It’s Cookie Time! Cameron Diaz is set to star in a sequel to the hit 80s comedy “Troop Beverly Hills,” directed by Clea DuVall.
The new movie is in development at TriStar Pictures, with DuVall helming from her own script. Plot details are under wraps. Laurence Mark (“The Greatest Showman,” “Dreamgirls”) will produce alongside Diaz and her business partner, Katherine Power. (The duo co-founded Avaline wines.)
Deadline first reported news of the project.
More to come…
Cordelia Goode is back!
Ryan Murphy Productions has released a new photo from “American Horror Story” Season 13 teasing the return of Sarah Paulson as her character from “American Horror Story: Coven.”
The caption reads: “The Return of @mssarahcatharinepaulson as Cordelia Goode. The Supreme Rises. And yes we have rebuilt the entire Robichaux Academy.”
As previously announced, Paulson will join Jessica Lange who returns to the series. They are joined by fellow “AHS” regulars Evan Peters, Angela Bassett, Kathy Bates, Emma Roberts, Billie Lourd, Gabourey Sidibe and Leslie Grossman in the 13th season. Ariana Grande, who starred in Ryan Murphy and Brad Falchuk’s 2015 series “Scream Queens,” reunites with the co-creators on “AHS.”
More to come.
See the photo below.
Researchers report that replacing sugary drinks with artificially sweetened drinks can help people lose weight.
Scientists from the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health in Massachusetts also found that replacing sugary beverages with water can lead to weight loss.
The researchers stated that their analysis showed that people who replaced sugary drinks with artificially sweetened beverages achieved modest long-term weight loss, particularly among participants with overweight or obesity and had high sugary beverage intake at the onset of the studies.
They added that participants who replaced artificially sweetened drinks with water experienced modest long-term weight loss, while those who replaced sugary beverages with water had the highest weight loss.
Experts not involved in the study told Healthline that although artificial sweeteners may help with weight loss, they also pose health risks.
They said water is a much healthier choice as a substitute for sugar-laden beverages.
“Avoiding sweeteners entirely by choosing plain water is the better option,” said Mir Ali, MD, a bariatric surgeon and medical director of MemorialCare Surgical Weight Loss Center at Orange Coast Medical Center in Fountain Valley, CA. “This avoids the adverse effects of both sugar and artificial sweeteners and is beneficial for weight loss.”
“Water provides hydration and is void of additives,” added Kristin Kirkpatrick, RD, the president of KAK Consulting and a dietitian at the Cleveland Clinic Department of Wellness & Preventive Medicine in Ohio. “After all, sugar-sweetened and [artificially sweetened] beverages are considered ultra-processed. Therefore, choosing water is a great way to start reducing [processed foods] in the diet.”
Participants were ages 26 to 65. They were followed for 24 to 32 years, with biennial questionnaires that updated medical, lifestyle, and anthropometric data.
The researchers reported that the mean weight gain among participants per 4-year interval was 1.3 kilograms (about 2.8 pounds).
They reported that replacing three servings a week of a sugary beverage with an artificially sweetened drink was associated with a weight loss of 1.39 kilograms.
They said there were similar results when replacing sugary beverages with water. They noted that replacing artificially sweetened drinks with water resulted in only “modest reductions in weight.”
Experts say there are several potential reasons for the weight loss by people who switched to artificially sweetened beverages.
“It’s possible this impact is in large part to overall reduction of calories – thereby taking less energy in may lead to weight loss,” Kirkpatrick said. “Additionally, individuals in the study may be making more effort to improve nutrition overall, which may also lead to better habits and weight loss.”
“[The study] confirms what you’d expect: introducing a calorie-free beverage to replace drinks like juice or soda results in weight loss because you’re consuming fewer calories,” said Jonathan Long, PhD, an associate professor of pathology at Stanford University, who wasn’t involved in the study.
The guidelines further note that one meal should contain no more than 10 grams of added sugars, or just under 2.5 teaspoons.
Leading
It’s estimated that Americans consume about 22 teaspoons of added caloric sweeteners a day. These sweeteners range from 180 to 13,000 times sweeter than sugar. They are marketed under brand names such as NutraSweet, Equal, Sweet’N Low, and Newtame.
The sweeteners are
The adverse health effects from a diet high in sugar have been widely reported.
High sugar consumption may increase the risk of cancer, depression, cellular aging, and kidney disease. It can also affect dental health.
The adverse health effects from high ingestion of artificial sweeteners aren’t as widely reported, but experts do have some concerns.
In May 2023, the World Health Organization (WHO) issued a
David Cutler, MD, a family medicine physician at Providence Saint John’s Health Center in Santa Monica, CA, who wasn’t involved in the study, said there may be a number of other health effects from high usage of artificial sweeteners. Among them:
“The bottom line is that while [artificial sweeteners] are safer than [sugary beverages], they are not risk free,” Cutler told Healthline.
Ali shared similar concerns.
“Artificial sweeteners can have adverse effects, such as altering the gut microbiome, which can increase chronic inflammation,” he said. “They may also trigger insulin release in some patients, potentially leading to insulin resistance.”
Long says that artificially sweeteners can be a bridge to help people wean off sugar-laden sodas.
“Obviously, drinking water is the best option — it’s hydrating and doesn’t contain the other stuff that artificially sweetened beverages do,” he told Healthline. “But it’s very hard for people to replace their juice or soda with water. So as an intermediate step, replacing caloric drinks with something sweet but calorie-free is certainly better than abandoning the effort and going back to regular soda.”
Kirkpatrick, however, said there may be some risks to this strategy. “This study shows that perhaps diet drinks can be an effective bridge for people trying to reduce sugar intake. My concern is that individuals may see this finding and consider diet colas to be a ‘healthy’ option,” she said.
“As a dietitian, I often find that it makes it harder for individuals to be able to reduce their sugar intake since [artificial sweeteners] are still delivering a high level of sweetness, potentially keeping cravings for sugar high,” she added.
Cutler argued that drinking artificially sweetened beverages can cause some people to consume more calories overall.
“Possible mechanisms for this are disruption of appetite regulation, meaning people eat more with the justification that they are no longer getting calories in their [artificially sweetened beverages]. And the sweet taste of [artificial sweetened beverages] may alter how the brain feels rewarded by eating,” he said.
Experts agreed that an overall healthy lifestyle is the ultimate goal.
“Overall, in terms of maintaining a healthy diet and lifestyle, I think you try to eat a variety of foods, not too much, ideally with everything in moderation,” Long said.
“There are multiple components to optimizing health span and preventing chronic disease. Diet, exercise, stress management, and sleep are all interconnected parts of a healthy lifestyle,” Kirkpatrick added.
“From a nutrition perspective, one of the simplest and most effective starting points is to keep foods as close to their natural state as possible,” she said. “This means limiting additives, cooking more at home, and prioritizing a variety of colorful plant foods, lean proteins, and healthy fats.”
Kirkpatrick noted that the best way to attain a healthy lifestyle differs from person to person.
“It’s important to remember that there is no one-size-fits-all approach. Individual needs, preferences, and health goals matter,” she said.
The latest Triple-i Initiative Showcase is nearly upon us, as the indie-focused event returns for its third consecutive year on Thursday, April 9 at 12PM ET / 9AM PT. We’re being promised announcements for 40 games, including eight world premieres, so it’s well worth tuning in if you like your indies.
You’ll be able to watch the stream on The Triple-i Initiative YouTube channel, as well as Twitch, bilibili, niconico and on Steam. Co-streaming partners IGN and Gamespot will also host their own streams. The showcase will run for 45 minutes, and nine featured studios will also have post-show deep dives on their games if you want to know more. As previously, the mantra here is “no hosts, no ads, just games,” so rest assured your attention will be rewarded.
Confirmed featured games so far include Risk of Rain 2, the open-world survival game Windrose and Castlevania: Belmont’s Curse. We also know that the studio behind the excellent sci-fi narrative adventure 1000xResist will be showing off what it’s been working on, and we can also expect news from Cairn developer The Game Bakers.
It sounds like a typically eclectic lineup, then, and given last year’s showcase gave us release dates for 2025 indie hits like The Alters and Rematch, you can be confident that plenty of notable news should come out of this one too.
You may feel like your spring allergies are worsening, beginning earlier, or lasting longer. You’re not alone in feeling this way.
“Allergy seasons are getting longer and worse all the time, and I think we can expect an increase in allergy-driven symptoms this spring and every spring going forward,” said Noah Greenspan, PT, DPT, board certified clinical specialist in cardiovascular and pulmonary physical therapy, a leading expert in cardiopulmonary rehabilitation, and the founder of Pulmonary Wellness Complex PT.
“People naturally spend more time outdoors, in nature, and other areas where increased heat and humidity, greater prevalence of allergens, and therefore exposure to triggers, and compromised air quality are more common. In addition, we can expect that the impact of various environmental triggers will vary by geographic location and the characteristics of the exposures,” Greenspan told Healthline.
Indeed, some areas of the United States experience year-round pollen from trees, weeds, and grasses.
The AAFA has ranked the top “allergy capitals” in the contiguous (lower 48) states by how difficult it is to live there with pollen allergies. Here’s what you need to know to cope.
The AAFA has ranked the top 100 allergy capitals in the United States for 2026.
The following are the top 20 out of 100 based on pollen scores for tree, grass, and weed pollen, over-the-counter allergy medication use, and the number of allergy specialists.
The AAFA notes that, compared with previous years, more cities in the West are among the top 20 allergy capitals.
You can find the full list of the top 100 allergy capitals in the AAFA 2026 report.
If you know allergens, like pollen, may trigger symptoms, you may want to reduce your exposure. Here are a few ways to do just that:
You can also use over-the-counter allergy medications to help reduce your symptoms. If these don’t seem to work, you can consult with a healthcare professional about alternative treatment options.
“Start taking antihistamines, nasal sprays, and eye drops as soon as possible,” said Nicolle Overstreet, DO, family physician with Medical Offices of Manhattan. “If you’re feeling symptoms, start treating [them]. I advise patients to start 2 weeks before their symptoms started last year, to get a head start,” she told Healthline.
Overstreet recommended frequent allergy testing, when possible, to effectively reduce and manage symptoms.
If you’re prone to allergies and inflammation, you should monitor your symptoms regularly to track trends and flare-ups, Greenspan said.
Odd News // 3 weeks ago
Prosthetic leg, surfboard among Los Angeles Metro’s Lost & Found
March 13 (UPI) — The Los Angeles Metro revealed some of the most unusual items in its Lost & Found, including a surfboard, a prosthetic leg and a 55-inch TV.
Microsoft is testing giving users more control over what games appear in their Xbox achievements and tweaking how achievements look when they’re earned. The changes are being introduced via the company’s free-to-join Xbox Insiders program, and will presumably roll out to all Xbox owners at some point in the future.
Coming later in April, select Xbox Insiders will be able to hide games from their achievement list, whether they’ve completed them or not. Hidden games will still count towards users’ Gamerscore, but the option should serve as another way to curate your public profile. Microsoft is also experimenting with changing how it displays achievements. Xbox Insiders will receive redesigned achievements with new animations and notifications that match the custom color they’ve chosen for their Xbox interface. Games where Insiders have earned 100 percent of the achievements will also be highlighted in their achievements list, and insiders will be able to filter their list to only view the games they’ve fully completed.
Being able to hide games from the achievement list has been “one of the most requested features” from Xbox Insiders, according to Microsoft. The company’s March update that allowed users to selectively exclude games from the Xbox’s Quick Resume feature was similarly long-requested. It would likely be wrong to characterize these changes as being downstream of new Microsoft Gaming CEO Asha Sharma’s stated desire to “recommit” to the Xbox, but they don’t hurt when it comes to winning over fans — especially if the company’s continued presence in the console space ends up hinging on an expensive box that plays PC and Xbox games.
The official Ripple USD ($RLUSD) Treasury account recently received 9.9 million $RLUSD tokens. This happened on the Ethereum blockchain after weeks of consistent $RLUSD burning on the network.
Community account Ripple Stablecoin Tracker on X spotlighted the new 9,900,000 $RLUSD minted in a recent post.
Notably, minting occurs when there is demand for more $RLUSD from exchanges, institutions or even retail users. Upon request, the Ripple Treasury smart contract, which is the issuer, creates new $RLUSD tokens from scratch.
The new tokens are added to the total supply and can now be transferred, traded or used on Ethereum. Also, these tokens are fully backed 1:1 by USD cash and cash equivalents that Ripple holds in regulated custody accounts.
💵💵💵💵💵💵 9,900,000 #$RLUSD minted at $RLUSD Treasury.https://t.co/UQY0Dx1bZm
— Ripple Stablecoin Tracker (@RL_Tracker) April 8, 2026
Crucially, the latest 9.9 million $RLUSD minting follows a series of token burns in the past few weeks. Burning is the opposite of minting, where Ripple permanently removes $RLUSD tokens from circulation.
In late March and early April, the crypto market observes a clear wave of large burns. Over $230 million $RLUSD were burned in roughly one week.
One of the biggest was Ripple burning 180 million $RLUSD in just a few hours. Multiple millions of other burns occurred across both XRPL and Ethereum.
Essentially, Ripple frequently mints and burns large batches to efficiently manage supply, rebalancing between the $XRP Ledger and Ethereum chains.
While Ripple regulates $RLUSD supply and demand, the stablecoin is strengthening its position as a bridge between traditional assets and the crypto market.
As disclosed in a recent report, Bitrue exchange has launched a unique trading pair of $RLUSD against PAXG and XAUT. These tokens represent tokenized gold issued by Paxos and Tether — the issuer of USDT — respectively.
Prior to the integration, Deloitte published a new report stating that the Ripple stablecoin reserves were worth $1.56 billion. This figure exceeds the market supply of $1.49 billion tokens.
In another bold expansion move, Binance exchange announced support for the Ripple USD stablecoin on XRPL. Through this integration, Binace users are allowed to transact $RLUSD directly via the $XRP Ledger.
These developments signal increased exposure of $RLUSD to more users in the crypto space. This indicates the rapid expansion of the stablecoin, launched on Dec. 17, 2024. Ripple designed $RLUSD to facilitate cross-border payments and provide liquidity within Ripple’s ecosystem.
Markets are showing cautious strength as the Ripple price hovers around a key technical zone, with sentiment still dominated by extreme fear across crypto.
$XRP is sitting right on a decision point. The daily close at $1.38 matches the daily pivot and rides just above the 20-day EMA, while the broader crypto market is up strongly but still ruled by extreme fear (fear & greed index at 17). That mix – improving price action in a scared market – is usually where the best trades start, but also where fake breakouts are common.
On the daily chart the system tags $XRP’s regime as neutral, but the shorter timeframes are clearly bullish. That tells us we are not in a confirmed uptrend yet; we are in a rebound inside a larger, damaged structure. The dominant force right now is short-term momentum pushing into medium-term resistance. Whether buyers can turn this into a sustained trend or not depends on how $XRP behaves around the current $1.38–$1.45 band.
On the daily timeframe, XRPUSDT is trying to repair a longer downtrend but has not flipped it yet.
Price is slightly above the 20-day EMA but still below the 50-day and deep below the 200-day. That is the definition of a market in repair mode: near-term strength, but the medium and long trends are still pointing to prior damage. To turn this into a clean bullish environment on the daily, $XRP needs to reclaim and hold above the 50-day EMA first, and eventually start closing the gap to the 200-day.
Daily RSI is just above the midpoint. Momentum has shifted from oversold or weak toward mildly positive, but we are not in a runaway trend. This lines up with the EMAs: the selling pressure has eased, buyers have the upper hand for now, but there is no confirmed, strong bull leg yet.
The MACD is still slightly negative but the histogram is marginally positive. In plain language, the prior downtrend is stalling and starting to turn. It is an early-stage recovery signal rather than a fully established uptrend. This supports the idea of a neutral-to-slightly-bullish daily bias.
Price at $1.38 is just above the mid-band and roughly halfway to the upper band at $1.45. $XRP is no longer hugging the lower side of volatility; it has moved into the upper half of the range, but has not yet challenged the band extremes. That usually marks a constructive recovery inside a contained range rather than a blow-off move.
A daily ATR of five cents on a $1.38 asset points to moderate, controlled volatility. Moves are meaningful but not wild. That is a favorable backdrop for both trend trades and mean-reversion setups, but it also means breakouts need conviction to stand out.
Price closing right on the pivot at $1.38 underscores how balanced the daily tape is. The nearby intraday levels at $1.37–$1.39 mark a very tight battlefield; whichever side wins this band will likely dictate the next $0.05–$0.10 move.
Bottom line on D1: The main scenario on the daily chart is neutral with an upward tilt. Short-term recovery is in play, but the medium and long-term trends are not yet repaired. Bulls are probing, not in control.
The 1-hour chart is where the strength really shows up. The regime tag here is bullish, and the structure backs that up.
On H1, price is stacked cleanly above the 20, 50 and 200 EMAs. The shorter EMAs are also above the longer ones. This is a classic bullish intraday trend. Short-term participants are clearly buying dips and defending higher lows.
Hourly RSI sitting just under 70 shows strong, almost overbought momentum. Buyers are pressing hard, but this is also where the probability of a pause or a small pullback starts to rise, especially into resistance zones on the daily bands.
The MACD is positive but the histogram has flattened out around zero. The intraday uptrend is intact, but the acceleration phase is cooling. In other words, bulls are still in charge on H1, but momentum is no longer expanding aggressively.
With price at $1.38, $XRP is above the mid-band but not crowded at the upper band. That fits with the RSI story: a strong but maturing intraday move where there is still room to stretch higher, yet the easy part of the rally may already be behind us.
An hourly ATR of one cent is relatively low for an asset trading at $1.38. Intraday conditions are orderly, not chaotic. This often precedes either a grinding trend continuation or a sudden volatility expansion once a key level breaks.
The automated pivot calculation collapsing PP, R1 and S1 onto $1.38 highlights just how compressed the immediate trading range is. The market is coiling in a very tight band, and when that resolves, the next directional impulse is likely to be sharp relative to the current small intraday bars.
The 15-minute chart is mainly useful for timing, not for defining the broader view. Here, the regime is also flagged as bullish, aligned with the 1-hour trend.
Price is riding the 20-EMA and above the 50 and 200. Short-term traders are still buying dips, and the micro-trend matches the hourly strength.
On 15-minute, RSI is comfortably positive but far from stretched, while MACD is flat. The very short-term move is in balance: no immediate exhaustion, but no fresh surge either. That favors either a sideways consolidation at these levels or a gradual drift following the hourly direction.
The bands are extremely tight on M15 and ATR rounds down to zero, reflecting a very compressed micro-range. This is classic pre-move behavior: short-term volatility is being suffocated, often before a breakout in one direction or the other.
There is a clear hierarchy here:
The tension is straightforward: lower timeframes are bullish and pushing up into the ceiling defined by the daily structure. When that happens, one of two things usually follows: either the higher timeframe gives way and a trend change begins, or the intraday rally exhausts and snaps back toward the daily mean.
Given the extreme fear in the broader crypto market and rising total market cap, there is a reasonable case for a wall of worry rally – strong moves higher despite nervous sentiment. But $XRP is still trading beneath its key daily moving averages, so the burden of proof is on the bulls to break and hold above resistance.
For the bullish case, you want to see the intraday strength on H1 and M15 force a structural shift on the daily chart. This is where the Ripple price has a chance to transition from recovery to a more durable advance.
What bulls want to see:
If this plays out, the first upside zone is the $1.45 band (upper daily Bollinger, recent volatility cap). Above that, the roadmap opens toward the $1.55–$1.60 area, and in a more extended move, the 200-day EMA up near $1.84 becomes a logical longer-term magnet.
What would invalidate the bullish scenario?
The bearish case leans on the bigger picture: $XRP is still below its 50-day and far below its 200-day EMA. In this view, the current strength on the lower timeframes is just a rally inside a larger downtrend.
What bears want to see:
If sellers regain control, the first downside focus is the $1.30–$1.33 region, where the hourly 200-EMA currently sits and prior liquidity likely clusters. Below that, the lower daily Bollinger Band around $1.28 is a natural target. A deeper extension could open the way back to previous swing lows, especially if broader market sentiment deteriorates further from already fearful levels.
What would invalidate the bearish scenario?
$XRP is currently in that awkward middle zone: strong enough on intraday charts to tempt late longs, but not yet strong enough on the daily to call it a new bull market. Extremes in the broader sentiment (extreme fear) combined with rising total crypto market cap often provide a fertile backdrop for sustained recoveries. However, they also create sharp, emotional reversals when key levels reject price.
For positioning, the key is timeframe:
Volatility on all tracked timeframes is contained but coiling, and uncertainty remains high given macro sentiment. The market is effectively asking the question: does this short-term strength in Ripple’s price have the depth to break the daily ceiling, or is it just another rally into resistance? The answer will show up first in how $XRP behaves around $1.36–$1.45 over the coming sessions.
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