Kim Kardashian and boyfriend Kanye West are said to be against making their unborn child a reality TV star in the first years of its life.
TMZ cited sources close to the family as saying Kim Kardashian and Kanye West had decided to shield their kid from the cameras to “ensure real privacy” for their offspring.
The entertainment website said even when baby Kimye grows up it still may never appear on the family’s hit show Keeping Up With the Kardashians, or any of its spinoffs.
Kim Kardashian and boyfriend Kanye West are said to be against making their unborn child a reality TV star in the first years of its life
Kim Kardashian’s sister Kourtney has often kept her children, son Mason and daughter Penelope, away from the spotlight too.
Kourtney Kardashian told People in 2011 she got “weirded out to have [Mason] on camera”, adding, “he can’t make the decision if he wants to be involved in this craziness or not”.
Kim Kardashian is believed to be about 12 weeks into the pregnancy, which was announced onstage by her rapper boyfriend.
Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt are rumored to have married in a Christmas Day ceremony in the Caribbean, according to reports.
The MailOnline reports Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie tied the knot in an intimate ceremony on the Turks and Caicos Islands.
News of their reported nuptials comes 8 months after Brad Pitt, 49, and Angelina Jolie, 37, announced their engagement in April 2012 after seven years together.
Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie have been spending the Christmas and New Year holiday at the private Parrot Cay estate of American fashion designer Donna Karan.
Joining the duo are their six children, Brad Pitt’s parents Jane and William Pitt, his brother Doug and sister Julie.
One local told journalist Jeffrey Slonim that the couple had allegedly hired 12 nannies to take care of their large brood for the vacation, The Telegraph reported.
Architectural Digest editor-at-large Jeffrey Slonim posted on his blog: “At lunch on a small island three away from Parrot Cay.
“A woman said she’d heard from a local that [Pitt and Jolie] were in town with two nannies per child. Count ‘em, 12 nannies!”
Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt are rumored to have married in a Christmas Day ceremony in the Caribbean
Speculation Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt had finally wed comes after a magazine report in early December claimed the pair had picked up their wedding rings from celebrity jeweller Neil Lane.
InTouch magazine wrote: “On November 27, a stylist for the actress picked up wedding rings from Neil Lane jewelers for the couple.”
In November, Brad Pitt told reporters on the red carpet of the New York premiere of his film Killing Me Softly the nuptials would be “soon”.
He said: “The time is nigh. It’s soon. I got a good feeling about it.
“I am getting more pressure from my kids, and it is something I want to do within their lifetime, but I also feel like the time has come.”
Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt famously met on the set of Mr. And Mrs. Smith in 2004, when Brad was still married to first wife Jennifer Aniston.
However, by January 2005, Hollywood’s golden couple had separated with Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie’s romance finally being confirmed in April that year when they were photographed on a beach in Kenya with their now jointly-adopted son Maddox.
Three months later, they went on to adopt Ethiopian daughter Zahara together.
In January 2006, Angelina Jolie confirmed she was pregnant with their first biological child together, a daughter Shiloh.
They also adopted son Pax from Vietnam in March 2007, and Angelina Jolie gave birth to twins Knox and Vivienne in France in July 2008.
If the couple have indeed wed, it will be the second marriage for Brad Pitt and third for Angelina Jolie.
Brad Pitt wed Jennifer aniston in a lavish ceremony at a private house in Malibu in July 2000 after a two year courtship.
Meanwhile, Angelina Jolie wed English actor Jonny Lee Miller in March 1996 with the groom’s name written in blood on the white T-shirt she was wearing.
They separated after 18 months together and Angelina Jolie was going on to tie the knot with American actor Billy Bob Thornton in May 2000 after dating for just two months.
However, Angelina Jolie and Billy Bob Thornton split in May 2002 shortly after adopting son Maddox from Cambodia.
Hit film Les Miserables isn’t exactly a barrel of laughs, but, for one New York family, the experience of seeing the musical tearjerker on the big screen proved positively overwhelming.
Amused by their parents’ tearful reaction to seeing the film, Ryan and Kevin Ferguson uploaded a video to YouTube of the couple crying as they drove home from the cinema.
Their distraught mother asks her husband: “Wasn’t it better than the play, George? It was better than the play.”
Their father also found the film devastating, admitting that it didn’t take much for the waterworks to start.
“When I hear the first notes I start to cry,” he said.
“I was walking in I was crying. I look at Anne Hathaway and I still cry.”
He went on: “We’ve been to funerals where we’re less upset. We’ve been to funerals of family members and have cried less.”
Couple can’t stop crying after seeing Les Miserables
As their sobs continue, the brothers begin to laugh, drawing a horrified response from their mother.
“How could you laugh?” she asks Ryan, to which he responds: “I’m not laughing! I was sad too.”
The brothers were clearly tickled by their parents’ reaction, describing them as “cute”.
“My father was crying too, as my brother and I had earlier during the movie,” Ryan Ferguson wrote beneath the video.
“This is a lighthearted video showing how great my parents are.”
The video become viral and hit thousands of views since was posted on YouTube few days ago.
Official pictures from inside Crystal Harris and Hugh Hefner’s nuptials at the Playboy Mansion have finally been revealed, showing the pair’s magical day in all its glory.
In the shots, Crystal Harris, 26, wearing a pale pink mermaid dress, is seen cuddling up to her new 86-year-old husband, who looked dapper in his black tuxedo.
The newlyweds smile for the camera as they pose up underneath a floral archway, with Crystal Harris keeping a tight hold on Hugh Hefner’s dog Charlie, who was dressed in a cute tuxedo for the occasion.
In another shot, Crystal Harris and her Playboy magnate husband toasted the future with a glass of champagne while cutting their wedding cake – which featured a picture of the happy couple on the top.
Earlier in the day, Crystal Harris had shared pictures of her happy day, and her stunning but revealing dress, on her Twitter page.
The frock, which Crystal Harris described as her “mermaid dress”, was far sexier than a typical bridal gown and showed off a good deal of her ample cleavage.
The dress was fitted to Crystal Harris’ trim figure and the full skirt boasted pretty ruffles.
Official pictures from inside Crystal Harris and Hugh Hefner’s nuptials at the Playboy Mansion
Following the ceremony, the newlyweds then rang in 2013 with party hats and horns – and they had plenty to celebrate.
And to mark the New Year in style, Hugh Hefner opted to go for comfort as he changed into his trademark velvet smoking jacket and jaunty sailor’s cap.
Hugh Hefner’s son Cooper was not in attendance as he was hosting a Playboy New Year’s Eve party in London, and it is unclear if his daughter Christie or sons David and Marston were at the ceremony.
Crystal Harris had spent the day tweeting her excitement about the impending nuptials, including an image of a flower covered bower in front of just two dozen chairs.
Hugh Hefner shared a picture of him and his bride, tweeting: “Crystal & I married on New Year’s Eve in the Mansion with Keith as my Best Man. Love that girl!”
Crystal Harris had earlier written: “Today is the day I become Mrs. Hugh Hefner. Feeling very happy, lucky, and blessed.”
She has changed her name on the social networking site to Crystal Hefner.
Crystal Harris was dubbed a “runaway bride” by the 86-year-old mogul after she called off their engagement just days before their wedding in June 2011, with 300 guests due to attend.
After their split, the model revealed she had only been intimate with him once – and very briefly.
Crystal Harris admitted sex with the octogenarian lasted “like two seconds”, adding: “Then I was just over it. I was like, <<Ahhh>>. I was over it. I just like, walked away. I’m not turned on by Hef, sorry.”
She continued: “He doesn’t really take off his clothes. I’ve never seen Hef naked.”
Despite her comments, the pair reconciled in May this year.
A celebrity photographer has been killed after being hit by a vehicle while taking pictures of Justin Bieber’s sports car.
Police say the paparazzo died in hospital on Tuesday (January 1) evening.
Police officer James Stoughton confirmed that Justin Bieber was not in his car at the time of the crash on Sepulveda Boulevard in Los Angeles.
He also says that no charges are likely to be filed against the motorist who hit the photographer.
He did not reveal the identity of the man who had died.
Justin Bieber’s white Ferrari was parked after a traffic stop and the photographer was hit as he walked across the boulevard after taking pictures.
A celebrity photographer has been killed after being hit by a vehicle while taking pictures of Justin Bieber’s sports car
After the tragic event, Justin Bieber has called for new laws for paparazzi photography.
Following news of the man’s death, the 18-year-old singer today released a statement.
As reported by CNN, the statement said: “While I was not present nor directly involved with this tragic accident, my thoughts and prayers are with the family of the victim.
“Hopefully this tragedy will finally inspire meaningful legislation and whatever other necessary steps to protect the lives and safety of celebrities, police officers, innocent public bystanders, and the photographers themselves.”
It is believed the photographer was tailing Justin Bieber’s white Ferrari when it was pulled over by California Highway Patrol officers.
He got out of his car to take pictures but was struck by another car as he was running back to his own vehicle, sources told the Los Angeles Times.
James Stoughton said the photographer, who was not identified, died at a hospital shortly after the crash Tuesday evening.
The sports car was parked on the side of Sepulveda Boulevard near Getty Center Drive after a traffic stop. The photographer was struck as he walked across the boulevard after taking pictures.
James Stoughton says no charges are likely to be filed against the motorist who hit the man.
The LAPD is continuing to investigate the man’s death.
It seems Rihanna and Chris Brown are doing everything possible to announce to the world they’re back together as she posts new photos of themselves online appearing to share the same bed.
“Good morning! Still haven’t slept lol #hello2013,” Rihanna tweeted on Tuesday, with a photo of herself peering out from a spotted duvet.
The comforter is distinctly similar to the one posted – and deleted – by Chris Brown as he lounged in the early hours of January 1st.
“Mornings,” Chris Brown wrote from his bed, with only his legs in view.
A lump under the sheets seemed to suggest someone was lying beside him.
Rihanna tweeted with this photo on Tuesday
The snaps come after a very public display of affection between the pair, who spent Christmas Day front row at a Los Angeles Lakers game.
Rihanna, 24, left Barbados to spend Christmas Day with Chris Brown, 23, in Los Angeles.
The pair were spotted cuddling and flirting at the Staples Centre while watching the Lakers took on the New York Knicks.
Chris Brown posted a photo of himself in bed, but later deleted the image
The volatile couple reconciled earlier this year even though Chris is still on probation for assaulting her in 2009.
But the status of their relationship has recently been the topic of speculation following a series of cryptic tweets from both parties.
Rihanna took to her Instagram account on December 18 to post a message which appeared to confirm reports the couple had split.
She wrote: “Being single sucks. The only thing I get to do anymore is whatever the f*** I want to do.”
It followed claims Chris Brown partied with scantily-clad female models and lunched with ex Karrauche Tran while Dubai.
But both Rihanna and Chris Brown later posted old pictures of themselves together, hinting that they were missing each other.
A source told HollywoodLife.com Chris Brown surprised Rihanna with a romantic painting to celebrate a new start in their relationship.
“He painted this picture of him and her together and it’s [amazing]… It’s him and her together – she’s looking forward and he’s kissing her on the cheek. Chris painted the gold necklace around her neck that he got her and at the bottom he wrote <<you’re my girl for life>>,” the insider said.
Five people including a child have died in an apartment fire in Gennevilliers, a deprived northern suburb of Paris.
The blaze happened early on Wednesday. The five victims shared a flat on the fourth floor of the seven-storey block.
Eighteen people, including an infant, were hurt and most are now in hospital. About 100 firefighters tackled the fire, using a ladder to rescue people.
A firefighter quoted by French TV said the building was in good condition and it is not clear how the fire started.
Two firefighters who suffered burns to their hands were among the 18 injured.
The fire broke out shortly after 04:00 local time and was extinguished at about 06:00. The firefighters managed to prevent it spreading widely through the building.
Five people including a child have died in an apartment fire in Gennevilliers, a deprived northern suburb of Paris
As early as the Greeks and Romans people have been dieting, but while it was largely about health and fitness back then, it’s the Victorians who really kick started the fad diet.
“The Greek word diatia, from which our word diet derives, described a whole way of life,” says Louise Foxcroft, a historian and author of Calories and Corsets: A History of Dieting Over 2,000 Years.
“Dieting back then was about all-round mental and physical health. People really got a taste for fad dieting in the 19th Century. It is during this time that things tip over into dieting more for aesthetic reasons and the diet industry explodes.”
So what are the weirdest and unhealthiest fad diets from history?
Chew and spit
At the turn of the 20th Century the American, Horace Fletcher, decided a lot of chewing and spitting was the way to lose weight.
Fletcherism, as it was called, promoted chewing a mouthful of food until all “goodness” was extracted, then spitting out the fibrous material that was left.
He was fairly prescriptive in how many times you had to chew different foods. Just one shallot needed to be chewed 700 times.
It was hugely popular and had some famous followers, including Henry James and Franz Kafka.
It got to a point where people were timed at dinner parties to make sure they were chewing enough, says Louise Foxcroft.
“The diet also meant only defecating once every two weeks and it was nearly odorless, described by Fletcher as smelling like <<warm biscuits>>,” she says.
“Fletcher carried a sample of his own faeces around with him to illustrate this wonder.”
Tapeworm diet
Not for the squeamish, in the 1900s the tapeworm diet became all the rage. The opera singer Maria Callas reportedly ate the parasites to try and lose weight.
Dieters would swallow beef tapeworm cysts, usually in the form of a pill. The tapeworms reached maturity in the intestines and absorbed food. This could cause weight loss, along with diarrhoea and vomiting.
Once a person reached their desired weight they then took an anti-parasitic pill which, they hoped, would kill off the tapeworms. The dieter would then have to excrete the tapeworm, which could cause abdominal and rectal complications.
It was risky in many ways. Not only can a tapeworm grow up to 30 feet (9 m) in length, they can also cause many illnesses including headaches, eye problems, meningitis, epilepsy and dementia.
“During the 19th Century dieting became big business,” says food historian Annie Gray. “Advertising was becoming more and more sophisticated, with more and more diet products being peddled.”
The diet industry boom was also down to the rise in celebrity and the media and the development of new medicines, says Louise Foxcroft.
The weirdest and unhealthiest fad diets from history
Arsenic
Diet drugs, pills and potions became increasingly big business in the 19th Century. But these so-called “wonder-remedies” often had dangerous ingredients, including arsenic and strychnine.
“It was advertised as speeding up the metabolism, much like amphetamines do,” says Louise Foxcroft.
While the amount of arsenic in the pills was small, it was still extremely dangerous. Often dieters would take more than the recommended dose of the pills thinking they would lose more weight, risking arsenic poisoning.
Also, arsenic was occasionally not advertised as an ingredient meaning people didn’t know what they were actually taking.
“Such poisons were loosely controlled then and easily obtained for all sorts of household and medicinal purposes,” says Louise Foxcroft.
“Charlatans set themselves up as experts with diets to promote and products to sell. Plenty of people bought into these <<miracle cures>>.”
Vinegar
Celebrity dieters are nothing new. Lord Byron was one of first diet icons and helped kick start the public’s obsession with how celebrities lose weight.
Much like today people wanted to look like celebrities of the time and new diet fads were advertised in the expanding media.
And like today’s celebrities, Lord Byron worked hard to maintain his figure. In the early 1800s the poet popularized a diet consisting mainly of vinegar.
If he were alive today he would probably be endorsing a book about the diet – and it would probably be a bestseller.
In order to cleanse and purge his body he would drink vinegar daily and eat potatoes soaked in the stuff. Side effects included vomiting and diarrhoea.
Because of Lord Byron’s huge cultural influence, there was a lot of worry about the effect his dieting was having on the youth of the day.
Romantics were restricting themselves to vinegar and rice to get Lord Byron’s fashionably thin and pale look.
“Our young ladies live all their growing girlhood in semi-starvation,” wrote one critic at the time.
During this time eating patterns became more prescriptive, with set dining styles, says Annie Gray.
“This also caused people to worry about their size. Queen Victoria was terrified of putting on weight.”
Lord Byron’s strict diet:
Lord Byron said he had a “morbid propensity to fatten” and weighed himself obsessively
Records show in 1806 he weighed 13st 12lb (88 kg), but was under 9 st (57 kg) by 1811
He often had just a cup of green tea for dinner
His obsessive dieting resulted in health problems
Rubber
In the mid 1800s Charles Goodyear figured out how to improve rubber beyond its natural state with a process called vulcanization.
With the Industrial Revolution and mass production, suddenly the use of rubber expanded massively.
That included rubber knickers and corsets. The thinking behind both was that rubber held in fat but more importantly caused sweating, hopefully leading to weight loss.
They were worn by both men and women, says Louise Foxcroft. It wasn’t much fun as the skin-macerating underwear meant flesh would be softened and broken down by extended exposure to moisture, making it vulnerable to infection.
“At the time all sorts of gadgets and treatments were being advertised as the way to lose weight,” says Annie Gray.
It was World War I that curbed the fad, with rubber being needed for the war effort.
What the Greeks and Romans did right:
Diets were about how to live well and not just as an individual, also in society
Different theories existed but they believed you are what you eat
They would treat illnesses first by diet and also promoted the importance of exercise and sleep
The Greeks did promote some stranger weight-loss methods, including wrestling, avoiding sex and walking around naked
Source: Calories and Corsets: A history of dieting over 2,000 years
Researchers have found that smokers who successfully quit feel less anxious afterwards – despite the belief that smoking relieves stress.
The British Journal of Psychiatry study followed nearly 500 smokers attending NHS stop smoking clinics in England.
It found a “significant” decrease in anxiety levels among the 68 smokers who had quit after six months.
The effect was greater among those who had mood and anxiety disorders than those that smoked for pleasure.
The researchers – drawn from several universities including Cambridge, Oxford and Kings’s College in London – said the findings should be used to reassure smokers attempting to quit that concerns about increased anxiety levels were unfounded.
Researchers have found that smokers who successfully quit feel less anxious afterwards, despite the belief that smoking relieves stress
However, the study did suggest that a failed attempt to seemed to increase anxiety levels by a modest degree among those who had mood disorders.
For those who smoked for pleasure a relapse did not alter anxiety levels.
The researchers said it seemed that smokers – particularly those that smoked to cope – were more likely to have a cigarette soon after waking up to stave off withdrawal symptoms, which include anxiety.
By quitting, they removed these repeated episodes of anxiety and felt less anxious as a result, they added.
It comes as the government has launched a graphic anti-smoking advertising campaign, which features a cigarette with a tumor growing from it, and as many smokers prepare to quit as part of their new year resolutions.
European and Asian markets have gained after a short-term deal to stave off the so-called US fiscal cliff was reached.
UK shares jumped 1.5% while other European indexes were also higher.
Failure to agree a deal would have triggered spending cuts and tax increases worth $600 billion.
There had been fears that the measures would have derailed the modest recovery in the world’s biggest economy and perhaps even push it back into recession.
German stocks gained by 1.6%, while France’s Cac 40 rose 1.4% and Italy’s stocks gained 2%.
In the US, the lower chamber of Congress passed a deal backing a compromise that had already passed in the Senate, which raises taxes for the wealthy and delays spending cuts for two months.
The fiscal cliff measures – cutting spending and increasing taxes dramatically – came into effect automatically at midnight on Monday when George W. Bush-era tax cuts expired.
European and Asian markets have gained after a short-term deal to stave off the so-called US fiscal cliff was reached
The 31st of December deadline triggered tax increases of about $536 billion and spending cuts of $109bn from domestic and military programmes – which has now been averted.
Shares worldwide had been hurt in November and December by fears that the US would not be able to reach any kind of agreement and would go off the cliff.
Earlier, Asian shares gained on the news of the deal. The US is also a key market for most of Asia’s export-dependent economies.
The US dollar rose, jumping against the Japanese yen. The Japanese currency was at 87.30 yen against the US dollar at one point, its lowest level since July 2010.
The yen has fallen almost 9% against the US dollar since November 15.
US Congress last night finally passed a deal to avoid the so-called fiscal cliff, as critics attacked the Republican party for giving in and allowing tax hikes on wealthy Americans in return for minimal spending cuts.
President Barack Obama was in a triumphant mood as he addressed the nation after the vote on Capitol Hill, even winking at photographers before flying back to Hawaii to resume his vacation.
Income tax rates: Extends decade-old tax cuts on incomes up to $400,000 for individuals, $450,000 for couples. Earnings above those amounts would be taxed at a rate of 39.6%, up from the current 35%. Extends Bill Clinton-era caps on itemized deductions and the phase-out of the personal exemption for individuals making more than $250,000 andcouples earning more than $300,000.
Estate tax: Estates would be taxed at a top rate of 40%, with the first $5 million in value exempted for individual estates and $10 million for family estates. In 2012, such estates were subject to a top rate of 35%.
Capital gains, dividends: Taxes on capital gains and dividend income exceeding $400,000 for individuals and $450,000 for families would increase from 15% to 20%.
US Congress finally passed a deal to avoid the so-called fiscal cliff
Alternative minimum tax: Permanently addresses the alternative minimum tax and indexes it for inflation to prevent nearly 30 million middle- and upper-middle income taxpayers from being hit with higher tax bills averaging almost $3,000. The tax was originally designed to ensure that the wealthy did not avoid owing taxes by using loopholes.
Other tax changes: Extends for five years Obama-sought expansions of the child tax credit, earned income tax credit, and an up to $2,500 tax credit for college tuition. Also extends for one year accelerated “bonus” depreciation of business investments in new property and equipment, a tax credit for research and development costs and a tax credit for renewable energy such as wind-generated electricity.
Unemployment benefits: Extends jobless benefits for the long-term unemployed for one year.
Cuts in Medicare reimbursements to doctors: Blocks a 27% cut in Medicare payments to doctors for one year. The cut is the product of an obsolete 1997 budget formula.
Social Security payroll tax cut: Allows a 2 percentage point cut in the payroll tax first enacted two years ago to lapse, which restores the payroll tax to 6.2%.
Across-the-board cuts: Delays for two months $109 billion worth of across-the-board spending cuts set to start striking the Pentagon and domestic agencies this week. Cost of $24 billion is divided between spending cuts and new revenues from rules changes on converting traditional individual retirement accounts into Roth IRAs.
President Barack Obama has hailed a deal reached to stave off a “fiscal cliff” of drastic taxation and spending measures as “just one step in the broader effort to strengthen the economy”.
Barack Obama was speaking after the House of Representatives passed a Senate-backed bill by 257 votes to 167.
It raises taxes for the wealthy and delays spending cuts for two months.
There had been intense pressure for the vote to be passed before financial markets reopened on Wednesday.
In Tuesday night’s house vote, 172 Democrats and 85 Republicans voted in favor of the bill.
A majority of Republicans, 151 in total, voted no, along with 16 Democrats.
The bill had been passed in the Senate less than 24 hours earlier by 89 votes to eight after lengthy talks between Vice-President Joe Biden and Senate Republicans.
Barack Obama has hailed a deal reached to stave off a fiscal cliff of drastic taxation and spending measures
Asian markets have responded positively to the move, with Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index up 2.1% on Wednesday morning, while South Korea’s Kospi added 1.7% and Australia’s ASX 200 rose 1.2%.
Speaking before returning to Hawaii for his interrupted Christmas holiday, Barack Obama said that in signing the law he was fulfilling a campaign pledge.
“I will sign a law that raises taxes on the wealthiest 2% of Americans… while preventing a middle-class tax hike,” he told a White House press conference.
The US deficit was still too high, Barack Obama said: “While open to compromise on budgetary issues, he would not offer Congress spending cuts in return for lifting the government’s borrowing limit, known as the debt ceiling.”
“There is a path forward, if we focus not on politics, but on what’s right for the country,” he added.
The “fiscal cliff” measures – cutting spending and increasing taxes dramatically – came into effect automatically at midnight on Monday when George W. Bush-era tax cuts expired.
The 1st of January deadline triggered tax increases of about $536 billion and spending cuts of $109bn from domestic and military programmes.
Economists had warned that if the full effects of the fiscal cliff were allowed to take hold, the resulting reduction in consumer spending could have sparked a new recession.
The compromise deal extends the tax cuts for Americans earning under $400,000 – up from the $250,000 level Democrats had originally sought.
In addition to the income tax rates and spending cuts, the package includes:
Rises in inheritance taxes from 35% to 40% after the first $5 million for an individual and $10 million for a couple
Rises in capital taxes – affecting some investment income – of up to 20%, but less than the 39.6% that would prevail without a deal
One-year extension for unemployment benefits, affecting two million people
Five-year extension for tax credits that help poorer and middle-class families
Experts say that people watching their weight should pay close attention to how much alcohol they drink since it is second only to fat in terms of calorie content.
According to the World Cancer Research Fund (WCRF), alcohol makes up nearly 10% of total calorie intake among drinkers.
Having a large glass of wine will cost you the same 178 calories as eating two chocolate digestive biscuits.
And it will take you more than a half hour’s brisk walk to burn off.
Eating or drinking too many calories on a regular basis can lead to weight gain.
But unlike food, alcoholic drinks have very little or no nutritional value.
The “empty calories” in drinks are often forgotten or ignored by dieters, says the WCRF.
Experts say that people watching their weight should pay close attention to how much alcohol they drink since it is second only to fat in terms of calorie content
Kate Mendoza, head of health information at WCRF, said: “Recent reports have shown that people are unaware of calories in drinks and don’t include them when calculating their daily consumption.”
Containing 7 kcal/g, alcohol is only slightly less calorific than fat, which contains 9 kcal/g.
Protein and carbohydrates contain 4 kcal/g and fibre 2 kcal/g.
Men need around 2,500 calories a day, and women around 2,000.
“Cutting down on drinking can have a big effect on weight loss or maintaining a healthy weight,” said Kate Mendoza.
It can also reduce your risk of cancer, she said.
Alcohol has been linked with breast, bowel, mouth and liver cancer.
If you don’t want to abstain entirely, there are ways that can help you cut down, including opting for smaller glass sizes, diluting alcohol with soda water or a low-calorie soft drink, alternating between alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks and keeping a few nights each week booze-free.
WCRF has produced an Alcohol Calorie Calculator for different drinks that shows approximately how much exercise you would need to do to burn off the alcohol calories you consume.
Government guidelines recommend men should not regularly drink more than 3-4 units of alcohol a day, and women should limit themselves to 2-3 units a day.
A standard 175 ml glass of wine contains about two units and a large 250 ml glass contains about three units.
If you have had a heavy drinking session, you should avoid alcohol for at least 48 hours, experts advise.
Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez is conscious but in a “delicate and complex situation” after a cancer operation in Cuba, says his deputy, Nicolas Maduro.
Vice-President Nicolas Maduro said he had seen Hugo Chavez twice in the past two days.
The 58-year-old president has been in power since 1999 and was elected for a fourth term in office in October.
Hugo Chavez is due to be sworn in for a new term on January 10, but it is unclear if he will be able to attend ceremony.
But Nicolas Maduro angrily denounced speculation the president’s health was failing.
Earlier, Venezuelan cabinet ministers prayed for Hugo Chavez’s recovery during a Mass at the presidential palace in Caracas.
Official New Year celebrations were called off after Nicolas Maduro announced the president had suffered new complications.
Speaking in Havana, Nicolas Maduro said he had visited Hugo Chavez in hospital twice since arriving on Saturday.
“We have faith in God and in the doctors that Hugo Chavez will continue to make progress and sooner or later will emerge from this complex and delicate post-operative state he is in,” he told the Latin American satellite network Telesur.
President Hugo Chavez is conscious but in a delicate and complex situation after cancer operation in Cuba, says his deputy, Nicolas Maduro
But he gave very little further concrete information about the condition of the president, who underwent his operation on December 11.
He said Hugo Chavez gripped his hand “with gigantic force” as they spoke, discussing political matters, the economy in Venezuela and the swearing-in of new governors following regional elections.
He denounced what he called right-wing media rumors about Hugo Chavez’s health as the work of “mentally ill” people, saying they were inventing and manipulating information without respect for the president or his family.
Earlier this year, Hugo Chavez said he had been cleared of a cancer diagnosed in 2011 and was fit to serve out his six-year term.
But on December 11, he went through his fourth cancer operation in Cuba.
There are also many questions about what will happen on January 10 when Hugo Chavez is due to be re-inaugurated.
National Assembly head Diosdado Cabello recently said that the swearing-in ceremony would be delayed in the case of Hugo Chavez’s absence.
But the opposition says such move would be unconstitutional.
The Venezuelan constitutions states that a new election should be called in 30 days should the president not be fit enough to attend his inauguration, the opposition argues.
Indian minister Shashi Tharoor has called on the authorities to reveal the name of the New Delhi gang-rape victim so that a new anti-rape law can be named after her.
Junior Education Minister Shashi Tharoor said unless the parents of the 23-year-old medical student objected, she should be honored.
The victim died over the weekend in a Singapore hospital where she was being treated for severe injuries.
The 16th of December attack in a bus has caused a national outcry.
The woman and a male friend had been to see a film when they boarded the bus in the Munirka area of Delhi, intending to travel to Dwarka in the south-west of the city.
Police said she was raped for nearly an hour, and both she and her companion were beaten with iron bars, then thrown out of the moving bus into the street.
On Tuesday, police sources said the driver of the bus had tried to run her over after throwing her out, but she was saved by her friend, Press Trust of India (PTI) reported.
Indian minister Shashi Tharoor has called on the authorities to reveal the name of the New Delhi gang-rape victim so that a new anti-rape law can be named after her
Police are expected to formally charge five of six suspects with murder on Thursday. If convicted, they could face the death penalty, which is rarely carried out in India.
The sixth suspect is reported to be under 18 and a juvenile. Police have ordered a bone test for him to confirm his age.
“Wondering what interest is served by continuing anonymity of the Delhi gang rape victim. Why not name and honor her as a real person with own identity?” Shashi Tharoor wrote on the micro-blogging site Twitter late on Tuesday.
“Unless her parents object, she should be honored and the revised anti-rape law named after her. She was a human being with a name, not just a symbol,” he wrote.
Social activist and former police officer Kiran Bedi supported Shashi Tharoor’s idea.
“What Mr. Tharoor has said is maybe unique to India, but is not unique in the world,” Reuters quoted her as saying.
“Many of the American laws… which have been made to perpetuate the memory or the suffering of the victim, only to remember that this is what happened and this is the spirit behind the law… I think it’s a good idea,” she said.
But some critics called Shashi Tharoor’s suggestion “deplorable” and India’s main opposition Bharatiya Janata Party vowed to “oppose any such move”.
On Tuesday, the victim’s ashes were scatted by her family in the river Ganges.
The brutal assault of the woman has sparked massive public outrage in the country.
It led to huge demonstrations with protesters expressing anger over attitudes to women in India and calling for changes to the laws on violence against women.
The Indian government was also heavily criticized for its response to the attack, which many called “slow” and inadequate.
According to official figures, a woman is raped in Delhi every 14 hours, while women across the country say they are frequently subjected to sexual intimidation and violence.
Officials have since announced a series of measures intended to make the city safer for women.
These include more police night patrols, checks on bus drivers and their assistants, and the banning of buses with tinted windows or curtains.
The government has also set up a committee under a retired Supreme Court judge to recommend changes to the anti-rape law.
Late on Monday, the authorities in Delhi launched a new telephone helpline for women in distress. The 24-hour helpline number 181 will operate out of Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit’s office and will be connected with all the 185 police stations across the city.
But many of the protesters say that women are viewed as second-class citizens, and that a fundamental change in culture and attitudes, backed up by law, is needed to protect them.
With the announcement of Kim Kardashian’s pregnancy, the showbiz world has been sent into fervour, speculating about names, the unborn child’s sex and what he or she might look like.
But of course another big question is… where did Kim Kardashian and boyfriend Kanye West seal the deal?
One likely location where they may have conceived is Italy. Kim Kardashian was there with her man around three months ago where she enjoyed a romantic break ahead of her 32nd birthday.
On Sunday – just hours before Kanye West broke the baby news with a shout out to his “baby mama” while live in concert in Atlantic City, Kim Kardashian posted her second best moment of 2012 on her blog, describing her “amazing” October trip (she is yet to post her No.1 moment of 2012).
Kim Kardashian recalled: “We started the trip in Rome, saw the Colosseum, went to the Vatican and saw the Sistine Chapel.
“Then we went to Florence, where we stayed in this gorgeous castle, did some sightseeing and shopped around town. Then for my birthday we spent the day in Venice. Just amazing!! Xo.”
Kim Kardashian and Kanye West during a romantic trip in Italy to celebrate her 32nd birthday on October 2012
Certainly sounds like the recipe for love and the perfect backdrop to make another Kardashian baby.
Kim Kardashian is believed to be roughly around the 12 mark period.
On Monday Kim Kardashian and Kanye West were spotted for the first time since their pregnancy news as they headed through Los Angeles International Airport bound for Las Vegas.
It seems that Ice-T has resolved all of his issues with his glamour wife Coco Austin as they both toasted the New Year in style at a party at LAX club in Las Vegas.
Coco Austin, who is currently starring in Vegas striptease Peepshow, took the night off to spend time with her musician husband, draping herself around him as they posed for photographs.
True to her trademark style, the 33-year-old left very little to the imagination in a thigh-skimming, silver mini-dress with an eye-popping neck line.
Making the most of her assets, the incredibly curvy Ice Loves Coco star seemed keen to remind everyone of just why she is famous as she nearly spilled out of the delicate, sheer dress.
Coco Austin wore her bleach blonde hair in perfectly curled ringlets which fell down her back and certainly didn’t stint on the make-up for the big night, adding bright pink lipstick and pink eye-shadow.
Ice-T has and Coco Austin toasted the New Year in style at a party at LAX club in Las Vegas
Ice-T was a little more covered up, looking dapper in a tuxedo as he kept one eye on his blonde bombshell of a wife at all times.
As the party got underway, Coco Austin added a Happy New Year head band on her head and sipped from a glass of her champagne.
She puckered up as her husband went in for a kiss to ring in 2013, and the pair looked as loved up as ever as they attempted to put split rumors to bed.
Just a few weeks ago, Ice-T was rocked when photos of Coco Austin cuddling up to AP.9 surfaced, and he vented his anger on Twitter.
While the couple looked decidedly back on during New Year’s Eve, rumors circulates that Ice-T was contemplating splitting from Coco Austin.
A team of scientists have said they believe an old gourd contains the blood of France’s King Louis XVI.
Louis XVI was killed by guillotine by French revolutionaries more than 200 years ago, on 21 January 1793.
The scientists said the DNA is very similar to genetic material from what is believed to be the mummified head of an earlier French king, AFP reports.
After Louis XVI’s beheading many spectators were reported to have dipped their handkerchiefs in his blood.
The piece of fabric had been placed in a dried, hollowed-out gourd, leaving blood stains.
The squash was decorated with images of revolutionary heroes and the words: “On January 21, Maximilien Bourdaloue dipped his handkerchief in the blood of Louis XVI after his decapitation.”
The revolutionary souvenir has been in the hands of an Italian family for a century.
The team of experts from Spain and France has published its findings in Forensic Science International journal.
A team of scientists have said they believe an old gourd contains the blood of France’s King Louis XVI
Analysis of DNA taken from blood traces found inside the vegetable container had already revealed that it probably matched someone of Louis’ description but scientists could not prove it belonged to the beheaded king as they had no genetic material from any of his relatives.
However, the team managed to find a rare genetic signature shared with DNA from a mummified head believed to belong to Louis’ 16th Century predecessor, Henri IV, who was killed in 1610.
In 2010, scientists said the head belonged to Henri’s, saying it shared the same physical features as those illustrated in contemporary portraits of the king.
French forensic pathologist Philippe Charlier told AFP that the study revealed that both of those sampled “share a genetic heritage passed on through the paternal line. They have a direct link to one another through their fathers”.
Co-author of the report, Carles Lalueza Fox, of the Institut de Biologia Evolutiva in Barcelona, was quoted as saying that it was “about 250 times more likely that the [owners of the] head and the blood are paternally related, than unrelated”.
The deadline for voting for 2013 Oscar nominations has been extended after some people experienced problems with a new online voting system.
Some of the academy’s 6,000 members had reported trouble logging into the voting website, while others said they found it confusing.
Organizers said the deadline would be extended by 24 hours to January 4.
It is the first time voting has been allowed online. It was previously conducted strictly via postal ballots.
However, the new system still allows members to choose between voting electronically or sticking with the traditional method.
The Hollywood Reporter spoke to around 10 academy members who reported either password issues or concerns the website could be hacked.
The deadline for voting for 2013 Oscar nominations has been extended after some people experienced problems with a new online voting system
Documentary filmmaker Morgan Spurlock, whose 2004 film Super Size Me was nominated for the best documentary Oscar, tweeted last week that he was not able to log on to vote electronically.
“The password they sent didn’t work for my login – and they couldn’t email me a new login, only snail mail,” the director said.
It is thought the deadline extension will help members who return from their Christmas holidays this week and experience problems voting online.
The additional day would allow either new passwords to be emailed, or for paper ballots to be sent out and returned.
“By extending the voting deadline we are providing every opportunity available to make the transition to online balloting as smooth as possible,” the academy’s chief operating officer, Ric Robertson, said.
Nominations for this year’s awards will be announced on January 10 – two weeks earlier than usual.
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences said the move would “provide members and the public a longer period of time to see the nominated films”.
The winners will be named at a Los Angeles ceremony on February 24.
India is rolling out an ambitious plan for a cash payout of subsidies to the poor in 20 districts, officials say.
Finance Minister P. Chidambaram said the scheme would benefit more than 200,000 people initially, and would cover the entire country by the end of 2013.
Authorities say it will bring the country’s poorest citizens “into the mainstream”.
But opposition parties have accused the government of “bribing the voters” ahead of the 2014 general elections.
The government plans to disburse 3,200 billion rupees ($58 billion) under the Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) scheme.
Under the scheme, money meant for recipients of 29 welfare programmes – mainly related to scholarships – will be transferred to bank accounts linked to their unique identification numbers in 20 districts from January 1st. It will be extended to 11 more districts from February 1st and 12 districts from March 1st.
India is rolling out an ambitious plan for a cash payout of subsidies to the poor in 20 districts
“This is indeed a game-changer for governance, the manner in which we govern,” P. Chidambaram told reporters on Monday, a day before the launch of the scheme.
“This is a game-changer in which we account for money. It is a game-changer in the manner in which the benefit reaches the beneficiary without any intermediation by any human being,” he added.
The finance minister said that at this stage the scheme would not cover subsidies for food, fertilizer, diesel and kerosene because the government was proceeding with a “great degree of caution”.
“We will look at transferring all subsidies and benefit through this scheme but we have to do it slowly. We are not going to rush into anything and then find that the system cannot cope with it,” he said.
Under the scheme, those living below the poverty line will receive between 30,000 rupees ($542) and 40,000 rupees ($723) per year in lieu of nearly 30 welfare programmes, including scholarships and pensions.
Officials say it will reduce waste while ensuring federal welfare money reaches those who need it most.
Analysts, however, say implementing the scheme may not be easy as only 222 million people in India have so far enrolled into a biometric identity scheme, most poor families do not have bank accounts and many villages do not have a bank.
Indian authorities say around 360 million people currently live in poverty. But one estimate suggests around three-quarters of India’s 1.21 billion people live below the poverty line.
Kim Kardashian and Kanye West certainly weren’t keeping a low profile in the wake of baby news as they spent New Year’s Eve partying in Las Vegas, reportedly earning a staggering $450,000 for their efforts.
Pregnant Kim Kardashian, who confirmed that she was expecting just hours before jetting to Vegas, hid her figure under a sheer lace dress by Welsh designer Julien McDonald as she posed next her boyfriend on the red carpet at the Mirage Hotel.
Clearly over-the-moon about her pregnancy, Kim Kardashian was happy to chat to press and pose for photographs ahead of the blow-out New Year’s Eve party.
The reality star – who is around three months pregnant and due at the end of June – shied away from her usual cleavage-baring outfit, instead opting for a more demure, black midi dress.
Even through the knee-length dress had sheer paneling, her curves were cleverly hidden under strategically placed lace, offering no hint of a bump.
Kim Kardashian and Kanye West weren’t keeping a low profile in the wake of baby news as they spent New Year’s Eve partying in Las Vegas
Proving just how loved up the parents-to-be are, Kim Kardashian and Kanye West cosied up on the red carpet, clearly delighted that they’ve been able to share their happy news with the world.
Kim Kardashian wore her hair in a stylish side plait and added muted make-up, creating a wide-eyed look with large, false lashes.
Even though they’re going to be focusing on starting a family this year, that clearly doesn’t mean that the couple are going to be shirking their work commitments.
Instead of seeing in 2013 with an intimate evening, Kim Kardashian and Kanye West happily made their appearance at the pricey party at 1 Oak Nightclub, where tickets are $125 for women and $150 for men, while it’s $3000 to hire a table.
When the clock struck midnight, the loved up couple held each other close and had a passionate kiss in front of a sea of people.
Looking ecstatically happy, Kim Kardashian through her head back and laughed during the countdown, her arms wrapped around Kanye West.
The couple were joined by friends including John Legend and Lance Bass, who partied in the VIP area.
In a fascinating new book, Robert Lustig, a professor of clinical pediatrics at the University of California, expounds a whole new scientific theory about eating too much.
Robert Lustig argues that the urge to overeat and lounge around doing nothing is not a sign of weakness.
It is, he says, a hormonal issue, triggered by eating too much sugar.
He points the finger of blame at the hormone leptin, which acts like an appetite thermostat.
As one of two “hunger hormones” in the body, leptin works to decrease the appetite (its partner, ghrelin, increases appetite).
When you have had enough to eat, your fat cells release leptin, which effectively dulls the appetite by instructing the brain that it’s time to stop eating.
Professor Robert Lustig warns that our sweet tooth is sending this process haywire.
SUGAR TRICKS YOUR BRAIN
For many years scientists thought obesity could be caused by a shortage of leptin – thinking that without adequate levels, overweight people simply never received the message that they were full.
But more recent studies have shown that obese people have plenty of leptin (in fact, the fatter you are, the more of it you appear to have), but are more likely to be “leptin-resistant”.
This means the cells in the brain that should register leptin no longer “read” the signals saying the body is full, but instead assume it is starving – no matter how much food you continue to eat.
In panic, the brain pumps out instructions to increase energy storage – instigating powerful cravings for high-fat, high-sugar foods because these are the easiest and most immediate forms of energy – and conserve energy usage, by dampening any urge to get up off the sofa and go for a run.
The food cravings are made even more intense – and impossible to resist – because leptin is supposed to dampen the feeling of pleasure and enjoyment you get from food by suppressing the release of the brain chemical dopamine, helping to decrease appetite.
But if you are leptin-resistant, food never stops tasting delicious, no matter how much of it you eat.
This, says Prof. Robert Lustig, is why many overweight people find it so hard to stop eating, and why diets so often fail.
THE HUNGER HORMONE
Scientists have been struggling to work out what causes leptin resistance.
But now Prof. Robert Lustig and his team have been able to show – in repeated studies on humans – that too much sugar in the diet is to blame.
High sugar diets lead to spikes in the hormone.
This is needed to clear sugar out of the blood and into storage as fat.
But repeated insulin spikes, due to a high sugar diet, can lead to a condition called “insulin resistance” (when the cells have been so bombarded by insulin they no longer respond to it).
Prof. Robert Lustig believes insulin resistance triggers leptin resistance, and, crucially, he has discovered that by reducing insulin levels it is possible to improve “leptin signalling” (the brain’s ability to read leptin), stop cravings, put the brakes on food consumption – and trigger weight loss.
In his new book Fat Chance, Professor Lustig explains that leptin resistance – and sugar – is at the root of the obesity epidemic.
He believes 1.5 billion overweight or obese people in the world suffer from this condition – and is convinced that the problem can be tackled by targeting insulin.
In his studies, many participants took insulin-lowering drugs, but the professor says similar results can be achieved by a few small lifestyle changes – notably reducing sugar in your diet.
The professor has a heavyweight background in endocrinology (the study of hormones), as both a medical doctor and academic.
He used organized trials to study the role the brain plays in governing appetite and activity levels and found that patients who had damage to the hypothalamus (the area of the brain that controls energy levels) could not lose weight, but somehow gained weight even when restricted to a near-starving 500 calories a day.
Robert Lustig realized that a similar process could be happening with obese adults and set out to investigate a potential solution.
His studies revealed that the roles of leptin and insulin are intertwined, and bind to cells in the same area of the brain – the hypothalamus.
The real reason you eat too much
SWEET FOOD LEAVES YOU WANTING MORE
A high sugar diet can trigger leptin resistance even if you are just slightly overweight. This is because sugar triggers a spike in insulin.
While leptin activates biochemical reactions that send “satiety signals” to the brain, insulin can very effectively block these signals, resulting in no satiety, no sense of fullness, and uncontrolled eating of high fat, high sugar foods.
This is leptin resistance, and leaves the brain “blind” to leptin signals, so it still thinks we’re hungry.
Even worse, in healthy people, one of the things leptin should do is to tell the brain to reduce insulin production. It does this by dulling appetite and thus reducing food intake (so cutting the body’s need to produce yet more insulin to deal with the food).
But if you have too much insulin and you are leptin-resistant this doesn’t happen, and insulin levels rise ever higher, creating a vicious cycle.
Robert Lustig believes that our high sugar diets cause continually stimulated insulin production.
He says the insidious creep of insulin resistance means that our bodies now produce double the insulin for every teaspoon of sugar consumed compared to 30 years ago.
He says insulin resistance is now so widespread, it affects the majority of overweight people and even as many as 40% of those who are normal weight (if they eat too much sugar and refined carbohydrates like white flour, bread, pasta and rice).
And leptin resistance becomes more of a problem with increasing body size. “Plump people might have a little leptin resistance, but the morbidly obese will have a lot,” he says.
WHY ONE CHOCOLATE IS NEVER ENOUGH
The sweet, processed food that makes up so much of the modern diet (much of it disguised as ‘low fat’ and therefore healthy) has addictive qualities – particularly for those caught up with leptin resistance.
When we eat food, the brain chemical dopamine is released, creating a feeling of pleasure and reward, explains Prof. Robert Lustig.
Then leptin kicks in to suppress the release of dopamine, so that we get less reward, and therefore we stop eating.
But, he adds, if you’re leptin-resistant, the dopamine won’t be suppressed properly, and it remains at high levels in the brain, and “floods” the brain cells.
After many meals (over a period of about three weeks) brain cells may start to become “tolerant” to these persistently high levels of dopamine.
They build up resistance, meaning that higher and higher amounts of dopamine are needed to trigger a reward signal.
As a result, you may feel compelled to eat greater quantities to achieve the same sense of satisfaction. This can swiftly turn into sugar addiction.
Insulin also works to clear dopamine from the brain, gradually blunting the reward felt for further food.
But if you’re insulin-resistant too, the brakes won’t work, and the reward impetus continues unabated.
This, Prof. Robert Lustig believes, explains why many people can want, and apparently enjoy, never-ending quantities of food even when energy stores were long ago full – for example over the Christmas period.
He fears insulin resistance (and therefore leptin resistance) may also start in the womb, and that exposure to high sugar diets – via the mother – may trigger genetic changes that increase a baby’s risk of insulin and leptin resistance in later life.
But he adds: “At the end of the day, it is what you eat (and of course, how much of it) that puts the final nail in the coffin.”
A BIG FAT LIE
Conventional wisdom and government policy still blame dietary fat for our ever-rising obesity levels (and horrific heart disease statistics).
However, Prof. Robert Lustig is part of the band of obesity specialists who question the validity of the hugely influential research conducted in the Fifties, which identified dietary fat as the trigger for weight gain and heart disease.
The seminal Seven Countries study by U.S. epidemiologist Ancel Keys in the Eighties demonized fat, triggering a massive change in food manufacture.
In an effort to make low fat food more palatable, many manufacturers raised the carbohydrate level, adding quantities of sugar to almost everything (both sweet and savoury).
For instance, a small pot of low fat yoghurt can contain as much as four teaspoons of sugar, and even wholemeal bread hides two teaspoons per loaf.
Gradually tastes and eating habits have changed, Robert Lustig says, resulting in growing populations worldwide inadvertently hooked on easy-to-eat high sugar foods.
As he puts it: “The obesity epidemic was born in the aftermath of this seemingly logical and well-meaning, yet tragically flawed understanding of our biochemistry.”
Mercifully, it is not all doom and gloom.
“Obesity is a hormonal problem and hormones are alterable,” says Prof. Robert Lustig.
He recommends simple steps that can lower your leptin levels.
These include reducing sugar in every recipe by a third, increasing your fibre intake, and taking just 15 minutes of activity every day.
Crystal Harris has finally become Mrs. Hefner, saying her vows to Hugh Hefner in a much smaller ceremony.
Crystal Harris, 26, spent New Year’s Eve tweeting her excitement about the impending nuptials, including an image of a flower covered bower in front of just two dozen chairs.
Hugh Hefner shared a picture of him and his bride, tweeting: “Crystal & I married on New Year’s Eve in the Mansion with Keith as my Best Man. Love that girl!”
Crystal Harris had earlier written: “Today is the day I become Mrs. Hugh Hefner. Feeling very happy, lucky, and blessed.”
The model has changed her name on the social networking site to Crystal Hefner.
She was dubbed a “runaway bride” by the 86-year-old mogul after she called off their engagement just days before their wedding in June 2011.
Crystal Harris and Hugh Hefner married on New Year’s Eve at Playboy mansion
After their split, Crystal Harris revealed she had only been intimate with him once – and very briefly.
She admitted sex with the octogenarian lasted “like two seconds”, adding: “Then I was just over it. I was like, <<Ahhh>>. I was over it.
“I just like, walked away. I’m not turned on by Hef, sorry.”
Crustal Harris continued: “He doesn’t really take off his clothes. I’ve never seen Hef naked.”
Despite her comments, the pair reconciled in May this year.
Hugh Hefner recently said he wants to stay with Crystal Harris until he dies and insisted he doesn’t care about the 60-year age difference between them.
He tweeted: “The dramatic age difference between Crystal & me really doesn’t matter. Whatever time I have left, we want to spend together.”
Hugh Hefner has been married twice previously, to Mildred Williams from 1949 to 1959 and Kimberley Conrad from 1989 to 2010.
French President Francois Hollande says he still plans to raise the top rate of income tax after his 75% plan was struck down on technical grounds.
In a national address on New Year’s Eve, Francois Hollande said the law would be redesigned, adding, “we will still ask more of those who have the most”.
However, the president did not mention the 75% figure, leading some to speculate that the move would be watered down.
Francois Hollande also promised “all efforts” towards cutting unemployment.
The number of jobless broke the three-million barrier for the first time this year, prompting Francois Hollande to say the trend must be reversed.
He has been criticized for lacking direction, and his popularity levels have plummeted, since he took power in May.
Francois Hollande says he still plans to raise the top rate of income tax after his 75 percent plan was struck down on technical grounds
Francois Hollande acknowledged the “serious and legitimate” concerns of the public, and that there had been “fits and starts” in his first six months.
But the president insisted France would emerge from the financial crisis “sooner and stronger” than expected because of action by his government.
“We’ve set the course – jobs, competitiveness and growth – and I will not deviate. It’s the future of France,” he said.
The Socialist president said he would resubmit his flagship policy of raising income tax for those earning more than 1 million euros ($1.3 million) a year.
It was rejected by the Constitutional Council on Saturday because, unlike other forms of income tax, it was to be applied to individuals rather than households.
Francois Hollande said while the law would be “redesigned” its objective would remain the same – that those who could afford to do so should pay more to France’s effort to tackle its deficit.
The policy has angered France’s business leaders and the right-wing opposition, who say it discourages entrepreneurship and wealth-creation. It has led to some wealthy citizens, like the actor Gerard Depardieu, to say they would emigrate.
While the measure is popular with Francois Hollande’s supporters on the left, some analysts think it may be dropped or watered down, possibly by raising the income level at which it is paid.
“I suspect this tax will be shelved,” Philippe Gudin, an economist for Barclays and a former French treasury official, told Reuters news agency.
“For the [low amount of] revenue it would raise, the outcry it has provoked and the damage it has done to France’s image, it would be more sensible if it were quietly buried.”
Pope Benedict XVI has condemned “unregulated capitalism” for contributing to world tension, in 2013 New Year address to worshippers.
The Pope also thanked the world’s peacemakers and said humanity had “an innate vocation for peace”.
The Roman Catholic Church leader spoke at a Mass in the Vatican, then greeted a crowd outside St Peter’s Basilica.
Pope Benedict deplored “hotbeds of tension and conflict caused by growing instances of inequality between rich and poor”.
Those “hotbeds” also grew out of “the prevalence of a selfish and individualistic mindset which also finds expression in an unregulated financial capitalism”, as well as “various forms of terrorism and crime”, he said.
Pope Benedict XVI has condemned unregulated capitalism for contributing to world tension, in 2013 New Year address to worshippers
The 85-year-old pontiff delivered a prayer for peace to the crowd in St Peter’s Square after his homily at Mass.
“The peacemakers are many, but they are not loud. As leaven in dough, they raise humanity according to God’s plan,” he said.
Comparing the new year to a journey, he prayed that it “may lead on a path to peace for every person and every family, for each country and for the whole world”.
