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Former Newport defender Fraser Franks faced a difficult “grieving process” when a heart problem cut short his football career at age 28. But four years on, as he prepares for surgery that will ultimately save his life, he is “grateful” the condition was picked up early – as many people aren’t even aware they’re at risk. “I’ll be having a mechanical valve fitted and work done on my aorta,” Franks, now 32, told PA Media. His surgery is set for September 4. “It is a big operation and I’ll be in hospital for about 10 days. And the recovery after, I won’t be able to lift anything, even a bag of shopping, for two to three months. With a four-year-old daughter, that’s going to be difficult for me and her,” added Franks, who shares daughter Nellie with his wife, former S Club 8 singer Stacey McClean. “It’s been a lot to get my head around. There will be certain things I can’t do afterwards and a lot of lifestyle adjustments, but I’m really happy and content with it. I’m grateful that this has been found and that there’s a solution for me, where unfortunately a lot of people haven’t got that. “I’ve had conversations with cardiologists and surgeons [who’ve said] this is going to save my life, I probably wouldn’t live much longer with the heart I’ve currently got. So I’m really grateful for that, and it’s only through playing for a professional football club that this was picked up.” Franks was born with a bicuspid valve – meaning his aortic valve, which helps control blood flow in the heart, had two cusps (flaps) instead of the usual three. The condition is believed to affect around one in every 100 people, but it often doesn’t cause symptoms and only becomes serious if the valve begins to leak or develops severe narrowing (aortic stenosis), which is what has happened in Franks’ case. A routine medical at 16 first picked up the defect. Franks, who signed with Chelsea at age eight, had always been fit and healthy, but when he signed with Brentford at 16, like all players joining pro clubs he was given a heart scan. Further investigations revealed the bicuspid valve, but because it wasn’t causing problems, he was given the green light to continue as normal. Franks carried on, trying not to give it too much thought – until at 28, he suddenly started feeling unwell after a game and was rushed to hospital the next day, worried he was having a heart attack. “I wasn’t having a heart attack or anything like that, but I contracted an infection. While I was in there though, I told them I’d had this heart issue when I was 16, so they scanned me and saw the condition had worsened,” he recalled. “I’d developed aortic stenosis and the valve was leaking a lot more. Then it was deemed unsafe for me to carry on playing football, so I had to stop playing there and then.” London-born Franks has teamed up with the British Heart Foundation for their September Spotlight campaign, which aims to shine a spotlight on hidden heart conditions. His story highlights how heart problems can potentially affect anyone – including those who are young and seemingly very fit and healthy. Even when symptoms are mild or barely noticeable, undetected issues could become serious and even life-threatening, which is why research and awareness are so vital. Plus, as Franks has experienced, there are complex layers and emotional challenges to living with a hidden heart condition too. Being forced to suddenly retire early when he’d previously felt fine – and still looked well on the outside – was tough. “Ever since age eight, I’d been known as ‘the footballer’. It had been my whole identity, so to retire at 28 out of the blue was difficult,” Franks explained. “I think I kidded myself in the first six months, where I was saying, ‘Yeah I’m fine, I’m enjoying retirement and all that good stuff’. But I was really struggling and drinking heavily. “I reached out and got some help and had to do a lot of therapy. It really is a grieving process, and I had to figure out who I was and what I enjoyed away from being ‘the athlete’. “And I didn’t play at the top level, so I didn’t have savings in the bank – I had to pretty much get to work straight away and earn a living. My wife was heavily pregnant then too, so there was a lot of stress and overwhelm at that period.” Yoga and meditation also proved a huge help in coming to terms with everything, and Franks has since found a new sense of purpose, channelling his experiences into helping others. “I do a lot of work around addiction and alcohol now, because I really struggled with those things. That’s become a big part of what I do now, helping people who want to transition away from sport, and working with young athletes on addiction and mental health.” He took up yoga as a gentle form of exercise when doctors told him strenuous sport was too risky. “I just completely fell in love with it,” Franks added. “I’ve found a real passion for it. It’s actually a goal of mine now – it’s going to be something I’ll be thinking about when I’m in hospital – when I’m healed, I want to go to India or Bali and actually earn a qualification and get trained as a yoga teacher. “Instead of focusing on all the things I’m unable to do, that’s something I will be able to do. That brings me a lot of comfort.” This September, the BHF is shining a spotlight on hidden heart conditions and urging everyone to get involved by supporting the charity however they can, with stories, stuff, time or money. Visit spotlighton.bhf.org.uk Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live 4 viral TikTok make-up trends you’ll actually want to try Childhood Cancer Awareness Month: What are the warning signs that your child might have cancer? How students heading to university can save some cash and budget wisely

The brain’s appetite control centre is different in the brains of people who are overweight or live with obesity, a new study suggests. The researchers said their findings add further evidence to the relevance of brain structure to weight and food consumption. Current estimates suggest that more than 1.9 billion people worldwide are either overweight or obese. And, according to the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities, almost two-thirds of adults in the UK are overweight or living with obesity. This increases the risk of developing health issues like type 2 diabetes, heart disease and stroke, cancer and poorer mental health. The last two decades have given us important insights about appetite control and how it may be altered in obesity Professor Paul Fletcher, University of Cambridge A number of factors influence how much people eat and what they eat, including genetics, hormone regulation, and the environment they live in, researchers say. However, it is not entirely clear what happens to the brain to tell us that we are hungry or full. Past studies have shown that the hypothalamus – a small region of the brain about the size of an almond – plays an important role. Dr Stephanie Brown, from the Department of Psychiatry and Lucy Cavendish College, University of Cambridge, said: “Although we know the hypothalamus is important for determining how much we eat, we actually have very little direct information about this brain region in living humans. “That’s because it is very small and hard to make out on traditional MRI brain scans.” Professor Paul Fletcher, the study’s senior author, from the Department of Psychiatry and Clare College, Cambridge, said: “The last two decades have given us important insights about appetite control and how it may be altered in obesity. “Metabolic researchers at Cambridge have played a leading role in this. “Our hope is that, by taking this new approach to analysing brain scans in large datasets, we can further extend this work into humans, ultimately relating these subtle structural brain findings to changes in appetite and eating and generating a more comprehensive understanding of obesity.” The majority of evidence for the role of the hypothalamus in appetite regulation comes from animal studies, which indicate complex interacting pathways within the hypothalamus, with different cell populations acting together to tell us when we are hungry or full. To get around this researchers used an algorithm developed using machine learning to analyse brain scans taken from 1,351 young adults across a range of BMI scores. They looked for differences in the hypothalamus when comparing individuals who are underweight, healthy weight, overweight, or living with obesity. According to the findings, the overall volume of the hypothalamus was significantly larger in the overweight and obese groups of young adults. The researchers describe a significant relationship between volume of the hypothalamus and body mass index (BMI). The differences were most apparent in those sub-regions of the hypothalamus that control appetite through the release of hormones to balance hunger and fullness. While the exact significance of the finding is unclear, one explanation is that the change relates to inflammation, the researchers suggest. Eating a high-fat diet could trigger inflammation of our appetite control centre Dr Stephanie Brown, University of Cambridge Previous animal studies have shown that a high-fat diet can cause inflammation of the hypothalamus, which in turn prompts insulin resistance and obesity. In mice, just three days of a fat-rich diet is enough to cause this inflammation. Other studies have shown that this inflammation can raise the threshold at which animals are full – in other words, they have to eat more food than usual to feel full. Dr Brown added: “If what we see in mice is the case in people, then eating a high-fat diet could trigger inflammation of our appetite control centre. “Over time, this would change our ability to tell when we’ve eaten enough and to how our body processes blood sugar, leading us to put on weight.” More research is needed to confirm whether increased volume in the hypothalamus is a result of being overweight or whether people with larger hypothalami are predisposed to eat more in the first place. It is also possible that these two factors interact with each other, causing a feedback loop, the study published in Neuroimage: Clinical, and supported by the Bernard Wolfe Health Neuroscience Fund, Wellcome and the NIHR Cambridge Biomedical Research Centre, with additional funding from Alzheimer’s Research UK, suggests.

A mother has gone viral after she sent out some hilariously blunt birthday invitations for her twins’ fifth birthday party. In a recent video posted to her TikTok, the parent, Natalie LeClaire, shared a picture of the now-viral invitation that her son received. As she described the note as “hilarious,” she shared a picture of the invite and recited what the beginning of it said. “This event is brought to you by Pinterest fails and the dollar store, so please set your expectations appropriately,” the note read. “As requested, the theme will be unicorns but with rainbows and maybe bats. But there should be princesses, also Minnie. But we need dancing lights, so dress accordingly.” The invitation went on to hilariously describe what parents should pack for their children, before attending the party. “Please pack a bathing suit, puddle jumpers, etc, in case your sweet baby angels decide our original plan sucks, and the pool would be a better time,” the note continued. The mother also invited fellow parents to the party, before noting that she’d understand if the adults say no to attending. “If you would like to drop off and run, we support that entirely,” the parent quipped in the letter. “If you would like to stay, we will provide adult juice and deny any offers to help, to be polite. But deep down, we want to support you. You do you.” Ms LeClaire, who’s based in Ontario, Canada, concluded her video by noting that she and her son are going to the party. “Needless to say, we will absolutely be attending because these are my people,” she said. “This is the kind of mom that I can be friends with.” Along with Ms LeClaire’s son’s name, the invite also had Minnie ears, bats, unicorns, princesses, and a rainbow drawn on it. As of 15 June, the video has more than 5.1m views, with many TikTok users in the comments applauding the honest thoughts that were put in the invitation. “This is incredible. It’s what we’re all thinking when hosting kids parties,” one wrote, while another added: “Do they realise how many people will now be emotionally attending this party?” A third wrote: “I’m glad a parent is finally lowering the standards/expectations because I’m done with these Pinterest/IG inspired kid parties.” Other people also poked fun at the seemingly open-ended dress code at the child’s party. “I think you should go all in and make sure you wear an outfit that hits every theme point. And from a dollar store,” one wrote. @not.just.nat #greenscreen These are my people. #birthdayparty #partyinvitations #parenting #funny #hilarious #adultjuice ♬ Comedy Music - Nissa “Can’t wait to see how everyone interprets ‘dress accordingly.’ Someone better be dressed like a bat princess,” another added. During an interview with Today, the mother who created the invitation, Carys Roberts, noted that the party will be held next month, for her twin daughters, Edie and Elle. She also shared that she came up with the invites pretty quickly, in hopes of amusing some of her fellow parents and making sure that they weren’t too worried about what gifts to get. “Ultimately, I just didn’t want anyone to stress about gifts. The last thing we want is for people to be spending a lot of money. We’re really low-key,” she said. “I’ve received a lot of great feedback and I’m truly thrilled that people thought the invitation was so relatable and funny.” Speaking to Today, Ms LeClaire went on to emphasise that she loved the invitation when she first noticed it. “I started reading it and my jaw dropped. It was so honest and straight up. I was like, ‘I need to be friends with this person.’” The Independent has contacted Ms LeClaire for comment. Read More Mother sparks viral debate for ‘shaming’ parent who refused to give her daughter a slice of cake Woman, 50, to become a surrogate mother for same-sex couple Father sparks debate over his ‘petty’ feud with an 8-year-old about her pool Mom reveals one regret after parent refused to give her child cake amid viral debate Mother sparks debate over parent who wouldn’t give daughter cake Drew Barrymore slams tabloids that claimed she ‘wished’ her mother was dead

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