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Gun jams as shoplifting suspect tries to shoot Ohio police officer at point-blank range in wild bodycam video
Heart-pounding video shows the moment a shoplifting suspect allegedly tried to shoot an Ohio police officer at point-blank range inside a Walmart — only to be stopped when his gun appeared to malfunction and a store security worker intervened.
The dramatic incident unfolded Thursday in Canton after the suspect and a woman were detained for allegedly stealing items from the store, according to reports.
The pair were taken to a security room, where a police officer could be seen questioning and searching for the male suspect, identified as Shane Newman, 21, by FOX 8.
Video from the officer’s body camera — which had been placed on a table — initially showed a calm scene, with a Walmart employee handing the officer a pen and paper as the two suspects sat on a bench.
Moments later, the situation exploded.
Newman suddenly turned, pulled out a gun and attempted to shoot the officer as the woman screamed, "No, no, no!" A clicking sound could be heard as Newman apparently pulled the trigger.
The Walmart worker immediately jumped on Newman in an effort to restrain him, but Newman raised the gun again and attempted to fire a second time and another click could be heard.
The worker then knocked the gun from Newman's hands as the officer drew his weapon and shouted, "Get back! Get back!"
The officer then took control of matters and pinned Newman to the floor until additional police arrived. Both suspects were taken into custody.
In the bodycam footage, the officer told responding police that Newman had "pulled the gun out, pointed it at my head and pulled the trigger," but the weapon did not fire.
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The officer said he drew his own weapon and would have shot Newman, but feared hitting the Walmart employee as the worker struggled to disarm the suspect. He also acknowledged missing the gun concealed in Newman’s shoulder bag during the initial search.
The officer said he had just been alerted seconds before the attack that Newman had an active warrant for his arrest and was classified as "armed and dangerous."
Newman was charged with attempted murder and felonious assault on a police officer, court records show.
The woman, identified as Katerina Jefferey, was charged with complicity to commit robbery and having weapons under disability for possession of ammunition, FOX 8 reported.
Before the violence erupted, the police officer asked Newman if he had anything on him as part of the search. Newman said all he had was a cellphone, and then he voluntarily handed over a small container from his pocket that investigators said contained illegal drugs, according to FOX 8.
"Are we going to jail?" Jeffrey asked the police officer.
"Not unless something crazy happens," the officer replied.
Russell Brand publicly disapproves of ex-wife Katy Perry dating Justin Trudeau at Phoenix event
Comedian Russell Brand is not happy with his ex-wife's current boyfriend.
While speaking onstage at a Turning Point USA (TPUSA) event in Phoenix on Thursday, the 50-year-old comedian told the crowd what he thinks about his ex-wife, Katy Perry's relationship with former Canadian prime minister, Justin Trudeau.
"Look, Katy Perry, I was married to her. I love her still, and I’m glad that her mom’s in the room to hear me say this, but look. I was okay with Orlando Bloom, but Justin Trudeau? C'mon, man! Don’t put me in a category with that guy! That globalist stooge," Brand said.
Perry and Brand were married for two years, from 2010 to 2012, after they first met on the set of the movie, "Get Him to the Greek" in 2009.
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The singer spoke about their relationship in a June 2013 interview with Vogue, telling the outlet that "He’s a very smart man, a magical man, and I was in love with him when I married him." She later added that at the time she hadn't "heard from him since he texted me saying he was divorcing me December 31, 2011."
"At first, when I met him, he wanted an equal, and I think a lot of times strong men do want an equal, but then they get that equal and they’re like, I can’t handle the equalness. He didn’t like the atmosphere of me being the boss on tour. So that was really hurtful, and it was very controlling, which was upsetting."
Following their breakup, Perry moved on with fellow musician, John Mayer, who she dated on and off for three years until they broke up for good in 2015.
She went on to start a relationship with actor Orlando Bloom in 2016. After a brief breakup in 2017, the two got engaged in 2019, and welcomed their daughter Daisy in August 2020. The two eventually called off their engagement and broke up in June 2025.
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Perry hinted at the potential reasons behind her split from Bloom in her song "Bandaids." The music video opens with Perry losing her wedding ring while washing dishes, and the song includes lyrics such as "Got so used to you letting me down / No use tryna send flowers now / Telling myself you’ll change, you don’t / Band-Aids over a broken heart."
The "Hot & Cold" singer and Trudeau first sparked romance rumors when they were spotted dining together in Montreal. He was later spotted at her concert with his daughter.
During a concert stop in Prague on Oct. 30, Perry confirmed she was in a new relationship, but didn't reveal who the lucky man was.
"This guy is trying to get me to marry him, and he has a ring in his hand," Perry told the audience, per a TikTok video taken at the concert, before adding, "No! I am dating someone else for crying out f------ loud."
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Perry later made their relationship Instagram official earlier this month, when she posted a series of photos from her time in Japan, some of which featured Trudeau.
"Your happiness is our happiness. All the love to you!
Wreckage of plane crash that killed NASCAR legend Greg Biffle and family shown in photos
Photos released by the National Transportation Safety Board show the wreckage of the plane crash that took the lives of NASCAR legend Greg Biffle and his family.
The plane departed Statesville Regional Airport, about 45 miles north of Charlotte, North Carolina, Thursday morning but was diverted back to Statesville and crashed during a landing attempt, authorities confirmed.
The seven-person flight was making its way to the Bahamas via Sarasota, Florida, when it crashed. NTSB Investigator-In-Charge Dan Baker said the plane took off at approximately 10:05 a.m. ET and began to turn back to the airport five minutes after takeoff.
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The plane crashed roughly 10 minutes after departure.
Biffle and wife Cristina shared a daughter, Emma, 14, and a 5-year-old son, Ryder, all of whom were on board during the deadly crash along with Dennis Dutton, Jack Dutton and Craig Wadsworth, a statement from the victims' families confirmed.
NTSB board member Michael Graham told reporters Friday three people aboard the Cessna C550 were licensed pilots, but officials were not able to verify as of Friday who was piloting the plane.
"This is the beginning of a very long process, and we will not jump to any conclusions while on scene here in North Carolina, nor will we jump to any conclusions," Graham said of the investigation.
The deadly crash prompted an outpouring of sympathy and prayers from across the country.
President Donald Trump commended Biffle as a "great young man" Friday at a rally in North Carolina.
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"I also want to express my condolences to the people of this state," Trump said. "And to the loved ones of NASCAR legend Greg Biffle, who perished yesterday in a tragic plane crash with his family in Statesville.
"I met him twice. He was just a great young man and what a tragedy that is with his whole family. So, I just want to pay our condolences, our love. I'll tell you, North Carolina, we’ll never forget them. He and his family were incredible people."
North Carolina political figures, including Gov. Josh Stein, Rep. Pat Harrigan and Rep. Richard Hudson, weighed in after learning Biffle and his family were among the seven victims in the plane crash. Gov. Stein described the loss as "heartbreaking" and recalled Biffle's selfless response after the state was devastated by Hurricane Helene.
NASCAR Hall of Famer Jeff Gordon and other racers expressed condolences on social media, and the organization released a statement commemorating Biffle.
"Greg was more than a champion driver. He was a beloved member of the NASCAR community, a fierce competitor, and a friend to so many," NASCAR said in a statement. "His passion for racing, his integrity, and his commitment to fans and fellow competitors alike made a lasting impact on the sport.
"On the track, Greg’s talent and tenacity earned him championships in the NASCAR Xfinity Series and NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series, as well as numerous wins and accolades in the NASCAR Cup Series. Beyond his racing career, he gave of himself for the betterment of our community. Most notably, Greg spent countless hours of his time helping the citizens of North Carolina during the disasters that followed Hurricane Helene. His tireless work saved lives."
Fox News Digital's Paulina Dedaj contributed to this report.
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Julia Roberts jokes about how many ‘movies left' in her career, feels a 'compulsion' to return to theater
Julia Roberts doesn't plan on making movies forever.
In a recent panel discussion about her latest film, "After the Hunt," as part of the SAG-AFTRA Foundation Conversations series, the 58-year-old actress joked that she doesn't have many movies left in her.
"Now that our kids are out of the house, I have been feeling myself, and have been for a while," she explained. "Now that they're out of the house, I really feel the compulsion to go back to theater, and that's kind of what I'm really kind of trying to dig up right now."
She went on to compare making a movie to "a really long dinner party," saying that throughout the experience, "you want to be with people you are interested in" and who will bring something "unique" which "will enrich your experience."
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"I think I'm also at a place where I kind of joke, but maybe it's true, where I think we only have a few destined performances inside of us," she added. "And I kind of keep joking and saying, I maybe have three and a half movies left in me. Whatever they are, I feel they will find me. And I want them to be these beautiful experiences."
Most recently, Roberts starred in "After the Hunt," alongside Andrew Garfield and Ayo Edebriri. In the film, she portrays a philosophy professor whose life turns upside down when her mentee, played by Edebiri, accuses her colleague and best friend, played by Garfield, of sexual assault.
When asked what drew her to the film, she said it was the director, Luca Guadagnino, who also directed Timothée Chalamet in his breakout role in "Call Me by Your Name" and Zendaya in her first leading role, in "Challengers."
The movie stirred up controversy after it premiered at the Venice Film Festival, when, according to Variety, a reporter claimed audiences complained that the story "revives old arguments" about women believing other women when they make allegations of sexual assault, a central issue of the #MeToo movement.
"Not to be disagreeable, because it’s not in my nature," Roberts answered, "but the thing you said that I love is it ‘revives old arguments.’ I don’t think it’s just reviving an argument of women being pitted against each other or not supporting each other. There are a lot of old arguments that get rejuvenated that creates conversation.
"The best part of your question is that you all came out of the theater talking about it. That’s how we wanted it to feel. You realize what you believe in strongly because we stir it all up for you. So, you’re welcome."
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Roberts first gained attention when she starred in "Mystic Pizza" and then "Steel Magnolias," but became known as America's sweetheart after starring as Vivian Ward in the 1990 movie, "Pretty Woman."
"We were really shooting from the hip for sure," she said about "Pretty Woman." "And when we finished, basically we all kind of thought, 'Well, we just had the most fun making the worst movie in Hollywood."
She went on to star in a string of successful movies, including "My Best Friend's Wedding," "Runaway Bride," "Notting Hill" and "Erin Brockovich," which earned her an Academy Award win for best actress.
In a December 2023 interview with People magazine, Roberts imagined where her most iconic characters might be today.
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"They stay together. He doesn't die in this one. They're going to stay together," she said of her character in "Runaway Bride," after previously joking that Richard Gere's character in "Pretty Woman" was probably dead and Vivian was now running his business.
Gere starred as Roberts' love interest in both films.
LA deputies caught on camera racing into foggy ocean to rescue disoriented paragliders
Two Los Angeles sheriff’s deputies were caught on camera rescuing two paragliders from drowning on Friday after they fell in the fog-covered ocean near Malibu.
Bodycan footage from one of the deputies showed them racing into action after responding to a call of two victims in distress, with authorities yelling to the paragliders to "Hang on!"
"Without hesitation and fully aware of the danger, LA County Sheriff's Department Deputies Matkin and Grigoryan removed their department-issued gear and jumped in the water," the sheriff's department said in a statement shared with Fox News Digital.
The deputies swam out roughly 75 feet to a man and woman whose feet had become entangled in their heavy safety equipment that was pulling them down, which the deputies were able to cut off with their knives.
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Deputy Christopher Matkin called the rescue "tense," explaining that the frantic paragliders kept pulling them under in their panic.
"We were able to calm them down," he added at a press conference.
Deputy Sevak Grigoryan said that they didn’t have much time to think.
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"It was just, ‘We gotta act and we gotta to act now," he said.
The department said the paragliders’ ill-fated trip likely happened as they descended and ran into the ocean’s fog bank.
"And that’s where it appears they became disoriented and crashed into the ocean," a third deputy said.
Both paragliders are expected to fully recover.
"This rescue demonstrates the courage, quick thinking, and selfless dedication of LASD deputies, who routinely place themselves in harm’s way to protect and save lives," the department said.
"Deputies Matkin and Grigoryan’s decisive actions under dangerous conditions exemplify the Sheriff’s Department’s commitment to public safety and service to the community."
Vivek Ramaswamy turns to conservative youth to shape the movement’s next phase, analyzes 2026 races
Ohio gubernatorial candidate and entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy warned conservatives not to take any political races for granted, including his own – and commented on what AmericaFest means for the future of the right as it draws in thousands of voters and activists, including youth.
Ramaswamy spoke to Fox News Digital shortly after arriving at the Phoenix Convention Center on Friday, and said he had already met several people here who told him they were energized to join him at the conference.
"Funny enough, and I often like to do this when I travel west, I went for a hike earlier today -- to what's called Camelback Mountain, and we saw tons of young people who are going to be here tonight that were getting their outdoor time, so I got to talk to a lot of them," he said.
"I would say the mood is a combination of enthusiastic and determined, but with a sober sentimentality as well. It's clear that a lot of these young people were, I mean just like me and the rest of us, affected by Charlie's death, and they're hungry for direction."
Many of the young conservatives he met appeared to want to find the direction the conservative movement and TPUSA will go following Kirk’s death.
In Ohio, where he is seeking to succeed term-limited moderate Republican Mike DeWine, Ramaswamy stressed that even though Ohio has been reliably red, he isn't taking the race for granted.
Republicans are reeling from a string of losses from Florida to Pennsylvania just weeks ago.
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"I think we’ve got to worry less about just defeating the left -- because we did that last year. That's not good enough. We have to offer our own vision of what do we actually stand for," Ramaswamy said.
"And, in Ohio, what I know I'm going be able to deliver is two things that Ohio needs and I believe this country needs: Number one is to put more money back in people's pockets," he said, noting that government cannot immediately rein in rising commodity costs as voters demanded in selecting President Donald Trump over Kamala Harris’ continuation of the Biden agenda.
"We can do certain things, like bring down electric bills by producing more energy. We'll do those things. But the direct way we can help people is put more money in people's pockets by bringing down the property tax burden, by taking the income tax rate down to zero, so people are actually able to have more money to afford things, not just waiting for costs to come down," he said.
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"And number two is preparing our young people to be useful, contributing members of the workforce with a better education system."
Ramaswamy said that the education system has failed American youth for years, through "woke indoctrination" and "victimhood psychology," and also is something that states should be able to fix.
"As someone who did run for president, I can tell you that a governor can make an even bigger difference than a president when it comes to education," he said.
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"I hope we in Ohio set an example of what the other 49 states can actually aspire to."
Looking past Trump’s term limit in 2028, Ramaswamy said the conservative movement will continue so long as it maintains its "aspirational" focus.
"That's my message to those young people tonight, and it is a challenging message. It's not sugar-coated. The number one factor that determines whether you achieve your goals in life is actually you. That's a tough message, but it's the truth. JFK, who famously said, right, ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country. Now's the moment to remember that message," he said.
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Turning to another Kennedy, Ramaswamy – who founded biotech pharma company Roivant Sciences – was asked his view of the MAHA agenda being pursued by HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
Ramaswamy said MAHA has established youth health as paramount to healthy future generations.
Kennedy’s pursuit of healthier foods in schools, returning to stronger physical education standards and the like underlies the "core thesis behind MAHA."
"That is, that the best way to bring down health care costs -- who would have ever thought -- is actually to have a healthier population in the first place."
"That's something that most Americans are behind. The ‘how’ is, of course, easier said than done, but there are common-sense state level changes that I'm confident we can implement in Ohio that aren't about right versus left. It's about right vs. Wrong. It's common sense, and I'm sure we're going to be able to get those delivered quickly after I win this election."
Dave Chappelle slams notion that Charlie Kirk was 'this generation's Martin Luther King'
Stand-up comedian Dave Chappelle rejected the notion that late Turning Point USA (TPUSA) founder Charlie Kirk was "this generation's Martin Luther King," arguing that, besides the fact that both were assassinated, "that's about where those similarities end."
During his latest Netflix special titled "The Unstoppable," which premiered on Friday, the comedian offered his opinion on the idea that Kirk was comparable to civil rights activist Martin Luther King Jr.
"And the Whites were quick to say this. They said, 'Charlie Kirk is this generation's Martin Luther King.' No, he's not. Yeah, that's a reach. You know, they both got murdered in a terrible fashion. They both got shot in the neck, but that's about where those similarities end," he asserted.
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Describing the late TPUSA founder as an "internet personality" and a "wholesome White guy," Chappelle revealed how he was impacted by Kirk's assassination.
"If you talk for a living and see Charlie Kirk get murdered that way. I'll be honest, I was shook," he said.
When asked for comment by Fox News Digital, TPUSA spokesperson Andrew Kolvet responded with the following statement: "Charlie Kirk was a modern-day Founding Father. He was a prophet of truth to the next generation. He was a faithful child of God. Charlie Kirk is Charlie Kirk. Comparisons don’t matter and mean nothing."
This was not the first time the comedian has commented on Kirk's assassination since the tragic event unfolded in September.
At the controversial Riyadh Comedy Festival in Saudi Arabia, held from late September to early October, The New York Times reported that Chappelle mocked what he described as a chilling effect on free speech in the United States, even as performers at the festival had signed contracts to present government-approved comedy acts.
According to The Times, Chappelle quipped that "right now in America, they say that if you talk about Charlie Kirk, that you’ll get canceled," and later added, "I don’t know if that’s true, but I’m going to find out."
"Real Time" host Bill Maher took issue with these comments, blasting Chappelle on his show in October for downplaying free speech in America during his performance at the Saudi comedy festival.
"Dave Chappelle … was in the press today saying that you can speak more freely over here than in America," Maher told comedian Louis C.K., who is set to perform at the Saudi comedy festival on Monday.
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C.K. let out a laugh and conceded, "I don't know if that's true."
"Oh, it's not true," Maher said.
He added that if Chappelle truly believed that Saudi Arabia had fewer restrictions on free speech than America, he should have tested that claim by doing a routine about the Prophet Muhammad.
Chappelle responded to Maher's criticisms in his new special, saying, "I’ve known Bill since I was like 18, 19 years old, and I’ve never said this publicly, but f--k that guy."
"I’m so f***ing tired of his little smug cracker-a** commentary," he added.
Fox News Digital reached out to representatives of Maher for comment.
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Chappelle clarified his free speech comment during his Netflix special, noting, "I didn’t tell them to put this in the paper. I just said it on stage." He also told the audience to not "forget what I just went through," referencing his attempted cancellation a few years back.
"Two years ago, I almost got canceled right here in the United States for transgender jokes. But I gotta tell you something: Transgender jokes went over very well in Saudi Arabia," he asserted.
Several elephants killed in train collision as impact causes multiple coaches to derail
A high-speed passenger train plowed into a herd of elephants in northeastern India early Saturday, killing seven elephants and injuring a calf.
The Rajdhani Express, which was carrying around 650 passengers, was traveling through Assam when its driver spotted about 100 wild Asiatic elephants crossing the tracks and applied the emergency brakes.
Despite the effort, the train collided with several of the endangered animals, The Associated Press reported.
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The impact caused the engine and five coaches to derail.
None of the train's passengers, who were traveling from Sairang in Mizoram state to New Delhi, were harmed in the incident, AP reported.
"We delinked the coaches which were not derailed, and the train resumed its journey for New Delhi," Indian Railways spokesman Kapinjal Kishore Sharma told AP. "Around 200 passengers who were in the five derailed coaches have been moved to Guwahati in a different train."
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Veterinarians later conducted autopsies on the elephants.
They were scheduled to be buried later in the day on Saturday, according to AP.
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Assam is home to an estimated 7,000 wild Asiatic elephants, and train-related deaths have been an ongoing issue.
At least a dozen elephants have been killed on railway tracks in the state since 2020, AP reported.
Asiatic elephants are considered endangered, and there are currently only an estimated 30,000 to 50,000 left in the wild, according to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
Ancient plague mystery cracked after DNA found in 4,000-year-old animal remains
Long before the Black Death killed millions across Europe in the Middle Ages, an earlier, more elusive version of the plague spread across much of Eurasia.
For years, scientists were unsure how the ancient disease managed to spread so widely during the Bronze Age, which lasted from roughly 3300 to 1200 B.C., and stick around for nearly 2,000 years, especially since it wasn’t spread by fleas like later plagues. Now, researchers say a surprising clue may help explain it: a domesticated sheep that lived more than 4,000 years ago.
Researchers found DNA from the plague bacterium Yersinia pestis in the tooth of a Bronze Age sheep discovered in what is now southern Russia, according to a study recently published in the journal Cell. It is the first known evidence that the ancient plague infected animals, not just people, and offers a missing clue about how the disease spread.
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"It was alarm bells for my team," said study co-author Taylor Hermes, a University of Arkansas archaeologist who studies ancient livestock and disease spread, in a statement. "This was the first time we had recovered the genome from Yersinia pestis in a non-human sample."
And it was a lucky discovery, according to the researchers.
"When we test livestock DNA in ancient samples, we get a complex genetic soup of contamination," Hermes said. "This is a large barrier … but it also gives us an opportunity to look for pathogens that infected herds and their handlers."
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The highly technical and time-consuming work requires researchers to separate tiny, damaged fragments of ancient DNA from contamination left by soil, microbes and even modern humans. The DNA they recover from ancient animals is often broken into tiny pieces sometimes just 50 "letters" long, compared to a full human DNA strand, which contains more than 3 billion of those letters.
Animal remains are especially tough to study because they are often poorly preserved compared to human remains that were carefully buried, the researchers noted.
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The finding sheds light on how the plague likely spread through close contact between people, livestock and wild animals, as Bronze Age societies began keeping larger herds and traveling farther with horses. The Bronze Age saw more widespread use of bronze tools, large-scale animal herding and increased travel — conditions that may have made it easier for diseases to move between animals and humans.
When the plague returned in the Middle Ages during the 1300s, known as the Black Death, it killed an estimated one-third of Europe’s population.
"It had to be more than people moving," Hermes said. "Our plague sheep gave us a breakthrough. We now see it as a dynamic between people, livestock and some still unidentified 'natural reservoir' for it."
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Researchers believe sheep likely picked up the bacteria from another animal, like rodents or migratory birds, that carried it without getting sick and then passed it to humans. They say the findings highlight how many deadly diseases begin in animals and jump to humans, a risk that continues today as people move into new environments and interact more closely with wildlife and livestock.
"It's important to have a greater respect for the forces of nature," Hermes said.
The study is based on a single ancient sheep genome, which limits how much scientists can conclude, they noted, and more samples are needed to fully understand the spread.
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The researchers plan to study more ancient human and animal remains from the region to determine how widespread the plague was and which species may have played a role in spreading it.
They also hope to identify the wild animal that originally carried the bacteria and better understand how human movement and livestock herding helped the disease travel across vast distances, insights that could help them better anticipate how animal-borne diseases continue to emerge.
The research was led by scientists at the Max Planck Institute for Infection Biology, with senior authors Felix M. Key of the Max Planck Institute for Infection Biology and Christina Warinner of Harvard University and the Max Planck Institute for Geoanthropology.
The research was supported by the Max Planck Society, which has also funded follow-up work in the region.
Why cold weather makes you hungrier — and what actually helps curb winter cravings
During the cold winter months, many people find themselves hungrier than usual, reaching for larger portions and cozy comfort foods.
While cold temperatures are often blamed for winter weight gain, experts say the causes actually involve shorter days, disrupted circadian rhythms and subtle hormonal shifts.
"Winter appetite changes are more strongly influenced by reduced daylight and sunlight exposure and the resulting disruption to circadian rhythms — called chronodisruption — than by cold temperature alone," Timothy Frie, a Florida-based nutritional neuroscientist and president of the National Academy of Neuronutrition, told Fox News Digital.
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Some research suggests people may eat more in colder environments to generate body heat, but Frie said the evidence remains mixed.
"The evidence that cold weather consistently increases hunger hormones is suggestive but absolutely not definitive," he said. "These hormonal variations are not consistent across all individuals."
British Dr. Crystal Wyllie agrees that winter appetite shifts are often tied to changes in mood and light exposure.
"It’s not just hunger — it’s your brain’s way of compensating for lower mood and light levels, which can easily spiral into a cycle of overeating," she told the science website StudyFinds.
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Research suggests people gain an average of one to two pounds during colder months as reduced daylight throws off the body’s internal clock, alters appetite-regulating hormones and triggers cravings for carbohydrates that temporarily boost mood.
Here are five ways experts say you can help curb winter cravings.
Food and eating act as time cues, or "zeitgebers," a German term meaning "time-givers," Frie noted. "Irregular eating patterns, especially in the absence of strong light cues, may exacerbate circadian disruption and increase vulnerability to cravings or dysregulated appetite during winter months," he said.
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Eating dinner a little earlier and keeping it light can help reestablish the body’s internal clock after the clocks go back since meal timing acts as a signal that helps regulate circadian rhythms, Neelofer Basaria, a Texas-based public health expert and certified health and wellness coach, previously told Fox News Digital.
Wyllie recommends starting the day with a protein-rich breakfast to help stabilize blood sugar and curb hunger longer, adding that beginning meals with high-fiber, low-calorie foods can further boost fullness and limit excess eating.
Foods like oats, lentils, beans, broccoli, apples and chia seeds help people feel satisfied sooner, making it easier to eat less when meals start with items like vegetable soup or salads with beans. Omega-3–rich foods like salmon and walnuts may also help regulate appetite by improving gut–brain signaling, while dark chocolate with at least 70% cocoa can promote fullness by slowing digestion and triggering satiety hormones, StudyFinds reported.
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Adding spices like chili, cayenne, black pepper or ginger may help curb winter hunger by increasing feelings of fullness and slightly suppressing appetite. Wyllie said compounds such as capsaicin, which is found in hot peppers, activate the body’s heat-production process, which can help reduce cravings.
Adding spicy peppers or hot paprika to meals can naturally reduce food intake by 11% to 18% by slowing eating pace and allowing the brain more time to register fullness, researchers at Penn State University found.
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Drinking water or herbal tea before meals may help some people feel fuller and avoid mistaking thirst for hunger, with studies suggesting that about 2 cups consumed 30 minutes before eating can modestly reduce calorie intake.
Experts say keeping up with fluids in colder months can help prevent fatigue and low energy since dehydration often goes unnoticed when people don’t feel as thirsty.
Frie emphasized that managing appetite isn’t just about dieting but about paying attention to factors like sleep quality, mood, light exposure, stress and daily activity — all of which influence hunger and food choices, especially in winter.
"By noticing patterns, such as increased cravings after poor sleep or reduced appetite during low activity days, we can begin to identify our own physiological and behavioral cues regardless of the season," he said.
"This self-observation practice builds awareness and cognitive flexibility, allowing for more adaptive responses to appetite signals year-round, rather than reactive patterns driven by season or circumstance."