TORONTO - The Fraser Institute today launched the Hospital Report Card: Ontario 2006, a new report and interactive web site that assesses 50 measures of patient safety and quality of care for every acute care hospital in Ontario. The Hospital Report Card can be found at : www.hospitalreportcards.ca.

"The goal of this new Hospital Report Card is to contribute to the improvement of hospital care by providing quality of care information directly to patients and the general public. This will help people make informed choices about their health care and improve hospital performance through enhanced transparency and accountability," said Mark Mullins, co-author and executive director of The Fraser Institute.

Information is shown for all of the 136 acute care hospitals in Ontario from fiscal year 1997 to 2005, comprising more than 8.5 million patient records. The report also calculates the 50 indicators for all of the 138 municipalities in Ontario, based on patient location. Forty-three hospitals agreed to have their institutions identified by name in this Hospital Report Card. Other hospitals are anonymously shown in the report by number. "This constitutes the most comprehensive measure of acute care hospital performance and accountability in Canada available at the present time," said Mullins.

Among the 50 measures are death rates, adverse events, volumes and usage rates in three categories: hospital procedures, medical conditions and those related to child birth. A Hospital Mortality Index is calculated as a summary measure of mortality rates in the larger hospitals (where adequate data are available).

The Hospital Mortality Index assessment reveals that William Osler Health Centre in Brampton is the third top-ranked hospital over the past three years, while two anonymous hospitals are ranked first and second. Interestingly, all of the ten bottom-ranked hospitals over the past three years are anonymous. Stratford General Hospital, Ottawa Hospital (General Site), and Timmons and District General Hospital have all had consistently strong Hospital Mortality Index scores over the study period from 1997 to 2005.

The three top-ranked municipalities over the past three years (based on patient location information) are Arnprior, Maple and Stratford. Of the five largest municipalities in Ontario, Hamilton is the highest ranked at 22nd out of 105 municipalities over the past three years, and Toronto is the lowest ranked at 39th out of 105 municipalities.

"For the first time in Ontario and in Canada, patients and the general public will be able to assess the quality of care delivered by their local hospital in a detailed manner," said Mullins. "This is a momentous occasion. Therefore, we congratulate the forty-three hospitals that opted to participate in the study and look forward to a more informed discussion on the state of hospital care in this country."

Important Note on Methodology

The report uses a state-of-the-art indicator methodology, developed by the U.S. Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) in conjunction with Stanford University, that has been shown to reflect quality of care inside hospitals.

These indicators are presently in use in a dozen U.S. states, including New York, Texas, Florida and California. In Canada, the Manitoba Center for Health Policy released a report in June 2006 using the AHRQ patient safety indicators. In addition, the OECD recommends this approach by noting that "this set of measures represents an exciting development and their use should be tested in a variety of countries."

The report is based on anonymous patient-level data purchased from the Canadian Institute for Health Information (CIHI). These data are used to produce various CIHI reports and indicators, including annual reports on the performance of the health care system and seven of the health indicators adopted by the federal, provincial and territorial governments. The Ontario Hospital Association, in affiliation with CIHI and the Government of Ontario, uses the same patient information that underlies the Fraser Institute's Hospital Report Card in its acute care hospital report.

It is important to note that the 50 indicators and the Hospital Mortality Index are applicable only to acute care conditions and procedures for inpatient care. The results cannot be generalized to assessing the overall performance of any given hospital. It is also not recommended to choose a hospital based solely on statistics and descriptions such as those given in this report.

Make sure your pets are vaccinated against rabies.
Don't let your pets run free, and keep them indoors at night.
Remove all outdoor food sources for wild animals.
Be cautious with both wild animals and pets that do not belong to you - stay at a safe distance.
Do not tease animals.
Never disturb a dog or cat while they are sleeping, eating, or caring for their young.
If you think your pet is sick - call your veterinarian.
If you are bitten or scratched by an animal, you should:

Immediately wash the bite or scratched area thoroughly with soap and water. Washing greatly reduces the chance of infection.

Call your family doctor or go to the nearest hospital emergency or urgent care facility.

Report the bite or scratch to Region of Waterloo Public Health.

¨ Crisis Services of Waterloo Region:
24/7 mobile crisis response: 519-744-1813
¨ Distress Line: 519-745-1166
¨ Youth Distress Line: 519-745-9909
¨ Emergency Department of your local Hospital

Adults who lived in large Canadian cities in 2004 were far less likely to be obese than were their counterparts who lived outside such metropolitan areas, a new report indicates.

The report "Regional differences in obesity" is based on actual measurements of height and weight from the 2004 Canadian Community Health Survey. The study examines obesity and overweight individuals inside and outside census metropolitan areas (CMAs).

Overall, 20% of CMA residents aged 18 or older were obese in 2004, compared with 29% of those who lived outside a CMA. The national average for obesity was 23%.

Furthermore, as the size of the city increased, the likelihood of being obese fell. In CMAs with a population of at least 2 million (Toronto, Montréal and Vancouver) only 17% of adults were obese. The comparable figure for CMAs with a population of 100,000 to 2 million was 24%. In urban centres with populations of 10,000 to 100,000, 30% of adults were obese.

The report examined whether low obesity rates in the largest cities could be explained by the tendency of immigrants to settle in these areas, given that immigrants are less likely than people born in Canada to be obese. However, the relatively low prevalence of obesity in large cities persisted, even when immigrant status and the number of years since immigrating were both taken into account.

Among adults who did not live in urban centres, those who commuted to a large city or even to a smaller urban centre were less likely to be obese.

In municipalities where a high or fairly high proportion of the population commuted to a nearby urban centre, obesity rates were comparable with the national average. In those where few commuted to work in an urban centre, the obesity rate was almost twice the national average (44%).

While there was a relationship between excess weight and urban-rural residence among adults, the same was not true for children. Nationally, the proportion of 2- to 17-year-olds who were overweight or obese was comparable in large CMAs, smaller CMAs, other cities and rural areas. Alberta was the one exception to this trend. There, young people aged 2 to 17 who lived in CMAs were less likely to be overweight/obese than were those who did not.

In a small number of CMAs, the prevalence of obesity/overweight differed significantly from the national average of 26.2% for those aged 2 to 17. Proportions were much higher than the national average among children in Gatineau (48%), Kingston (46%) and Winnipeg (32%) and low in Quebec City (15%), Ottawa (16%) and Calgary (16%). However, these differences were based on small sample sizes and should be interpreted with caution.

In the adult population, the obesity rate differed significantly from the national average of 23% in St. John's (36%), Toronto (16%) and Vancouver (12%).

Apply a repellent containing DEET whenever you are outdoors (remember to use the least concentration needed for the time outside and never use on children under 6 months of age)

It continues to be important for everyone to play a role in the fight against West Nile virus by eliminating mosquito breeding grounds on their property.

Eliminate Mosquito Breeding Grounds:
Don’t allow outdoor objects to collect water
Drain tin cans, plastic containers, toys, buckets, barrels and flower pots
Dispose of discarded tires
Clear eaves troughs and down spouts
Change the water in bird baths every other day
Cover rain barrels with a fine mesh screen
Remove standing water from flat roofs and pool covers
Store canoes, wheelbarrows and wading pools upside down

A third round of larval control measures in standing water sites and catch basins throughout Waterloo Region was initiated on Monday, August 14th. “We will continue with localized surveillance and, if needed, administer control measures in and around the location of the dead birds,” said Curt Monk, Manager of Health Protection. “While we are not surprised to learn of additional positive birds,” said Monk, “we are urging residents to make personal protection a priority.” With the presence of West Nile Virus now solidly confirmed in the Region, Public Health is urging individuals who are outside during the day - and particularly at night - to take precautions and make personal protection a priority.”

West Nile Virus is spread to people through the bite of an infected mosquito. Mosquitoes become infected by biting a bird that carries the virus. The virus does not spread directly from person to person. There is no evidence that the virus spreads from birds or animals to humans.

Some of the actions the public can take to fight the bite and mobilize against mosquitoes to minimize exposure to West Nile Virus include:

Making Personal Protection a Priority:

Wear long sleeved shirts and pants
Wear light coloured clothing
Minimize time outdoors during dusk and dawn
Apply a repellent containing DEET whenever you are outdoors

"Deaths due to heat stroke are preventable with new technology," said Tom Costello, associate professor of biological and agricultural engineering. "Trainers and coaches on the sideline need to know whose body temperature is creeping up there (to a dangerous level). Once you have that information, you can pull the player off the field, hydrate, and give the body a chance to lose some of that heat and cool down."

For their senior design project, Costello's students -- Matt Graham, John Leach and James McCarty -- designed and built a system prototype that, with modifications, could provide potentially life-saving information to coaches and trainers. The system wirelessly gathers and monitors body temperature and communicates information on many players in real time. To the player practicing or participating in a game, the system would be transparent in that it would not compromise safety or affect comfort and performance.

The complete system includes a thermocouple temperature sensor, a transmitter, two amplifiers and a base-station receiver connected to a laptop with user-interface software. As part of the project, Graham, Leach and McCarty exhaustively researched each component to find commercial products that were compatible with each other and most appropriate for their design. For example, they considered many types of sensors -- thermistors, infrared sensors and liquid crystal thermometry -- before settling on thermocouples, which they found to be superior in response time, size, durability, expense and quality of data produced.

The students embedded the wireless system in a Schutt football helmet, which was loaned by the UA Men's Athletics Department. The sensor adheres to a dense pad, which touches the surface of the player's forehead and records the body's temperature from the temporal artery. The sensor sends an analog signal to the transmitter, which converts the signal into digital data. The amplifiers increase voltage from the sensor to enable it to provide linear, higher-resolution data, which allows the researchers to measure temperature within a tenth of a degree Fahrenheit, the medical industry standard.

The connected components communicate with a base-station receiver, which transfers data into a laptop computer. The system has a transmission distance of approximately 1,000 feet, which would work in the largest football stadiums.

User-friendly software provides basic information that can be viewed in raw form or graphic format. From the software's main page, each player's name serves as a link to a reference page that includes heat stress notes and a history chart. This page also includes buttons that enable the user to set a player's baseline temperature and changes in threshold temperature. The software allows the user to monitor temperatures of many players simultaneously. Most importantly, based on each player's threshold, a temperature-alert page automatically pops up and supercedes all other windows if a player has reached his threshold.

Graham said software changes are easy and could facilitate many types of communication. For example, if a trainer or support person is not available to monitor the software, the alert page could be programmed to sound an alarm, call a cell phone or send a text message.

Supervised by Costello, the students shepherded their project through many design iterations and rigorously tested the final prototype on subjects in a resting position and during physical exertion and exercise. In the latter tests, subjects donned the helmet and ran one mile on a level surface in an indoor track facility. Temperatures gathered by the prototype during the exercise phase were compared to oral, tympanic membrane and temporal artery readings immediately after the subject stopped running. The system recorded accurate temperature readings in real time while subjects were running. The researchers did not test the system in a helmet-impact environment.

The students won second place at the Open Gunlogson National Student Environmental Design Competition in Portland, Ore., July 10. The event was part of the annual international meeting of the American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers. Only the top three teams from schools nationwide were invited to present their designs.

Each year, heat stroke claims the life of at least one high school, collegiate or professional football player. Formal practices hadn't even begun this year when a 15-year-old student in Rockdale County, Ga., died as a result of heat stroke following a voluntary workout in preparation for the start of the football season. The problem is that coaches, trainers and the players themselves do not know when the body's core temperature has reached a critical threshold, despite physiological signs such as dizziness and blurred vision.

Heat exhaustion can occur when internal body temperature increases to 100.4 degrees; if it reaches 104.9 degrees, a person may suffer a potentially fatal heat stroke. Football players are especially vulnerable to heat exhaustion and stroke for several reasons. Their bodies struggle to cool down because they are practicing in temperatures that are as hot as or hotter than the body's temperature. Protective gear, especially helmets -- the human body releases 60 percent of its heat though the head -- prevents the body from efficiently releasing heat so it can cool down.

TORONTO - As Canada's premiers enter the Council of the Federation's annual meeting this week, the Registered Nurses' Association of Ontario (RNAO), asks them to address three types of imbalances: fiscal; social and environmental.

The key discussion item at the meeting will be the fiscal imbalance and equalization payments, and RNAO urges the premiers to address inequities between the provinces and the federal government in a way that will benefit all Canadians.

Premiers, we must make sure that our social safety net continues to stretch from coast-to-coast-to-coast. Resources are needed from the federal government. But to be effective, they must come with strings attached. Federal funds must be targeted to areas that Canadians consistently say are their top priorities, including publicly funded, universally accessible health care; pharmacare programs that prevent Canadians from having to choose between life-saving drugs and financial ruin; social programs that ensure Canadian children grow up healthy; and protection of the environment, including meeting Canada's commitments on climate change.

Achieving these goals will take more than simply paying lip service to the idea that someone who lives in Calgary has the same access to social services, including health care, as a fellow Canadian in rural Prince Edward Island. This is particularly true of reducing surgical wait times. We ask the premiers to remember that reducing surgical wait times can, and must, be achieved within the scope of our publicly funded health-care system. We ask them to remember that, time and time again, not-for-profit delivery has proven to be more cost-effective. And, we remind them that concerted efforts to train the right mix of health-care professionals, including nurses, and nurturing interdisciplinary work must continue so that Canadians have increased access to care by seeing the right health professional in the right place and at the right time.

We also ask the premiers to remember that reducing surgical wait times is only one piece of the health-care puzzle. Committing to reducing wait times for primary health care and home health care continues to be imperative to ensure we support Canadians to stay healthy, or recover from illness in the comfort of their own homes.

We urge the premiers to work with the federal government to advance a made-in-Canada pharmacare program by immediately moving to implement the National Pharmaceutical Strategy, first proposed at 2004's First Ministers' Health Summit in Niagara-on-the-Lake. The fact is, only one in 10 Canadians has access to insurance that will cover full drug costs outside the hospital system. This is a gap that has a very real, very harmful effect on millions of ordinary Canadians every day.

We also remind the premiers that health is more than just health-care. According to Campaign 2000, more than one million Canadian children and their families continue to live in poverty - a key indicator of health outcomes. Premiers, if you truly want to strengthen the Confederation, please invest in the generation that will lead our country in the years to come. Low-income children are more likely to have health problems, including those that come about from simply not having access to good nutrition. Poverty can also impede a child's ability to access high-quality pre-school programs that lay the foundation for success in school and lifelong learning.

We cannot allow Canada, one of the richest countries in the world, to deprive its children of the most basic necessities of life: decent nutrition and shelter. We must offer Canada's children opportunities that will enable them to grow into competent and skilled workers. This is vital for our children and for our nation if we are to compete in the global market. A national child-care program and a housing program are desperately needed to close the social gap we are experiencing within, and between, jurisdictions. These programs would also strengthen the leadership role of our federal government.

Canadians are also concerned about our country's very poor environmental performance, and growing evidence of the adverse impacts of environmental degradation and global warming on human health. The environment is a well known determinant of health, and Canadians expect the federal and provincial governments to take effective measures to protect the environment from further decline.

Addressing all of these fiscal, social and environmental imbalances is within the scope of our premiers to achieve. We know you have the commitment and dedication to address them. We ask that you don't compromise them by giving in to the short-term political gains to be made by cutting taxes.

Tax cuts have already severely strained the government's ability to provide social services that are essential in modern society. Further reductions in taxes will continue to fray the social safety net, and widen the gap between the rich and poor. Canada's corporate taxes are already lower than those in the United States, and the savings corporations enjoy because of social programs like our universally accessible health-care system make Canada a logical and cost-effective place to do business; the auto industry's continued investment in Ontario is a testament to that. We urge you not to mortgage our future by allowing further tax cuts today.

Nurses have a vision of a Canada where solutions to fiscal imbalances mean all Canadians have equal access to programs that allow them the opportunity to live healthy, productive lives. We hope that the premiers will share our vision, and work together to lead a country where each citizen is equally empowered to strengthen the Confederation. Nurses are always eager to work with you to build success.

Best wishes on your deliberations,

Mary Ferguson-Paré, RN, PhD, CHE
President
Registered Nurses' Association of Ontario

Doris Grinspun, RN, MSN, PhD (c), O. ONT
Executive Director
Registered Nurses' Association of Ontario

It’s long been known that human activity is eroding biodiversity. Now a new study by University of Guelph researchers — published today in Nature — reveals that the stability of ecological food webs is also at risk.

The study, headed by Neil Rooney and Prof. Kevin McCann of Guelph’s Department of Integrative Biology, says that complex ecosystems are held together by their top predators — the very species most under threat from humans.

“It’s an important finding,” said Rooney, a post-doctoral researcher. “It indicates that top predators keep food webs in check, and that if you remove them, the systems will unravel.”

He and McCann, along with Guelph master’s student Gabriel Gellner and Colorado soil ecologist John Moore , surveyed data from eight aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems across the world, including Chesapeake Bay, the Alaskan tundra, a European pine forest and a Dutch experimental farm.

It has long been speculated that diverse food webs are more stable than less diverse systems. “We set out to determine whether there are common structures or processes that confer this stability to diverse food webs,” Rooney said.

“Whether we were looking at an aquatic ecosystem or a soil one, a common pattern emerged. Top predators tend to feed on prey that derive their energy from different resources, and therefore act as couplers of what we refer to as energy channels.”

Human interference, such as nutrient pollution as a result of urban development or intensive agriculture, can change the relative importance of these energy channels in food webs, resulting in a loss of both diversity and stability, Rooney said. Moreover, the researchers found that the removal of top predators has negative ramifications that can be observed throughout the entire food web.

“For example, take away the tuna from a marine system, and you’ll release from predation the populations of fish that tuna normally feed on, and this will affect everything from the phytoplankton to the detritus feeders,” Rooney said.

Alarmingly, predators — commonly dominant carnivores — are often more susceptible to human activity than other members of the food web, and Rooney speculates there are numerous reasons, ranging from being perceived as a threat to being a food source.

“When it comes to the reduction of biodiversity as a result of human activity, people often demand evidence that their actions have consequences before taking remedial action, and this paper is a first step towards presenting that evidence.”

In addition to the Guelph study, Nature published a related commentary that argues conserving biodiversity may be an even greater challenge than tackling climate change and suggests an international expert group, similar to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, be established.

WATERLOO -- Students in a third-year systems design course at the University of Waterloo will display designs of products to improve the quality of life of elderly people with disabling conditions.

Fourteen student groups are participating in an event called Design Exhibition: Products for Disabled Elderly. The exhibition runs from 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. on Wednesday, July 19, in room DC1301 of the Davis Centre.

“The average person in North America will spend close to 12 years of his or her life as a person with disabilities and the cost is more than 6.5 per cent of the gross national product,” said John S. Zelek, associate professor of engineering and exhibit organizer. “The students in my class were challenged to design products for the elderly disabled and the results appear in this exhibition.”

Devices and software to aid the disabled often need custom modification, are prohibitively expensive or simply do not exist.

The 14 groups in Zelek’s course, SYDE 361, were each required to select a unique disabling condition, identify a design-problem objective and solicit needs from an associated demographic – all to lay the groundwork for developing innovative concepts that are prototyped for display at this exhibit.

Some of the disabling conditions addressed include blindness, multiple sclerosis, mental and emotional issues, head injuries, stroke, communications difficulties, respiratory problems and AIDs.

The course and theme meet several engineering design learning objectives. It also exposes the students to rehabilitation design, which may lead to cost effective solutions, and motivates them. Finally, it demonstrates that engineering has a crucial role in society, improving the quality of life for all and providing a unique service to the community.

The Canadian Tobacco Use Monitoring Survey (CTUMS) found there was no difference in smoking prevalence among teens aged 15 to 19 for the second year in a row. Approximately 385,000 Canadians in this age group (18%) reported they smoked daily or occasionally.

Approximately 52% of teen smokers under the age to legally purchase tobacco products in their province said they acquired their cigarettes socially, by buying, taking or directly receiving them from friends or relatives. The remaining 48% reported buying their cigarettes directly from retailers.

Of all teens aged 15 to 18 that purchased or tried to purchase tobacco products directly from retailers, 59% said they were asked at least once in the past 12 months for proof of age. A further 46% of all teens under the age of 19 said they were refused at least one sale in the past 12 months, by retailers, because they did not have proper identification.

There was a slight decrease overall in the prevalence of smoking in 2005. The change does substantiate the continuous downward trend in smoking prevalence among Canadians aged 15 and older, even though the annual decline was not statistically significant.

Estimates show that slightly fewer than 5 million Canadians (19%) aged 15 and older reported smoking daily or occasionally in 2005. The percentage of female smokers according to CTUMS was estimated at 16% in 2005 while the number of male smokers was 22%.

Trends in smoking rates determined by the survey were much the same as reported in The Daily on June 13, 2006 by the Canadian Community Health Survey. However, the rates determined by the two surveys were slightly different, as were the age groups.

The smoking rate for both men and women aged 20 to 24 declined in 2005 to the lowest rates ever recorded by CTUMS for this age group. Approximately 29% of men and 23% of women identified themselves as smokers in 2005. Notwithstanding, it should be noted that young adults in this age group continue to report the highest smoking rates of any age group in the country.

Provincial differences in smoking prevalence continue to level out with all provinces within 4% of the 19% recorded nationally. Only British Columbia stands out with the lowest rate of 15% recorded for the second year in a row.

Just over half a million smokers (12%) described smoking in bed at least once in the week preceding their interview.

The survey also revealed that 10% of smokers reported falling asleep with a lit cigarette either in bed, on a sofa or in a chair at least once in their lives.

Note: The CTUMS, conducted since 1999 by Statistics Canada on behalf of Health Canada, provides timely, reliable and continuous data on tobacco use and related issues. The survey's objective is to track changes in smoking status and amount smoked, especially for 15- to 24-year-olds, who are most at risk for taking up smoking. This release is based on data obtained from about 20,000 respondents between February and December of 2005.

Over one-quarter of Canadians aged 31 to 50 get more than 35% of their total calories from fat, the threshold beyond which health risks increase.

Seven out of 10 children aged four to eight, and half of adults, do not eat the recommended daily minimum of five servings of vegetables and fruit.

More than one-third of children aged four to nine do not have the recommended two servings of milk products a day. By age 30, more than two-thirds of Canadians do not attain the recommended minimums.

Canadians of all ages get more than one-fifth of their calories from "other foods," which are food and beverages that are not part of the four major groups.

Snacks, that is, food and drink consumed between meals, accounted for more calories than breakfast, and about the same number of calories as lunch.

The report also found that in several respects, food consumption among adults is linked to their household income, but not so much among children.

Many exceed upper limit for fat

According to the Institute of Medicine, an independent, non-governmental US organization, when fat accounts for more than 35% of calories, this may pose a potential health problem. In 2004, fat accounted for an average of 31% of Canadians' daily calories.

Note to readers

This report, the first in a series, presents the initial results of the 2004 Canadian Community Health Survey: Nutrition. It is the first national survey of dietary habits since the early 1970s and is the largest and most comprehensive survey ever conducted of what Canadians are eating.

During 2004, in face-to-face interviews, over 35,000 people were asked to recall what they had eaten during the previous 24 hours. The survey also looked at when they ate (breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks) and where the food they ate was prepared, for example, at home, in restaurants or in fast-food outlets.

This report is an overview of what Canadians are eating: how many calories they consume; whether they eat the minimum number of servings of vegetables and fruit, milk products, meat and alternatives and grain products, as recommended by Canada's Food Guide to Healthy Eating for People Four Years Old and Over (1992); and what percentage of their total calories come from fat, protein and carbohydrates. It also examines economic and regional differences in consumption patterns.

Foods and beverages that are not part of the four major groups are classified as "other foods." Included are: fats and oils such as butter and cooking oils; foods that are mostly sugar such as jam and candy; high-fat and/or high-salt foods such as chips (potato, corn, etc.); beverages such as soft drinks, tea, coffee and alcohol; and herbs and condiments such as pickles, mustard and ketchup.

While this average was within the acceptable range, a substantial fraction of the population exceeded the suggested proportion.

Excess fat consumption peaked among people aged 31 to 50. Almost one-quarter of men and women of these ages derived more than 35% of their total calories from fat.

Although the percentage was somewhat lower at older ages, about one person in five got more than the recommended share of their calories from fat.

The fat Canadians consumed came from a relatively small number of specific foods. The main contributor, accounting for 15.9% of fat intake, was what can be classified as the "sandwich" category. It consists of items such as pizza, sandwiches, submarines, hamburgers and hot dogs. Sweet baked goods, such as cookies and doughnuts, accounted for 8.5% of fat.

Not eating enough vegetables and fruit or milk products

When the Canadian Community Health Survey (CCHS) was conducted, Canada's Food Guide to Healthy Eating for People Four Years Old and Over, which had been published in 1992, was in effect. The guide recommended a minimum of five daily servings of vegetables and fruit for people of all ages. One serving would be, for example, a medium-sized apple, two stalks of broccoli, or half a cup of juice (125 millilitres).

At most ages, a majority of Canadians ate fewer than five servings of vegetables and fruit a day. In fact, 7 out of 10 children aged four to eight did not meet the minimum. Although consumption was somewhat higher among adults, around half of them fell short of the minimum.

Milk products include not only milk per se, but also foods such as cheese and yogurt. One serving from this food group amounts to one cup of milk (250 millilitres), 50 grams of cheese or three quarters of a cup of yogurt (175 grams).

More than one-third of children aged four to nine did not have the minimum recommended two servings of milk products a day. By ages 10 to 16, about 61% of boys and 83% of girls did not meet their recommended daily minimum of three servings.

One in four had food prepared in a fast-food restaurant

Overall, one-quarter of Canadians reported that on the day before their interview they had consumed something that had been prepared in a fast-food outlet. Among adolescents aged 14 to 18, the proportion was one-third. However, men aged 19 to 30 were the most likely to have eaten something from a fast-food outlet: 39% had done so on the day in question.

Food prepared in a fast-food outlet might have been as little as a cup of coffee, or as healthy as a salad without dressing. However, 40% of patrons of fast-food establishments chose a pizza, sandwich, hamburger or hot dog, and 25% had a regular (as opposed to diet) soft drink.

Many get more calories from snacks than breakfast

Many Canadians got more calories from snacks than they did from breakfast, and a substantial proportion skipped breakfast entirely.

Nearly 10% reported that they had not had breakfast during the previous 24 hours covered by the interview. This was the case for about one-fifth of men aged 19 to 30.

On average, Canadians consumed about 18% of daily calories at breakfast. Snacks, that is, food or drinks consumed between meals, accounted for 27% of calories for children and 23% for adults. The proportion of calories eaten as snacks peaked at 30% among boys aged 14 to 18.

More than 41% of the calories that Canadians get from snacks come from the "other food" category, whereas this category accounts for about 23% of calories overall.

Adult diet linked to household income

In several respects, adults' food consumption was associated with their household income, according to the CCHS.

For example, the proportion of total calories coming from fat tended to rise with income. Almost one-quarter of adults in the highest income households got more than 35% of their total calorie intake from fat, compared with 15% of those in the lowest income households.

Adults in the highest income households were less likely than those in the lowest to have fewer than five daily servings of vegetables and fruit. However, adults, and also children, in the highest income group were more likely than lower income groups to eat food prepared in a fast-food outlet.

The food consumption patterns of children and adolescents were not as closely associated with household income as were those of adults.

Regional consumption patterns

Diets are generally similar across Canada, although each region has consumption patterns that distinguish it from the others.

In Atlantic Canada and in the Prairies, relatively high proportions of residents ate fewer than five daily servings of vegetables and fruit. This was the case for 79% of children and 67% of adults in the Atlantic region, and 75% of children and 57% of adults in the Prairies. These figures compare with national averages of 64% for children and 49% for adults.

On the other hand, in Quebec, relatively low percentages of residents had fewer than five daily servings of vegetables and fruit: 51% of children and adolescents and 37% of adults.

Residents of the Atlantic region ate a significantly large percentage of their calories between meals. Children and teens in that region consumed 32% of their calories between meals, while for adults, the figure was 26% of calories.

By contrast, Quebec residents got a relatively small proportion of their calories from snacks: 23% for children and teens and 20% for adults. A significantly lower proportion of Quebec residents ate food prepared in a fast-food outlet. However, almost 22% of Quebec children and adolescents consumed more than 35% of their calories as fat, compared with a national figure of 11% for this age group

Canadian Dermatology Association Dedicates July to National Hyperhidrosis "No Sweat" Education Month

TORONTO - Imagine wearing three to four layers of dark clothing everyday to mask the sweat marks under your arms. Picture going through a stick of deodorant every week and doing endless loads of laundry to avoid the sweat stained shirts from piling up. Shane Huey, a restaurant manager from Nova Scotia, lived with these conditions for almost twenty years. According to a national survey(1), awareness of excessive sweating or hyperhidrosis is so low that 97 per cent of Canadians cannot identify it correctly. About 300,000 Canadians suffer from severe hyperhidrosis, which can cause them to sweat up to five times more than an average person does in order to maintain consistent body temperature.

Across the country, people are more likely to attribute excessive sweating to exercise, over-exertion or stress (33%, 21% and 15% respectively) rather than to a treatable medical condition. While extra sweat is typical for most people during the heat and humidity of summer, nearly 1,000 000 Canadians suffer from excessive sweating year-round.

"Education and awareness around hyperhidrosis is paramount, which is why the CDA has dedicated the entire month of July to it," says Dr. Louis Weatherhead, president of the Canadian Dermatology Association. "Some individuals experience depression as a result of social anxieties, and work productivity, self-confidence and personal relationships are all negatively impacted because excessive sweating can literally drench their clothing, no matter what temperature it is. It is important to inform hyperhidrosis sufferers that they can get help - they don't have to suffer in silence."

For Huey, living with hyperhidrosis has had a serious impact on his personal and professional life. "I'm in the hospitality industry where I'm constantly in the public eye; I'm in the business of making people feel at ease," the 37-year-old remarks. "You can't even begin to imagine how paranoid and uncomfortable I felt about myself. I really felt like a lesser person around my friends and colleagues."

"There is a definite need for more public information about hyperhidrosis," says Dr. Nowell Solish, director of Dermatologic Surgery and assistant professor at the University of Toronto. As a leading international researcher and a founding board member of the International Hyperhidrosis Society, Solish is often called upon to increase awareness regarding treatment options for this condition.

"Many hyperhidrosis sufferers rarely seek a doctor's help because they are unaware that what they have actually has a name and is a legitimate medical condition. Many people, and even some doctors, are not aware of all the treatment options available, which range from topicals to surgery," continues Solish. "We want to generate awareness about the disease and the variety of solutions for sufferers. I see many patients with this condition who don't know or remember what life could be like without sweating excessively until they get treated. Newer treatments, such as injections, can drastically improve their quality of life."

The CDA has developed hyperhidrosis educational brochures and posters containing information about this disease; what causes it; treatment solutions; and simple steps for seeking help. The brochures and posters are being distributed in family physician and dermatologists' offices to help increase awareness about this condition.

Huey says that he feels like one of the lucky ones to have learned about the treatments out there. "I was fortunate enough to hear a public service announcement about hyperhidrosis; I identified with the condition and called the number right away for more information. For all these years, I didn't know that what I was going through had a name and that doctors could help me." Now, the self-proclaimed "social butterfly", says that his confidence shows in everything he does, and friends, family and co-workers have all commented on the "remarkable change" in his personality.

Hyperhidrosis affects men and women equally. The average age of people getting treated is 25, although many suffer with it from their early teens until they seek treatment. Not only does hyperhidrosis make this stage of personal and social development a greater challenge, onset also occurs when many are moving into the workforce for the first time.

Hyperhidrosis Treatments

Several options are available depending on the type and severity of hyperhidrosis, including:

- Topicals containing aluminium chloride (Drysol(R)) - these can be effective for mild axillary hyperhidrosis but less effective for moderate to severe cases.

- Botulinum toxin type A injection (BOTOX(R)) - the latest product approved by Health Canada for the treatment of axillary (underarm) hyperhidrosis. Botulinum toxin is a purified protein that is injected in small doses into the skin to block actions of the nerves that supply the eccrine sweat glands, thus preventing them from producing sweat. The effects of a botulinum toxin treatment last for an average of seven months with almost a third of patients having relief for over a year.

- Iontophoresis - use of a low intensity electric current in water with hands or feet submerged. The current shuts down sweat glands for the area treated. This treatment can be effective for palmar (palm) or plantar (foot) hyperhidrosis but not for axillary hyperhidrosis.

- Surgical treatment - often a last resort after trying more conventional treatments. The most common procedure, endoscopic transthoracic sympathectomy (ETS), involves surgical removal of sympathetic nerves that control perspiration in specific parts of the body. ETS can be effective for palmar hyperhidrosis, but there can be a high rate of compensatory sweating or sweating in other body areas not treated after the procedure. >>

Those looking for professional medical information can visit www.sweatmanagement.ca.

5 Cycling for Clean Air participants begin their journey in Thunder Bay includes Vanessa Wong, an Environmental Studies major at the University of Waterloo.

TORONTO - A group of twenty-somethings are trading in lecture halls to pedal Canada's highways for healthy lungs. On June 26, the five-member Cycling for Clean Air team will leave Thunder Bay, Ontario to begin their summer-long biking tour across the nation. The goal of the campaign is to raise financial support and public awareness for The Lung Association and its programs. By modeling sustainable travel from coast-to-coast, they intend to demonstrate that there are measures everyone can take to protect the air we breathe and keep our lungs healthy.

The campaign officially sets off across the world's second largest country on July 1 at 9 a.m., on Mile 0 of the Trans-Canada Highway in Victoria, British Columbia. The team will pass through the country's 10 provinces, ending in St. John's, Newfoundland.

The Cycling for Clean Air campaign includes Domenic Senici, Vanessa Wong, Mike Ellis, Raluca Popescu and Kristin Boorse. But they are not just pedaling without passion - everyone involved has been touched by lung disease.

Domenic Senici, an Environment and Resource Studies major from the University of Waterloo and the campaign's lead organizer says, "When I saw that The Lung Association is a charity that funds respiratory research, promotes better management of asthma and helps those with chronic lung disease - it seemed a natural fit so I signed up to become a Lung Champion."

For the participants the campaign is for the past, present and future.

Another campaign rider Vanessa Wong, an Environmental Studies major at the University of Waterloo, says that she will cycle not only in memory of her grandfather who was a heavy smoker, but for what she sees is her environmental responsibility. "This bike tour will be vital in shaping my environmental thoughts and future actions as an urban planner in regards to sustainable transportation and living so that we can ensure better lung health for everyone."

WATERLOO -- University of Waterloo researchers have received funding from the Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI) to perform work on pressing health issues, such as high blood pressure, osteoporosis and workplace injuries.

David Spafford, professor of biology, along with Lora Giangregorio and Clark Dickerson, both professors of kinesiology, have been awarded grants totalling $393,556 from CFI's leaders opportunity fund. The fund provides Canadian universities with added flexibility to attract and retain top researchers at a time of intense international competition for leading faculty.

"This investment at Waterloo will help ensure that Drs. Spafford, Giangregorio and Dickerson and their students will have access to a world-class research and training environment," said Alan George, UW's vice-president, university research.

* Spafford's project is entitled State-of-the-Art Facility for the Development of New Biopharmaceuticals and Biomarkers for Stress Detection. CFI funding: $120,000. Total project budget: $402,461, including funding from provincial and industry sources.

Spafford will receive infrastructure support for advanced electrophysiology -- study of electrical activity in the heart -- to measure the activities of voltage-gated calcium channels in brain functions. The infrastructure is key in his discovery of calcium channel pharmaceuticals that can be used to treat high blood pressure, angina and arrhythmias, migraines, chronic pain and epilepsy.

* Giangregorio's project is entitled Optimizing Osteoporosis Diagnosis and Management: A Multi-Faceted Osteoporosis Research Centre. CFI funding: $95,521. Total project budget: $238,800, including funding from provincial and industry sources.

The award will provide infrastructure to conduct research aimed at understanding changes in bone geometry and structure with aging and immobility. As well, the research aims to improve physical function and preventing future fracture in individuals at risk.

Giangregorio's research interests take in osteoporosis and rehabilitation, along with promoting health in chronic conditions and disabilities. Her research endeavours to improve physical function, as well as preventing fractures and rehabilitating elderly individuals with impaired mobility.

* Dickerson's project is entitled Enabling Advanced Digital Ergonomics and Shoulder Biomechanics Research. CFI funding: $178,035. Total project budget: $470,630, including funding from provincial and industry sources.

The award will advance ergonomics and shoulder research at Waterloo. By enabling digital ergonomics, Dickerson's research team will be able to eliminate risky or stressful jobs even before workplaces or stations are built. As a result, the work will lead to lower injury compensation costs and better societal health.

Dickersons's research interests embrace ergonomics and work-related musculoskeletal disorders, including low back, wrists and shoulder. His research seeks to reduce the frequency and severity of occupational shoulder injuries.

"These awards represent a significant boost to the research capacities of the University of Waterloo," said Dr. Eliot Phillipson, CFI's president and chief executive officer. He added that CFI funding allows institutions "to attract and retain the world-class researchers that this country needs to remain at the forefront in terms of both quality of life and economic competitiveness."

The CFI announced Wednesday a total of $20.5 million in new funds to support researchers at institutions across the country, including the UW projects. For a complete list of leaders opportunity fund projects, visit www.innovation.ca.

The CFI investment is provided through two funds: $17 million under the leaders opportunity fund and $3.5 million under the infrastructure operating fund, an accompanying program that assists universities with the incremental operating and maintenance costs associated with new infrastructure projects.

CFI is an independent corporation created by the Government of Canada to fund research infrastructure. Its mandate is to strengthen the capacity of Canadian universities, colleges, research hospitals and non-profit research institutions to carry out world-class research and technology development that benefits Canadians.

WATERLOO -- Research does not support the argument that children are better off in family home settings than in child-care centres, says the Centre for Canadian Knowledge Mobilisation (CCKM) in a report on what studies indicate about the impact of child-care choices on children's early development.

Led by University of Waterloo psychology professor Kathleen Bloom, UW students and alumni participated in CCKM's child-care research team, which published its findings in the Research Guide to Child Care Decision Making. It will assist parents, teachers and policy-makers in making evidence-based decisions regarding children and their care.

"The Research Guide provides child-care stakeholders with easy access to a landscape of high quality research evidence," Bloom said. "It is meant to inform the endless debate about child care, moving it above the level of personal beliefs, ideology and arguments based on single, opinion-confirming studies."

Bloom heads the CCKM, which is a non-partisan research group seeking to bridge the knowledge gap by communicating university research directly to community stakeholders.

What current research reveals, the Research Guide concludes, is that quality of care can vary greatly from one home setting to another. When child care in home settings is delivered by well-trained and dedicated early childhood educators, it can be of very high quality. But this is not always the case in home settings.

In contrast, the variability in quality among child-care centres, particularly publicly funded centres, is much smaller and on average, quality is higher. This is due in part, the Research Guide suggests, to the implementation of professional standards, regulations and monitoring in the child-care centres.

Bloom said that whether a child is cared for in a home setting or at a centre, what matters most, according to the research, is the quality of care provided.

"Stimulating toys and books, a variety of engaging activities and trained and sensitive caregivers ultimately do have a direct and positive impact on child development -- and there are no excuses for giving our children any less," she said.

The Research Guide, which presents a survey and synthesis of 66 carefully screened scientific studies of the impact of the conditions of child care on children's development, notes that quality of care is a key predictor of cognitive, language and behavioural development during the early years.

Quality care measurements in those studies, which tracked nearly 28,000 children across five countries, were based on both the environment provided (activities, intellectual stimulation and learning materials) and the characteristics of the caregivers themselves (sensitivity, attitudes, education and professional training). Some of the studies looked specifically at correlations between the location of care (in homes or centres) and developmental progress.

For the many Canadian parents with children enrolled in out-of-home daycare, the Research Guide's conclusions will come as reassuring news. According to this year's Statistics Canada survey, about 54 per cent of Canadian children currently experience some form of non-parental child care before entering school.

As well, the National Longitudinal Survey of Children and Youth shows that the proportion of children who received non-parental child care increased significantly between 1994 and 2003 in all provinces except Alberta.

The CCKM survey of the research literature confirms that these children, now the majority, are well served and will benefit from their child-care centre experiences.

Funding for the work was provided in part by the Canadian Council on Learning and by Research Works!, a university-community alliance of the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada. Research Works! (www.research-works.ca) has launched numerous initiatives aimed to mobilize research on children's learning and literacy for application by parents, teachers, practitioners and policy-makers.

For a copy of the Research Guide to Child Care Decision Making, including details of the research review behind it, visit www.cckm.ca.

"Toyota's goal is to help people enjoy the social and economic benefits of personal mobility," said Kenji Tomikawa, President and CEO of Toyota Canada Inc. "But for many, illness or accident has restricted their ability to enjoy the freedom that comes from the simple act of walking or driving. We hope that our contribution means that each year, Providence Healthcare will be able to help in the rehabilitiation of many people in the Greater Toronto Area."

"At Providence Healthcare, our goal is to send people home and help prepare them - mentally and physically - to enjoy the activities they once cherished," said Dr. Peter Nord, Vice-President, Medical Affairs and Chief of Staff, Providence Healthcare. "Thanks to Toyota Canada Inc., we will create an environment that simulates a streetscape where patients can work with their therapists on how to safely manoeuver in and out of a vehicle. Being able to get back into a car represents a return to independence."

The Toyota Canada Motor Skills Clinic will be a specialized facility for people who are preparing to get back into an automobile following an illness or injury that has impaired their mobility. Examples include knee replacement surgery, amputation, or stroke. The clinic will be a safe, controlled environment for therapy - and will recreate a typical streetscape, complete with sidewalk, curb, paved roadway, trees, greenery and benches available for resting. Toyota vehicles will be used as therapists help patients relearn how to safely get into and out of a vehicle while using a wheelchair, walker, or leg brace.

TORONTO - On the tenth anniversary of National Aboriginal Day, youth representatives from the Nishnawbe Aski Nation (NAN) Decade Youth Council will be meeting with the Hon. Mary Anne Chambers, Ontario's Minister of Children and Youth Services, to present their own report on the suicide epidemic in the 49 NAN communities in northwestern Ontario.

The statistics reported by NAN are shocking:

- For over 20 years, suicide rates in NAN communities have remained from three to forty times the national average.

- In 2005, there were 24 completed suicides in NAN territory. This was one of the highest rates of suicide in Canada.

- Since January 2006, there have been 14 completed suicides. Of the 14, 13 people were under 29 years of age and eight of those were between 15 and 20 years of age.