First Beatles manager Allan Williams dies

Allan Williams, the first manager of The Beatles who drove the band on their formative trip to Hamburg in 1960, has died at the age of 86, his old club announced.
The Jacaranda Club in Liverpool, northwest England, posted the news late Friday on its Facebook page, saying his death earlier that day was “one of the saddest days in our history”.
“The Jacaranda’s original owner and the man who discovered The Beatles, Allan Williams, has sadly passed away at the age of 86,” it said.
The band were frequent visitors to the Jacaranda and John Lennon and Stuart Sutcliffe were tasked by Williams to paint a mural in the club, according to The Beatles Story exhibition.
They went on to play there several times and Williams organised their first residency in Hamburg in Germany.
“No Allan Williams, no Hamburg. No Hamburg, no Beatles,” said Beatles historian Mark Lewisohn in a tribute message on Twitter.
Williams parted ways with the band in 1961 and they went on to sign with Brian Epstein.

Beatles band manager dies

Allan Williams, the first manager of The Beatles who drove the band on their formative trip to Hamburg in 1960, has died at the age of 86, his old club announced.
The Jacaranda Club in Liverpool, northwest England, posted the news late Friday on its Facebook page, saying his death earlier that day was “one of the saddest days in our history”.
“The Jacaranda’s original owner and the man who discovered The Beatles, Allan Williams, has sadly passed away at the age of 86,” it said.
The band were frequent visitors to the Jacaranda and John Lennon and Stuart Sutcliffe were tasked by Williams to paint a mural in the club, according to The Beatles Story exhibition.
They went on to play there several times and Williams organised their first residency in Hamburg in Germany.
“No Allan Williams, no Hamburg. No Hamburg, no Beatles,” said Beatles historian Mark Lewisohn in a tribute message on Twitter.
Williams parted ways with the band in 1961 and they went on to sign with Brian Epstein.

Choir member quits rather than sing at trumps inauguration

A member of the Mormon Tabernacle Choir has quit the group rather than sing at Donald Trump’s inauguration and appear to endorse “tyranny and fascism.”
In a resignation letter posted on her Facebook page Thursday, Jan Chamberlin said she had agonised over whether to sing at the January 20 ceremony and “spent several sleepless nights and days in turmoil.”
She said her only option, finally, was to quit the famed choir.
“I simply cannot continue with the recent turn of events,” she wrote. “I could never look myself in the mirror again with self-respect.”
The singer, who had been with the choir for five years, said her decision came down to upholding her moral values.
“I only know I could never ‘throw roses to Hitler.’ And I certainly could never sing for him,” she wrote.
Chamberlin said while she respected the choir’s bid to be politically neutral, “I also know, looking from the outside in, it will appear that (the) choir is endorsing tyranny and fascism by singing for this man.”
Her open letter came a week after it was announced that the 360-member choir, which has a long tradition of performing for presidents, and the Radio City Rockettes would appear at Trump’s inauguration.
Several members of the dance troupe have also expressed reservations about performing at the event.
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, which runs the choir, would not comment on Chamberlin’s decision. A spokesman said performing at the inauguration was voluntary and that only a limited number of singers would participate due to limited space.
A petition urging the choir to snub the ceremony has gained nearly 24,000 signatures.
Only a smattering of artists backed Trump’s election bid and the Republican president-elect has struggled to pin down big names for the January 20 event in Washington, with high-profile stars including Elton John turning down invites.

See diseases that curry, ginger and chilli pepper could fight when used in meals

Spicing your meals with curry, ginger and chilli pepper could help to fight arthritis, diabetes, breast cancer, heart diseases, and ultimately live longer.
Scientists have found that an active ingredient of pungent substances, such as chilli and pepper, inhibits the growth of tumours.Capsaicin – responsible for the fiery sensation after consumption – also caused triple-negative cells to die in their masses.
Currently chemotherapy is the only treatment option for the most aggressive form of breast cancer. And experts warn that it is unlikely just eating lots of spice alone could help to combat the disease.
Researchers from Ruhr-University at Bochum, Germany, carried out tests on cell cultures designed to replicate triple-negative breast cancer.
Capsaicin was added to them for a period of several hours each day. The existence of the Transient Receptor Potential Channels (TRPV1) was found in nine different samples from patients with breast cancer.
As a result, the cancerous cells divided more slowly, the findings published in the journal Breast Cancer – Targets and Therapy found.It also allowed them to die in larger numbers, preventing the surviving cells to move as quickly – impairing their ability to spread around the body.
Lead author Professor Hanns Hatt said: “If we could switch on the TRPV1 receptor with specific drugs, this might constitute a new treatment approach for this type of cancer.”
Capsaicin is known to provide temporarily relief of muscle or joint pain caused by strains, arthritis and bruising.While previous research has also found it can help to kill other forms of cancer.The compound was discovered by scientists, from the Indian Institute of Technology, to bind to cells’ membranes – the protective outer shell.
But in high enough doses, it helped to pull the membrane apart, triggering cancerous cells to “commit suicide.” And in 2014, French physiologists found that men with a taste for spicy foods tend to have higher levels of testosterone.
They believed their findings were linked to well documented evidence that chilli peppers can increase levels of the hormones in rats. Other studies have found that the chemical arvanil – with a chemical make-up similar to that of the capsaicin – was effective against brain tumours in mice.
However, because of its side effects, the substance is not approved for humans.Also, researchers have shown in mouse studies that the pungent compound in ginger, 6-ginergol, could counteract capsaicin’s potentially harmful effects. In combination with the capsaicin, 6-gingerol could lower the risk of cancer, they say.
The study was published in ACS’ Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry.Both chili peppers and ginger are widely used spices in certain cuisines, particularly in Asia, and have been studied for potential health effects. Although some studies have shown that peppers can have benefits, others suggest that diets rich in capsaicin might be associated with stomach cancer. Ginger, however, has shown promise as a health-promoting ingredient. Oddly enough, capsaicin and 6-gingerol both bind to the same cellular receptor — one that is related to tumor growth. Jiahuan Li, Gangjun Du and colleagues wanted to further investigate this apparent contradiction.
Over several weeks, the researchers fed mice prone to lung cancer either capsaicin or 6-gingerol alone, or a combination of both. During the study period, all of the mice that received only capsaicin developed lung carcinomas while only half of the mice fed 6-gingerol did. Surprisingly, an even lower percentage — only 20 percent — of the mice given both compounds developed cancer. The researchers also dug into the potential molecular underpinnings of how the compounds interact to lead to this effect.
Meanwhile, new study suggests that eating spicy food more frequently as part of a daily diet is associated with a lower risk of death. The association was also found for deaths from certain conditions such as cancer, and ischemic heart and respiratory diseases.
This is an observational study so no definitive conclusions can be drawn about cause and effect, but the authors call for more research that may “lead to updated dietary recommendations and development of functional foods.”
The study was published in British Medical Journal (BMJ).Previous research has suggested that beneficial effects of spices and their bioactive ingredient, capsaicin, include anti-obesity, antioxidant, anti-inflammation and anticancer properties .
So an international team led by researchers at the Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences examined the association between consumption of spicy foods as part of a daily diet and the total risk and causes of death.
They undertook a prospective study of 487,375 participants, aged 30-79 years, from the China Kadoorie Biobank. Participants were enrolled between 2004-2008 and followed up for morbidities and mortality.
All participants completed a questionnaire about their general health, physical measurements, and consumption of spicy foods, and red meat, vegetable and alcohol.
Participants with a history of cancer, heart disease, and stroke were excluded from the study, and factors such as age, marital status, level of education, and physical activity were accounted for.
During a median follow-up of 7.2 years, there were 20,224 deaths.Compared with participants who ate spicy foods less than once a week, those who consumed spicy foods one or two days a week were at a 10 per cent reduced risk of death (hazard ratios for death was 0.90). And those who ate spicy foods three to five and six or seven days a week were at a 14 per cent reduced risk of death (hazard ratios for death 0.86, and 0.86 respectively).
In other words, participants who ate spicy foods almost every day had a relative 14 per cent lower risk of death compared to those who consumed spicy foods less than once a week.
The association was similar in both men and women, and was stronger in those who did not consume alcohol.Frequent consumption of spicy foods was also linked to a lower risk of death from cancer, and ischaemic heart and respiratory system diseases, and this was more evident in women than men.
Fresh and dried chilli peppers were the most commonly used spices in those who reported eating spicy foods weekly, and further analysis showed those who consumed fresh chilli tended to have a lower risk of death from cancer, ischaemic heart disease, and diabetes.
Some of the bioactive ingredients are likely to drive this association, the authors explain, adding that fresh chilli is richer in capsaicin, vitamin C, and other nutrients. But they caution against linking any of these with lowering the risk of death.
Should people eat spicy food to improve health? In an accompanying editorial, Nita Forouhi from the University of Cambridge says it is too early to tell, and calls for more research to test whether these associations are the direct result of spicy food intake or whether this is a marker for other dietary or lifestyle factors.

This is why you need to take sugar and red meat

The controversy on whether sugar and red meat causes ill health such as diabetes, hypertension, obesity and cancer or not has refused to go away.
A study funded by food companies has challenged recommendations by public health officials for people to cut sugar consumption, saying there was no clear link between consumption of added sugar and health effects.
The study is the latest response by food companies including candy and soda makers to a growing consensus among scientists and public health officials that the sweetener is to blame for rises in the incidence of obesity and diabetes. The report comes as a number of local governments in the United States are introducing sugar and soda taxes aimed at reducing consumption.
“Guidelines on dietary sugar do not meet criteria for trustworthy recommendations and are based on low-quality evidence,” said Bradley Johnston of The Hospital for Sick Children Research Institute and co-authors in an article published in the Annals of Internal Medicine (AIM).
The review of research used as a basis for policymaking was funded by the International Life Sciences Institute, which includes among its members Coca Cola Co, PepsiCo Inc, Mars Inc and Hershey Co.
The report questions the quality of evidence used by organizations including the U.S. government, the World Health Organization (WHO) and others that have advised people to cut down consumption of added sugars to promote health.
Differing recommendations from organizations are confusing to the public, the report said.
Also, red meat has been condemned as a cancer-causing, blood pressure-raising no-no.
Indeed, nutritional guidelines in both the United Kingdom (U.K.) and the United States (U.S.) advise eating no more than 70g of beef, pork, or steak per day.
But a new review of clinical trials from Purdue University has found quite the opposite.
According to the study, eating more than the recommended daily amount of red meat does not affect short-term heart disease risk factors, such as blood pressure and blood cholesterol.
In fact, they found unprocessed red meat to be a good source of nutrients for patients.
“During the last 20 years, there have been recommendations to eat less red meat as part of a healthier diet, but our research supports that red meat can be incorporated into a healthier diet,” said Wayne Campbell, professor of nutrition science. Red meat is a nutrient-rich food, not only as a source for protein but also bio-available iron.”
The recommendations to limit red meat from the diet come mainly from studies that look at the dietary habits of people with cardiovascular disease.
Although these studies showed these people typically ate red meat, they were not designed to show that red meat caused cardiovascular disease.
To investigate the issue further Professor Campbell, worked with doctoral student Lauren O’Connor, and postdoctoral researcher Jung Eun Kim, to conduct a review and analysis of past clinical trials.
Their aim was to detect cause and effect between eating habits and health risks.They screened hundreds of related research articles, focusing on studies that met specific criteria including the amount of red meat consumed, evaluation of cardiovascular disease risk factors and study design.
An analysis of the 24 studies that met the criteria is published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.
“We found that consuming more than half a serving per day of red meat, which is equivalent to a three ounce serving three times per week, did not worsen blood pressure and blood total cholesterol, High Density Lipo-protein (HDL)/ ‘good’ cholesterol, Low Density Lipo-protein (LDL)/bad cholesterol and triglyceride concentrations, which are commonly screened by health-care providers,’ O’Connor said.
This research includes all types of red meat, mostly unprocessed beef and pork. Professor Campbell said more analysis is needed as the evaluation of blood pressure and cholesterol are not the sole determinants for someone to develop heart disease. The length of time these experiments were done ranged from a few weeks to a few months as opposed to the years or decades that it could take people to develop cardiovascular disease or have a cardiovascular event.
Meanwhile, in a rare move, AIM published an editorial in the same issue that slammed the latest study as a ‘politicization of science’ and said that recent guidelines from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Public Health England and WHO all show ‘remarkable consistency.’
AIM decided to publish both the new study and the critical editorial because sugar consumption is ‘of great interest’ to readers and their patients, said Editor-in-Chief Christine Laine in an emailed statement.

Drake and Jennifer Lopez displays budding romance

Jennifer Lopez and Drake happily showed off their budding romance as they attended a prom party in Las Vegas on Thursday night.
According to contactmusic, the pair – who have yet to publicly confirm they are dating – didn’t hide their love as they enjoyed each other’s company at Winter Wonderland Prom in Las Vegas, United States.
In a series of short video clips uploaded to social media, Jennifer was seen dancing intimately with Drake whilst another video shows them locking lips.
Later in the evening, the couple were also named Prom King and Queen.
The videos come soon after a source claimed Jennifer is ”very smitten” with Drake.
They shared: ”Jen is looking forward with excitement to the new year. She keeps hanging out with Drake, and he has visited her house. She has nothing but nice things to say about Drake.
”They do work on music together [but are] clearly enjoying each other on another level too. Jen loves the attention and she seems very happy to be spending time with him. Drake is very charming. He treats Jen with lots of respect. She seems very smitten.”
However, Rihanna is said to be ”very unhappy” with the ‘Hotline Bling’ hitmaker’s new relationship.
An insider added: ”Jen and Drake have tried to keep their romance under wraps by suggesting they are just working together, but the truth is they are an item.
”They have been seeing each other for a number of weeks and her friends are saying she is already smitten. The age gap doesn’t bother them. They have fun together and that’s all that matters.
”People in Rihanna’s circle are saying she is very unhappy about the whole thing. Only a few months ago she and Drake were still together. Jen is one of her friends in the industry which made her all the more surprised.”