Monday. According to a recent study by Orsama and colleagues, that’s the day when most people experience their maximum body weight. And your lowest body weight? That’s most likely to be recorded on Friday.

 The weekend certainly seems to play some havoc on our energy balance.

 The 7 day week cycle has an impact on many of our behaviors. Take sleep, for example. During the week, we get up regularly at the sound of our alarm, but come Saturday, the alarm clock may be turned off and you allow yourself to sleep in. Your physical activity level is also likely to oscillate based on the day; individuals who actively commute to work may become more of a couch potato on the weekend. People may also be more likely to go out and have a few drinks over the weekend. All these behaviors can have an impact on a person’s energy balance, and subtly, on their body weight. And apparently, that’s exactly what happens.

 In the study published earlier this year, Orsama and colleagues explored the weekly rhythm of weight to understand the normal variation of weight which occurs during the week. The researchers analysed daily self-reported body weight in 80 adults (BMI: 20.0–33.5 kg/m2; age: 25–62 years). To avoid intra-day variation in body weight individuals were instructed to record their daily weight immediately after waking up and before breakfast. The length of each individual’s time series of recorded weight varied from 15 to 330 days.

 As I’ve already summarized in the first couple of sentences, body weight tended to be highest following the weekend (Sunday/Monday) and lowest just before the weekend (Friday).

 As a potential explanation of this weekly weight fluctuation, the authors propose that meal sizes and calorie intake tend to increase while physical activity tends to decrease during weekends. Indeed, many people who eat a clean diet during the week allow themselves a cheat day over the weekend. Evidence seems to favor such a flexible approach to diet management, by contrast to the all or none approach. The former approach allows you to enjoy some highly-favored but potentially calorie-dense foods in relative moderation, potentially increasing long-term adherence to a diet. By contrast, the latter approach, which outright forbids certain foods, may result in dietary boredom, and complete discontinuation of the healthy diet.

 This also leads us to the other interesting finding in this study. Variation in body weight was also analysed according to whether the participants lost weight (greater than 3% reduction), gained weight (greater than 1% increase), or maintained weight (weight change between –3 and 1%). What is interesting, as illustrated in the figure below, is that the biggest fluctuation in weight occurred in those who lost weight over time. This would suggest that successful weight losers were allowing themselves some serious dietary leniency over the weekend. Maybe this is exactly what allowed them to persist on their respective diet for a longer duration.

 What are the implications of this research?

 First, if you like to regularly weight yourself, best to compare the same day of the week (and same time of day).

 Secondly, allowing yourself a few indulgences over the weekend may in fact help you stick with eating better and managing your weight over the long term.

 Peter

 Reference: ||||| You've been eating well all week: oatmeal for breakfast, a salad for lunch and grilled chicken with vegetables for dinner. Then the weekend hits. Suddenly your taste buds want French fries at the bar and Mom's cheesy lasagna is calling your name during Sunday dinner.

 Not to worry. A new study suggests small weight gains on weekends are normal, and as long as you can compensate during the week, indulging a bit may even help you lose weight long-term.

 “There is a clear weekly rhythm to weight variation for most people,” says one of the study authors, Anna-Leena Orsama, a research scientist with VTT Technical Research Center of Finland. “On the weekends there is more variability and unpredictability in what we eat.”

 The study, “Weight Rhythms: Weight Increases during Weekends and Decreases during Weekdays,” was published this week in the journal Obesity Facts.

 The study

 Researchers analyzed data from 80 adults, ranging in age from 25 to 62 years old, who recorded their weight each day after waking up.

 The participants were grouped according to their weight changes over the study period: weight losers who lost at least 3% of their body weight; weight gainers who put on at least 1%; and weight maintainers who stayed in between those minimums.

 The results

 All three groups, the losers, gainers and maintainers, recorded higher weights on Sundays and Mondays than other days of the week. But those who successfully lost weight had lower weights during the week, with their lowest generally recorded on Friday.

 This shows they managed to compensate for the weekend gain during the work week, researchers say.

 Limitations

 The sample size for this study was relatively small. Only 10 people were in the gain group; only 18 were in the loss group. The data was also all self-reported, meaning the study participants could have made a mistake or purposefully altered their recorded weights.

 Also important to note is that the researchers are talking about slight caloric increases. This is not a free pass to eat your weight in cookie dough.

 The takeaway

 Long-term habits may make more of a difference than short-term splurges, the study authors say. And a flexible eating pattern - i.e., allowing yourself that brownie or beer on Friday night - may help you sustain overall healthy eating habits over time. Weight loss success depends primarily on your ability to compensate for those splurges on other days of the week.

 “The big difference between those who gain weight over time and those who lose or maintain weight is directly related to the way they eat from Monday to Friday," said Cornell University behavioral economist Brian Wansink, one of the study authors.

 "Some indulging during weekends makes no harm but for successful weight loss it is important to notice these rhythms and take steps to reverse the upward trends." ||||| Abstract

 Background/Aims: The week's cycle influences sleep, exercise, and eating habits. An accurate description of weekly weight rhythms has not been reported yet - especially across people who lose weight versus those who maintain or gain weight. Methods: The daily weight in 80 adults (BMI 20.0-33.5 kg/m2; age, 25-62 years) was recorded and analysed to determine if a group-level weekly weight fluctuation exists. This was a retrospective study of 4,657 measurements during 15-330 monitoring days. Semi-parametric regression was used to model the rhythm. Results: A pattern of daily weight changes was found (p < 0.05), with higher weight early in the week (Sunday and Monday) and decreasing weight during the week. Increases begin on Saturday and decreases begin on Tuesday. This compensation pattern was strongest for those who lost or maintained weight and weakest for those who slowly gained weight. Conclusion: Weight variations between weekends and weekdays should be considered as normal instead of signs of weight gain. Those who compensate the most are most likely to either lose or maintain weight over time. Long-term habits may make more of a difference than short-term splurges. People prone to weight gain could be counselled about the importance of weekday compensation.

 © 2014 S. Karger GmbH, Freiburg

 Introduction

 Obesity is a powerful, prevalent predictor of poor health. In 2010, 475 million adults were obese (BMI ≥ 30 kg/m2) [1] and the number is estimated to grow to 1,115.8 million by 2030 [2]. Harmful health consequences are manifold: Obesity increases the risk of type II diabetes and cardiovascular diseases [3], osteoarthritis [4], gallstones [4], colon and breast cancer [5], and the incidence of mental disorders [6]. While it is driven by excess intake of energy and inactivity [7,8], a better understanding of weight gain patterns could provide useful insights into the prevention and treatment of obesity.

 Human behaviour and physiology exhibit variations according to biological and environmental factors. For instance, circadian rhythms that are seen in the recurrence of our daily activity and rest are also found in the fluctuations of several physiological variables such as body temperature, blood pressure [9], and glucose metabolism [10]. Menstrual cycles are an example of biological monthly rhythms. Recent studies have highlighted the importance of certain rhythms on health. These have included how disruptions in the circadian rhythm influence the development of type II diabetes [11] along with other adverse health consequences [12].

 The 7-day cycle of a week also has a strong impact on life [13] that is more environmental and behavioural than biological. For instance, days of the week are known to determine our sleeping patterns [14], physical activity [15,16,] and eating habits [16,17]. There is early indication that weight is higher during weekends and lower during weekdays [18,19,20]. However, it is unclear if this phenomenon is visible on a population level and how it is related to successful weight management in the long term.

 This research examines the variation of weight across the days of the week and also examines this pattern across three segments of people - those who maintain their weight, gain weight, and lose weight. Specifically, by combining self-monitored weight measurements from four earlier studies, we endeavoured i) to find out whether there is group level variation in weight within a week or whether the weight variation is independent from days of the week; ii) to study the form of the dependence between weight and days of the week; and iii) to initially explore how this might vary across weight losers, weight gainers, and weight maintainers.

 Material and Methods

 Retrospectively Collected Weight Data

 Self-recorded weight measurements were aggregated from four earlier data collection efforts [18,20,21,22] in which individuals were instructed to self-monitor and record their daily weight, immediately after waking up and before breakfast. Studies 1, 3, and 4 involved health management intervention and were approved by local ethics committees. The focus of Study 2 was usability and feasibility of a mobile phone application and, thus, no approval was needed. Table 1 describes the goals and durations of the four studies as well as the demographics and size of the study populations.

 Table 1

 In total, the four studies involved 178 subjects and resulted in 7,408 self-recorded weight measurements (from 154 individuals). Two inclusion criteria regarding the frequency of weight measurements and the length of the monitoring period were established for the data. Only measurements taken on a minimum of 7 sequential days were included to prevent describing a biased rhythm that could result from unreported measurements. The minimum acceptable duration of monitoring was 14 days. These restrictions resulted in the inclusion of 80 adults and 4,657 weight measurements. The length of each individual's time series varied from 15 to 330 days.

 Derivation of Variables

 Based on the original data set, the individuals were divided into three subgroups according to their relative weight change. Relative weight changes were calculated as a difference between the averages of self-measured weights on the first and last week of monitoring. The categories of the corresponding group variable were the following: ‘LOSS' - weight change more than -3%; ‘GAIN' - weight change more than 1%; ‘MAINTAIN' - weight change between -3 and 1%.

 A weight trend component was estimated by applying a two-sided moving average filter [23] with the length of 7 days. Detrended weight measurements were normalised with respect to each individual by mean centring according to one's average weight. The response variable was derived by subtracting trend from weight time series of each individual to eliminate the effects of linear weight gain or linear weight loss. A rapidly decreasing trend may cause weight to appear higher in the beginning of each week-long period which could confound the underlying ‘real' rhythm. For the day of the week variable, days were labelled in an ordinal scale as follows: 1 = Sunday, 2 = Monday, 3 = Tuesday, 4 = Wednesday, 5 = Thursday, 6 = Friday, 7 = Saturday.

 Statistical Methods

 Semi-parametric regression [24] was used for analysing the weekly rhythm in the weight measurement data. The method is based on the combination of non-parametric smoothing and parametric linear mixed-effects (LME) models [25]. LME models are widely used in the analysis of longitudinal data due to their ability to account for within-subject variation. Splines are continuous piecewise-defined linear functions that are formed by dividing the range of the covariate into p subintervals and modelling each of the intervals with an appropriate slope [26]. The subintervals are tied together at their cut points to make the final curve contiguous. Splines are unrestricted to parametric assumptions and, thus, enable flexible shapes for the curves. As a semi-parametric method, the splines were formulated as LME models and further estimated in the LME framework using the restricted maximum likelihood method (REML).

 Student's t-test and restricted maximum likelihood ratio test (RLRT) were used for model comparisons. The RLRT is constructed by comparing maximized likelihoods of two models. The larger the difference between the likelihoods, the stronger the evidence that the smaller model is inadequate. Significance tests were conducted with the risk level α = 0.05. Analyses were done using R version 2.15 [27].

 Application

 The general formula for modelling the dependence between weight and day of the week was the following:

 weight = f (day of the week) + ε(1).

 First, f (day of the week) was determined as a linear function of day of the week and later extended to a linear penalised spline. The formula of the spline model was:

 On the right hand side, the first two terms form the linear basis for the spline (the formula is similar to the ordinary linear regression model). b r+1 's are the slope estimates for the truncated line functions that handle the departures from the linearity to obtain the appropriate form for the curve. In our models, days of the week were used as placements for the cut points (τ's) leading to six subintervals to be modelled with a different slope.

 The LME model presentation, y = Xβ + Zb [25,] for the spline curve was obtained by partitioning the spline model components in formula (2) into two LME model components, i.e. fixed effects (Xβ) and random effects (Zb). One of the LME model assumptions holds that slope estimates of the random part are distributed with zero mean [25]. This property is exploited in the estimation to control the roughness of the curve. The advantage of the LME presentation is that it is straightforward to extend the spline model further to account for the within-subject variation that is present in repeated measures data. The random effect structure was extended to individual-specific intercepts and slopes by extending the Zb component and its corresponding covariance matrix [28]. As a first step, an individual-specific intercept was added to the group-level model where component u i1 is an intercept for i-th individual:

 Further, the model was enlarged with individual-specific linear lines with the day of the week as a covariate. As a final step, the model was extended with individual-specific splines, meaning that each individual had their own spline curve that describes the deviation from the group-level curve. The deviation curve was not restricted to being linear; it could be of any shape. This model was expressed as

 weight = f (day of the week) + g i (day of the week)(4).

 where g i 's were constructed as presented in formula (2) but with fewer cut points, i.e. four in our models.

 Hypotheses

 Figure 1 shows the initial illustration of the weekly profile curves derived as an averaged detrended normalized weight on each day of the week. Based on the figure, three hypothesis set-ups were formulated. These resulted in the construction of six different models. Primarily, we modelled the group-level data that included the entire sample of 80 subjects. These models were denoted as M1 ALL to M6 ALL . Additionally, each hypothesis set-up was tested in the subgroups of weight losers, weight gainers, and weight maintainers. The models were denoted as M1 LOSS to M6 LOSS , M1 GAIN to M6 GAIN , and M1 MAINTAIN to M6 MAINTAIN .

 Fig. 1

 Day of the Week Effect

 The first hypothesis involved testing whether the day of the week had a linear effect on weight when starting from Sunday, or whether the expected weight is constant and does not depend on the day of the week. The following hypothesis was tested:

 H₀: weight = β₀ (M1 ALL , M1 LOSS , M1 GAIN , M1 MAINTAIN )

 H a : weight = β₀ + β 1 × day of the week (M2 ALL , M2 LOSS , M2 GAIN , M2 MAINTAIN ).

 To assess the superiority of M2, the significance of β 1 was tested using the t-statistic.

 Form of the Dependence

 The second question consisted of two parts, 2A and 2B. In 2A, the form of the dependence between weight and day of the week was explored. It was tested whether the linear curve was adequate to describe the weekly rhythm or, alternatively, whether there was some degree of nonlinearity. M2 models were tested against their extensions, i.e. linear penalised spline models (M3) that correct departures from the linearity. The following hypothesis was tested:

 RLRT was used to assess the significance of the difference between the M2 and M3 models. The comparison involved testing if all the six truncated line coefficients b r 's in M3 differed from zero. This is equivalent to testing if σ b 2 is significantly different from zero. Thus, the hypothesis was simplified as the following:

 H₀: σ b 2 = 0 versus H a : σ b 2 > 0.

 The testing problem is non-standard because weight measurements are not independent and because the RLRT statistic under the null hypothesis is zero, which is on the boundary of its parameter space [29]. To overcome this problem, we used RLRsim library [30] in R that exploits parametric bootstrap with 10,000 repetitions to simulate and test the hypothesis.

 Effect of Longitudinal Nature of the Data

 In order to take the longitudinal nature of the data into consideration, the dependence in measurements made by the same individual was accounted for in 2B. The fitted population level curves were extended with individual-specific intercepts and slopes. The following models nested to their random effect structures were fitted:

 The hypothesis concerning the models was whether the added random component improves the fit. The comparison was done by RLRT. The significance of the difference between the two models was tested using Self-Liang approximation [31] which says that asymptotical RLRT follows ½ χ2 q + ½ χ2 q+1 - distribution where q is the number of fixed effects. However, the distribution holds under the assumption that y's are independent which is not the case in the longitudinal data. Therefore, the results were confirmed by comparing the most adequate model with the population average model by using RLRsim library. The observed RLRT's were compared to the 95th percentile of ½ χ2 0 + ½ χ2 1 - distribution, which is 1.921.

 Results

 The descriptive data of the entire sample and each of the subgroups, i.e. weight losers, weight gainers, and weight maintainers, are shown in table 2 along with the number of measurements obtained from individuals. Table 3 presents how often the minimum and maximum weight observations occurred on different days of the week. In the LOSS group, there was a clear difference between days of the week that have the highest proportions for minimum and maximum weight. The minimum weight of the week was most frequently observed on Friday and, in 60% of the cases, the week's minimum weight occurred either on Friday or Saturday. Correspondingly, the maximum weight was reached most often on Sunday or Monday, i.e. in 59% of the cases. In the GAIN and MAINTAIN groups there was more variability. Both the minimum and maximum weight of the week was most frequently measured on Sunday in both subgroups. The second highest occurrence in maximum weight was seen on Monday. The distribution on other days of the week was similar.

 Table 2

 Table 3

 When examining the day of the week effect with a linear regression model, day of the week was a significant predictor of weight in all study groups (p < 0.001 for the entire sample, for LOSS, and for MAINTAIN; p = 0.002 for GAIN). The slopes that describe the rate of weight change were all negative: β 1 = -0.0004 for the entire sample, β 1 = -0.0006 for LOSS, β 1 = -0.0003 for GAIN, and β 1 = -0.0003 for MAINTAIN.

 The linear association of day of the week on weight was not adequate to explain the weekly variation of weight but it was significantly better explained by a spline curve that allowed a more flexible shape (p < 0.001 for the entire sample, p < 0.001 for LOSS, p = 0.021 for MAINTAIN, p = 0.065 for GAIN). Therefore, the spline model was used to test the 2B hypothesis.

 The weekly rhythm-fitted plots with their variability bands are shown in figure 2. The upper panel shows fitted profile plots of the weekly rhythm of weight with their variability bands. Equivalent plots are fitted in the lower panel together with scatter plots of weight measurements of each group to illustrate the explorative role of rhythm curves in the weight variation.

 Fig. 2

 Table 4 shows the test statistics of RLRT to assess the most adequate fit that takes into account the within-subject variation in the data. The model that included subject-specific lines (M5) was the most adequate model in the LOSS, GAIN, and MAINTAIN subgroups. In all cases, the likelihood ratio statistic for assessing M5 over M4 was greater than 1.921. Further extension of the random effect structure to the individual-specific splines made no improvement. The superiority of M5 over M3 models (that did not account for individual effects) was confirmed by simulations using RLRsim. The bootstrapped p-values were: p = 0 for LOSS, p = 0.056 for GAIN, and p = 0 for MAINTAIN. For the entire sample, the most adequate model was the M6 that included individual-specific splines. The bootstrapped p-value of comparing the superiority M6 ALL against M3 ALL was 0. The addition of individual-specific trajectories to population level models significantly decreased the unexplained variability in this weight data. However, the extensions did not change the shape of curves but they remained similar to the population level curves. The fitted values of the models are plotted as separate points in figure 2. We see hardly any difference from the population level curves that are drawn as contiguous lines.

 Table 4

 Discussion

 The purpose of this study was to explore the weekly rhythm of weight to understand the normal variation of weight which occurs during the week. In addition, we described the rhythm profiles in different weight management groups. It was found that the day of the week has a significant effect on weight: weight was higher in the beginning of the week, i.e. on Sunday and Monday, and decreased toward the end of the week. In addition, there was a slight increase in the end of the week, i.e. during Saturdays and Sundays. This phenomenon was also observed in the subgroups of weight losers and weight maintainers, but not among weight gainers. This observation may appear contradictory but is explained by the fact that we removed any linear weight change prior to analysing the effect of day of the week - therefore, it is possible for the GAIN group to exhibit this pattern.

 The detected shape of the weekly rhythm of weight is consistent with the results of other studies regarding day of the week effects on human behaviour. Meal sizes and calorie intake have been found to increase [16,17] and physical activity to decrease during weekends [15], specifically on Sundays [16]. The increased calorie intake and reduced amount of exercise are indicators that are associated with weight gain. Correspondingly, we detected weight gain during weekends. The shape of the weekly rhythm curves were consistent with the findings of Racette et al. [16] who found a decreasing trend during weekdays but increased weight during weekends. Our analysis reveals that the decreasing trend is continued until Friday after which weight starts to increase over the weekend, being highest on Sunday and on Monday.

 Based on the subgroup analyses, our results suggest that weekly variation of weight might be associated with weight management. Figure 2 shows that the magnitude of the weekly weight variation is greater in the LOSS group than in the GAIN group. This suggests that individuals in the GAIN group have less consistent weight differences between days of the week and that their weight varies with less regularity. This is also noticeable in table 3: In the LOSS group, the minimum weight of the week is most often observed at the end of the week while the week's maximum weight is most often seen either on Sunday or Monday. In the GAIN group, maximum and minimum weights of the week are distributed more evenly to all days of the week. Similar findings can be seen in the research of Racette et al. [16]. In both of their intervention groups, significant decreases in weight (-8.0 ± 0.9 kg and -6.4 ± 0.9 kg) were detected whereas in the control group the average weight change was -1.3 ± 0.9 kg. Correspondingly, both of the intervention groups had decreasing weight during weekdays and stable or increasing weight during weekends whereas the control group did not show significant weight changes on weekends or weekdays.

 Based on the subgroup analysis, it appears that successful weight control (weight maintenance or weight loss) is not distracted by slight increases in weight during weekends. Instead, their success seems to be related to their ability to compensate and turn down the upward trend. This compensation mechanism thwarts minor weight regains, which Phelan et al. [32] found difficult for many people to recover from. However, relapses are expected and likely to occur in weight management. Successful weight loss strategies have indicated that flexible dietary restraint involves less pressure on diet and a stronger understanding of how diet and energy balance relate to sustained weight loss [33].

 Flexible eating regulation patterns that allow one to enjoy all foods and compensate for more caloric meals are more likely to be sustained in a long-term rather than a dichotomous way of thinking (‘all or nothing' or ‘allowed/forbidden foods') [33]. Similarly, Dohm et al. [34] reported that when dietary lapses occur, successful weight maintainers are more likely to use direct coping. Allowing more flexibility on weekends and holidays might be more realistic from a long-term perspective because it avoids dietary boredom [35]. Indeed, according to a study by Smith et al. [36], the most common reasons for stopping a weight loss regimen were ‘boredom/loss of interest' and ‘missing certain foods'. Therefore, contrary to the conclusions of Racette and co-authors [16], slight variations - including increases in weight during the weekend - may have a positive role in supporting long-term successful weight management.

 One limitation of this study pertains to the threshold value of the GAIN group (1% of weight increase). Whether 1% is an actual increase or merely a part of daily weight variation may be discussed. However, to eliminate day-to-day fluctuations in weight, the individuals were classified according to weight change that was calculated as an average of weight self-measurements over one week. Secondly, as self-monitoring relates to weight loss and successful loss maintenance [37,38,39], individuals showing early signs of weight gain despite regular self-monitoring were classified in the GAIN group of this study to emphasize their deviation from the expected pattern. Despite this low threshold, our sample size of the GAIN group was small, which limits the generalizability of the results and highlights the overall challenge of learning more about weight gainers. It is difficult to find people who are committed to consistently monitoring their weight with frequency and continuity even in the presence of unfavourable outcomes. The threshold value for the LOSS group was set to a decrease of weight of >3%. For obese people (BMI > 30 kg/m2), a moderate weight reduction of 5% is generally considered to be beneficial for health [40]. In this study, individuals were on average overweight (mean BMI 27.3 kg/m2) but not obese and the monitoring time was relatively short, i.e. 80 days on average. Therefore, we expected smaller weight loss and considered a decrease of 3% sufficient. This threshold is also supported by Stevens et al. [41].

 A challenge that we faced in the analysis was the depletion of data. The unbalance of the data and the self-selected nature of weight measurements make the data sensitive to bias. To achieve generalizable results, certain requirements were established for the measurement frequency and consistency to avoid the slightest fluctuations of weight. As a result, the number of weight measurements decreased from 7,408 to 4,657. Due to the small sizes of GAIN and LOSS groups (10 and 18 individuals, respectively), the suggested relationship between the weekly rhythm and weight management success should be considered preliminary.

 The findings of this study suggest that weight should not be expected to be constant throughout the week. Slight increases during weekends can be treated as normal weight variation instead of signs of weight gain. However, the slight weight gain over weekends needs to be compensated during weekdays to avoid an increasing long-term trend. Based on the indicators of this study, a clear weekly rhythm may be favourable, allowing for more flexible eating patterns. However, more research is needed to confirm these results across a broader range of ages and life circumstances. The results were inherited from a retrospective set-up, and none of the studies was primarily planned for the analysis of weekly variation of weight. Future studies require careful consideration to obtain a sufficient amount of data regarding weight gainers while at the same time retaining the free-living set-up to obtain generalizable results.

 Conclusion

 This study found that there is a clear weekly rhythm to weight variation. Weight was at the highest point after weekends, on Sunday and Monday, and decreased toward the end of the week. The beginning of the weekend stopped the decrease and weight started to increase after Friday. Additionally, there is preliminary evidence that those people who show the largest compensating change from the weekend to the weekdays are those who - over time - are most likely to either lose weight or maintain their weight. It appears that long-term habits make more of a difference than short-term splurges.

 Based on the findings of this study, we can expect weight to rise during weekends and treat it as a normal variation. Our results provide scientific support to the tenet that in weight management, allowing more flexibility during weekends and holidays might be more realistic and successful in the long term than a strict regimen.

 Acknowledgments

 AO, EM, ME, MV, BW, and IK conceived and designed the study. AO, EM, ME, MV, and IK collected and analysed data. AO, BW, and IK wrote the manuscript. Julia Hastings-Black provided editorial assistance.

 Disclosure Statement

 This work was done as a part of the ITEA2 Care4me project. The project is funded by the Finnish Funding Agency for Technology and Innovation (Tekes) and the VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland (VTT).

 The authors have no conflicts of interest to disclose.

 References

 Author Contacts

 Dr. Brian Wansink Charles S. Dyson School of Applied Economics and Management, Cornell University 15 Warren Hall, Ithaca, NY 14850 (USA) foodandbrandlab@cornell.edu

 Article / Publication Details

 Received: May 14, 2013

 Accepted: September 04, 2013

 Published online: January 31, 2014

 Issue release date: February 2014 Number of Print Pages: 12

 Number of Figures: 0

 Number of Tables: 0 ISSN: 1662-4025 (Print)

 eISSN: 1662-4033 (Online) For additional information: https://www.karger.com/OFA

 Open Access License / Drug Dosage / Disclaimer

 Open Access License: This is an Open Access article licensed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 3.0 Unported license (CC BY-NC) (www.karger.com/OA-license), applicable to the online version of the article only. Distribution permitted for non-commercial purposes only.

 Drug Dosage: The authors and the publisher have exerted every effort to ensure that drug selection and dosage set forth in this text are in accord with current recommendations and practice at the time of publication. However, in view of ongoing research, changes in government regulations, and the constant flow of information relating to drug therapy and drug reactions, the reader is urged to check the package insert for each drug for any changes in indications and dosage and for added warnings and precautions. This is particularly important when the recommended agent is a new and/or infrequently employed drug.

 Disclaimer: The statements, opinions and data contained in this publication are solely those of the individual authors and contributors and not of the publishers and the editor(s). The appearance of advertisements or/and product references in the publication is not a warranty, endorsement, or approval of the products or services advertised or of their effectiveness, quality or safety. The publisher and the editor(s) disclaim responsibility for any injury to persons or property resulting from any ideas, methods, instructions or products referred to in the content or advertisements. |||||

Write a summary.

– For most of us, weekends are a time to relax and indulge—maybe through more sleep, more couch time, or more calories in the food and beverages we consume. The result is that we tend to weigh slightly more on Sunday and Monday, but then slightly less again by Friday, reports the Smithsonian. And enough of us do this that scientists say they've observed the general weight trend in a small study published in the journal Obesity Facts. The researchers analyzed the recorded daily weights of 80 adults ages 25 to 62 and found weight "increases begin on Saturday and decreases begin on Tuesday." Before we all fall into a pit of despair in the days leading up to Thanksgiving, one doctor stresses on PLOS' Obesity Panacea blog that it's not a bad thing to "cheat" diets and habits on the weekends. In fact, it "allows you to enjoy some highly-favored but potentially calorie-dense foods in relative moderation, potentially increasing long-term adherence to a diet." The study's authors agree, telling CNN that "some indulging" does no harm. (Meanwhile, if you want to lose weight, research indicates you shouldn't forgo fats.)


Write an article based on this summary:

– Josh and Bianca Byrne were married on a New Hampshire farm the first weekend in October. Their new life together was cut tragically short during their honeymoon in Costa Rica, when Josh was swept away in a flash flood on Oct. 12. His body was found the following day, WESH reports. The couple was in a vehicle trying to cross a bridge in Playa Dominicalito when the flood hit; Bianca was able to swim to shore but Josh wasn't, NBC News reports. "It is with heavy hearts that we have concluded our search for Josh," says a statement released by his family. "After working around the clock, our search and rescue mission ended today with the recovery of Josh’s remains." A GoFundMe campaign has been set up for Byrne's family.

Breaking News Emails Get breaking news alerts and special reports. The news and stories that matter, delivered weekday mornings.

 The body of a Massachusetts honeymooner who was swept away by floodwaters in Costa Rica in front of his wife has been recovered, the man's family said in a statement to NBC News affiliate WESH.

 Josh Byrne, 30, and his wife, Bianca, who were married earlier this month, were in Playa Dominicalito when he went missing last week when the vehicle they were traveling in was caught in a flash flood while trying to traverse a bridge, WESH reported.

 Bianca was able to swim to shore, but Josh was swept away by the river.

 Josh Byrne in a photo posted to his Facebook account. via Facebook

 "It is with heavy hearts that we have concluded our search for Josh," the Byrne family said in a statement to WESH. "After working around the clock, our search and rescue mission ended today with the recovery of Josh’s remains."

 Byrne's father and brother flew to Costa Rica on Friday to search for him. His remains were found the following day, according to WESH.

 Mike Ciprari, the CEO of SJC Custom Drums, where Byrne was employed, confirmed his death to NBC News and said the company learned of Byrne's death from his family.

 "His even keel attitude allowed us to get through the many growing pains and transitions we have faced," Ciprari wrote in a post to Instagram. "We were lucky to have Josh by our side for so many years, and we will cherish those memories forever."

 The Byrne family said Josh Byrne would be remembered for his "helpful and caring demeanor," his skills making friends, and "his love for his wife, Bianca."

 CORRECTION (4:22 p.m. ET October 15, 2018): An earlier photograph with this article mistakenly said it was of John Byrne. It was not of him. The current photograph shows Byrne. ||||| Josh was swept away in a flash flood while on his honeymoon in Costa Rica on Friday, October 12."It is with heavy hearts that we have concluded our search for Josh," a statement from the family said. "After working around the clock, our search and rescue mission ended today with the recovery of Josh’s remains.""Josh holds a special place in all of our hearts and will always be remembered for his helpful and caring demeanor, his ability to make friends in any setting, and his love for his wife, Bianca," the family said.The family offered its thanks to the local community, Massachusetts political leaders, the Red Cross and the U.S. Embassy and State Department for their help.Please help donate help the family cover costs for the logistics of a proper recovery and services.Thank you for your support.When we close the Go Fund Me, Josh' father, Paul Byrne, will withdraw the Go Fund Me funds and use to help pay for Josh' services and other family matters. ||||| Family members said the body of Josh Byrne, who was swept away by flood waters while on his honeymoon in Costa Rica, was discovered Saturday.

 The 30-year-old Byrne, a Hudson, Massachusetts, native, was married to his wife, Bianca, last weekend on a farm in New Hampshire.

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 The newlyweds were honeymooning on the west coast of Costa Rica, in an area known as Playa Dominicalito, when they were caught up in a flash flood as they were trying to cross a bridge.

 Bianca was able to swim to shore, but Byrne was swept away.

 Josh's father and brother flew to the country Friday to help locals search along the banks of the river for him.

 "It is with heavy hearts that we have concluded our search for Josh," a statement from the family said. "After working around the clock, our search and rescue mission ended today with the recovery of Josh’s remains."

 "Josh holds a special place in all of our hearts and will always be remembered for his helpful and caring demeanor, his ability to make friends in any setting, and his love for his wife, Bianca," the family said.

 The family offered its thanks to the local community, Massachusetts political leaders, the Red Cross and the U.S. Embassy and State Department for their help.

 AlertMe |||||


Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, left, and U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson shake hands in the Treaty Room Wednesday. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

 Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov appeared to get irritated with reporters at the State Department in Washington on Wednesday, sarcastically remarking on the firing of FBI Director James Comey.

 "Was he fired? You're kidding?" Lavrov told reporters. "You're kidding."

 Appearing with Lavrov, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson was more measured, and made no specific comment on Comey.

 He stressed that the purpose of Lavrov's trip to Washington was "to continue our dialogue and our exchange of views that began in Moscow… on a very broad range of topics."

 Lavrov meets with President Donald Trump at the White House later Wednesday. ||||| Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov reacts to a reporter's question after posing for photos with U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson in the Treaty Room of the State Department on May 10. | Getty Russian foreign minister jokes about Comey: 'Was he fired? You’re kidding'

 Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov sarcastically acted surprised Wednesday when asked a question about the firing of FBI Director James Comey during a visit to Washington.

 “Was he fired? You’re kidding, you’re kidding,” he said during a brief press conference at the State Department before making a face, shaking his head and leaving the room.

 Story Continued Below

 Lavrov was briefly addressing the media with Secretary of State Rex Tillerson. The Russian diplomat is scheduled to meet with President Donald Trump Wednesday as well.

 Comey, who was investigation the ties between the Trump campaign and Russia, was dramatically fired by Trump Tuesday night. ||||| As scrutiny intensifies around investigations into the Trump campaign’s possible ties to Russia during the 2016 campaign, President Donald Trump emphasized his hope for better relations between the U.S. and the Kremlin in a meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on Wednesday.

 Trump described the meeting to a group of reporters on Wednesday as "very, very good."

 But the critical issue of Russian election interference was not discussed, according to Lavrov.

 In a press conference after the Oval Office meeting, the Russian Foreign Minister said he and Trump "discussed specific issues and we didn’t raise those absurd issues” about election tampering.

 Instead, Lavrov pointed to Trump’s own comments — frequently relayed via Twitter — that the Russia story is "fake news."

 "There is not a single fact, there is no compelling evidence given to anyone regarding Russia’s intervention and that is it," Lavrov said.

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 Russian government social media accounts tweeted out images of Trump with Lavrov, as well as with Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak whose attendance, his government said, is considered protocol. U.S. press was not allowed into either meeting nor has the White House released any photos.

 Kislyak’s role is critical in the investigation into former National Security Advisor Michael Flynn, who met with the ambassador during the Trump transition and misled Vice President Mike Pence about the two men’s discussions on Russian sanctions levied by the Obama administration.

 Those sanctions were not discussed Wednesday, Lavrov said in a press conference at the Russian embassy after the meeting. But Lavrov called the Obama administration's expulsion of Russian diplomats from the U.S. in retaliation late last year “pitiful” and a “dirty” trick.”

 Russian President Vladimir Putin and Trump are slated to meet in July on the sidelines of the G-20 summit in Hamburg, Germany.

 Lavrov's meeting with Trump and Tillerson in Washington comes less than 24 hours after news of the firing of FBI Director James Comey, which ushered in a wave of criticism from Democrats and some Republicans with renewed calls for an independent investigator into Russian meddling in the 2016 election, including alleged collusion between the Kremlin and the Trump campaign. The meeting also comes at a time when U.S.-Russian relations are seen by the administration as "at a low point."

 U.S. President Donald Trump shakes hands with Russia's Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov as they meet for talks in the Oval Office at the White House on May 10, 2017. Russian Foreign Ministry

 Lavrov arrived at the White House after the Tillerson meeting and ahead of a press conference at the Russian Embassy. The meeting with Trump, billed on the White House schedule as an Oval Office meeting, was closed to reporters.

 During his meeting with Trump, Lavrov discussed efforts by Russia, Turkey and Iran to set up "de-escalation zones" in opposition-held areas of Syria, a plan enacted on Saturday. Still, stark differences remain on the best way forward in the six-year Syrian war which has left more than 500,000 dead and displaced millions.

 Washington has long said Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad can't remain in power if the war-torn nation is to move forward. Russia supports Assad.

 "We do not have a notion of an exit strategy," Lavrov said during the press conference at the Russian embassy on Wednesday. The "obsession with ousting particular leaders — look what it has led to. Why don't we try to learn from our mistakes, focus on process, defeating terrorism."

 The two governments also still disagree on Assad's role in last month's chemical gas attack, which left dozens of civilians dead and spurred Trump to retaliate by launching 59 cruise missiles at a Syrian airbase.

 And as the Trump administration mulls sending as many as 5,000 more troops to Afghanistan to join the fight there, Lavrov stressed that his nation's government is not supporting the Taliban.

 Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov (R) shakes hands with Secretary of State Rex Tillerson after a press conference on April 12, 2017 in Moscow. File Alexander Nemenov / AFP - Getty Images

 "Those who are working on Afghanistan have not found a single expert to say we're transferring arms," Lavrov said.

 Lavrov and Trump also discussed the ongoing violence in Ukraine where, since 2014, the U.S. has found itself on opposite sides of the conflict with Washington backing the Western-leaning Ukrainian government and Moscow backing pro-Russia separatists.

 Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-South Carolina, reacted to the meeting with a warning, urging Trump to be careful and aware of who Lavrov represents.

 "The president's meeting with Lavrov today. It's okay to want to work with the Russians, but I hope, Mr. President, you know who you're dealing with," Graham told CNN. "You're dealing with a man who represents a government that is brutal, that tried to undermine our elections and, be careful, these are not teddy bears you're dealing with." ||||| CLOSE When reporters asked Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov about the firing of FBI Director James Comey, Lavrov asked them a question back. USA TODAY

 President Trump is pictured walking on the South Lawn of the White House. (Photo: Ron Sachs, Getty Images)

 President Trump met with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov at the White House on Wednesday, just one day after firing James Comey, the FBI director overseeing an investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election.

 Trump and Lavrov discussed paths to resolving the Syrian civil war, the Russian incursion into Ukraine, and the Middle East conflict, according to a statement from the White House. They also discussed ways to improve relations between the two countries, the statement added. "The President further emphasized his desire to build a better relationship between the United States and Russia."

 In brief comments to reporters, Trump said the Comey case had no effect "at all" on his meeting Lavrov, and he defended the firing of the FBI director because "he wasn't doing a good job."

 The FBI, along with several congressional committees, are focusing on whether there was any collusion between Trump campaign associates to Russia during the last year's election.

 The U.S. intelligence community has accused Moscow of carrying out a campaign of cyberattacks against Democratic political institutions to influence the American election, and leaking stolen material to be published on websites such as WikiLeaks. Trump has denied any connections and described the Russia story as a "hoax."

 The timing for the meeting drew special attention since Lavrov, who last visited Washington in 2013, is the highest-level Russian official to meet with Trump since he took office in January.

 The White House meeting also featured a key figure in the investigation: Sergey Kislyak, the Russian ambassador to the United States. Trump's former national security adviser, Michael Flynn, was fired after misleading his colleagues about his conversations with Kislyak before the inauguration.

 Meanwhile, in Russia, President Vladimir Putin told CBS News that the Comey firing would have "no effect" on U.S.-Russian relations. "We have nothing to do with that," Putin said.

 WATCH: Russia President Vladimir Putin responds to Comey firing: "We have nothing to do with that." https://t.co/fvTW6W3DnFpic.twitter.com/riP7EFr3xR — CBS This Morning (@CBSThisMorning) May 10, 2017

 Lavrov also met earlier Wednesday with Secretary of State Rex Tillerson at the State Department.

 As he welcomed Lavrov in the Treaty Room, Tillerson said he looks forward to continuing a dialogue the two began in Moscow “on a very broad range of topics.”

 Before reporters assembled there, Lavrov appeared to make a joke about Comey's firing.

 When a reporter asked if the sudden firing Tuesday “cast a shadow over your talks,” Lavrov responded with a deadpan joke.

 “Was he fired?” He asked. When the reporter answered in the affirmative, Lavrov quipped: “You are kidding. You are kidding.”

 He then waived his hand with a dismissive nod of his head, and walked away with a smiling Tillerson.

 Tillerson met with Putin at the Kremlin last month amid tensions over a U.S. airstrike against a Syria air base blamed for a chemical attack by the regime of Syrian President Bashar Assad, a Russian ally. The attack killed scores of civilians.

 Trump said following that meeting that relations between the U.S. and Russia "may be at an all-time low.”

 "The world's two foremost nuclear owners cannot have this kind of relationship," Tillerson said at the time.

 CLOSE The White House reports Comey's dismissal comes after he was found in the middle of several political controversies like Russia's possible election interference and Hillary Clinton's handling of classified e-mails. USA TODAY

 Wednesday's meetings could signal progress between the two nations since then.

 On Wednesday, Tillerson and Lavrov will discuss Ukraine, Syria, and "bilateral issues," the State Department said.

 "On Ukraine, the sides will discuss the need to stop the violence in eastern Ukraine and resolve the conflict through the full implementation of the Minsk agreements. On Syria, the Secretary intends to discuss efforts to de-escalate violence, provide humanitarian assistance to the Syrian people, and set the stage for a political settlement of the conflict," the department said in a statement.

 Contributing: Oren Dorell

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 Read or Share this story: https://usat.ly/2puIjcI ||||| SOCHI, May 10. /TASS/. US President Donald Trump’s decision to dismiss FBI Director James Comey will not affect relations between Russia and the United States, that’s Washington’s internal affair, Russian Presidential Spokesman Dmitry Peskov said when asked how this decision again raising the issue of Russia’s alleged involvement in the US election, could affect the bilateral ties.

 James Comey will be replaced by someone who will do a far better job, bringing back the spirit and prestige of the FBI. — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) 10 May 2017

 "We hope that it will not affect them at all. That's the United States’ internal affair. That’s the US president’s independent decision, which has nothing to do and should have nothing to do with Russia," he said.

 The White House said earlier in the day that Trump had fired FBI Director, James Comey. A statement from Press Secretary Sean Spicer said Comey had been removed from office on the recommendations of Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein and Attorney General Jeff Sessions. The search for a new FBI director will begin immediately, the White House said. ||||| Trump Hosts Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov And Ambassador Kislyak At White House

 Enlarge this image toggle caption Alexander Shcherbak/TASS/Getty Images Alexander Shcherbak/TASS/Getty Images

 President Trump hosted Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov at the White House on Wednesday, one day after firing the man whose agency is investigating Russia's meddling in the 2016 election that brought Trump to power.

 Trump fired now-former FBI Director James Comey, who told Congress earlier this year that his agency has been investigating Russia's actions — and possible ties to anyone associated with the Trump campaign — since July. As NPR's Domenico Montanaro reports, the firing of Comey with more than six years left on his term in office has prompted a flurry of questions about the president's motives — and about what's next.

 Lavrov's meeting with the president was scheduled for 10:30 a.m. ET, and it was declared closed to the press. Russian agencies tweeted photos from the Oval Office showing that in addition to Lavrov, Trump shook hands with Russia's ambassador to America, Sergey Kislyak — a key figure in the investigation into Trump's ousted national security adviser, Michael Flynn.

 After the Lavrov session had concluded, members of the U.S. media were allowed into the Oval Office, where they found the president sitting with Henry Kissinger, who served as President Richard Nixon's secretary of state. The meeting hadn't been listed on the president's official schedule.

 Trump said he and Kissinger had met to talk "about Russia and various other matters," according to the pool report.

 To a question about Comey, Trump reportedly replied, "He wasn't doing a good job. Very simply. He was not doing a good job."

 The president also said the issue had not affected his meeting with Lavrov.

 Lavrov arrived in Washington on Tuesday. He met with Secretary of State Rex Tillerson at the White House early Wednesday, ahead of his visit to the Oval Office.

 Tillerson and Lavrov made a brief appearance Wednesday morning for a photo-op, and as Tillerson began to lead his guest back behind closed doors, Lavrov responded to a question about Comey's firing.

 When a reporter asked whether the dismissal has "cast a shadow" over their talks, Lavrov stopped and seemed to look genuinely quizzical when he responded, "Was he fired?" — but then adopted a deadpan tone as he told the reporter, "You are kidding, you are kidding."

 With a theatrical twitch of his head, the Russian diplomat then followed his American counterpart away from the media. The exchange was not included in the State Department's brief video snippet from the photo-op that it posted to Twitter.

 Tillerson's office said his talks with Lavrov would focus on "Ukraine, Syria, and bilateral issues." But the Russians' visit to the White House also came as the Kremlin made its first public comments on Comey's removal.

 When Russian presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov was asked how the firing might affect U.S.-Russia relations, Peskov replied, "We hope that it will not affect them at all. That's the United States' internal affair. That's the U.S. president's independent decision, which has nothing to do and should have nothing to do with Russia."

 Comey's dismissal has sparked new calls for an independent probe into Russia's attempts to influence last year's U.S. presidential election — despite the Trump administration's assertion that Comey was removed over his handling of the investigation into Clinton's private email server.

 "This is nothing less than Nixonian," said Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., a longtime member of the Senate Judiciary Committee.

 Announcing Comey's abrupt firing Tuesday afternoon, White House press secretary Sean Spicer said the president "acted based on the clear recommendations of both Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein and Attorney General Jeff Sessions." |||||

Write a summary.

– US News says he "appeared to get irritated," while Politico and NBC note he was being sarcastic, but if Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov didn't know about President Trump firing FBI Director James Comey before Wednesday morning's presser at the State Department, he does now. Lavrov, who's in town to meet with Trump, appeared with Secretary of State Rex Tillerson when MSNBC reporter Andrea Mitchell asked, "Does the Comey firing cast a shadow over the talks, gentlemen?" That sent Tillerson to the door while Lavrov lingered. "Was he fired?" he asked. "You're kidding—you're kidding!" Lavrov made a dismissive gesture with his head and exited the room with Tillerson. Per the State Department, Lavrov's sit-down with Trump on Wednesday was to focus on Syria, the conflict in Ukraine, and "bilateral issues," USA Today reports. NPR notes that even though the Lavrov-Trump meeting was closed to the US press, Russian agencies tweeted pictures of Trump with Lavrov and also with Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak, who was not mentioned on the original itinerary. When the American media was allowed into the Oval Office, they found Trump sitting with Richard Nixon's secretary of state, Henry Kissinger—also a surprise appearance. Meanwhile, Putin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said he didn't think the Comey firing would impact the US-Russia relationship, calling it an "independent decision" by Trump that "has nothing to do and should have nothing to do with Russia," per the TASS news agency.


News article:

Another day, another woman scolded for wearing clothes.

 A Grand Rapids, Michigan, woman says she was asked to leave a local mall on Saturday for wearing what any woman might wear on a sweltering summer day. Hannah Pewee shared a photo of her outfit and a rundown of her experience at Michigan's Woodland Mall.

 "Apparently some anonymous person reported me to MALL SECURITY for inappropriate dress and I was kicked out," she explains. "Never mind that within a one foot radius there were plenty of girls dressed just like me, since it's NINETY degrees outside. I am so angry right now I'm shaking. I felt so embarrassed I almost cried. All because a stranger didn't like how I dressed."

 She goes on:

 The Woodland Mall should be ashamed of themselves, as well as that anonymous complainer. It's my body, and it's hot outside! I'm not going to show up in jeans and a sweater, sorry. Don't like it? Look away! I was out having a fun time with my sister and next thing I know, I'm out on the street. Slut-shaming how girls are dressed is deplorable and outdated, and it needs to stop.

 More than 650 comments and 7,300 shares later, Pewee's post becomes the latest example of dress code policing that tends to disproportionally target women in warmer months.

 The Woodland Mall's code of conduct states only the following in regards to customer dress:

 Appropriate attire, including shirts and shoes, is required. Clothing with inappropriate words, phrases or graphics is not permitted and is subject to mall management approval.

 Excluding attire worn in accord with religious practice, tradition or significance, deliberately obscuring the face is prohibited.

 As Pewee noted in a second Facebook post shared later on Saturday, the code has no policy stating expectations for length of shorts.

 If there is such a strict policy, that needs to be *public information*, not something security officers spring on unsuspecting customers. Especially with summer coming around, there's going to be a lot of girls like me, going to the mall and not knowing their breaking some secret dress code.

 Pewee has since spoken with Woodland Mall management, and has received an apology for the way she was treated:

 The mall also issued a public apology to Michigan Live:

 We apologized to the shopper and the public for the way that this was handled. We've already spoken to her and are working to make things right. We work to create a fun and safe shopping and dining destination but failed to deliver on that message for this shopper. We're working internally to make sure we fully deliver on excellent experiences at our Mall immediately.

 Pewee tells Mashable that retailers should be aware that "times have changed."

 "Style has evolved and they need to be aware that people are going to dress how they want to dress," she said. "If public malls want to have a dress code, that's their choice, but consumers need to be made aware of this dress code so we can decide whether or not we want to shop there." ||||| We’re in the middle of the first heat wave of the season, which means your wardrobe probably consists mostly of lightweight, breathable clothing. But last weekend, one Michigan woman faced some serious backlash for what she wore to the mall on 90° day.

 Hannah Pewee, a college student at Grand State University, spent her Saturday shopping at the Woodland Mall in Grand Rapids, Michigan, wearing standard summer attire: denim cutoff shorts and a Finding Nemo tank top which read “Just Keep Swimming.”

 FROM PEN: Christie Brinkley’s Girls Alexa and Sailor Reveal How They’ve Conquered Bullies and Body Shamers

 Allegedly, an anonymous mall guest reported Pewee to mall security for “inappropriate dress,” and she was promptly kicked out of the shopping center.

 “As many of you know, it is NINETY degrees outside today in West Michigan. Aka, really hot. So, of course, I decided to dress for the weather: shorts and a tank top. But apparently, how I was dressed was too slutty for the public, as I was kicked out of the Woodland Mall today,” Pewee captioned a photo of her outfit on Facebook, which has since gone viral with more than 10,000 likes and 7,000 shares.

 RELATED PHOTOS: UPDATED! Bella Hadid, Kendall Jenner and More Sizzling Celeb Swimwear Pics!

 Hannah Pewee/Facebook

 Pewee went on to say when she was asked to leave the premises, she was surrounded by “plenty of girls” within a “one foot radius” dressed just like her. “I am so angry right now I’m shaking. I felt so embarrassed I almost cried,” she said. “All because a stranger didn’t like how I dressed.”

 Not long after her post, hundreds of people came to the woman’s defense on Facebook

 “The Woodland Mall should be ashamed of themselves, as well as that anonymous complainer. It’s my body, and it’s hot outside! I’m not going to show up in jeans and a sweater, sorry,” Pewee continued. “Don’t like it? Look away! I was out having a fun time with my sister and next thing I know, I’m out on the street. Slut-shaming how girls are dressed is deplorable and outdated, and it needs to stop.”

 According to a second Facebook message posted by Pewee, a representative from the Woodland Mall called her to apologize following the incident.

 “Alright, so I talked on the phone with the someone on the management team at Woodland and they apologized for what happened yesterday. Apparently they’re going to revise their clothing policy on their website so it is clearer what is and isn’t acceptable. In addition, security will be discussing how to properly handle situations like this,” she wrote, adding, “I want to thank everyone for the supporting messages, it really helped, especially when so many people were more than ready to tear me apart. Thank you all so much ❤ Hopefully some good can come out of this all!”

 A representative for the mall also commented on her original Facebook note with the message above.

 How do you feel about this woman getting kicked out of a mall for wearing this outfit? Sound off in the comments below. |||||
What is a shorter version of the above article?

– A woman wearing nude-colored flats, a Finding Dory tank top, and cutoff jean shorts was kicked out of a mall in Michigan on Saturday for breaking dress code—even though it was 90 degrees outside. So Hannah Pewee took to Facebook to share her version of what happened at Woodland Mall in Grand Rapids, and her story got noticed, with thousands of shares and likes and hundreds of comments, mostly coming to her defense. "Apparently some anonymous person reported me to MALL SECURITY for inappropriate dress and I was kicked out," she writes. "Never mind that within a one foot radius there were plenty of girls dressed just like me, since it's NINETY degrees outside." She described herself as shaking and on the verge of tears. Mashable calls it "another day, another woman scolded for wearing clothes." Pewee, who People reports studies at Grand State University, says she was enjoying the afternoon at the mall with her sister when she was told to leave. In a Sunday Facebook post she wrote that mall management called her to apologize and will be revising Woodland's dress code, which at the time vaguely stated, "Appropriate attire, including shirts and shoes, is required." In a comment on her post, Woodland Mall apologized, writing, "We dropped the ball on this one," and adding that it never intend to shame or embarrass anyone. Indeed, "slut-shaming how girls are dressed is deplorable and outdated, and it needs to stop," wrote Pewee, who hopes "some good" can come out of her much-publicized experience. (These girls weren't allowed to board a plane because they were wearing leggings.)


Groups on both sides of abortion debate boost their support for dueling female candidates

 By Julian Pecquet -

 The pro-abortion rights group EMILY's List launched an Internet campaign on Tuesday aimed at creating support for the 32 female candidates it is endorsing for state and federal office this year. The campaign, called "Sarah Doesn't Speak for Me," aims to counter former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin's (R) high-profile endorsements of "Mama Grizzly" candidates who want to restrict abortion rights.

 At a press conference Tuesday, EMILY's List President Stephanie Schriock called the Mama Grizzlies "backwards-looking." The charge immediately drew reaction from the competing Susan B. Anthony List, which supports abortion opponents for office.

 "EMILY’s List is running scared — and it shows," Susan B. Anthony List President Marjorie Dannenfelser said in a statement. "Clearly, in this ‘Year of the Pro-Life Woman,’ which Sarah Palin helped make possible, women have found their political voices. Pro-life ‘Mama Grizzlies’ represent the majority of women across the country."

 Schriock called her group's new campaign a "get out the vote hub" and drew particular attention to three key races where its candidates are running against Sarah Palin's endorsees: the California Senate race pitting Sen. Barbara Boxer (D) against Republican Carly Fiorina; the Minnesota House race where Tarryl Clark hopes to unseat Rep. Michele Bachmann (R); and the New Mexico governor's race pitting Democrat Diane Denish against Republican Susana Martinez.

 The EMILY's List campaign features an Internet video of women in bear costumes mocking the "Mama Grizzlies" slogan. The women caution Palin that "there are plenty of Mama Grizzlies out there who would disagree with you."

 EMILY's List says it raised $43 million during the 2007-2008 election cycle and has helped elect 80 pro-abortion-rights women to the U.S. House and 15 to the Senate since 1985. During her press conference, Schriock twice declined to say how much the group was spending on its new campaign.

 The Susan B. Anthony List, for its part, recently launched a bus tour through Indiana, Ohio and Pennsylvania to build momentum for its endorsed candidates. The group says it has elected 75 pro-life women to the U.S. House of Representatives and seven to the U.S. Senate since 1992. ||||| Susan B. Anthony List President Marjorie Dannenfelser responded Tuesday, saying, "EMILY's List is running scared -- and it shows. Clearly, in this 'Year of the Pro-Life Woman,' which Sarah Palin helped make possible, women have found their political voices. Pro-life 'Mama Grizzlies' represent the majority of women across the country."

 She added, "We are looking for women leaders who affirm the best in women -- who seek to include rather than exclude the rest of humanity as we find our fulfillment. EMILY's List is busy perpetuating what it purports to abhor: using women candidates with whom they disagree as punching bags."

 Sarah Palin has made "Mama Grizzlies" a campaign theme, but a Democratic women's group is growling back. EMILY's List, a national organization dedicated to electing pro-choice Democratic women to office, announced a new campaign, "Sarah Doesn't Speak for Me," on Monday. Its mission: To fight back against Palin's "radical agenda" and her endorsed candidates.In a press release, the group said: "Sarah Palin has predicted a rising tide of mothers and women voters will support her so-called 'Mama Grizzly' candidates. Today, we call upon women -- and men! -- to let their voices be heard and to reject Palin's reactionary candidates and backward-looking agenda. We're asking Democrats, Independents, and moderate Republicans who have no home -- to join us in our new campaign,."The group planned to announce more details of the campaign Tuesday in Washington, and launched a new website for the campaign."We wanted to respond to Sarah Palin and her candidates' assertions that they were speaking for all women with a community of women who are speaking for themselves," Jes McIntosh of EMILY's List told Politics Daily. "It's a place for them to connect and respond, meet their neighbors and tell what they want out of their government."Palin, one of the most polarizing figures in politics, has spent a large portion of this year traveling the country in support of female GOP candidates, or as she calls them " Mama Grizzlies ." Through her Sarah PAC, Palin has endorsed a host of female candidates including South Carolina gubernatorial candidate Nikki Haley and Susana Martinez in the New Mexico governor's race. Both won. Both are the first GOP women in their states to win their party's nomination.Palin has also had some losses in her endorsements, including Karen Handel, who lost Georgia's gubernatorial nomination earlier this month.In Tuesday's Wyoming primary, Palin endorsed Rita Meyer for governor. On her Facebook page , Palin wrote on July 29: "She may not have millions of dollars to campaign with, but she has enough volunteer human resources and is running her campaign the old fashion way -- grassroots and gritty! Voters know that Rita has a unique blend of steel magnolia and mama grizzly."In July, Sarah PAC released "Mama Grizzlies," a video that consists mostly of audio clips from a speech Palin gave to the anti-abortion rights group, Susan B. Anthony List The new president of EMILY's List, Stephanie Schriock, spoke in Boston last month about Palin. The Boston Globe reported that Schriock said Palin "represents a set of values that are way out of the mainstream and arguably out of the mainstream of the Republican Party."Schriock replaced EMILY's List founder, Ellen Malcolm, earlier this year. The group, which was founded 25 years ago, is trying to lure younger women who may have no memory of life before Roe v. Wade to its pro-choice cause. Palin is now the poster girl for it.So far, Palin hasn't addressed the EMILY's List campaign against her.On Monday afternoon, she told her Facebook followers she would appear that evening on Greta Van Susteren's show on Fox News to discuss energy resources in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, among other topics."I'm traveling with Greta Van Susteren to Alaska's North Slope and ANWR to discuss how developing our resources can contribute to America's energy independence, security, job growth, and economic stability," Palin wrote. "You'll see what the remote 20 million acres of ANWR with its vast oil and gas reserves really looks like (unlike the extreme environmentalists' fundraising pics)." |||||

Write a summary.

– Emily's List has drummed up its own group of Mama Grizzlies to counter Sarah Palin. The pro-choice group launched a SarahDoesn'tSpeakforMe website and campaign with this parody video, reports the Hill. The group is hoping to raise funds for candidates it supports, citing three races in particular against Palin-backed opponents: Emily's List is backing Barbara Boxer vs. Carly Fiorina, Tarryl Clark vs. Michele Bachmann, and Diane Denish vs. Susana Martinez in the New Mexico governor's race. Click here for more.


Write an article based on this summary:

– A newborn baby boy is lucky to be alive this morning after being found yesterday near death in a garbage can in Greenville, SC. He was put there, police say, by his mother, who has since been charged with attempted murder and child abandonment. NBC News reports he was found in a can in the backyard of the home occupied by Sharon Lenise Ferguson, 28, and her family. The home is a rental, and the owner happened to be there doing maintenance work—and spotted a trail of blood. He looked inside the can around 4:30pm and saw the infant among bloody towels. Ferguson told police she had placed the child in a plastic grocery bag and wrapped him in a pink blanket after giving birth "on or about April 21," reports WYFF. He was listed in stable condition last night; Ferguson spent the night in Greenville County jail. Her bond has been set at $125,000. FOX Carolina points out that the state's safe haven law protects parents who leave a child up to 30 days old at a hospital, police or fire station, or place of worship.

A newborn boy survived and was listed as stable Monday night after having been tossed into a trash can in South Carolina, police said.

 The boy's mom, identified as Sharon Lenise Ferguson, 28, was charged with attempted murder and child abandonment. She was arrested after the boy was found about 4:30 p.m. ET wrapped in a pink blanket and a plastic grocery bag in a trash can in the family's backyard in Greenville, in the northwest part of the state.

 Greenville police said the boy was near death when he was found by a neighbor who had followed a trail of blood. Emergency crews began treating him at the scene. By Monday night, he was reported to be stable.

 Sharon Lenise Ferguson of Greenville, S.C., was charged with attempted murder and child endangerment Monday after a baby was found in a trash can in the family's back yard. Greenville County, S.C., Jail

 Ferguson remained in the Greenville County jail Monday night on $125,000 cash bond.

 — M. Alex Johnson ||||| The newborn baby found in a trash can last month has been released from the hospital and is now in foster care, according to a Department of Social Services official.

 The baby was found in a trash can on Chaney Street in the Nicholtown community on April 21.

 The baby's mother, Sharon Ferguson, is charged with attempted murder and unlawful neglect of a child.

 Greenville police spokesman Johnathan Bragg said the owner of the rental home was doing maintenance when he noticed blood outside the trash can. When he looked inside, he saw the infant.

 Neighbor Ouida Neasley said, "I was upset. I saw the baby after they had pulled it out of the trash can and the fire department got here and I saw that the baby was moving."

 According to police warrants, Ferguson told investigators that on or about April 21 she gave birth to the baby, and placed him in a plastic grocery bag and wrapped him in a pink blanket. She then put the child into a trash can in the backyard and willfully abandoned him.

 Ferguson was found walking near the intersection of Laurens and Haviland roads in Greenville Monday afternoon. She was taken into custody and booked. A judge said she set her bond at $125,000.

 Traci Fant, a family spokesperson, said Ferguson has a "diagnosed mental illness" and was homeless, and it’s a “very sad situation.”

 Fant said Ferguson’s family did not know she was pregnant and they do not believe that she knew she was or knew what to do to get help.

 Fant plans to ask the solicitor to downgrade the attempted murder charge, and cited the case of a woman who abandoned a baby at the BI-LO Center three years ago who was not charged with attempted murder.

 Neighbors told WYFF News 4 that Ferguson was known for unusual behavior, but they said they don't believe she would intentionally harm anyone.

 Neighbors said Ferguson didn't look pregnant and they had no idea she was. Apparently, Ferguson had been wearing the same baggy jacket and sweat pants for months. |||||


Democrats used to own the field of women running for higher office. Not anymore.

 Nearly two years after an anticipated gender bounce - with predictions that women in both parties would rush into politics inspired by Hillary Rodham Clinton and Sarah Palin - it turns out that the momentum is on the Republican side. If there is a Palin effect, it is not being matched by any Clinton effect at the other end of the ideological spectrum.

 Primaries this week accelerated the shift. Two high-profile Senate races, in Delaware and New Hampshire, yielded female Republican nominees. That makes a total of five Republican women nominated for Senate this cycle. Excluding incumbent senators, Democrats have nominated four, and one of them was Martha Coakley of Massachusetts, who already lost.

 Democratic pollster Celinda Lake said it is "very fair" to argue that the energy for female candidates is trending Republican, a view several other Democratic strategists shared.

 "I've been struck by it," said Dee Dee Myers, a former White House press secretary and author of "Why Women Should Rule the World."

 "All the momentum is on the tea party side, so why wouldn't it also be with the women on the tea party side?"

 Other Democrats dispute the notion of a conservative "year of the woman," saying that the numerical advantage is slight, if it exists at all. They also note that some of the Republican nominees, including Christine O'Donnell of Delaware, are seen as fringe candidates unlikely to win their general elections.

 Stephanie Schriock, the head of Emily's List, which is dedicated to electing pro-choice women, said the "candidates that are making it through these primaries are more and more extreme, radical right-wing folks" who, even though they are female, do not appeal to independent and moderate women.

 As always in politics, it is possible that the frenetic media attention of a few personalities - O'Donnell as well as Nikki Haley of South Carolina several months ago - is masking the underlying reality: No matter what happens, there will still be more Democratic women in office after the midterms, based on the sheer number of incumbents who are likely to win.

 Still, the Republican women are fresh faces. There are many more Democratic women running for the House (87) than Republican ones (47). But Republicans have fielded 30 challengers to run against incumbents, more than the 27 female Democratic challengers, according to new statistics compiled by Jennifer Lawless, director of the Women & Politics Institute at American University.

 The figures suggest that the Democratic stranglehold on electing women that has existed for two decades could start to erode.

 There are now six female governors, divided evenly between the parties. But in the Senate, there are 13 Democratic women and four Republicans, one of whom, Sen. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, recently lost her primary. There are 59 Democratic women in the House, compared with 17 Republicans - with a woman, Speaker Nancy Pelosi (Calif.), leading the chamber.

 The potential for a shift is likeliest at the gubernatorial level. In the current governors' races, the two major parties have each nominated five women.

 But the Republican women appear to have an edge going into November: Three appear to be at least slightly ahead of their Democratic rivals (Haley, Jan Brewer in Arizona and Mary Fallin in Oklahoma), and two of them are in dead heats (Susanna Martinez in New Mexico and Meg Whitman in California). Among Democratic gubernatorial nominees, only one is ahead (Libby Mitchell in Maine), two others are locked in tight battles (Alex Sink in Florida and Diane Denish in New Mexico) and the other two face uphill battles (Jari Askins in Oklahoma and Leslie Petersen in Wyoming).

 Palin has unquestionably played an outsize role in upping the Republican numbers, endorsing several women, including Haley and O'Donnell, who might never have gained sufficient attention otherwise. She has brought to the Republican Party what some members had once complained did not exist: a concerted effort to tap female candidates for promotion and lift them out of obscurity.

 And then there is this: The woman most capable of counteracting a Palin bounce for Democrats - Secretary of State Clinton- is not available to campaign.

 Add to that a general sense of malaise among Democrats, a volatile electorate angry at the status quo and a growing acceptance of female politicians in both parties, and the trend is hardly a surprise, strategists said.

 "Who better to say, 'I'm not part of the establishment' than a Republican woman?" said Republican pollster Kellyanne Conway. "If you want to convey you are not of the firmament of Washington, D.C., and ergo of all the problems and out-of-control spending and corruption, you have to say, 'I'm a Republican woman,' because so few of them have ever been involved at that level." ||||| The timing couldn’t be sweeter for the makers of “Fire From the Heartland: The Reawakening of the Conservative Woman.”

 Just days after the Tea Party favorite Christine O’Donnell pulled off a stunning upset against GOP establishment pick Mike Castle, Citizens United will premiere a documentary in Washington next week that they say is the first “to tell the story of the awakening of a new generation of women that are at the forefront of today's reborn conservative movement.”

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 The film capitalizes on what political observers and activists have already noted of this election cycle—the riders on this year's political storm are women, a sagebrush set well-positioned to help the GOP reclaim the congress.

 Following in the bootsteps of history-making 2008 Republican vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin — an Alaskan with an affinity for "Mama Grizzlies" – a number of women candidates, including O’Donnell, Nevada’s Sharron Angle, and South Carolina’s Nikki Haley, are reshaping and reenergizing the face of the GOP.

 While women are filling in on the top of the party ticket, the documentary explores the flip side of the equation — looking at the Tea Party’s grassroots activists, like Jenny Beth Martin, and starring the more familiar female stars of the conservative movement, including Rep. Michele Bachmann, Ann Coulter and Phyllis Schlafly.

 “I’m usually very loath to engage in identity politics,” says conservative commentator S.E. Cupp, who appears in the film. “I don’t know if it's that mama grizzly instinct being awakened, if women are feeling threatened, or if it’s because women are just feeling neglected or because they’re feeling empowered but you can’t deny that there’s something happening today.”

 The trailer for the film, which was directed by “Generation Zero” director Steven K. Bannon, begins with Bachmann asking Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner a question during the financial crisis, and crescendos with quotes from Coulter and Palin. Lady Gaga, the women of “Sex and the City” and a mama grizzly also make an appearance. ||||| This is a set of web collections curated by Mark Graham using the Archive-IT service of the Internet Archive. They include web captures of the ISKME.org website as well as captures from sites hosted by IGC.org.These web captures are available to the general public.For more information about this collection please feel free to contact Mark via Send Mail |||||

Write a summary.

– Time to face facts, ladies: The Tea Party express appears to be fueled by estrogen. A new film on the ferociously reactionary "Mama Grizzlies" examines candidates like Sharron Angle and Nikki Haley (and now Christine O'Donnell) rattling political races—as well as grassroots organizers of the "reborn" conservative movement stretching back to Phyllis Schafly (who wouldn't, of course, want to be associated with anything as unladylike as a hairy bear). The momentum, ironically, makes the Republican Party the current champion for number of women running for the Senate, due in large part to Sarah Palin's "king-making" endorsements, notes the Washington Post. “I don’t know if it's that mama grizzly instinct being awakened, if women are feeling threatened, or if it’s because women are feeling neglected—or empowered—but you can’t deny that there’s something happening today," conservative commentator SE Cupp says on the film Fire From the Heartland: The Reawakening of the Conservative Woman by the right-wing Citizens United. A GOP pollster says no one says "political outsider" like a Republican woman because "so few of them" have made it to the inner sanctums of Washington. (For more on the newest grizzly, click here.)


More than 40 injured after avalanche struck while students were climbing near Nasu Onsen ski resort north of Tokyo

 Seven high school students and a teacher have died and more than 40 people have been injured after an avalanche hit ski slopes in Japan.

 A total of 52 students and 11 teachers from seven high schools were taking part in a three-day mountaineering expedition near the Nasu Onsen resort, 93 miles (150km) north of Tokyo, when the incident occurred at about 9.20am (00.20am GMT) on Monday.

 Seven students and one teacher were found with no vital signs, rescue officials said. Of the many others who were injured, two students were believed to be in a serious condition.

 “I cannot have peace of mind until I see the students’ faces,” the deputy headteacher of one of the affected schools told the Yomiuri newspaper.

 Japan’s self-defence force was asked to help with the disaster response, which was at times hampered by weather conditions. The prime minister, Shinzō Abe, said the government would ensure the rescue was a top priority.

 The avalanche followed heavy snowfall overnight. More than 1ft (30cm) of snow accumulated in the Nasu highlands between midnight and 9am, according to Japan Meteorological Agency data.

 One unidentified student told the broadcaster NHK by telephone that there was a strong wind and he could see a white mass heading towards him. An instructor said to get down and then everyone was engulfed, he said.

 As the scale of the tragedy came to light, questions were raised about whether it could have been prevented. A police inquiry has been opened, the Kyodo news agency reported.

 Official avalanche advisories were in force in the area at the time. It is understood that climbing was stopped on the final day due to bad weather and the students instead participated in an exercise to wade through deep snow.

 The head of the high school athletics league that organised the course, Kenichi Hashimoto, said he had respected the assessment of the experienced teachers who were on the scene. He conceded that “a stronger crisis management system was necessary”.

 “Naturally, I would like to express my sympathies from the bottom of my heart,” Hashimoto told reporters at a press conference on Monday evening.

 Robert Speta, a meteorologist for NHK World, said Tochigi prefecture had experienced an increase in unusual snow in recent days despite it being late March. This snow combined with rising temperatures increased the avalanche risk, he said.

 “Typically it tapers off in late March, the snowpack settles and it’s OK for climbing and off-piste skiing, but just recently we had this big spike in the snow depth,” Speta said.

 “We had heavy snow that condensed [with the warmer weather] and then once you have somebody on top of that, that creates a trigger. These are all a recipe for avalanche creation.”

 The Nasu Onsen family ski resort, which has two lifts and one rope-tow, ended its ski season on 20 March.

 The climbing trip reportedly began on Saturday and involved students from seven high schools along with instructors. Monday’s activities had been due to end about two-and-a-half hours after the avalanche struck.

 In a separate incident in neighbouring Fukushima prefecture, a 70-year-old man was found unconscious after an avalanche on Monday afternoon. He had been climbing Mount Adatara with a 64-year-old man who was unhurt, NHK reported.

  ||||| Seven students and one teacher from Otawara High School in Tochigi Prefecture died Monday after being caught in an avalanche at a ski resort during a climbing event in the town of Nasu, an official with the Tochigi Prefectural Police said.

 The police official said 40 people were injured, adding that the department received an emergency call alerting it to the avalanche at Nasuonsen Family Ski Resort at around 9:20 a.m.

 The incident occurred around 8:30 a.m., as 40 students and eight teachers were training to walk in the accumulated snow.

 The town of Nasu received 33 cm of snow over an eight-hour period through 9 a.m. as of Monday morning, and avalanche warnings were in effect.

 The ski resort concluded operations for the season last week.

 The police are looking into whether the deaths resulted from professional negligence given the extreme conditions at the time the training was being conducted.

 The Tochigi education board said 51 students in mountaineering clubs and 11 teachers from seven high schools were participating in the climbing lesson event that began on Saturday.

 The board also said the students were scheduled to ascend the mountain on Monday, but the climb was canceled due to the heavy snow. Instead, the group practiced walking in the accumulated snow.

 The training took place about 500 meters from their hotel at an altitude of 1,300 meters.

 The avalanche occurred on the upper part of the slope. ||||| Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption Rescue workers have tried to negotiate the snow-covered slopes

 Seven Japanese high school students and their teacher have been killed in an avalanche at a ski resort.

 The avalanche occurred early on Monday near Nasu in Tochigi prefecture, 120km (75 miles) north of Tokyo.

 Another 40 people, mostly students, were hurt including two who were in a critical condition, reports said.

 The victims were part of a 70-strong group from several schools who were on a three-day mountain climbing training trip.

 Dozens of troops were involved in rescue efforts, amid bad weather and heavy snowfall.

 Image copyright AFP

 "All the people have been carried down from the mountain and they are now being transported to hospital," a prefecture official told AFP news agency.

 Officials said the eight victims had no vital signs. In Japan, rescue officials wait for a doctor at a hospital to pronounce victims dead instead of doing it at the scene.

 The region had received heavy snow over the past two days and avalanche warnings had been in effect.

 "We have avalanche incidents once or twice a year around here, but haven't had anything this big," a fire department official told Reuters news agency.

 Another official told Reuters that there would be an investigation into why the group were out during an avalanche alert.

 The area around the town of Nasu has several ski resorts, but these had closed for the season. The area had seen more than 30cm of fresh snow since Sunday and recent warm weather had further raised the avalanche risk. |||||

Write a summary.

– What started as a snow-filled trip for seven schools in Japan has ended in tragedy. The BBC reports that eight high school students are believed to have been killed in an avalanche that hit a ski resort 90 miles north of Tokyo on Monday. Some 70 students and teachers were believed to have been present, with about half those who survived suffering injuries. The incident occurred near Nasu, which has seen about a foot of snow fall since Sunday. That snow "condensed [with the warmer weather], and then once you have somebody on top of that, that creates a trigger," a meteorologist tells the Guardian. "These are all a recipe for avalanche creation." Indeed, an avalanche warning was in effect at the time. The Japan Times and Guardian report the ski season had closed last week at the Nasuonsen Family Ski Resort; the students who arrived Saturday were about two-and-a-half hours away from the conclusion of Monday's climbing event when the avalanche struck near the upper part of the slope. NBC News specifies that the weekend event was a "mountain climbing safety training exercise."