.

The president issued an expletive-laden rant at Iran over the weekend, threatening to bomb civilian infrastructure unless it opens the oil shipping lane – the Strait of Hormuz – before his self-imposed deadline tonight.

Ben Rhodes, who served as the deputy US national security adviser under Barack Obama, said Trump was operating outside of the usual checks and balances US presidents usually rely on.

He told BBC Radio 4′s Today programme: “It increasingly feels like at times, not all the times but at times, it is one man in one room making decisions or making threats and a government adjusting to that.

“We’re seeing a lack of expertise, a lack of thinking even two steps ahead, and I think that’s probably a sign they’re not following the normal process.”

“It’s kind of frightening really,” Rhodes added, pointing to the senior figures within the first Trump administration who stood up to the president.

Trump said: “This time, on the military side, with the selection of Pete Hegseth, he got the secretary [of defence] he wanted. Someone who principally would just follow Trump’s directive and be something of a spokesperson for them.

“Frankly, I think the checks are going to come from external sources.”

Rhodes suggested now it might all come down to Republicans in Congress who are “terrified about the political unpopularity of this war, from the markets and stock markets Trump pays attention to”.

He said he believes they will have more impact at “restraining Trump” than any process within the Pentagon or government.

Rhodes also claimed he hopes military leaders will pressure the president behind the scenes as Trump continues to threaten “absolute war crimes”.

“It’s a very important test really if the US military is willing to say no to Trump. He didn’t like it when they said no to him in the first term,” Rhodes said.

“There’s no way around the fact that we may be approaching that point because the war itself, I would argue, may be illegal but these things he’s threatening are clear war crimes.”

But the specialist warned Trump has set so many objectives for this war so will be pushing for a victory of some sorts.

“That is not something the Iranians are going to give him, right, because they control the strait,” Rhodes added.

He said they would most likely to have to resolve the war over negotiations with other countries around the table.

The signs started appearing on telephone poles around town: simple black-and-white flyers of Drew Barrymore screaming with “Gay Screaming Society” in bold across the top, a date and location on the New Orleans lakefront.

“Look for the gay people,” the flyer instructed.

It wasn’t exactly difficult to find the hundreds of gays and theys who showed up to scream that day at Lake Pontchartrain. We chatted a bit and then a couple of people with megaphones prompted us to scream. And we did.

Two hundred queers, some in clown casual, some in their Sunday best, all screamed together at the sunset-dappled lake. We screamed and screamed and screamed. There was no why. We all knew why. Because, life. Because, Amerikkka and its current incarnations of bigotry. Because, everything.

I screamed so long and hard and loud that my throat was scratchy for days, but I felt amazing. It was as though the tight fist of my body had finally let go. I had to know more. I asked everyone who was “in charge.”

“It’s a movement,” someone told me. “No one knows who organises it,” someone else said. “It’s global,” someone else said.

No one knew who I could talk to about the mysterious Gay Screaming Society. The people with megaphones had melted into the larger body of queers, and for the life of me, I couldn’t remember anything about them. They were ageless, genderless gays. A total mystery.

“There was a mythology that sort of self-created,” says Lindsey Baker, a talent and promotions agent in New Orleans who co-organizes Gay Screaming. Baker doesn’t really remember who had the idea, and neither does her co-conspirator, Austin Davenport, a therapist in New Orleans. One of them saw an article about people screaming at the lakefront in Chicago and texted the other. “This,” they wrote, “but make it gay.”

“With the current state of affairs, we wanted to have an opportunity for people to gather and do something that they already do in their cars or into a pillow,” says Davenport. “We wanted to invite that similar release into a gathering.” Davenport and Baker weren’t trying to force people to have a specific kind of release, though. “There were tears,” they say, “ but I saw a lot of laughter too.”

Gay Screaming is kind of an anomaly, an experiment in queer community building for which the only intention is to be together, to feel our embodied togetherness with no pressure to be nice or look good, no anxiety about solving anything, spending money, or getting laid. That was intentional, Baker says. “It wasn’t a party situation. It wasn’t a work thing. It was just, like, we’re just doing this fuck-ass shit and it feels so good,” Baker says.

Gay Screaming is serving togetherness right on time. In 2025, 867 anti-LGBTQ+ bills were introduced, the most in US history, the vast majority targeting trans people. For context, there were just over 100 in 2020.

And among LGBTQ+ Americans ages 13-24, self-reported anxiety rose from 57% to 68%, depression from 48% to 54%, and suicidal ideation from 41% to 47% between 2023 and 2025, according to the Trevor Project. Add to that the fact that access to desired mental health care dropped from 80% to 60% among those in crisis in the same period and what you have is a queer mental health crisis. These facts, combined with the general collapse of democracy, are really good reasons to scream.

Davenport agrees. “The target on on trans and queer people right now is so palpable. The discourse is ugly and hateful towards queer and trans people,” they say, referring to legislative attacks on LGBTQ+ people and the surge of conservatism in the U.S. Baker adds that she wants to use her skills and resources to make something for queer people who need an outlet. “I have privileges,” she says, “And I want to help create space for people.”

Baker and Davenport wanted people to be able to tell they weren’t being invited to something that would put a target on their backs, they explain. “We had conversations about how we were going to organise this in a way that would not attract too much unwanted attention,” says Davenport. That’s why the flyers contain no names or social media handles or even a specific address. They posted them in public places where queer people are likely to be and trusted us to pass it on the way gays have always done, by word of mouth.

And it worked. No less than half a dozen people texted me pics of the flyer weeks before the event. It was on all our calendars. “I just wanted to attract the gays in a way that feels safe,” Baker laughs when I tell her about the mythos that built up around the event.

One of the most surprising things about this event is that it seems to offer something that gays of all ages need. I brought one of my queer elders with me to scream, and when I arrived, I saw people from every generation, including some teens or tweens holding hands with their own elders, who look like kids to me.

The tagline for Gay Screaming is, “Come for the scream and stay for the fellowship,” and that is the best way to sum up the complexity of the vibe. We came, we screamed, we laughed, we cried. Someone had a birthday party picnic in the grass. A few college students I know from a pandemic-era online dance party invited me to hang, but when I told them I needed a nap, everyone nodded. I have to be rested up for the next Gay Scream.

“You can just come and scream and fucking leave,” Baker says. “Some people do that, some people linger. Both are very cool.”

Iran has claimed Donald Trump’s threat to attack its civilian infrastructure “constitute war crimes”.

The president threatened to strike Iranian power plants and bridges in a foul-mouthed rant on Sunday if Tehran did not open the Strait of Hormuz.

Approximately one fifth of the world’s oil supply passes through the waterway, but Iran effectively blocked the shipping lane after the US and Israeli bombings against the country began at the end of February.

Subsequent economic pressure has seen the president grow increasingly irate.

He said on Saturday that “all hell would reign down” if Tehran did not re-open the strait within 48 hours, and on Sunday he listed all of the civilian targets the US would go after.

He said: “Tuesday will be Power Plant Day, and Bridge Day, all wrapped up in one, in Iran. There will be nothing like it!!! Open the Fuckin’ Strait, you crazy bastards, or you’ll be living in Hell – JUST WATCH! Praise be to Allah.”

Iran’s deputy foreign minister Kazem Gharibabadi claimed on Monday that Trump’s threats “constitute war crimes” and a “flagrant violation of Article 2(4) of the United Nations Charter”.

He added that Iran will deliver a “decisive, immediate and regret-inducing response to any aggression or imminent threat”.

An earlier statement from the spokesperson for Iran’s highest operational military command unit, Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters, also warned: “If attacks on civilian targets are repeated, the next stages of offensive and retaliatory operations will be much more devastating and widespread.”

Tom Fletcher, the UN’s under-secretary general for humanitarian affairs told the BBC: “This stuff isn’t negotiable. You don’t hit civilian infrastructure. You don’t hit schools, you don’t hit energy sources, you don’t hit bridges. Those are war crimes. That is absolutely clear in international law.

“But somewhere along the way we seem to have thrown that all aside and we’ve chosen impunity, indifference, game show gambling over solidarity and humanity.”

I write a lot about gardens for someone who (shhh) doesn’t actually have one.

While I grew up surrounded by luscious greenery, I’ve remained a member of the backyard-less minority since I moved to go to uni.

But that doesn’t mean I (or you) have to give up greenery for good. Here are the best plants that would rather sit pretty on your windowsill than struggle in some deeper soil:

The prickly plants are designed to last in the literal desert, so perhaps it’s no wonder they can handle the white ledge you put your picture frames on pretty well.

They don’t need much water, but they do thrive best in a sunny, bright room. Water infrequently and ensure the soil can drain.

If your room is giving more “shady cove” than “greenhouse”, the lower light needs of Streptocarpus will prove ideal. They produce pretty flowers across several months and will flourish on an east or west-facing windowsill.

If you want a trailing, Swiss cheese-level-holey plant that won’t outgrow your little ledge any time soon, this is perfect.

Its massive leaves are light and lacy, but its maintenance is relatively simple: keep it in bright (but indirect) light, and make sure it’s in a humid environment. Your loo windowsill is perfect.

Bright and sunny windowsills will look even more cheerful with pelargoniums trailing down them. They come in pinks, oranges, reds, and white, too. The RHS noted that “on a sunny windowsill or in a heated conservatory, these evergreen perennials and shrubs can flower virtually year round”.

Yes, that does say banana. And while you might think that makes its presence on your windowsill an inconvenience at best, and an impossibility at worst, this smaller version of the plant has actually been bred indoors since Victorian times.

Some small (and big) caveats, though. It’s not a beginner plant: it needs a lot of watering, a spacious pot, and relatively high temperatures. And while it will fit on your windowsill for a good few of its early years, it will eventually reach two metres tall.

They grow upwards rather than outwards, making them great for the narrow ledge by your window. And, the RHS said, because their gel has traditionally been used to manage minor burns, they’re a great addition to the kitchen.

Water when the leaves turn reddish.

The “tough” plant can take shade and even neglect in its stride. It’ll trail prettily off your windowsill and comes in a variety of different colours and patterns.

Donald Trump’s deranged call for Iran to “Open the Fuckin’ Strait” on Sunday led some major news networks to do something that’d be otherwise stunning — cursing on live TV — if it were not to accurately depict the president’s wild online behaviour.

Nearly an hour after Trump’s unhinged Easter morning post where he threatened to attack Iran’s civilian infrastructure should the regime not open the Strait of Hormuz, CNN’s Jake Tapper emphasized the “extraordinary graphic” nature of Trump’s words.

“If your children are watching, be warned — the president did not use polite language,” advised the State of the Union host before reading Trump’s post in full, including his call for Iran to “Open the Fuckin’ Strait, you crazy bastards, or you’ll be living in Hell – JUST WATCH!”

He went on to note that destroying civilian power infrastructure is “generally considered to constitute a war crime under international law, though the president could argue that the infrastructure has dual use and also is utilized by Iran’s military.”

He proceeded to drop the word “fuckin’” several more times on his program.

His colleague, Manu Raju, avoided using the word altogether with an “f-bleep strait” workaround whereas the network’s Fareed Zakaria freely used the word.

Before Tapper’s program hit the air, MS NOW’s The Weekend host Eugene Daniels censored himself while initially reading the post before dropping the f-word minutes later, likely to stress the president’s unprecedented use of language in the public eye.

“That is a quote from the president so, yes, we are saying it on television,” Daniels stressed.

“Should’ve given parental warning,” added host Jacqueline Alemany of Daniels reading the post, which did not include such a warning on social media.

MS NOW’s Jonathan Capehart, Meet the Press host Kristen Welker and Fox News’ Trey Yingst steered clear of reading the word aloud while BBC News put a censorship bar over a screenshot of the post.

It’s worth noting that the Federal Communications Commission prohibits the airing of “profane content” on broadcast TV from 6 am to 10 pm, times when “there is a reasonable risk that children may be in the audience,” per its website.

That rule, however, doesn’t appear to apply to cable TV networks as they are “subscription services.”

It’s unclear how the FCC, which is currently headed by a Project 2025 contributor who has sought to use the agency to punish broadcasters deemed unfair to the president, could proceed with any wave of public complaints.

Former US representative Marjorie Taylor Greene blasted President Donald Trump for issuing more threats against Iran, in what she called an “evil” social media post on Easter Sunday.

“On Easter morning, this is what President Trump posted,” she began in an X post alongside a screenshot of Trump’s scathing Truth Social Post. “Everyone in his administration that claims to be a Christian needs to fall on their knees and beg forgiveness from God and stop worshipping the President and intervene in Trump’s madness.”

Greene, a once staunch Trump ally, said the president has “gone insane” and all of his supporters are “complicit.”

Noting that she’s “not defending Iran,” she continued, “But let’s be honest about all of this. The Strait is closed because the US and Israel started the unprovoked war against Iran based on the same nuclear lies they’ve been telling for decades, that any moment Iran would develop a nuclear weapon.”

The ousted MAGA outlier then accused Israel of having nuclear weapons.

“You know who has nuclear weapons? Israel. They are more than capable of defending themselves without the US having to fight their wars, kill innocent people and children, and pay for it. Trump threatening to bomb power plants and bridges hurts the Iranian people, the very people Trump claimed he was freeing.”

Greene went on to decry that on Easter “of all days” Christians should remember that “Jesus commanded us to love one another and forgive one another — even our enemies.”

Slamming Trump as a fake Christian, she stressed that “his words and actions should not be supported by Christians,” and Christians in the Trump administration “should be pursuing peace” and “urging the President to make peace.”

“Not escalating war that is hurting people,” she added. “This NOT what we promised the American people when they overwhelmingly voted in 2024, I know, I was there more than most. This is not making America great again, this is evil.”

MTG’s post came after Trump posted an expletive-laden message on Sunday telling Iran to open the Strait of Hormuz or “you’ll be living in Hell.”

“JUST WATCH! Praise be to Allah,” the president added in the post.

On Saturday, Trump made more threats against Iran on Truth Social while reminding the Middle Eastern country of the April 6 deadline he set for them to open the strait.

“Remember when I gave Iran ten days to MAKE A DEAL or OPEN UP THE HORMUZ STRAIT,” he wrote. “Time is running out — 48 hours before all Hell will reign down on them.”

Trump’s former campaign manager Bill Stepien defended the president’s Easter post while appearing Sunday on CNN’s State of the Union.

“This is the first war fought in this age of social media with this president. I think he does things very differently. I think he does things in his own way — different than Biden, different than Obama. And I think we were seeing this playing out this morning,” he said of Trump.