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Omicron and long Covid: Scientists have theories on the cause and who’s at risk

Even as the number of new Covid-19 cases in the US is dropping, hundreds of thousands of Americans are still testing positive every day. More than 28 million new cases have been reported since Omicron emerged in the US just two months ago, and the variant now drives 99.9 percent of cases, as of January 22, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Thanks to vaccines, boosters, and increasingly available treatments, most people who get infected today won’t end up in the hospital or die. A big question, however, looms over the survivors: What about long Covid? Long Covid is a condition that arises after acute infection and often includes shortness of breath, fatigue, and “brain fog” but can also involve a wide range of debilitating problems in the heart, brain, lungs, gut, and other organs. According to the World Health Organization’s working definition, long Covid usually occurs three months after symptomatic Covid-19 begins and lasts for at least two months. Sometimes, the symptoms just never go away after the initial infection. Occasionally, they appear months after recovery or after an asymptomatic case. This means that if you’ve recovered from Covid-19, you’re not necessarily in the clear. No one knows exactly how many people have or had long Covid. Estimates so far are “wildly disparate” in part because researchers define the condition differently and because the people seeking care may only be a small portion of those affected, said Nahid Bhadelia, an associate professor at Boston University School of Medicine. Studies on the conservative end have found that 10 to 20 percent of Covid-19 survivors get long Covid, while others report 50 percent. Scientists have proposed numerous hypotheses to explain long Covid’s myriad symptoms since research began in earnest after the first wave of cases in 2020. Early suspects included a weakened immune system, widespread inflammation, and even low sex hormone levels. There are no firm answers yet, but there’s now greater consensus among researchers about the two leading theories and the ways they may be connected. Scientists also have a better understanding of the people who are susceptible to long Covid. While many used to think that the condition only affected people with severe illness, patients now range from teens to older adults, some of whom had only mild or even asymptomatic illness, said Kathleen Bell, a professor in the department of physical medicine and rehabilitation at UT Southwestern Medical Center, on a recent press call. Early research is pointing to factors that may raise a person’s risk of long Covid, such as low levels of certain antibodies, reactivated viruses in the bloodstream, and existing conditions such as diabetes or asthma. Amid pressure from patients and concerns that the vast numbers of omicron infections might drive a new wave of long Covid, researchers around the world are racing to understand what causes the condition and how it might be diagnosed and treated. “We are really working day and night,” Resia Pretorius, a professor of physiological sciences at Stellenbosch University in South Africa whose research is explaining the role of blood clots in long Covid, told me. It’s too early to predict an omicron wave of long Covid, but scientists are cautious Scientists I spoke to agreed that it’s too early to know whether omicron will lead to a new wave of long Covid because less than three months have passed since the variant emerged. But David Putrino, director of rehabilitation innovation at Mount Sinai Health System in New York City, is erring on the side of caution. “Right now, we have no reason to think any differently about long Covid.” Whether different variants change the likelihood of developing long Covid is a fundamental question among researchers, Michael Peluso, an infectious diseases doctor who co-leads a long Covid research effort at the University of California San Francisco, told me. Severe initial Covid-19 infection, he noted, tends to correlate with who is at risk, so “it’s encouraging that early data suggest that omicron might be less severe, but obviously not enough time has passed.” Still, long Covid can develop after mild or even asymptomatic Covid-19, too. “If you say omicron’s mild, it doesn’t say anything about long Covid,” Amy Proal, a microbiologist at the PolyBio Research Foundation, told me. “We don’t even know how mild omicron is.” The WHO has pushed back against calling omicron “mild,” but it seems to result in less severe illness, especially among the vaccinated. This may be because it’s better at evading the immune system, which isn’t a good thing because it raises the possibility that the virus is remaining in the body, Proal added. Even if long Covid turns out to be less common among people who have been infected with omicron, the sheer number of cases right now means that millions may still develop the condition. “Even if it’s rare,” said Peluso, “it will affect a lot of people.” “We’re worried,” said Proal. “It’s not being communicated to the public as one of the things to take into consideration in how to live these days. Not as much as it should be.” Vaccination appears to offer some protection against long Covid, but it’s not clear how much. It certainly helps by preventing serious illness in the first place, and it may help clear the virus before it can lodge in the body for the long term. It also spurs the immune system to specifically target the virus, rather than raise defenses throughout the whole body, which could cause collateral damage elsewhere.

People stand in line at the mass vaccination site at the Moscone Convention Center in San Francisco, California, on February 5, 2021.Amy Osborne/AFP via Getty Images An encouraging recent preprint from Israel shows that fully vaccinated people who had breakthrough Covid-19 between March 2020 and November 2021 report fewer long Covid symptoms than unvaccinated people who were infected, suggesting “that some ability to fight off the virus is helpful for long Covid as it is for acute Covid,” Leora Horwitz, director for the Center for Healthcare Innovation and Delivery Science at NYU Langone Health, told me. The immune system likely plays a leading role in long Covid The sheer range of symptoms reported by people with long Covid — more than 200 across 10 groups of organ systems, according to one patient-led survey — makes uncovering their biological origins a gargantuan task. There are likely several subtypes of long Covid, each with its own cluster of symptoms and cause. “We’re not talking about a monolithic, single entity,” said Horwitz. Scientists have proposed many explanations for long Covid, but several I spoke to agreed that there are now two leading theories: that symptoms are driven by the immune system or by the persistence of the virus in the body. Importantly, these aren’t mutually exclusive, and it’s likely that both factors are at play and interconnected, together with a number of other mechanisms. The immune theory suggests that Covid-19 turns the immune system against the body. This could explain symptoms like racing heart, dizziness, weakness, and microclots in the blood, said Putrino, whose research focuses on the former. A large proportion of his long Covid patients seem to have dysautonomia, a condition that interferes with processes like balance, heart rate, blood pressure, temperature, and digestion. With Yale University immunologist Akiko Iwasaki, Putrino is studying the blood of long-haulers for evidence of an abnormal immune response that might be throwing the autonomic nervous system off track. Flurries of microclots — tiny blood clots — observed in the blood of people with acute and long Covid may be fueling the immune system’s reaction. Clots in healthy people usually break down easily, but those in people with long Covid resist digestion and continue to drift throughout the circulation. Pretorius’s team has discovered inflammatory molecules concealed inside these microclots that she thinks may spur the production of autoantibodies. Having clots in circulation can cause the whole vascular system to become inflamed, ultimately choking off the supply of oxygen to cells and leading to a range of issues throughout the body. “Many of the symptoms that are related to long Covid can actually be traced back to a general oxygen deprivation state,” she said. One of the primary functions of the immune system is to keep pathogens in line — including those that live inside our bodies, like dormant viruses and normally benign gut bacteria. When it isn’t working properly, these pathogens can act up and cause illness. “Patients might clear itself from tissue, but immune dysregulation might allow other viruses and pathogens to reactivate and then drive chronic systems,” said Proal. Epstein-Barr virus, for example, seems to be reactivated in people with Covid-19, and scientists are studying whether the herpes viruses and the common parasite Toxoplasma do the same. It’s possible, too, that the reactivation of these pathogens contributes to autoimmunity. Research recently published in Science posited that prior infection with the Epstein-Barr virus drives multiple sclerosis, a chronic disease, by spurring production of autoantibodies. Proal suggested that a similar mechanism could be at play in long Covid. “What it really means is that overall, autoantibodies can be generated as part of the immune system response to infection,” she said. Lingering virus may also be to blame Proal is also investigating theories linked to viral persistence, the other overarching long Covid theory. The virus can remain in the body and brain long after acute infection, and its genetic material can persist up to 230 days after symptoms arise, as a recent National Institutes of Health preprint found. Lingering virus is often found not in the blood but in the tissues, an important consideration for researchers studying and developing diagnostic tools for long Covid, Proal and others emphasized. It’s not fully understood what these so-called “viral reservoirs” do in the body. Proal’s previous work on myalgic encephalomyelitis (ME, also known as chronic fatigue syndrome), an illness that has substantial similarity with long Covid, suggests that persistent virus — Epstein-Barr virus, in the case of ME/CFS — can wreak havoc on the body long after acute infection. In long Covid, viral reservoirs could continue to injure tissues directly. They may leak viral proteins into the bloodstream, where they can spur the formation of the aforementioned microclots and activate the immune system, leading to inflammation and further damage. Or they may do nothing at all. One theory is that inflammation in tissues caused by persistent virus can trigger inflammation in the brain via the far-reaching vagus nerve, which runs the length of the spine and connects to the brainstem. A recent preprint from a team co-led by Yale’s Iwasaki showed that mice with mild Covid-19 had activated brain microglia cells and higher levels of some inflammatory molecules. One of those molecules has been observed at high levels in the brains of long-haulers experiencing cognitive issues like brain fog. “You can start to see a scope of connected symptoms that can really make someone ill,” said Proal. Like the symptoms of long Covid, the research is all over the place. “It’s a mess — anyone who says they get it is lying,” said Putrino. But patterns in the data are steadily emerging, which many of the researchers I spoke to attributed to collaboration among long Covid research teams and patient advocacy groups. Organizations like the Long Covid Alliance and Survivor Corps have been instrumental in helping recruit participants and lobby for much-needed funding since research on the condition began, they said. Recent research identifying the people who are most at risk is especially promising. A small study recently published in Cell named four factors that may put people at higher risk for long Covid: higher levels of SARS-CoV-2 RNA in the blood in the early stages of infection, Type 2 diabetes, reactivated Epstein-Barr virus (which infects over 90 percent of the global population), and the presence of certain autoantibodies — which target the body’s own cells as if they were intruders. Other risk factors could include low levels of antibodies called IgM and IgG3 and preexisting asthma, as a recent study in Nature Communications suggested. Bell cautioned, however, that such factors are for “research purposes only” and shouldn’t be viewed as metrics for diagnosis. Fortunately, many researchers studying the basic science of long Covid already have treatment — and diagnosis — in mind. Putrino said that 70 to 80 percent of his patients respond well to intensive autonomic rehabilitation therapy, which involves coaching to improve breathing followed by physical exercises. With RECOVER, an NIH-funded nationwide study on long Covid, Horwitz is developing a list of medications and vaccines to test and put through clinical trials. “I am quite optimistic that there will be things that will be helpful,” she said. Pretorius is developing a diagnostic tool for long Covid, and she’s trying to get funding for a clinical trial involving clot-busting drugs. “We’re not going to rest,” she said. Yasmin Tayag is a science editor and writer. She has written for the Atlantic, the New York Times, and the Guardian, and she was previously the lead editor of the Medium Coronavirus Blog. Read the full article

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Canadian PM Justin Trudeau tests positive for COVID

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has tested positive for the coronavirus. "This morning, I tested positive for COVID-19. I'm feeling fine – and I'll continue to work remotely this week while following public health guidelines. Everyone, please get vaccinated and get boosted," Trudeau tweeted Monday morning. His message comes after he reportedly left his residence in the country's capital of Ottawa on Saturday as thousands of anti-vaccine mandate protesters converged on the city. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APPThis is a breaking news post and will be updated. Read the full article

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Supreme Court: Spotlight on Sotomayor, Kagan and Roberts after Breyer retires

The departure of any one justice shuffles relations among all others, and the impending retirement of Justice Stephen Breyer will especially affect his liberal colleagues and the conservative chief justice who sits in the center chair and is ideologically near the middle, too. The 83-year-old Breyer, while solidly on the liberal wing, has nonetheless sought common ground. More than most justices he has tried to bridge today's 6-3, conservative-liberal divide, with an approach marked by with unflagging optimism. The oft-repeated adage, attributed to the late Justice Byron White, who served from 1962 to 1993, is that with each new justice, there's a new court. The justices redirect to the latest appointee and, in turn, to each other. The courtroom bench would be reordered next session, according to the custom of alternating seniority. Roberts, in the center chair, would sit between Clarence Thomas, now in his 31st session and already at Roberts' side, and Samuel Alito, finishing his 16th year and soon to succeed Breyer as third in seniority. The sheer position of Roberts between two rocks of the right-wing illustrates the deepening conservative dominance, irrespective of President Joe Biden's choice of a Breyer successor. Sotomayor, who will become the senior liberal on the bench, would be positioned between Thomas and Justice Neil Gorsuch. Biden has pledged to name the first Black woman to the bench. The nominee would make history at America's 233-year-old court. Of the 115 justices appointed over the decades, only five have been women and three have been either black or Hispanic. Sonia Sotomayor Irrespective of Biden's choice, some changes in relations among the nine are certain. The 67-year-old Sotomayor, in her 13th session on the high court, will become the senior liberal upon Breyer's retirement. The 2009 appointee of President Barack Obama has staked out the far left of the bench and delivered withering criticism of the conservative majority's direction. Her voice has been heard most powerfully in recent months as she has highlighted the consequences for pregnant women in Texas deprived of abortion rights, and the protections of the 1973 Roe v. Wade ruling.On January 20, she wrote as the majority again rejected a plea from clinics to suspend the state ban on abortion at roughly six weeks of pregnancy, "Today, for the fourth time, this Court declines to protect pregnant Texans from egregious violations of their constitutional rights. ... (T)he Court allows the State yet again to extend the deprivation of the federal constitutional rights of its citizens through procedural manipulation. The Court may look the other way, but I cannot." When the nine heard a separate challenge to a Mississippi 15-week abortion ban that could be a vehicle for overturning Roe v. Wade, she said from the bench, "Will this institution survive the stench that this creates in the public perception that the Constitution and its reading are just political acts?" Sotomayor's new position of seniority will give her authority, under court tradition, to assign opinions within the left when the three liberals vote together. In the past, new senior justices have variously altered their approach in reaction to the responsibility. After Justice John Paul Stevens became the senior liberal in 1994, he was less inclined to strike out on his own in separate opinions, and he worked more collectively with his colleagues on the left. Unlike some of Sotomayor's ideologically charged dissents calling attention to unfairness as she sees it, the earlier solo dissents of Stevens often reflected his idiosyncratic views of the law. When Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg took over as senior liberal in 2010, as Stevens retired, the pioneering women's rights advocate took up the mantle on a wider array of issues. In 2013, when conservative justices eliminated a Voting Rights Act provision requiring states with a history of discrimination to obtain approval for electoral changes, she wrote for dissenters: "Throwing out preclearance when it has worked and is continuing to work to stop discriminatory changes is like throwing away your umbrella in a rainstorm because you are not getting wet." Sotomayor's pointed dissent already grab attention. But she often writes alone. That may change, depending on the new justice and reverberations as the nine rearrange. Elena Kagan Breyer's departure is likely to be felt most keenly by Kagan, a 2010 appointee of Obama, who has worked closely with him over the years. "I'll miss Steve Breyer every day after he has left the Court," she said in a statement on Thursday, adding, "He believes in making institutions work; to strengthen this one, he listens to other views with care and generosity, and does everything he can to find common ground." Breyer and Kagan often broke off from Sotomayor and Ginsburg (until her 2020 death) to write their own dissenting opinions to the conservative majority. Kagan and Breyer dissented separately, for example, in 2018 when a five-justice majority upheld former President Donald Trump's travel ban and Sotomayor and Ginsburg emphasized Trump's "anti-Muslim animus." Without Breyer, her partner in moderation, Kagan may amplify her dissenting views. She has appeared increasingly frustrated by the limits of cross-ideological negotiation on the court controlled by a supermajority of six conservatives, since Justice Amy Coney Barrett succeeded Ginsburg in late 2020. Still, Kagan is likely to remain open to overtures from Roberts for ways to compromise to temper the hard-right. John Roberts Roberts has been a consistently conservative jurist yet overtaken these days by the rightward inclinations of the three justices appointed by Trump (Gorsuch, Barrett, and Brett Kavanagh) and veterans Thomas and Alito. Roberts' leverage in negotiations with colleagues diminished when he lost his position at the ideological center in late 2020. The right-wing has dug in firmer in recent months, notably on abortion rights, over Roberts' dissents. Yet the chief justice readily aligned with fellow conservatives earlier in January when the majority struck down the Biden administration's vaccine policy for large employers. Roberts is also likely to be in sync with colleagues on the right as they take up a controversy next fall over race-based affirmation action, brought by challengers to Harvard and University of North Carolina admissions practices. Breyer, Sotomayor and Kagan have blasted Roberts' long-held rejection of racial remedies. The new justice's impact may not be evident in early months or even years. Irrespective of credentials, there's usually a break-in period for any high court novice."I do think it takes three to five years," Breyer told CNN last October. "I was pretty nervous the first three years at least, and maybe a little longer. ... 'You think, can I really do this job?'" . Read the full article

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Winter storm watch and warning issued as east coast braces for northeast and blizzard conditions

Winter storm watches and warnings have been issued for much of the US East Coast ahead of a powerful Nor'easter expected to hit in the coming hours. The coastal region stretching from eastern Maryland to Maine is expected to see the most snowfall, with one to two feet of snow — or more — possible in parts of New England, according to the National Weather Service. It could be the biggest Nor'Easter in years and is expected to hit Friday night through Saturday. “Many hazards are likely, ranging from heavy snowfall, with heavy accumulations in eastern Long Island/New England, to gusty winds and coastal issues,” forecasters said Friday. "In fact, the combination of snow and winds can result in blizzard conditions." Parts of New Jersey, Maine, Massachusetts and Maryland are under blizzard warnings, which means severe winter conditions – including whiteout conditions – are seen or expected within the next 12 to 36 hours. . Blizzard conditions are not associated with snow totals, but are due to wind and visibility, reports CBS Boston. People are asked not to travel under this warning.More than 2,300 US flights were canceled on Friday and 3,700 were canceled on Saturday, according to FlightAware. The northeast braces for a huge winter storm 01:49 The governors of Virginia, Maryland, New York, New Jersey and Rhode Island have declared states of emergency, and Boston Mayor Michelle Wu has declared a snow emergency for the city. Meanwhile, Connecticut Governor Ned Lamont noted it will ban tractor-trailers from the roads from 6 a.m. Saturday. In Boston, where a blizzard warning has been issued, residents are bracing - the area could be hit with about two feet of snow. The last time the city experienced blizzard conditions was nearly four years ago, according to CBS Boston. The weekend's Nor'easter could even break Boston's January record for the biggest snowstorm in the city's recorded history.And about 40 minutes from Boston, the town of Scituate, Mass., is encouraging voluntary evacuations, while handing out sandbags and preparing emergency vehicles, Mola Lenghi reported for "CBS Mornings." Meanwhile, the storm in New Jersey could also break records. According to Accuweather, the predicted 10 to 15 inches of snow could make Atlantic City's snowiest January in history. This is the first time New Jersey has been on a blizzard warning since 2018.Across the region, snow plows are ready to go, but many clean-up crews are working with reduced staff, in part due to the coronavirus pandemic. A local team, for example, works with only half of the usual team, which means that clearing the roads could take longer.Cities and states much further south could also experience the effects of the storms. Winter weather advisories have been issued for parts of Kentucky, West Virginia, the Carolinas and Virginia. As part of an advisory, potentially hazardous weather conditions are occurring or are expected. Officials are urging people to watch the storm and prepare as it continues to move. After the storm, "bitter cold air" is expected.Contributor: Sarah Lynch Baldwin New trends Download our free app For the latest news and analysis Download the free CBS News app . Read the full article

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Ask Amy: Pandemic pessimist is sure this virus is never going away

Dear Amy: I have noticed in many responses about COVID-19, you and many others have said things like, “When this is over, we can get together” or, “When we reach the end of the virus, life will return to normal."In my mind we are now two years into what was supposed to last for 14 days. When is everyone going to realize that this virus is never going away?!For me, with the exception of work, I'm completely isolated from the world—except for the internet.I would love to get out like I did prior to the pandemic, but I don't see this ever ending.Why keep people's hopes up and not prepare them for what could be forever?– Over it and HopelessDear Hopeless: As of this writing, we are experiencing an alarming surge in hospitalizations, as the pandemic stretches into its third year.Yes, the end seems to be receding into the distance with every passing complication, but the reason to keep people's hopes up is because … the pandemic WILL end, just as the pandemics that came before it also eventually transitioned from pandemic to “endemic.”This virus is not going away, but the pandemic will shift into endemic status, and the virus causing COVID-19 will become one of many viruses that sweep through the Earth's human and animal population, mutate, and sweep through again. Vaccinations, and medications and remedies treating symptoms will help people to cope with having the virus.According to the World Health Organization, the only viral disease we humans have ever totally eradicated is smallpox, which had been kicking around the planet for thousands of years. Now, the only remaining smallpox pathogens exist in laboratories.Viruses causing other pandemics and epidemics—including polio—still exist, but we live with them, mitigating the risks.Your choice to trust some initial reports that this would last for two weeks was understandable, but this viral outbreak didn't last for two weeks.After the tragedy of 9/11, we adjusted to our “new normal.” Nations rise and fall; natural disasters buffet our landscape. Life can be very hard.In terms of your own physical and mental health, you can get out – and you should get out. You should spend as much time as possible outdoors. You can safely meet people for walks or visits outside. You can minimize the health risk to you and others by mask wearing, social distancing, and washing your hands well. Humans are social beings, and spending time safely with other people will be good for your health.You can also examine your internet usage to see what is helping and what might be harming your mental health.Also, pick up a book. There are many different ways to experience the richness of being in the world. Reading a good novel is one of them.Dear Amy: My late husband was a very admired Boy Scout leader. He was given many handmade gifts from his Scouts over the years.He has been gone now for over two years and I am trying my best to go through his (many) things and decide what to keep and what to donate.My adult children do not want these particular mementos made by others, and I'm not sure what to do with them.Is it rude to offer them back to the person that made the gift?– Worried WidowDear Worried: Not only is it not rude, but I think it is extremely generous and thoughtful to offer these handmade things back to the original creator.These are artifacts from another era, and if you are able to return these treasures to the people who made them, they can then make their own decisions about what to do with them.Compose a short note, telling the recipient that your husband valued his Boy Scout experience and that he treasured the keepsake for decades – and now you hope that this handmade object will bring back good memories, in a new home.Dear Amy: “Concerned Grandpa” was worried about his young grandsons' weight. You suggest that he gently speak to his son about this.A word of caution. I spoke to my (former) daughter-in-law about our grandson's weight when he was young, and she – literally – never spoke to us again.– Been ThereDear Been There: Weight is an extremely tender topic, and family members frequently want to express their concern.I have never heard of this working out the way it was intended to.You can email Amy Dickinson at askamy@amydickinson.com or send a letter to Ask Amy, PO Box 194, Freeville, NY 13068. Read the full article

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Experts say parents with kids too young to get COVID-19 vaccine need a 'blanket rule' for spending time with unvaccinated adults

Experts recommend that unvaccinated family members keep their distance from children too young to be vaccinated against COVID-19. (Getty Images)Having a newborn or young child who isn't old enough for most major vaccinations has always been a stressful time for parents. But dealing with this during a global pandemic — when children under the age of 5 still aren't eligible to be vaccinated against COVID-19 — is a complication of a higher order. There were more than 769,000 new COVID-19 cases in the US on Friday and cases in children have dramatically spiked. If you have family members who want to see the baby but aren't fully vaccinated against COVID-19, what are you supposed to do? “This is a hot-button topic, and I get asked about it a lot,” Dr. Thomas Russo, professor and chief of infectious disease at the University at Buffalo in New York, tells Yahoo Life. Doctors agree that it's generally best to ask unvaccinated family members to keep their distance. "Children who are not vaccinated because they are not eligible need to be around adults who are vaccinated, period," Dr. Sunanda Gaur, professor of pediatrics at the Rutgers Wood Johnson Medical School, tells Yahoo Life. “We need to protect the children.”This is even more important with newborns, according to Gaur. “Newborns are particularly susceptible to infections,” she explains. “There's a concept that we call 'cocooning,' which is where all of the adults around the baby are vaccinated to try to protect the baby. It doesn't work if someone is unvaccinated.”Russo says that unvaccinated family members “pose a problem” to maintaining low levels of COVID-19 risk around a newborn. “I usually recommend that you play the long game and protect your child until they can get vaccinated,” Russo says. “Everyone is going to be exposed to this virus eventually — that's inevitable. But you want your baby to have optimal immune protection when they are exposed so that they're protected.” If family members refuse to get vaccinated but offer to wear a mask around the baby, Gaur still recommends telling them no. “I would advise that unvaccinated people not be around your baby, mask or not,” she says. “Unvaccinated people are more likely to get infected. A mask is not a 100 percent guarantee that they would not transmit the virus to our child. I don't see a reason to put your baby at risk.”Story continuesVideo: How to make your baby's first vaccinations as pain-free as possibleOf course, all of this can be tricky to navigate from a social perspective and every family has to make their own decisions around COVID exposure risk and their baby. “It's more than a medical judgment,” Russo says. “How much bridge burning are you going to do with family members if you do the best thing from a medical perspective and say you can't visit the baby?”To handle this with as minimal stress as possible, clinical psychologist Thea Gallagher, a professor at NYU and co-host of the “Mind in View” podcast, suggests having a blanket family rule when it comes to unvaccinated people being around your baby. "You first have to start with your own family and decide what your boundaries are," she tells Yahoo Life. "Don't make it person-to-person dependent — have a blanket rule. That takes the emotion out of it and doesn't make it feel like you're picking and choosing."Then, if someone is unvaccinated and wants to visit your baby, you simply tell them that this is the policy your family has decided on. “If you blame 'the policy' vs. making it an individual thing, it's sometimes easier for people to understand and be less emotional about,” Gallagher says. “It's about coming up with a plan and trying to be consistent. When you're sharing it with your loved ones, make it clear that it's not a personal thing, but this is your family's policy.”Dr. John Schreiber, a pediatric infectious disease specialist at Connecticut Children's Medical Center, tells Yahoo Life that he recommends suggesting that unvaccinated family members get immunized so that they can visit your child. “If they choose not to, then that's their decision,” he says. “But you gave them an option.”You may feel that your family member won't get the vaccine for that reason, but Russo says it happens more than most people realize. “There have been many instances where people decided to get vaccinated when those barriers were put in place, particularly around seeing grandchildren,” he says. Depending on your personal feelings and what you decide as a family, Schreiber says you could potentially decide to allow unvaccinated family members to see your baby outside while wearing an N95 mask and practicing good hand hygiene. “It's not 100 percent safe, but it would probably be fine,” he says. “It's just very cold in many areas of the country right now.”Regardless of what you decide, Gallagher says it's important to not feel guilty about your decisions. “Have some self-compassion for your boundaries,” she says. “Own and acknowledge your choices, and know that you are valid in making them.”Want lifestyle and wellness news delivered to your inbox? Sign up here for Yahoo Life's newsletter. Read the full article

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African Cup of Nations: At least six people killed in a stampede on the sidelines of a football match in Cameroon | world news

At least six people have been killed in a stampede outside an Africa Cup of Nations soccer match in Cameroon, officials said. The stampede came as crowds struggled to gain access to the Olembe stadium in the capital Yaounde to watch the host country take on Comoros in the last 16 knockout ties of the tournament. A regional governor, Naseri Paul Biya, said there could be more casualties as a hospital in the area said at least 40 people were injured in the stampede.

Picture: Officials said nearly 50,000 people tried to attend the match at Olembe Stadium. Peak AP "Some of the injured are in desperate condition," said nurse Olinga Prudence. "We will have to evacuate them to a specialist hospital." Officials said around 50,000 people tried to attend the match. The stadium has a capacity of 60,000 but was not supposed to be more than 80% full due to COVID restrictions.

Picture: Cameroon hosts Africa's flagship football tournament for the first time in 50 years Tight match overshadowed by off-field incident Cameroon won the match 2-1 to reach the quarter-finals. Strikers Karl Toko Ekambi and Vincent Aboubakar had given Cameroon the lead in the 70th minute against the tournament newcomers, who are ranked 132nd in the world and played with a defender in goal due to an outbreak of coronavirus in the team.

Picture: Chaker Alhadhur of Comoros, a normally defender, played as a goalkeeper due to COVID outbreak in the squad Comoros also faced playing most of the match with 10 men after Jimmy Abdou was sent off in the seventh minute for stepping on the back of Moumi Ngamaleu's ankle. But Comoros midfielder Youssouf M'Changama made his side home, scoring from a 30-yard free kick in the 81st minute. Details of the tragedy outside the stadium were not confirmed until after the game. Cameroon is hosting Africa's flagship football tournament for the first time in 50 years. The host nation is set to face Guinea, another tournament debutant, on Saturday in the quarter-finals. Read the full article

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Half of children hospitalized with COVID develop headaches, altered mental state

PITTSBURGH, Pa. — Concerning new data shows that nearly half of all children hospitalized with COVID-19 experience neurological symptoms. Researchers from the University of Pittsburgh also report COVID-positive pediatric patients with these symptoms were much more likely to need intensive care. Of the 44 percent of children with neurological symptoms, the most common were headaches and acute encephalopathy, or in simpler terms, “an altered mental status.” “The SARS-CoV-2 virus can affect pediatric patients in different ways: It can cause acute disease, where symptomatic illness comes on soon after infection, or children may develop an inflammatory condition called MIS-C weeks after clearing the virus,” says lead study author Ericka Fink, MD, pediatric intensivist at UPMC Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh, and associate professor of critical care medicine and pediatrics at Pitt, in a university release. “One of the consortium's big questions was whether neurological manifestations are similar or different in pediatric patients, depending on which of these two conditions they have.” MIS-C a serious side-effect of COVID in children In all, 30 pediatric critical care centers located all over the world treating 1,493 children participated in this study. Among that entire patient base, doctors diagnosed 86 percent (1,278) with acute SARS-CoV-2. Meanwhile, another 14 percent (215) had multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C). Characterized by organ dysfunction, a fever, and inflammation, MIS-C usually develops weeks after recovering from COVID-19. Besides an altered mental state and headaches, seizures were the third most common neurological symptom among children with acute SARS-CoV-2. Regarding MIS-C, the most common neurological symptoms were headache, acute encephalopathy, and dizziness. While much more rare, other reported symptoms across both groups include stroke, loss of smell, psychosis, and vision issues. “Thankfully, mortality rates in children are low for both acute SARS-CoV-2 and MIS-C,” Dr. Fink explains. “But this study shows that the frequency of neurological manifestations is high—and it may actually be higher than what we found because these symptoms are not always documented in the medical record or assessable. For example, we can't know if a baby is having a headache.” It's important to note that neurological symptoms were actually more frequent among pediatric MIS-C patients than those dealing with acute COVID-19. Similarly, kids with MIS-C were also more likely to develop at least two neurological symptoms. Study authors have already started work on a follow-up study aimed at assessing the long-term impact of both MIS-C and COVID-19 on recovered children. “Another long-term goal of this study is to build a database that tracks neurological manifestations over time—not just for SARS-CoV-2, but for other types of infections as well,” Dr. Fink concludes. “Some countries have excellent databases that allow them to easily track and compare children who are hospitalized, but we don't have such a resource in the US” The findings appear in the journal Pediatric Neurology. Read the full article

[evisionpress]

Half of children hospitalized with COVID develop headaches, altered mental state

PITTSBURGH, Pa. — Concerning new data shows that nearly half of all children hospitalized with COVID-19 experience neurological symptoms. Researchers from the University of Pittsburgh also report COVID-positive pediatric patients with these symptoms were much more likely to need intensive care. Of the 44 percent of children with neurological symptoms, the most common were headaches and acute encephalopathy, or in simpler terms, “an altered mental status.” “The SARS-CoV-2 virus can affect pediatric patients in different ways: It can cause acute disease, where symptomatic illness comes on soon after infection, or children may develop an inflammatory condition called MIS-C weeks after clearing the virus,” says lead study author Ericka Fink, MD, pediatric intensivist at UPMC Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh, and associate professor of critical care medicine and pediatrics at Pitt, in a university release. “One of the consortium's big questions was whether neurological manifestations are similar or different in pediatric patients, depending on which of these two conditions they have.” MIS-C a serious side-effect of COVID in children In all, 30 pediatric critical care centers located all over the world treating 1,493 children participated in this study. Among that entire patient base, doctors diagnosed 86 percent (1,278) with acute SARS-CoV-2. Meanwhile, another 14 percent (215) had multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C). Characterized by organ dysfunction, a fever, and inflammation, MIS-C usually develops weeks after recovering from COVID-19. Besides an altered mental state and headaches, seizures were the third most common neurological symptom among children with acute SARS-CoV-2. Regarding MIS-C, the most common neurological symptoms were headache, acute encephalopathy, and dizziness. While much more rare, other reported symptoms across both groups include stroke, loss of smell, psychosis, and vision issues. “Thankfully, mortality rates in children are low for both acute SARS-CoV-2 and MIS-C,” Dr. Fink explains. “But this study shows that the frequency of neurological manifestations is high—and it may actually be higher than what we found because these symptoms are not always documented in the medical record or assessable. For example, we can't know if a baby is having a headache.” It's important to note that neurological symptoms were actually more frequent among pediatric MIS-C patients than those dealing with acute COVID-19. Similarly, kids with MIS-C were also more likely to develop at least two neurological symptoms. Study authors have already started work on a follow-up study aimed at assessing the long-term impact of both MIS-C and COVID-19 on recovered children. “Another long-term goal of this study is to build a database that tracks neurological manifestations over time—not just for SARS-CoV-2, but for other types of infections as well,” Dr. Fink concludes. “Some countries have excellent databases that allow them to easily track and compare children who are hospitalized, but we don't have such a resource in the US” The findings appear in the journal Pediatric Neurology. Read the full article

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FBI and informant roles cloud Michigan governor's kidnapping case

Defense attorneys using this same trove of evidence constructed an entirely different scenario of what happened. They portray the defendants as reluctant puppets trapped by FBI agents and informants who they believe invented the kidnapping plot.Within weeks of joining, Dan resumed training exercises, introducing a much higher level of military tactics, defense attorneys said. They describe him as consulting closely with his main manager, Constable Jayson Chambers, on issues such as who should go on two surveillance trips to Mrs Whitmer's cottage.The suspects discussing the violence on the tapes or in encrypted conversations was just inflammatory rhetoric, the defense said. Prosecutors say Adam Fox, 38, the leader of the group, lived in the basement of a friend's vacuum cleaner shop where he worked, talking about assaulting the Michigan state house at the time where "Big Dan" got involved.Defense attorneys in the federal case declined or ignored requests for comment, while a spokesperson for the U.S. attorney in western Michigan said the office would not discuss ongoing criminal cases. The F.BI referred the questions to the American attorney.Undercover operations using informants are a tricky tactic in terrorism cases. In those that developed after the September 11 attacks, FBI agents often intervened when someone expressed an interest in joining al-Qaeda or instigating some sort of terrorist act. If suspects had trouble agreeing on a conspiracy or acquiring weapons, informants or undercover agents would sometimes help them assess criminal intent.Critics of such FBI methods, such as Michael German, a former undercover FBI agent, accuse the agency of acting like Cecil B. DeMille, fabricating complicated and theatrical scenarios rather than pursuing the more complex task of unearthing real extremist plots.Mr German, who is now a member of the Liberty & National Security program at the Brennan Center for Justice, said: 'Rather than focusing on and investigating these crimes, there seems to be more interest in this method. conspiracies for the FBI to solve. Read the full article

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Why Christine Baskets Was One of TV's Greatest Characters

When Louie Anderson passed away on Friday, it felt like dozens of mothers I knew and loved all died at the same time.That's because Anderson brought with him his portrayal of Christine Baskets, the loving but demanding mother of Zach Galifianakis' depressed clown in the bright, dry comedy "Baskets," which aired on FX from 2016-19.To me, Christine is one of the great characters on TV, up there with Homer Simpson, Tony and Carmela Soprano or any of the Golden Girls. She was a caricature of a matriarch, but brought complexity and nuance to a type that's usually relegated to sketch comedy, two-dimensional extras or viral videos of monstrous Karens.As a fat person, as a Midwesterner, and as a drag enthusiast with a middle-aged folksy personality, watching Christine Baskets in all her ridiculousness, nuance, power, and secret wisdom was thrilling. It was a portrait of a woman I know and love who has never been presented with such affection and skill on television, before or since.I spent my first 28 years in suburban Chicago, St. Paul, Minnesota, and Madison, Wis. The Upper Midwest is home to many like Christine: strong, hardy, hardworking women whose cheerfulness was both a trait and a strategy for navigating a world that routinely underestimates them.The women I can think of would hate that description, not only because they would consider “rugged” an offensive euphemism, but because they don't like receiving compliments. ("Worker? Me? Please, I'm just trying to make it through Friday!")In case you missed "Baskets" (it's currently streaming on Hulu), the show starred Galifianakis as Chip Baskets, a French-trained clown stuck in a rodeo in his hometown of Bakersfield, Calif. . Chip's mother, Christine, loves her four sons, has a great recipe for something called "whiskey salad" and refuses to admit that her late husband's suicide was anything but an accident.Galifianakis, who was also one of the creators, said on Marc Maron's "WTF" podcast that when designing the show, he imagined Christine speaking in Anderson's voice, which led to the idea of cast the beloved comic book and game show host. While "Baskets" was set in California, the long O's and nasal A's in Christine's accent are undoubtedly from Anderson's native Minnesota.Anderson modeled Christine on his own mother, Ora Zella Anderson, a woman he lovingly described as a "passive-aggressive Westerner". His 2018 book, "Hey Mom," was about the lessons he learned from his mother, but you needn't look any further than his "Sneakers" performance to see the impact Ora had on him.Anderson was a man portraying a woman, but he eschewed some of the better-known tropes of pick-up. It wasn't Divine in "Hairspray" or "Polyester," playing an 11-year-old housewife. Anderson's performance was more down to earth and more sensitive, but just as punchy.Christine's wardrobe — a meticulously realistic selection of costume jewelry and dressy casual outfits that seemed pulled from plus-size chain store offerings — is a much more subtle form of camp than what you'll find on "RuPaul's Drag." Race". Anderson told Terry Gross on NPR's "Fresh Air" that he chose his dresses with his mother and sisters in mind.Admittedly, Christine Baskets was ridiculous. When she first travels to Denver, she immediately tells the airport taxi driver "I love Denver!" After buying a rodeo, she proudly puts a nameplate on her desk that reads "Ro-de-Owner." She's shocked that a black stranger isn't as interested as she is in visiting the Reagan Memorial Library.But we laugh with her as much as we laugh at her, and we root as much as we cringe. It's the kind of laugh you share with your sibling when your mom does something embarrassing: you love her, but oh my god, are you kidding me?Christine was the butt of jokes, but she was no one's fool. In "Uncle Dad," a Season 1 episode, Christine shows Penelope, a Frenchwoman, around Bakersfield whose interest in marrying Chip only goes so far as a green card. One stop is Costco, the bulk retailer that featured prominently in several "Sneakers" episodes even though it wasn't actually a sponsor."Acid reducer!" This stuff is a lifesaver! Christine screams as she throws nearly an entire case of generic Prilosec into her cart. “Do you have multipacks like this in France? »"I don't think we take as many drugs in France as you do," smiles Penelope."Oh, well, that's too bad," Christine replies with genuine pity in her eyes.But Christine is not unaware of Penelope's condescension or opportunism. At the end of the episode, she unfolds a plan to send Penelope back to France and out of her son's life, booking Penelope's flight and driving her to the airport herself. "I'm not as simple as you think, darling," Christine said, her playful demeanor cracking just enough to reveal steely determination.Anderson's height added another layer of complexity to Christine. When Christine puts on a bathing suit and resolutely practices water aerobics alone in a lake in the middle of the night, in an episode of season 2, she inhabits her body in a way that we are not used to seeing in the world. movies or on TV.On screen, fat bodies in swimsuits are usually used as visual gags, such as when (to cite just one of many examples) Gwyneth Paltrow jumps into the pool while wearing a fat suit in "Shallow Hall". We saw them being humiliated and abused in "The Biggest Loser." Sometimes we've even seen them celebrated, like in the triumphant pool party scene in Aidy Bryant's comedy "Shrill."But Christine deviates from all these representations. Her body is sometimes a source of pain and sometimes a source of power, but it is always treated with tenderness and honesty.She is sometimes sheepish about her appearance, but has interests and goals besides losing weight. Her love, Ken, is drawn to her, but she accepts his affection without sassy confidence or crippling insecurity. When a diagnosis of type 2 diabetes forces her to start exercising, she is simultaneously excited, nervous, embarrassed and determined.Christine Baskets was many things at once. She was laughable, she was strong, she was powerful, she was vulnerable, and she was deeply in denial of some painful truths in her life. She was exaggerating, but she was true to the spirit of real women whom I have never seen depicted elsewhere with such care and virtuosity.She'll miss me. Read the full article

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European stocks slide after worst week for global stocks since 2020

European and Asian stocks suffered further selling after the worst week for global equities in more than a year as investors weighed the possibility of monetary policy tightening from the US Federal Reserve.Shares of tech companies that have thrived during the pandemic led the declines on Monday as investors continued to pull back from the sector amid fears that global central banks would start cutting stimulus more aggressively later this year.The Stoxx Europe 600 regional equity index fell 1.9%, with its technology sub-index losing 3.4%. South Korea's tech-heavy Kospi index fell 1.5% and Hong Kong's Hang Seng Tech index fell 2.8%. Investors are focused on the prospect of the Fed becoming more hawkish at its rate-setting meeting this week to combat soaring inflation. Goldman Sachs said over the weekend that it expected the Fed to signal it would start raising interest rates from all-time lows in March. The Wall Street bank also warned clients of a "risk that the Federal Open Market Committee may want to take tightening action at every meeting until this picture changes."Futures markets have estimated that the Fed will raise its benchmark interest rate to more than 1% by December, after keeping it near zero since March 2020. The yield on the benchmark 10-year US Treasury note, which underpins global debt pricing, was flat at 1.742% on Monday, but rose just over 1.5% at the end of the month. 'last year. While higher interest rates increase borrowing costs for all businesses, they also make projected corporate earnings worth less in investor valuation models, with an amplified effect for tech companies. and other growth companies whose peak profits aren't expected for years.In the United States, an index of unprofitable technology stocks compiled by Goldman has lost about a fifth of its value this year. The Tokyo Stock Exchange's mother market for high-growth start-ups fell around 18%. Tech stocks had become overvalued during the pandemic era, Morgan Stanley strategist Michael Wilson wrote in a note to clients.The selloff, he said, "is appropriate in our view, not just because the Fed is pivoting, but because these kinds of valuations don't make sense in any investment environment."

advised

The FTSE All-World stock market index lost more than 4% last week in its biggest fall since October 2020, with a subscriber growth warning from streaming giant Netflix casting a shadow over the start of the season quarterly results. Stocks on Wall Street were particularly hard hit, with the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite losing 7.6%. U.S. stock index futures pointed to further declines on Monday, with those tracking an index of the largest Nasdaq 100 stocks down 0.6%. Sign of growing anxiety, US retail investors have become cautious. A survey of members of the American Association of Individual Investors found that 47% were “bearish” in the week to January 19, compared to an all-time average of 31%. The global cryptocurrency market also suffered another selloff after falling sharply on Friday. Bitcoin, the largest digital currency by market value, fell 8% to $33,580, the lowest level since July 2021. Read the full article

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McDonald's security guard punches woman in the face

McDonald's security guard punches woman in the face then drags her across restaurant floor in shocking video caught by horrified witness

A woman was punched in the face at a McDonald's in York on Saturday night Onlookers ask 'Is she cold?' as the security guard drags her out McDonald's said it has a 'zero tolerance' policy on violence of any kind The security guard, who works for a separate company, was removed from his postBy Henry Martin for Mailonline Published: 10:29 GMT, January 24, 2022 | Update: 10:29 GMT, January 24, 2022 --> --> --> A woman was punched in the face and dragged across the floor by a McDonald's security guard.Stunned witnesses saw the customer collapse after being punched by a man wearing a high-visibility jacket at one of the chain's restaurants in York around 6.30pm on Saturday, The Sun reports. Footage of the confrontation shows the security guard telling the woman "go ahead" and pointing to the exit, before saying "see you later" and throwing her to the ground. The client kicks the guard, but is then dragged off the premises as the witnesses ignore the scenes or laugh.

Stunned witnesses saw the customer collapse after being punched by a man wearing a high-visibility jacket at one of the chain's restaurants in York around 6.30pm on Saturday.One viewer can be heard saying "She just got wrecked", and another asks "Is she cold?"The security guard, who works for a separate company, has been removed from his post and the fast food giant is investigating the incident. A McDonald's spokesperson told MailOnline: 'We have a zero tolerance policy when it comes to violence or abuse of any kind."The individual in question works for an external security company and will not be on duty at any of our restaurants while we fully investigate this incident." Advertising Share or comment on this article: . Read the full article

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US orders families of embassy staff to leave Ukraine amid Russian military buildup

The State Department has ordered the families of employees of the U.S. Embassy in Kyiv, Ukraine, to leave the country and allowed some US government employees to leave because of the potential for Russian military action. Russian military action anywhere in Ukraine would have serious implications for the embassy's ability to provide consular services, including assistance to US citizens leaving Ukraine, a State Department official told reporters. Sunday night. The State Department urges those who can depart to do so on commercially available flights. Decisions were made with great caution due to Russia's continued military build-up and disinformation campaigns, a senior State Department official said. The State Department does not have a "hard number" on the number of Americans in Ukraine, according to the official, because no one is required to register with the embassy while there. Russia has amassed over 100,000 troops on the Ukrainian border, and while the United States does not know if Russian President Vladimir Putin has made the decision to invade or if a decision is imminent, he has built the military capacity to invade at any time, said one of the managers. An instructor trains members of the Ukrainian Territorial Defense Forces, volunteer military units of the Armed Forces, in a city park in Kiev, Ukraine, Saturday, Jan. 22, 2022. Dozens of civilians have joined army reserves Ukrainian in recent weeks amid fears over Russian invasion. Efrem Lukatsky/AP Concern has increased due to the entry of Russian forces into Belarus, just north of Ukraine, to conduct joint military exercises, according to the Russian Defense Ministry. “If Russia chooses to engage in further military aggression, it has the flexibility to launch the attack from different directions depending on where it can launch these incursions against Ukraine,” an official said. The State Department's travel advisory to Ukraine was already at level four, the highest level, due to COVID-19, but the advisory has been updated to urge citizens not to travel. in the country due to concerns about the potential for significant Russian military action against Ukraine. Should an incursion occur, security conditions along occupied Crimea and eastern Ukraine are unpredictable and could deteriorate at any time, the official said. Although Crimea and eastern parts of Ukraine are of particular concern, Russian military action anywhere in Ukraine would severely affect the Embassy's ability to provide services. Last month, the United States authorized an additional $200 million in defensive aid, and the first shipment containing lethal aid for Ukraine's defensive forces arrived in Kyiv on Saturday. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said "Face the Nationon Sunday that there will be "massive consequences" for Russia if its military forces invade Ukraine. Blinken warns of 'massive consequences' for R... 08:18 "Russia will make its decisions according to the president Putin's calculation of what's in their interest,” Blinken said. “We are working very hard to affect that calculus, both in terms of offering a diplomatic channel that could improve collective security for all of us and also a channel of defense and deterrence, it shows very clearly that s there is aggression, there will be massive consequences. So the choice is his."President Biden said last week it was his "guess" that Russia would invade Ukraine, and the White House has sought to backtrack on comments he made during a press conference On Wednesday, it suggested there could be divisions among Western nations over the consequences Russia might face if it launched a "minor incursion" into Ukrainian territory. The Russian government has always denied any plans to attack Ukraine, but it also leaves on the table the option of unspecified "military action" if the United States and the West refuse to grant what Putin called "security guarantees" limiting NATO actions in the region. On Monday, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said staffing at the US embassy in Kyiv was "a matter for the US side", but she suggested it had more to do with "how they build their news program" than any real security concerns.

Ukraine and NATO allies react

Britain, which has remained in close sync with US rhetoric on Ukraine, said on Monday it was also withdrawing some embassy staff and their dependents from Kyiv due to "a growing threat of Russia", but that the British Embassy would remain open "and continue to carry out essential work".However, other European countries have been reluctant to support the level of sanctions the United States has proposed in response to any Russian military action against Ukraine, and on Monday, the European Union's top diplomat, Josep Borrell, said said the bloc "wasn't going to do the same" as the US and UK with its embassy staff, "because we don't know of any specific reason". "I don't think we have to overreact when it comes to the negotiations," Borrell said, referring to the talks with Russia, "and they are continuing." Russia is increasing its military presence on the Ukrainian border... 01:44 Even Ukraine seemed uncomfortable with the latest US decision."We consider such a move by the United States to be premature and a show of excessive caution," Ukrainian Foreign Ministry spokesman Oleg Nikolenko said in a statement. He said there had been "no drastic change" in the security situation along his country's borders.Nikolenko said that amid Russia's "active efforts" to destabilize his country, through "disinformation, manipulation", to "sow panic among Ukrainians and foreigners...it is important to access soberly risk and keep calm". CBS News' Tucker Reals contributed to this report. Following Eleanor Watson CBS News reporter covering the Pentagon. . Read the full article

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15 movies that actors were contractually obligated to do

Talk about a bad day at work 😬

No matter how much you love your career, it probably comes with a few tasks that you absolutely hate doing.

When you're an actor, that part of your job you hate could very well be a all movie.

Fox / Via giphy.com Despite an actor's preferences for the projects he wants to take on, the contracts he signs may lock him into certain films or prevent him from playing other roles. If they break those contracts, they could face legal action from the studio.

Here are 15 actors who were contractually obligated to make movies they hated:

1. Keanu Reeves has alleged that a friend forged his signature on the contract which locked him into The Observer, but, unable to prove his claims, he decided to make the film instead of pursuing legal action.

Universal / ©Universal/Courtesy Everett Collection For legal reasons, he also had to wait a year after the film's release to speak publicly about his frustrations with the production.

2. Ryan Reynolds was attached to the dead Pool movie before the script was written, so when X-Men: Origins went into production, the studio basically told him, "Play Deadpool in this movie, or we'll have someone else do it."

20thcentfox / ©20thCentFox/courtesy Everett Collection He told Entertainment Weekly, "I just said, 'I'm going to do it, but it's not the right version. Deadpool is not right.'"The film was shot during the 2007-2008 Writers Guild of America strike, so he had to write all of his lines himself.

3. Facing a $20 million lawsuit for reneging on a verbal pact she made to star in Theodore Rex, Whoopi Goldberg took on the role of Katie Coltrane.

New Line Cinema / ©New Line Cinema/courtesy Everett Collection In her countersuit, Goldberg claimed she never agreed to do the film, but producer Richard Abramson found a recording on her answering machine of a conversation in which she said she was "100% committed".After several mediations, they met out of court, and Goldberg agreed to make the film for $7 million instead of the original offer of $5 million. She also banned Abramson from the set.

4. After a months-long legal battle with Universal over the failed film Diet, Mike Myers has come to terms and agreed to do another film with the studio – The cat in the hat.

Universal / ©Universal/Courtesy Everett Collection Costar Amy Hill told the AV Club that Myers was a "diva" on set. She said: "I don't think he knew anyone. He was just with his people and he walked away. People would come and then he just stood there. There was a guy who was holding his chocolates in a little Tupperware. Whenever he needed chocolate, he would come running and give her a chocolate."

5. Natalie Portman lobbied for Patty Jenkins to direct Thor: The Dark World, but after Jenkins left the project out of fear that the bad script would be blamed on her, Portman was still contractually obligated to reprise her role as Jane Foster.

Walt Disney Co. / ©Walt Disney Co./courtesy Everett Collection Portman was initially excited to join the film because, with Jenkins at the helm, it would have been the first superhero film to be directed by a woman. Jenkins was replaced by Alan Taylor, but she still became the first woman to direct a superhero movie starring wonder woman.

6. Emily Blunt wanted to accept the role of Black Widow in iron man 2, but she had to drop out because she was already under contract to do Gulliver's Travels.

20thcentfox / ©20thCentFox/courtesy Everett Collection She said The Howard Stern Show, "It was a bit heartbreaking for me. I'm so proud of the decisions I make, and they mean so much to me, the movies I make."

seven. Bill Murray signed on to voice the iconic orange cat in Garfield: the movie because he misinterpreted the director's name as Jeff Coen (Burn after reading and Fargo), when it was actually Jeff Cohen (Cheaper by the dozen and Dad day camp).

John Phillips/Getty Images for BFI/20th Century Fox Film Corp Courtesy of Everett Collection The production also experienced continuous delays. In a Reddit AMA, Murray said, "It was kind of like Fantastic Mr. Fox without joy or pleasure."

8. After director Steven Spielberg refused Jaws 2, Roy Scheider also wanted to bail out, but Universal forced him to reprise the role of Martin Brody due to a contract dispute.

Universal / ©Universal/Courtesy Everett Collection The studio paid Scheider four times as much for the sequel as they paid him for the original Jaws.

9. Channing Tatum said that as part of their three-picture deal, Paramount didn't give him the ability to transmit GI Joe: The Rise of the Cobra, so he was "pushed" to take on the role of Duke.

Paramount / ©Paramount/courtesy Everett Collection

ten. Jennifer Garner hated playing the main character in Electra, but because she originated the role in daredevil, the spin-off was part of his contract.

20thcentfox / ©20thCentFox/courtesy Everett Collection She told Movie Web: "It's such a shame, honestly, because once Kevin resumed , everything was high there: the writing, the staging, the comedy inside the stories they told. And I haven't had that experience."

11. Val Kilmer deliberately botched his audition to Superior gun, but due to contractual obligations, he still had to take on the role of Iceman.

Paramount / ©Paramount/courtesy Everett Collection Decades later, however, he asked to be included in Top Gun: Maverick. In his memoir, he wrote, "I not only reached out to the producers, but I created some heartbreaking scenes with Iceman... The producers went for it. Cruise went there."

12. To avoid being sued by Paramount Pictures, Edward Norton took on the role of Steve in Italian work.

Paramount / ©Paramount/courtesy Everett Collection His lawyers alleged that he felt "betrayed and lied to by Paramount executives".

13. Paul Bettany only agreed to be in Dogville because Stellan Skarsgård lied saying it would be "fantastic" and "like a party all the time", but in truth Skarsgård "couldn't cope without ."

Lions Gate / ©Lions Gate/courtesy Everett Collection Bettany told the Guardian: "I found it to be a particularly unsatisfying experience because has no interest in you being part of the brain process with him. You are absolutely his puppet."Although he deliberately never watched the film himself, he said the director "is extraordinary and a sensation".

14. Matt Damon said the script for The Bourne Ultimatum - the third Jason Bourne the film he starred in - was "illegible", "career ending" and "embarrassing".

Universal / ©Universal/Courtesy Everett Collection Screenwriter Tony Gilroy brokered a deal to hand over just a single draft of the script with no notes or rewrites for "an exorbitant amount of money".Damon told GQ, "It's really the studio's fault for putting themselves in that position. ... He was trying, basically, and he took his money and walked away."

15. And finally, at the height of his professional rivalry with Sylvester Stallone, Arnold Schwarzenegger read the terrible script of Stop! Or my mother will shoot then spread a rumor that there was "tremendous interest", which he knew would sway Stallone to accept the lead role.

Universal / ©Universal/Courtesy Everett Collection Stallone described the film as "one of the worst films in the entire solar system, including extraterrestrial productions, that we have ever seen".It earned him his fourth Worst Actor Razzie.

Television and movies

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Emirates cabin crew face the weight police

Former Emirates flight attendants claimed they would be watched and punished by the airline's groomers if they were found to be overweight.Former employees described how some staff were enrolled in an 'appearance management programme' run by image and grooming officers to ensure they sported a 'glamorous Emirates face ".Officers, known as the "weight police", regularly monitored the weight of staff on the program and issued penalties such as pay cuts if they failed to meet airline requirements. Karla Bayson, 36, who worked for the airline for nine years before she left in 2021, said she saw some of her colleagues receive weight warnings.

Former Emirates flight attendant Karla Bayson, 36, who worked for the airline for nine years, said her colleagues would receive weight warnings.

Maya Dukaric claimed 'weight police' occasionally arrest cabin crew at airports She told the Insider that some staffers were given a total of two weeks to lose weight before being "checked again" by officers.Ms Bayson also described how the airline was strict with its uniform rules and no one with visible tattoos would be hired. And Maya Dukaric, who previously worked as a flight attendant for the airline, claimed the "weight police" occasionally stop cabin crew at airports and said: 'Hi baby. You have to slow it down. A former HR business partner, who wished to remain anonymous, said people on the weight management program receive diet and exercise plans and meet with HR to assess their progress.The source, who worked for Emirates for more than five years, said failure to meet weight targets set by airline officials would result in penalties such as pay cuts.They also estimated that "150 people out of 25,000" cabin crew were on the program at any given time.The latest claims come just months after an Emirates flight attendant claimed she quit her 10-year career after spending three years on a weight management programme, which involved weight checks random before the flights. Duygu Karaman, who lives in High Wycombe, said that for the past three years of working for the airline her body size had been monitored because an unnamed colleague complained that she was 'too heavy ". She explained that despite being a size 12, weighing 10 pounds and 7 pounds, the airline started tracking her BMI and would be randomly pulled out for weight checks before flights.The flight attendant claimed Emirates airline put her on a weight management program because she was 2kg overweight.

Former employees described how some staff members were enrolled in an “appearance management program”. (File image)

The officers, known as the "weight police", regularly monitored the weight of staff participating in the program. (File image)Ms Duygu told the Mirror the nutrition department didn't give much advice, saying: 'They give you an A4 sheet of paper which just says, 'Don't eat rice, don't eat bread'. stuff like that."It was stuff everyone knows about like getting regular sleep, which I can't do because of work." She also claimed she knew of colleagues who had been 'sentenced' due to weight issues, officers cutting pay or suspending flights. The stewardess explained that her weight would fluctuate and the random checks would upset her.She said employees had to stay at the required weight for a year before being taken off the weight management program, but every time she gained a pound or two, she was reset to zero months.Now studying at the University of Reading to become a dietician, Ms Duygu added that she believed she had been in the job too long and was now happier since resigning. MailOnline has approached Emirates for comment. . Read the full article

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Andrew Garfield on Screening Spider-Man With Tobey Maguire: "It Was Surreal"

Andrew Garfield recounts the "surreal" experience of sneaking into a Spider Man screening with sound No coming home co-star Tobey Maguire. Joining their Spider-Man successor Tom Holland in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, the multiversal crossover of No coming home is Garfield's first time reprising the role since 2014 The Amazing Spider-Man 2 and Maguire's first since 2007 Spiderman 3. In a new interview with SiriusXM The Jess Cagle Show, Garfield reveals how the Spider Man the stars kept their identities a secret while watching a Marvel movie opening night with a packed audience. "If Tobey and I kind of put on a baseball cap and wear our Covid N95 masks, we look like a few white guys and that's kind of it. We're just two other white guys who love Spider-Man, and we go there and get our popcorn, and hang ourselves," Garfield said. "It really was that simple. There was no time where we felt like we were going to be mobbed. It was really fun, it was a lovely little private shot that we had. It was surreal." Garfield and Maguire kept the secret lair a secret until the screening of No coming home. The Spider-Men then posed for photos and were spotted wearing their "disguises" in a viral photo posted to Twitter. “I had never seen the film before. Amy and Kevin Feige had arranged a screening for us that I couldn't attend because I was filming,” Garfield said. “Tobey had seen it before, but I hadn't seen it. I saw him for the first time with him and with an audience. It was one of those moments you will never forget." In a previous interview on the Happy Sad Confused podcast, Garfield said denying and lying about Spider-Men returns was "the right thing to do." "Even with the people who I think were pretty sure it was going to happen, I'm sure there was a little glimmer of doubt as they walked in to see Spider-Man: No Coming Home which allowed them to break free and say, 'Yeah, it happened,'" Garfield said of the long-running comebacks of the Spider Man and amazing spider man stars. "I think it was the absolute thing to do. It gave me fun things to say, deny and talk about Photoshop, even when it was clearly me on set to Spider Man wearing a Spider-Man (Laughs). I loved it." Spider-Man: No Coming Home is now playing exclusively in theaters and will soon be available on its own on digital. . Read the full article