Author: Rahul M

New Delhi: Older adults with high blood pressure may benefit from drinking beetroot juice, claimed a study on Wednesday.  The blood pressure-lowering effect of nitrate-rich beetroot juice in older individuals may be attributed to specific changes in their oral microbiome, according to a study led by researchers at the University of Exeter in the UK. Nitrate is crucial to the body and is consumed as a natural part of a vegetable-rich diet. In the study, when the older adults drank a concentrated beetroot juice ‘shot’ twice a day for two weeks, their blood pressure decreased. However, the effect was not…

After enduring a string of underwhelming performances, India women’s cricket team captain Harmanpreet Kaur bounced back in style during the third ODI against England, leading from the front with a match-winning knock. Speaking after the game, she offered insights into the mental reset and tactical changes that helped her find her “lost mojo.” Focused Mindset Over Flashy Shots Harmanpreet revealed that she made a conscious effort to keep things simple. Instead of forcing her shots early in the innings, she chose to give herself time, focusing on staying calm and trusting her process. “I wanted to talk to myself in…

Hyderabad: Lifestyle solutions or specific nutrient supplementation might yield better results for Indians with genetic risk of obesity, reveals a study.  Many gene variants previously associated with obesity in Europeans do not affect Indians similarly, which resonates with a different pattern of obesity in Indians, according to the findings of the study by researchers at Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology under Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR-CCMB), Hyderabad. The study also revealed that Polygenic Risk Score (PSR) predicts obesity more accurately in people with European-like ancestry than in those with other ancestries, including Indians (South Asian ancestry) Researchers…

On Wednesday, the Trump Administration unveiled its new artificial intelligence action plan geared at keeping US efforts competitive with China. With over 90 policies recommended, it’s a wide-ranging document that, if followed, would give Silicon Valley’s most powerful companies even more leeway to grow. “We believe we’re in an AI race,” White House AI czar David Sacks said on a call ahead of the action plan’s release. “We want the United States to win that race.”The Office of Science and Technology Policy drafted the plan, which focuses on three key “pillars” for AI strategy: accelerating AI innovation, building infrastructure, and…

The process of removal of Justice Yashwant Varma will be set in motion in the Lok Sabha soon with Speaker Om Birla expected to soon announce the constitution of a statutory committee to investigate the grounds on which the removal of the judge is sought, The Indian Expres has learned.Birla and Rajya Sabha Deputy Chairman Harivansh met Wednesday with Secretaries General of both the Houses and the officials discussed the modalities to finalise the procedure. Union Home Minister Amit Shah also joined the meeting later. The discussions took place on a day the Supreme Court said it will set up…

DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — More than 100 charity and human rights groups said Wednesday that Israel’s blockade and ongoing military offensive are pushing Palestinians in the Gaza Strip toward starvation, as Israeli strikes killed another 21 people overnight, according to local health officials.Meanwhile, the Trump administration’s Mideast envoy, Steve Witkoff, was set to meet with a senior Israeli official about ceasefire talks, a sign that lower-level negotiations that have dragged on for weeks could be approaching a breakthrough.Experts say Gaza is at risk of famine because of Israel’s blockade and offensive, launched in response to Hamas’ Oct. 7,…

The fiercest voices of dissent against President Nayib Bukele have long feared a widespread crackdown. They weathered police raids on their homes, watched their friends being thrown into jail and jumped between safe houses so they can stay in El Salvador.Then they received a warning: Leave immediately. It’s exile or prison.A combination of high-profile detentions, a new “foreign agents” law, violent repression of peaceful protesters and the risk of imminent government detention has driven more than 100 political exiles to flee in recent months.The biggest exodus of journalists, lawyers, academics, environmentalists and human rights activists in years is a dark…

India’s World Cup-winning duo, Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, who recently retired from Tests and T20Is, are still eyeing a place in the squad for the 2027 ODI World Cup. While they led India to the T20 World Cup title in Barbados in 2024, ending the nation’s 11-year ICC trophy drought, and later played their final Test series in Australia during the 2024 25 Border-Gavaskar Trophy, questions now loom over their ODI future.  Their last appearance in international cricket came during the ICC Champions Trophy 2025, where India remained unbeaten and defeated New Zealand in the final in Dubai to…

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — For nearly two decades, no one had spotted the world’s smallest-known snake.Some scientists worried that maybe the Barbados threadsnake had become extinct, but one sunny morning, Connor Blades lifted a rock in a tiny forest in the eastern Caribbean island and held his breath.“After a year of searching, you begin to get a little pessimistic,” said Blades, project officer with the Ministry of Environment in Barbados.The snake can fit comfortably on a coin, so it was able to elude scientists for almost 20 years. Too tiny to identify with the naked eye, Blades placed…

(Bloomberg) — Uber Technologies Inc. is piloting a new ride type in the US that will match female riders and drivers, expanding access to a safety feature it already offers in some international markets.The service will launch in Los Angeles, San Francisco and Detroit over the next few weeks, the company said in a statement Wednesday. Riders will see a new on-demand ride option called “Women Drivers” alongside the existing uberX, Comfort, UberXL and Black offerings. Customers can reserve such a trip in advance, or set their preference in the app settings to increase the likelihood of being matched with a woman driver.Female drivers, who make up…