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The #1 Thing to Avoid If You Have High Blood Pressure
Understanding the importance of a healthy diet is crucial for managing high blood pressure.

Eat more potassium-rich fruits and vegetables and cut back on sodium.

Cook more of your meals at home and consider following a DASH or Mediterranean diet.
If you know you have high blood pressure, you’re already a step ahead. Although high blood pressure (hypertension) affects nearly half of American adults, it doesn’t cause symptoms at first—so many people don’t even know they have it.

Read on to learn more about what high blood pressure means, the biggest thing to avoid doing if you have it and proven strategies you can take to improve it.

What Is High Blood Pressure?

Your blood pressure is the force of blood pushing through your arteries. Normal blood pressure is below 120/80 mm Hg. The top number, systolic blood pressure, measures pressure when the heart beats. The bottom number, diastolic blood pressure, is the pressure when the heart is at rest between beats.

High blood pressure can lead to several health complications, such as stroke, heart attack, kidney disease, vision loss and more. “If you are diagnosed with high blood pressure, lifestyle modification is key. Assess your diet, weight and exercise habits,” says Maria Elena Fraga, RD, CDCES, director of the Diabetes Alliance at the Mount Sinai Health System in New York City.

The #1 Thing to Avoid

The No. 1 thing to avoid if you have high blood pressure is underestimating the impact your nutrition habits can have on your levels. Knowing that you can make a big difference in your blood pressure by changing some aspects of your diet is positive and empowering news.

Actionable habits for lowering blood pressure include limiting sodium, eating fruits and vegetables that are rich in potassium, cooking more at home and following blood-pressure-lowering eating plans. “Getting a handle on your blood pressure requires behavior and lifestyle changes, which can take time, effort, consistency and patience,” says Sarah Currie, M.S., RD, a personal trainer and co-owner of Physical Equilibrium in New York City. With that said, here are the impactful changes you can start making to your diet.

Cut Back on Sodium

Over time, eating a high-sodium diet can narrow blood vessels and increase blood pressure. “You’d be surprised how many food items contain hidden sources of sodium,” says Fraga. Packaged foods are often packed with sodium, and some of the top culprits are canned soups, frozen meals and deli meat, adds Currie.

The American Heart Association suggests that cutting out 1,000 milligrams per day of sodium can have a beneficial impact on blood pressure. For people with high blood pressure, the AHA recommends consuming no more than 1,500 milligrams of sodium per day.

To reduce your sodium intake, try replacing a portion of salt in your recipes with garlic, fresh herbs and spices. Read package labels and restaurant menus before buying or ordering to help make lower-sodium choices. When you’re reading labels, look at the Daily Value percentage for sodium and aim for lower-sodium foods when possible. Foods with a sodium DV of 5% or less per serving are considered a low-sodium foods, while those with 20% DV or more of sodium per serving are considered high-sodium and should be limited.

Eat Potassium-Rich Foods

Potassium counteracts sodium by helping your body excrete it through your urine. (In short, you pee it out.) The mineral also helps relax blood vessel walls, which lowers blood pressure. The AHA recommends consuming 3,500 to 5,000 milligrams of potassium daily to prevent or treat high blood pressure.

Boost your potassium intake by eating more fruits and vegetables. Aim to eat 4½ cups of fruits and vegetables every day. Foods rich in potassium include:
- Lentils
- Prunes
- Bananas
- Kidney beans
- Orange juice
- Cantaloupe
- Squash
- Apricots
- Soybeans
- Raisins
- Potatoes
- Spinach
- Chicken breast
- Low-fat dairy products
Cook More Meals at Home

Restaurant meals are often high in sodium, which can make it difficult to stay within the recommended limits. One study found that the average sodium content in a fast-food meal was about 1,300 milligrams—nearly all of the recommended sodium limit for someone with high blood pressure. Cooking at home gives you control over all the ingredients. Whole foods, like fruits, vegetables, dried legumes, unsalted nuts and seeds and fresh sources of protein contain little to no sodium. When cooking you can flavor foods with fresh and dried herbs and spices, including basil, oregano, cumin, rosemary, turmeric and more.

This doesn’t mean you can’t eat out—it just takes a little planning. If the restaurant provides nutrition information, check it ahead of time to plan out a meal that’s lower in sodium. Avoid or limit fried foods, which tend to be higher in sodium, says Currie, and ask for sauces and dressings on the side. Opt for baked, broiled, grilled or steamed proteins paired with green and other colorful vegetables.

Consider the DASH or Mediterranean Style of Eating

The DASH (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) diet was created to intentionally treat high blood pressure. This eating style focuses on eating fruits, vegetables, legumes, whole grains, low-fat or fat-free dairy, lean protein and limited saturated fats, red meat, added sugar and sodium. The DASH diet is rich in important nutrients that help lower blood pressure, including potassium, calcium, magnesium, fiber and protein.

The Mediterranean diet is very similar to the DASH eating plan, as it’s full of fresh fruits and vegetables, fiber-rich beans and whole grains, nuts and seeds. This eating plan also recommends limiting foods that contain higher amounts of saturated fat, such as red meat. One food that’s famously associated with the Mediterranean diet is extra-virgin olive oil, which is rich in polyphenols that can protect the heart.

Strategies to Improve Blood Pressure

Improving the quality of your diet is one effective way to manage hypertension. Other lifestyle factors that help bring down blood pressure include:

If lifestyle factors are not enough to keep your blood pressure in a healthy range, you may need medication. Reach out to a health care provider for guidance.

Recipes to Help Lower Blood Pressure

Our Expert Take

High blood pressure is a common condition affecting many Americans, yet, you can take steps to improve your numbers and prevent hypertension. One of the biggest mistakes people make is not realizing how important nutrition is for managing blood pressure and maintaining a healthy heart.

Small, consistent steps—like reading labels to cut down on sodium, cooking at home more often and eating plenty of fruits and vegetables—can make a big difference. For personalized support and guidance, ask a health care provider about working with a registered dietitian who can create an individualized eating plan and set goals that work for you.
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July 8, 2025
Scientists isolate lone spinon in breakthrough for quantum magnetism

In a breakthrough that could transform the understanding of quantum magnetism, scientists have shown that a spinon, which was once believed to exist only in pairs, can travel alone.

The discovery further enhances understanding of magnetism and could help pave the way for future technologies, including quantum computers and advanced magnetic materials.

When spin flips ripple

Spinons are quasiparticles that arise as quantum disturbances behaving like individual particles within magnetic systems.

They emerge in low-dimensional quantum materials, particularly in one-dimensional (1D) spin chains, where electrons are arranged in a linear sequence and interact through their quantum spins.

In such systems, flipping a single spin doesn’t just affect one electron; it creates a ripple across the chain. This ripple can act as a discrete entity, carrying a spin value of ½. That entity is the spinon.

Today, magnets are central to a wide range of technologies, including computer memory, speakers, electric motors, and medical imaging devices.

The idea of spinons dates back to the early 1980s, when physicists Ludwig Faddeev and Leon Takhtajan proposed that a spin-1 excitation in certain quantum models could fractionalize into two spin-½ excitations.

These were named spinons, which are considered exotic because they behave as if an indivisible quantum of spin has split into two.

However, all experimental observations until now had detected spinons only in pairs, reinforcing the belief that they could not exist independently.

That assumption has now been challenged.

One spin to rule

In a new theoretical study, physicists from the University of Warsaw and the University of British Columbia showed how to isolate a lone spinon using a well-known model of quantum magnetism, the Heisenberg spin-½ chain.

By adding a single spin to this system, either in its ground state or in a simplified model known as the valence-bond solid (VBS), they demonstrated how a single unpaired spin can move freely through the spin chain, acting as a solitary spinon.

What makes the finding more impactful is that it’s not purely theoretical. A recent experiment led by C. Zhao and published in Nature Materials observed spin-½ excitations in nanographene-based antiferromagnetic chains that reflect the lone spinon behavior described in the study.

This experimental validation confirms that the phenomenon can occur in real quantum materials, not just in simulations.

Understanding how a single spinon can exist has far-reaching implications. Spinons are closely linked to quantum entanglement, a core principle of quantum computing and quantum information science.

They’re also involved in exotic states of matter like high-temperature superconductors and quantum spin liquids.

By gaining better control over spinon dynamics, scientists could open new pathways for developing advanced magnetic materials and potentially qubit systems for quantum computers.

“Our research not only deepens our knowledge of magnets, but can also have far-reaching consequences in other areas of physics and technology”, said Prof Krzysztof Wohlfeld of the Faculty of Physics at the University of Warsaw.

The study was published in the journal Physical Review Letters.

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July 7, 2025
Scientists find new way to control electricity at tiniest scale | UCR News

Researchers at the University of California, Riverside, have uncovered how to manipulate electrical flow through crystalline silicon, a material at the heart of modern technology. The discovery could lead to smaller, faster, and more efficient devices by harnessing quantum electron behavior.

Chemical structure of bulk silicon, with the simplest building block of the solid highlighted in blue. (Tim Su/UCR)

At the quantum scale, electrons behave more like waves than particles. And now, scientists have shown that the symmetrical structure of silicon molecules can be fine-tuned to create, or suppress, a phenomenon known as destructive interference. The effect can turn conductivity “on” or “off,” functioning as a molecular-scale switch.

“We found that when tiny silicon structures are shaped with high symmetry, they can cancel out electron flow like noise-canceling headphones,” said Tim Su, a UCR chemistry professor who led the study. “What’s exciting is that we can control it.”

Published in the Journal of the American Chemical Society, the research breaks ground in understanding how electricity moves through silicon at the smallest possible scale, atom by atom.

The finding comes as the tech industry hits a wall in shrinking conventional silicon chips. Traditional methods rely on carving tiny circuits into silicon wafers or doping, which means adding small amounts of other elements to control how silicon conducts electricity.

These techniques have worked well for decades, but they’re approaching physical limits: you can only carve so small, and added atoms can’t fix problems caused by quantum effects.

By contrast, Su and his team used chemistry to build silicon molecules from the ground up, rather than carving them down. This “bottom-up” approach gave them precise control over how the atoms were arranged and, critically, control over the way electrons move through their silicon structures.

Electrodes along the blue path correspond to a high conducting state. With electrodes along the red paths, an insulating state was observed. (Tim Su/UCR)

Silicon is the second most abundant element in Earth’s crust and the workhorse of computing. But as devices shrink, unpredictable quantum effects, like electrons leaking across insulating barriers, make traditional designs harder to manage. This new study suggests that engineers might embrace, rather than fight, this quantum behavior.

“Our work shows how molecular symmetry in silicon leads to interference effects that control how electrons move through it,” Su said. “And we can switch that interference on or off by controlling how electrodes align with our molecule.”

While the idea of using quantum interference in electronics isn’t new, this is one of the first demonstrations of the effect in three-dimensional, diamond-like silicon — the same structure used in commercial chips.

Beyond ultra-small switches, the findings could aid in the development of thermoelectric devices that convert waste heat into electricity, or even quantum computing components built from familiar materials.

“This gives us a fundamentally new way to think about switching and charge transport,” Su said. “It’s not just a tweak. It’s a rethink of what silicon can do.”

(Cover image: mustafaU/iStock/Getty)

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July 7, 2025
Modified CD4 T Cells Demonstrate Anti-Tumor Abilities

How can CD4 T “helper” T cells be leveraged for advanced therapeutics for cancer treatment?

In a recent study, researchers from the University of Geneva (UNIGE; Switzerland) have demonstrated that CD4 T lymphocytes, a type of helper T cell, have strong cytotoxic capabilities that can be leveraged for therapeutic applications. By modifying a specific subtype of CD4 T cells, the researchers were able to target an antigen found in many cancer types, including melanoma, lung, ovarian and brain cancer. Their findings may offer an alternative immunotherapy strategy for treating a broad range of tumor types and demonstrate the strong potential for gene transfer of T-cell receptors (TCR) in CD4 T cells for cytotoxic applications.

T cells play a crucial role in the body’s immune system, helping to protect the body from infection and disease. Immunotherapies have leveraged the functionality of T cells, primarily CD8 T “killer” cells – cytotoxic cells that target and eliminate diseased and cancerous cells. By modifying these naturally occurring cytotoxic T cells, researchers have harnessed patients’ own immune systems to provide an alternative approach in cancer treatment for many patients.

CD8 T cell-based immunotherapy has been a promising strategy in cancer treatment, but growing interest in CD4 T “helper” cells is opening new avenues. As interest in their role grows, researchers are exploring how they could strengthen the fight against cancer. According to the study’s paper, “…emerging evidence suggests that the polyfunctional and cytotoxic subsets of CD4 T cells may be crucial in the immune response against cancer.” From being considered as helper cells – supporting the function, migration and proliferation of other immune cells – the researchers, led by Camilla Jandus, have revealed that CD4 T cells can also be cytotoxic.

Cellular ‘barrier’ discovered in CAR-T-resistant lymphomas

New hope for lymphoma patients as scientists uncover why CAR-T therapy fails for some patients with aggressive B-cell lymphoma, and how to fix it.

A key barrier to translating CD4 T cells into effective therapies has been the complexity of their antigen recognition. Unlike CD8 T cells, which recognize peptides presented by HLA class I molecules, CD4 T cells interact with peptides bound to HLA class II molecules – structures that are both polymorphic and expressed in different variations. Moreover, on-target off-tumor toxicity remains a concern, as some target antigens are also expressed in healthy tissues, risking autoimmune responses from CD4 cell-based therapies.

To mitigate these challenges, the researchers focused on NY-ESO-1, an antigen with limited expression in normal tissues (primarily testis and ovary) but abundantly expressed in multiple tumor types such as melanoma, lung and ovarian cancer.

First, they isolated CD4 T cells from the blood, tumor tissue and lymph nodes of melanoma patients with the HLA-DRB3*02:02 allele and from healthy donors and studied their molecular characteristics. The researchers selected this HLA type due to is prevalence in 50% of the Caucasian population. This enabled them to assess the anti-tumor potential of CD4 T cells in a broader population group, avoiding the challenges associated with the polymorphic nature of CD4 T cells. From this, they identified and isolated a subset if these CD4 T cells (dominant alpha and beta chains) that possessed a TCR that was able to recognize the NY-ESO-1 antigen. Next, these specific TCRs were cloned into lentiviral vectors and transduced into human CD4 T cells and expanded in vitro. Analysis against positive and negative tumor cell-lines revealed that these modified CD4 T cells were able to eliminate NY-ESO-1–positive tumor cells and produced cytotoxic molecules like granzyme B (a protease that induces apoptosis). Additionally, the researchers assessed the modified CD4 T cells in human samples of lung, ovarian and neuroblastoma tumors, and the analysis revealed that the modified T cells could be applied to other tumor types.

Following this, the team evaluated these CD4 T cells modified with the relevant TCRs in both in vitro and in vivo systems using immunodeficient mice with NY-ESO-1 tumors. Encouragingly, analysis revealed significant tumor regression, with no off-target cytotoxicity observed.

The findings from this study suggest that modified CD4 T cells can potentially efficiently target cancer cells in an addition to their “helper” role. “This dramatically expands the pool of patients who could benefit, especially since the targeted antigen is expressed in many types of cancer,” according Jandus.

Looking ahead, the team is preparing a clinical trial involving patients with confirmed HLA-DRB3*02:02 expression and NY-ESO-1–positive tumors. A personalized workflow will involve isolating CD4 T cells from patients, modifying to express the NY-ESO-1 TCR, expanding them ex vivo and reintroducing them as a therapeutic product.

Additionally, the team is exploring the development of allogeneic TCR-modified CD4 T cell banks from healthy donors, matched by HLA typing. They hope this off-the-shelf approach could accelerate treatment initiation, particularly for patients with rapidly progressing or pediatric cancers.

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July 7, 2025
MUFG Pension & Market Services and Microsoft Announce Five-Year Strategic Partnership to Transform Superannuation and Investor Services
08 July 2025 | Sydney, Australia – MUFG Pension & Market Services (MPMS) has announced a five-year strategic partnership with Microsoft aimed at accelerating the global adoption of AI-powered solutions across its MUFG Retirement Solutions and MUFG Corporate Markets business divisions.

The long-term agreement is built on a co-investment model, with Microsoft providing expertise, technology and enablement to drive innovation at scale across MPMS operations in Australia, New Zealand, India, Hong Kong and the United Kingdom. The partnership reflects a shared commitment to building modern, secure and intelligent financial services that deliver tangible outcomes for superannuation & pension funds and their members, and listed entities and their investors.

“This collaboration with Microsoft is about creating smarter, AI-powered experiences for our clients – while keeping the human experience at the centre. Whether it’s using advanced AI to help a member access their pension or giving listed companies intelligent tools to better engage with shareholders, we’re focused on solutions that remove friction and add value,” said Vivek Bhatia, CEO & Managing Director, MUFG Pension & Market Services.

“The scale and certainty of a five-year strategic partnership allows us to confidently leverage Microsoft’s cutting-edge AI capabilities, modernise rapidly, and deliver innovations across the member and investor journey on behalf of our clients. It also allows us to invest in our people as we create the ‘roles of the future’ to deliver solutions that matter most to our clients.”

“At Microsoft, we believe AI has the potential to redefine every industry – and financial services is no exception,” said Rodrigo Kede Lima, President, Microsoft Asia.

“Our partnership with MUFG Pension & Market Services is a powerful example of how AI can be used responsibly and at scale to deliver meaningful outcomes for people – from simplifying pension access to modernising investor engagement. We’re proud to bring the full strength of Microsoft’s technology and expertise to help MPMS lead with innovation across the markets they serve.”

The partnership will focus on two key areas of transformation, member experience and investor experience:
- MPMS will harness Microsoft’s AI technologies to enhance and automate core superannuation processes, to enhance service-levels and member experience overall. This will enable faster, more accurate, and more personalised support during critical life events.
- MPMS will deploy AI to streamline investor communications, reduce manual handling, and enable straight-through processing. These will deliver a simpler, more transparent experience for listed companies and their shareholders.
As part of the transformation, MPMS has already begun rolling out Microsoft 365 Copilot and GitHub Copilot to uplift productivity, enhance knowledge management, and embed AI literacy across its workforce. These tools are enabling faster delivery of digital services and smarter ways of working, particularly in frontline and client-facing functions.

All AI and cloud initiatives will be built on Microsoft’s secure-by-design principles to ensure compliance with data governance, privacy, and regulatory requirements across jurisdictions. The roadmap includes joint investment in AI governance frameworks, capability building, and production-grade deployment of agent-based services.

This five-year agreement builds on MPMS’s recent investments in cloud modernisation and positions the organisation to lead the next wave of transformation in superannuation and investor services.
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July 7, 2025
Tariffs, declining real wages, slowing growth: Japan's central bank has its work cut out – CNBC
1. Tariffs, declining real wages, slowing growth: Japan’s central bank has its work cut out CNBC
2. Japan’s May real wages fall the most in nearly two years Reuters
3. Japan’s 2025 wage talks conclude with highest gain in 34 years The Japan Times
4. In labour-starved Japan, workers land another bumper pay hike CNA
5. Japan’s Real Wages Fall Most Since 2023 as Inflation Bites Bloomberg.com
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July 7, 2025
Unless users take action, Android will let Gemini access third-party apps

Starting today, Google is implementing a change that will enable its Gemini AI engine to interact with third-party apps, such as WhatsApp, even when users previously configured their devices to block such interactions. Users who don’t want their previous settings to be overridden may have to take action.

An email Google sent recently informing users of the change linked to a notification page that said that “human reviewers (including service providers) read, annotate, and process” the data Gemini accesses. The email provides no useful guidance for preventing the changes from taking effect. The email said users can block the apps that Gemini interacts with, but even in those cases, data is stored for 72 hours.

An email Google recently sent to Android users.

An email Google recently sent to Android users.

No, Google, it’s not good news

The email never explains how users can fully extricate Gemini from their Android devices and seems to contradict itself on how or whether this is even possible. At one point, it says the changes “will automatically start rolling out” today and will give Gemini access to apps such as WhatsApp, Messages, and Phone “whether your Gemini apps activity is on or off.” A few sentences later, the email says, “If you have already turned these features off, they will remain off.” Nowhere in the email or the support pages it links to are Android users informed how to remove Gemini integrations completely.

Compounding the confusion, one of the linked support pages requires users to open a separate support page to learn how to control their Gemini app settings. Following the directions from a computer browser, I accessed the settings of my account’s Gemini app. I was reassured to see the text indicating no activity has been stored because I have Gemini turned off. Then again, the page also said that Gemini was “not saving activity beyond 72 hours.”

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July 7, 2025
Take Up to 26% Off AirPods and Apple Watches

Apple doesn’t typically offer discounts across its tech line-up, which means that you’ll need to head to third-party sites like Amazon to find them. With thousands of products now discounted across the site for Prime Day, it’s one of the best opportunities of the year to land savings on the tech giant’s offerings, and there’s already plenty of Prime Day Apple deals to bank across AirPods, Apple Watches, Beats headphones and more.

Shop Apple Prime Day Deals Amazon

If you’re thinking about upgrading your smartwatch or fitness tracker, there’s discounts on all three of the latest Apple Watch models. The flagship Apple Watch Ultra 2 is a hefty £140 off, down from to £799 to £659, the everyday powerhouse Apple Watch Series 10 has dipped under £300 – now just £295, down from £399. The latest entry-level Apple Watch SE is also discounted, with £34 slashed off its ordinary price this Prime Day.

There’s also plenty of opportunities for an audio upgrade. You can now grab the AirPods Pro 2 and AirPods 4 for less, reduced by £45 and £30 respectively. Because Beats is owned by Apple, we’ve also included deals on the new workout-leaning Powerbeats Pro 2 – down from £249.99 to £195 – and the older, but still excellent, Beats Fit Pro, which are over £100 off at £114. Here’s a round-up of the all these, plus more of the best Apple Prime deals we’ve found so far, including more offers on iPads, iMacs and iPhones.

Prime Day Apple Deals

Apple Watch Ultra 2

Now 18% Off

Was £799, now £659

SAVE £140

Apple Watch Series 10

Now 26% Off

Was £399, now £295

SAVE £104

Apple Watch SE (2nd Gen)

Now 14% Off

Was £249, now £215

SAVE £34

Apple AirPods Pro 2

Now 20% Off

Was £229, now £184

SAVE £45

Apple AirPods 4

Now 17% Off

Was £179, now £149

SAVE £30

Beats Powerbeats Pro 2

Now 22% Off

Was £249.99, now £195

SAVE £54.99

Was £219.99, now £114

SAVE £105.99

Was £189, now £139

SAVE £50

When Does Prime Day End?

If you’ve been holding out for a bargain before picking up a new Apple smartwatch, tablet, smartphone or earbuds, the clock is now ticking. You have 96 hours from the start of the sale to make the most of these deals before it ends at midnight on Friday 11 July.

Do You Need a Prime Membership to Take Part?

Yes. To make use of these Apple Prime Day deals, plus all the other offers included in the event this week, you’ll need to either already be a Prime member or you can join for free by signing up to a 30-day free trial, which you can cancel for no fee once the sale ends after midnight on Friday.

More Fitness Tech Deals and Reviews

Prime Day Deals 2025 | Prime Day Headphone Deals | Prime Day Garmin Deals | Best Apple Watches | Apple Watch Ultra 2 Review | Beats Powerbeats Pro 2 Review | Beats Fit Pro Review | Best Beats Headphones | Best Gym Headphones

Luke Chamberlain is the ecommerce editor for Men’s Health UK where he compiles expert-led buying guides and in-depth product reviews across gym wear, fitness tech, supplements, and grooming. Responsible for testing everything from the latest gym headphones to the best manscaping tools, Luke also enlists the help of leading health and wellness experts to help readers make informed choices when shopping online – whether it’s to debunk the latest viral hair growth trend or to get the lowdown on a new type of recovery tech. He also covers major sales events for Men’s Health, such as Black Friday and Amazon Prime Day, scouting and verifying hundreds of discounts in order to recommend only the most genuine deals on offer. A magazine journalism graduate from the University of Sheffield in 2018, Luke has also worked as assistant editor for Outdoor Swimmer magazine and as an ecommerce writer for The Recommended. When he’s not testing the latest health and fitness products, he’s busy plotting routes for his next trail run or gravel ride out of London. Follow Luke on Instagram at @lukeochamb

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July 7, 2025
New Species of Armored Dinosaur Identified in China

Paleontologists have described a new species of the ankylosaurid dinosaur genus Zhongyuansaurus using a specimen found in China’s Henan province.

Life reconstruction of Zhongyuansaurus junchangi. Image credit: Connor Ashbridge / CC BY 4.0.

Ankylosaurids (family Ankylosauridae) were herbivorous quadruped dinosaurs known for their robust, scute-covered bodies, distinctive body armor, leaf-shaped teeth, and club-like tails.

The earliest-known ankylosaurids date to around 122 million years ago, and the youngest species went extinct 66 million years ago during the end-Cretaceous extinction.

The newly-identified species belongs to a previously monospecific ankylosaurid genus called Zhongyuansaurus.

Named Zhongyuansaurus junchangi, it lived in what is now China during the Albian age of the latest Early Cretaceous.

The dinosaur’s fossilized remains were collected from the upper part of the Haoling Formation at Zhongwa village in Henan province, China.

“The fossils are preserved within an area of about 9 m²,” said Dr. Ji-ming Zhang from the Henan Natural History Museum and colleagues.

“They are disarticulated and show no overlapping preservation, suggesting they belong to a single individual.”

“The specimen includes one right mandible, 14 free caudal vertebrae, seven fused terminal caudal vertebrae forming a rod-like structure, four ribs, 10 haemal arches, one left humerus, one slender metatarsal, and 41 osteoderms of various sizes and shapes.”

Right mandible of Zhongyuansaurus junchangi. Image credit: Zhang et al., doi: 10.19800/ j.cnki.aps.2023037.

Zhongyuansaurus junchangi is characterized by a unique autapomorphy: at least five caudal armor plates arranged in a shingle-like pattern with a distinctive swallowtail shape.

“Additionally, it exhibits relatively slender mandibular bones compared to the more robust mandibles of advanced Ankylosaurinae,” the paleontologists said.

“The anterior tip of the coronoid process extends only to the last two alveoli, differing from Shamosaurus.”

“The distal caudal vertebrae are adorned with small osteoderms, and the humerus has a midshaft circumference-to-total-length ratio of 0.46, distinguishing it from Zhongyuansaurus luoyangensis.”

“The discovery of Zhongyuansaurus junchangi provides new insights into the evolution of ankylosaurs in the Lower Cretaceous strata of Ruyang and enhances the species diversity of the Ruyang dinosaur fauna,” the researchers concluded.

Their paper was published in the journal Acta Palaeontologica Sinica.

_____

Ji-ming Zhang et al. 2025. New ankylosaurid material from the Lower Cretaceous of the Ruyang Basin, Henan Province. Acta Palaeontologica Sinica 64 (1): 60-73; doi: 10.19800/ j.cnki.aps.2023037

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July 7, 2025
Charlize Theron Slams Hollywood Double Standards With Action Movies

Charlize Theron is calling out Hollywood studios for not wanting to take a “risk” when it comes to female-led action movies.

The action film veteran recently opened up about Hollywood double standards during an interview with The New York Times, saying, “It’s harder” to get action-packed pics with female leads made.

“That’s known,” Theron said. “Action films with female leads don’t get greenlit as much as the ones with male leads. I think the thing that always frustrates me is the fact that guys will get a free ride.”

She continued, “When women do this and the movie maybe doesn’t hit fully, they don’t necessarily get a chance again. With this, we were very aware that eyes were on us. It’s not a risk that studios want to take, but they’ll take it many times on the same guy who might have a string of action movies that did not do so well.”

The Oscar winner has starred in several action films throughout her career, including Æon Flux, Atomic Blonde, The Italian Job, The Old Guard, Mad Max: Fury Road and multiple Fast & Furious franchise installments. She most recently reprised her role as Andy in The Old Guard 2.

Theron also explained why she loves doing action films, despite being “accident-prone” on set, leading to “a lot of fractures” and multiple surgeries over the years.

“I love dance, but I would never have been able to go back and be a dancer again, right?” she said. “Action movies gave me this opportunity to be physical again, to be a storyteller with my body.”

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July 7, 2025