Russian tour operators are pleading with vacationers to Crimea not to make decisions "based on emotions," as Ukraine's strike on the Crimea bridge on Monday played havoc on travel between the occupied Ukrainian peninsula and Russia.

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Some healthy eating principles apply to just about everyone – drinking enough water and consuming plenty of fresh fruit and veg, for example. But when it comes to hormones, a lot of diet advice neglects to mention the vast difference between women’s and men’s health. “Women are very under-represented in research, mainly because we have a menstrual cycle,” says functional nutritionist and author Pauline Cox. “My passion and mission is to empower women with the information and knowledge that can radically change their immediate health and their long-term health.” Cox, 43, who started her career as a physiotherapist before becoming a nutritionist, now mainly works with groups of women online and has just released her second book, Hungry Woman: Eating for Good Health, Happiness and Hormones. “I felt there was a lot of information that could be shared with women to help them understand their hormones, and understand that we don’t have to get frustrated with ourselves and fight our female physiology.” At the heart of the issue is the balance (or lack thereof) between oestrogen and progesterone levels. “When our progesterone levels are low, our oestrogen can become dominant, and that’s when we start to see things like PMS, heavy periods, painful periods, flooding at the beginning of our periods,” says Cox, who lives in Somerset. “A lot o women accept that as part of their monthly cycle, but when we bring our progesterone levels back up, it helps to balance the effect of oestrogen.” Here, she explains five ways women can tailor their diets to keep their hormones in check… 1. Look after your liver “Oestrogen is a driving-growth hormone,” Cox explains, using the analogy of grass growing on a lawn to explain how the two hormones interact. “Progesterone is like the lawnmower. It comes along and it keeps the grass in check. When we lose progesterone, oestrogen gets out of control.” That’s why it’s important that our bodies are able to clear oestrogen efficiently through the liver, gut and bowels. “How much oestrogen we clear can be influenced by what we eat and how we live,” says Cox. “There’s a lot of cruciferous in the book – cauliflower, broccoli, these are really great vegetables to support liver detoxification.” 2. Add fermented foods To deliver beneficial bacteria to your gut, try including fermented foods like pickled vegetables, kefir, kombucha or natural yoghurt as part of your daily diet. “Our gut diversity declines as we age and microbiome diversity has been linked with longevity and good health,” says Cox, who suggests just a tablespoon of sauerkraut a day can make a difference. “These are easy wins…to maximise our longevity and optimise our gut-brain axis, which is incredibly important.” 3. Avoid ultra-processed foods There’s been a lot of talk recently about how detrimental ultra-processed foods are, and that includes the effect on hormone levels. “When we’re eating high sugar, processed foods, our inflammatory levels go up and our cortisol level goes up, which robs us of progesterone,” Cox says. Plus, filling up with these empty calories – as delicious as they often are – means we have less room for nutritious foods. “They can often be devoid of nutrients, so you’re not getting the nutrients you need for building hormones and supporting hormonal health like magnesium, zinc, B vitamins, and omega three fatty acids.” 4. Create an eating window It’s not just what you eat, it’s when. Cox recommends having an ‘eating window’ during the day that ends around 6pm, so that there’s a gap of a few hours before you go to bed. “When your blood sugars go up at night, your kidneys have to kick in to try and remove this excess blood sugar, which then means you’re up in the night urinating,” she says. “A lot of women associate this with drinking a lot before bed, but actually eating late at night can also be for that reason.” Choosing meals that are nutritious and satisfying is the next step. “Within that window, start becoming a bit more conscious of your carbs and upping your protein,” she continues. “So you’re feeling full, your body’s getting all the amino acids it needs, and you’re maybe not having so much of the grab-and-go food like the sandwiches, the pasta, the crisps.” 5. Monitor your magnesium “Most women are sub-clinically deficient in magnesium,” Cox explains, which can cause insomnia, and the risk increases with age. “As we get to about the age of 40, we absorb less magnesium than we would have in our 20s.” Diet also plays a role: “If we have high blood sugars and levels of inflammation when we’re stressed, we lose magnesium.” She recommends taking a magnesium glycinate or bisglycinate supplement before bed to increase your chance of getting a good night’s sleep. “The glycine part of that helps to reduce your core body temperature, which is what the body wants when it’s going to bed,” she says. “That compound also helps get you into what’s called REM sleep, which is the sleep where you’re consolidating memories and learning.” Hungry Woman by Pauline Cox is published by Ebury Press, priced £27. Photography by Luke Albert. Available Now. 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Consuming foods with added sugars – such as soft drinks, ice-cream and cakes – may increase the risk of developing kidney stones, according to scientists. Researchers have found that those in the US with the highest intake of added sugars had nearly 40% greater odds of developing kidney stones. They said this association was more prevalent among Asians as well as Native Americans. But the researchers pointed out that their study, published in the journal Frontiers, does not show how exactly added sugars increases the risk of kidney stones. Lead author Dr Shan Yin, a researcher at the Affiliated Hospital of North Sichuan Medical College, Nanchong, China, said: “Ours is the first study to report an association between added sugar consumption and kidney stones. “It suggests that limiting added sugar intake may help to prevent the formation of kidney stones.” One in 11 people will get stone symptoms during their lifetime, according to The British Association of Urological Surgeons. Ours is the first study to report an association between added sugar consumption and kidney stones. Dr Shan Yin Known risk factors include obesity, inflammatory bowel disease, diabetes, and being an adult male. For the study, the Dr Yin and colleagues analysed data from more than 28,000 people who were part of the US National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) survey. Each person’s daily intake of added sugars was estimated from their self reported food and drink consumption. They also received a healthy eating index score (HEI-2015), based on the food they ate, whether it was beneficial foods such as fruits, vegetables, and whole grains, or less healthy options such as refined grains or saturated fat. The researchers adjusted for factors such as gender, age, race or ethnicity, income, body mass index, HEI-2015 score, smoking status, and whether the people taking part in the study had a history of diabetes. The researchers said people who received more than 25% of their total energy from added sugars had a 88% greater odds than those who had less than 5% of their total energy from added sugars. Results also showed people below poverty levels had greater odds of developing kidney stones when exposed to more added sugars than those at or slightly above poverty levels. Dr Yin said: “Further studies are needed to explore the association between added sugar and various diseases or pathological conditions in detail. “For example, what types of kidney stones are most associated with added sugar intake? “How much should we reduce our consumption of added sugars to lower the risk of kidney stone formation? “Nevertheless, our findings already offer valuable insights for decision-makers.” Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Why TikTok is going wild for lip oil 5 late summer blooms to plant now Why have the birds disappeared from my garden?