Health & Wellness

Seven Steps That Lead To Better Health http://www.thepost.ca/PrintArticle.aspx?e=960775 At least half of all cancers can be prevented through healthy living and policies that protect the health of Canadians. Take the following steps to reduce your risk of developing cancer. Be a non-smoker and avoid second-hand smoke. Smoking causes about 30 per cent of all cancer deaths in Canada. Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer death for men and women in Canada. Smoking also increases your risk of developing cancers of the mouth, throat, larynx, cervix, pancreas, esophagus, colon, rectum, kidney and bladder. If you are a smoker, quit. If you are a non-smoker, avoid second-hand smoke.   Eat five-10 servings of vegetables and fruit a day. Choose high fibre, lower fat foods. If you drink alcohol, limit your intake to one to two drinks a day. Research suggests as much as one third of all cancers may be related to what we eat and drink. Eat five-10 servings of vegetables and fruit a day. Eat plenty of whole grain fibres and keep your dietary fat intake low. For a healthy diet, balance your daily meals with foods from the four food groups described in Canada's Food Guide. If you drink alcohol, limit your consumption. Having one or more alcoholic drinks a day is associated with a slight increase in breast cancer risk. If you are pregnant or breast-feeding, avoid alcohol.   Be physically active on a regular basis: this will also help you maintain a healthy body weight. Most people know that regular exercise is necessary to remain healthy. Studies strongly suggest that exercise reduces your risk of colon cancer. Also, the evidence of a link between physical activity and breast cancer is convincing.   Protect yourself and your family from the sun, particularly between 11 a.m. and 4 p.m. when the sun's rays are at their strongest or anytime of the day the UV Index is three or more. Check your skin regularly and report any changes to your doctor. This year tens of thousands of Canadians will develop skin cancer because of over exposure to UV (ultraviolet light). Skin cancer is the most frequently diagnosed cancer in Canada.   Follow cancer screening guidelines. Even people with healthy lifestyles can develop cancer. One way to detect cancer early is to have regular screening tests. These tests can often find cancer when it is still at an early stage. The earlier the cancer is found, the more successful the treatment is likely to be. For women, discuss mammography, Pap tests, and clinical breast exams with a health professional. For men, discuss testicular exams and prostate screening with a health professional. Both men and women should also discuss screening for colon and rectal cancers.   Visit your doctor or dentist if you notice any change in your normal health. Know your body and report any changes to your doctor or dentist as soon as possible (for example, sores that do not heal, a cough which goes on for more than four weeks or a change in bowel habits). Health care professionals are trained to spot the early warning signs of cancer and other diseases.   Follow health and safety instructions at home and at work when using, storing and disposing of hazardous materials. At home and at work, take care to follow safety instructions when using, storing and disposing of household pesticides or any other chemicals. Health Canada and Environment Canada have guidelines for handling cancer-causing substances.

Stop Fooling Yourself Canada! Embrace The Challenge Of A Healthy Body From Head To Toe Yves Veggie Cuisine Empowers Canadians With The Launch of A Soy-Centric Microsite For Healthy Eating TORONTO, March 31 /CNW/ - One single ingredient helps support almost our entire body's health. Nature's magic bean, soy, is the only plant protein to contain all the essential amino acids a person requires for optimal body functioning. Bones - enhances the body's ability to slow bone loss and inhibit bone breakdown, helping to prevent osteoporosis. Beauty - builds healthy, shiny nails, hair and skin. Brain - protects against the accumulation of Alzheimer's disease-related proteins. Healthy eating is one of the most important things an individual can do to improve their overall health, and meat alternatives like soy-based Veggie Ground Round can be a practical, delicious way to get the body on track. This April 1st, Yves Veggie Cuisine challenges Canadians to stop fooling themselves with the launch of an interactive soy-centric health guide available at www.yvesveggie.ca to educate Canadians on the benefits of soy.

Maple Syrup As A Source Of Antioxidants MONTREAL, March 28 /CNW Telbec/ - Certain foods contain substances with powerful cancer-fighting properties. When eaten regularly, these "functional foods" can help protect us from cancer, but with no side-effects other than making our taste buds happy! After berries, soy, green tea, spices and even chocolate, now maple syrup is showing its colours: recent scientific studies have confirmed the antioxidant, anti-inflammatory qualities of maple syrup, indicating a possible anti-cancer potential. Most plants, including many fruits and vegetables, produce an arsenal of molecules that help them defend themselves against infection and the damage caused by micro-organisms (bacteria, fungi, viruses etc.), as well as insects and other predators in their environment. Some of these protective substances play a leading role in our own systems of anti-cancer defence. They fight tumours at the source, before they can reach maturity and become a threat to health. Among such substances are phenolic compounds. Maple syrup is a significant source of phenol compounds, which are naturally present in the sap. It also has contains other substances (sugars, amino acids, organic acids and so on) with a potential to benefit health, including reducing the risk of developing cancer. Over the last year, two studies focusing on water and Québec maple syrup have shown that phenolic compounds interfere with three important phenomena involved in the development of tumours: oxidation, inflammation and angiogenesis (the formation of new blood vessels to nourish cancer cells). "A 60 ml serving (1/4 cup) of maple syrup has moderate antioxidant capacity, comparable to that of a serving of broccoli or a banana, explains dietician Marie Breton. This benefit, combined with the fact that the same quantity also provides significant amounts of manganese, riboflavin, zinc, magnesium, calcium and potassium, puts maple syrup head and shoulders above other common sweeteners like white sugar, brown sugar, honey and corn syrup." According to the studies, maple syrup's antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activity is due to its high content in phenols and certain other substances. It's worth nothing that neither the region nor the part of the season in which the sap is harvested, nor its long-term storage (6 months) or thermal reconditioning, have any unfavourable effects on its antioxidant, anti-inflammatory activity. Already, new studies are under way to show whether or not the various antioxidant and anti-inflammatory compounds present in maple syrup have cancer-fighting potential as suggested in the literature. Results are expected within the next 12 to 24 months.

Don't drink too much water: Study 3 Apr 2008, 0808 hrs IST, REUTERS NEW YORK: There is no clearcut scientific rationale for the average healthy individual to drink a lot of water -- and it may be downright harmful -- according to two kidney experts. Drinking a lot of water is claimed to be helpful for everything from clearing toxins and keeping organs in tip-top shape to keeping weight off and improving skin tone. At best, however, the evidence to back up these claims is weak, according to a new scientific review published in the Journal of the American Society of Nephrology . "There is what I call an urban myth that drinking a lot of water is a healthy thing to do and it leads to people toting around plastic water bottles all day drinking water," Dr. Stanley Goldfarb, of the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia said. "The source of this is the complementary and alternative medicine worlds. If you go on the internet and look up water-drinking and its health implications, that's what you encounter," Goldfarb said. As a kidney specialist, Goldfarb is interested in how the kidney handles fluids, which prompted him and colleague Dr. Dan Negoianu to review the scientific literature on the benefits of drinking water. In doing so, the researchers debunked four myths. One is that drinking a lot of water suppresses appetite. "Many people drink water before and during the meal to try to suppress their appetite," Goldfarb explained, yet there is "no consistent evidence" that water suppresses appetite. "Because you absorb water so quickly and it moves through the GI tract so quickly, it probably doesn't fill you up the way people have proposed, nor does it lead to the release of hormones which suppress appetite as far as we know," the researcher said. The second myth is that filling up on water flushes toxins from the body. "In fact, that is not how the kidney works," Goldfarb said. "When you drink a lot of water you end up having a larger volume of urine but don't necessarily increase the excretion of various constituents of the urine." The third myth is that it reduces headaches. It does not, according to the evidence. The fourth myth is that water drinking improves your skin. "There are no data to suggest that it actually improves the water content of the skin," Goldfarb said. Goldfarb and Negoianu did find solid evidence that people living in hot, dry climates, as well as some athletes, have an increased need for water, and people with certain diseases like kidney stones may benefit from increased water intake -- but no such data exist for average, healthy individuals. Furthermore, there are a couple of circumstances where drinking a lot of water may be actually unhealthy. "In long-distance runners, for example, more harm is done by long distance runners over-drinking during races than by long distance runners who under-drink," Goldfarb explained. He also cited the case of a woman who developed swelling of the brain and died when she drank water continuously and very rapidly for several minutes as part of a contest. Goldfarb also said there is no rational basis for the widespread belief that people need to drink eight glasses of water a day, and it is unclear where this recommendation came from.

Young Consumers: Spend Your Money Wisely! TORONTO, March 28 /CNW/ - A new consumer awareness campaign will help young Ontarians make more informed decisions when spending or borrowing money. Young consumers are more vulnerable to scams and are at a higher risk for debt problems. A recent study found that only 66 per cent of Canadians between the ages of 21-30 consider the consequences of rising interest rates when borrowing money. Consumers aged 18 to 25 have significant purchasing power, but often lack the experience needed to protect themselves against issues like money management, credit risk and identity theft. The campaign will enhance awareness for smart money-management, identity theft and protecting yourself when making online purchases. It will target young consumers in secondary schools, colleges and universities, and in the workplace. The campaign will include: A Young Consumer Advisory Group to consult with the government An outreach program to talk with young consumers in schools and community centres Education modules for use by teachers in secondary schools An interactive Young Consumer E-Zone on Ontario's Consumer Protection website The announcement is the first in a series of initiatives aimed at assisting young people during Consumer Awareness Week, which runs from March 28 to April 4 in Ontario. QUOTES "From buying cars and homes to dealing with banks and credit companies, we want to help young consumers make informed financial decisions," said Government and Consumer Services Minister Ted McMeekin. "The more we can point them in the right direction and protect them from risks, the better." "We're proud to join in this campaign with the Ontario government so that more young consumers get the information they need to succeed, and as early as possible," said Laurie Campbell, executive director of Credit Canada. QUICK FACTS Almost a third of Ontarians have four or more credit cards 930 convictions within the last four years have been made under the Consumer Protection Act

I Was Sick and You Visited Me I was sick and you came to visit me: time spent at the bedsides of seriously ill patients with poor prognoses*1 Daniel P. Sulmasy MD, PhD , , a, b and Maike Rahn MSa, b a John J. Conley Department of Ethics, Saint Vincent Catholic Medical Centers (DPS, MR), St. Vincent’s, Manhattan, New York, New York, USA b Bioethics Institute of New York Medical College (DPS), Valhalla, New York, USA Purpose To learn how much time hospital staff and families spend at the bedsides of seriously ill patients with poor prognoses. Subjects and methods An observational study was made of 58 inpatients with cancer, acquired immunodeficiency syndrome, heart failure, obstructive lung disease, or advanced dementia, along with their families and the physicians and nurses working on the medical floors of a university hospital, using direct videotape surveillance of patients’ doorways. Results The mean total visitor-minutes spent in the rooms of these patients was 321 ± 297 minutes per day. On average, patients spent 18 hours 39 minutes per day alone. Mean visit durations were 3 ± 3 minutes for attending physicians (including consultants), 3 ± 2 minutes for house officers, 2 ± 1 minutes for nurses, and 24 ± 51 minutes for family. The total person-visits per patient per day were 3 ± 3 for attending physicians, 9 ± 8 for house officers, 45 ± 23 for nurses, and 13 ± 21 for family. Patient sex and age were not significantly associated with total visitor-minutes. In a repeated-measures analysis of variance model, nonwhite patients received fewer total visitor-minutes than did white patients, and patients with dementia received fewer total visitor-minutes than did patients with other diagnoses, especially those with malignancy. Do-not-resuscitate orders were associated with slightly more total visitor-minutes. Conclusions These seriously ill patients with poor prognoses spent most of their time in the hospital alone. Staff visits were frequent but brief. These data do not confirm anecdotal reports that staff members spend less time at the bedsides of patients with do-not-resuscitate orders. Patients with advanced dementia and minority patients appear to have less bedside contact. Further study is required to confirm these findings and to understand optimal visit time for medical inpatients with poor prognoses.