Tuesday 20 February 2018

A video by Diana Davison - fraud and misdirection of the Patrick Brown scandal...



Published on Feb 18, 2018



A video in which I discuss the fraud and misdirection of the Patrick Brown scandal and #amandagate. Ask the right questions.

Sunday 18 February 2018

"Family Day Breakfast Buffet"


 9AM to 2PM for the Ultimate Breakfast Buffet.
$22.95 for Adults
$13.95 for Child 12 and under.
FREE Child 4 and under
All you can eat
Juice,coffee and tea included!
Muddy Duck Restaurant 
2200 Dundas Street East 
Mississauga Ontario L4x2v3
RESERVATIONS
905-275-7732

Thursday 15 February 2018

Grocery stores bulking up on ultra-processed foods


Far too many products in Canada's stores give us lots of calories but little nutrition. And we have dangerously abandoned cooking and meal-time routines




By Jean-Claude Moubarac
Expert Adviser
EvidenceNetwork.ca
Jean-Claude Moubarac
Click image to download
In the 1960s,
the biggest supermarkets only carried 10,000 items or fewer. Big supermarkets today offer almost 40,000 products.
To be sure, among those extra items are more kinds of fresh fruits, vegetables and non-food items. But not 30,000. The vast majority of the additional food items are a huge range of ready-to-eat products from cookies to snacks to complete dinners that have a characteristic in common: they are ultra-processed foods.
And they are not nourishing us.
A study I just completed for Heart & Stroke demonstrates the extent of the problem. It found that in 2015, Canadians received almost half (48.3 per cent) of their total calories from ultra-processed foods, with the highest rates of consumption among those in whom it can do most harm - children. Kids age nine to 13 get almost 60 per cent of their calories from these unhealthy foods. This high consumption is evident across all socio-economic groups. Newcomers to Canada are the one notable exception; they consume considerably fewer of their calories from ultra-processed foods than those born in Canada.
What are ultra-processed foods and why does it matter?
Practically all foods are processed in some way. Some are minimally processed, such as fresh, dry or frozen vegetables and fruit, nuts, meat, fish, eggs and milk. Others are culinary ingredients such as oil and sugar. Processed foods are made by adding ingredients to minimally-processed foods; they include simple breads and cheese, and preserved vegetables.
The problem is ultra-processed foods. They're formulations of refined substances and additives; at the end, most have little or no intact food left. Think of a potato chip or a sugary puffed cereal that supposedly started with a hint of grain. They also include candies, other fatty, sugary or salty snack foods, packaged soups, sugary drinks and most ready-to-eat meals.
Overall, these products contain twice the calories, three times the amount of free sugars and twice the sodium compared to non-ultra-processed foods (real foods). And they have much less of what we need: protein, fibre, vitamins and minerals.
There has been a revolutionary change in our diets over the past decades and, while fewer people in rich countries like Canada now go hungry, many of us eat far less well. A previous study of mine showed that the vital change in the diets of Canadians since the 1930s has been the replacement of freshly prepared meals and dishes made with unprocessed or minimally-processed foods for one dominated by ultra-processed foods.
In the past 70 years, calories from ultra-processed foods have doubled from 24 per cent to 54 per cent of family food purchases. That's not surprising, since most of these foods are branded assertively, packaged attractively and marketed extensively, especially to our children. And they are everywhere, often at very low prices.
In the last few decades, especially in high-income countries and communities, the meal has been fast diminishing and to a large extent replaced by snacking, mostly on ultra-processed foods. This is both a social disaster and a nutritional calamity. Preparing and eating complete fresh meals together is a vital part of healthy, vibrant families and societies.
Ultra-processed foods might be convenient and fast, but they're not healthy and we're paying heavily for it. Unhealthy diet is now the leading risk factor for death - it was responsible for 47,000 deaths in Canada in 2016. And the Public Health Agency of Canada says the annual cost of diet-related disease in Canada is $26 billion.
What can we do to combat this dietary crisis?
There's no easy fix, but a number of important things can and must be done.
Restricting unhealthy food and beverage marketing to children is a good step. Fortunately, such legislation is being debated in the House of Commons.
We need updated national dietary guidelines and education to help Canadians make healthy choices. Again, fortunately, the federal government has announced a new Healthy Eating Strategy that includes revisions to Canada's Food Guide and strong front-of-pack nutrition labelling.
We also need to change how we think and talk about food. Our public discussions about food in recent decades have been focused more on particular villains - saturated fats, sodium and sugar - which has left little room to promote a whole-diet approach. We need to support people to look more at their overall diet, and the importance of taking the time to get fresh and minimally-processed foods to make more delicious but healthy meals at home from scratch.
We need to bring back cooking in schools, hospitals, senior citizens houses and even at workplaces so everyone can have access to freshly-made meals from real food.
We also need to restore the important social benefits families have lost by not spending time cooking and eating healthy meals together. These fundamental activities tie us together and to nature.
We can change. It starts by ignoring most of those 40,000 items at your local supermarket.
Dr. Jean-Claude Moubarac is an assistant professor of nutrition in the Faculty of Medicine at the University of Montreal and an expert adviser with EvidenceNetwork.ca. His new study, "Ultra-processed foods in Canada: consumption, impact on diet quality and policy implications," is available online.

Wednesday 14 February 2018

Valentine's Day $25 Set Menu at the Muddy Duck





VALETINE’S DAY $25 SET MENU

APPETIZERS

French Onion Soup
Daily Soup
Pomegranate Salad
Tossed Spring leafs with Pomegranate seeds,
honey roasted pecans and balsamic salad dressing.

ENTRÉES

Schnitzel a la Duck
Our famous Vieanis Schnitzel, topped with onions, tomato and melted cheeses.
Served with mashed potato.

Grilled Wild Pink Salmon
Filet of Wild Pink Salmon, grilled and topped with Hollandaise sauce.
Served with chunky fries and steamed vegetables.

Seafood Fettuccine Diablo
Lobster Chunks, Jumbo Shrimp, roasted red peppers, tomato and baby spinach
 in a spicy rose sauce. Served with garlic toast
DESSERT

Truffle Royale
A layers of milk chocolate truffle and white chocolate truffle

New York Cheery Cheeses Cake
Delicious rich, creamy cheesecake.

Tuesday 13 February 2018

Fat but fit? Study shows benefits of exercise can outweigh health effects of severe obesity


York U research shows you can't judge a person's fitness by weight alone
TORONTO, February 12, 2018 — Can you be fit and healthy even if you’re overweight? That’s the question researchers at York University’s Faculty of Health set out to answer in a new study that shows physical activity may be equally and perhaps even more important than weight for people living with severe obesity.

According to the recent study, led by Jennifer Kuk, associate professor in York University’s School of Kinesiology and Health Science, and collaborator Dr. Sean Wharton, MD, medical director of the Wharton Medical Clinic and adjunct professor at York University, individuals with severe obesity who are fit have a similar health profile to those who weigh significantly less than them. The goal of the study was to look at the benefits of cardiorespiratory fitness on cardiovascular health in populations with mild to severe obesity.
The results suggest individuals with even severe obesity, or a BMI greater than 40, can be fit and healthy. 

“Obesity is only related with worse health in individuals who were unfit,” says Kuk. “We know that once you get beyond a BMI of 40, the risk of cardiovascular conditions increases exponentially so this study shows that having a high fitness level is still beneficial and it really reinforces the importance of fitness.”
Kuk says doing 150 minutes of exercise per week, as per physical activity guidelines, generally translates to less than half pound of weight loss. Nevertheless, this amount of exercise can mean dramatic improvements in health for those with severe obesity.

“You really have to disconnect the body weight from the importance of fitness,” says Kuk. “You can get fit without losing weight and have health benefits.”
Data was gathered from 853 Canadian patients attending Wharton Medical weight management clinics in Southern Ontario.  Individuals completed a clinical exam which included fasting blood measures and a maximal treadmill stress test.   

The amount of fitness necessary to achieve health benefits was far less than what most individuals would think. The research showed that the greatest health benefits come from avoiding the lowest 20 per cent of fitness levels. This means that 80 per cent of people are fit enough to get health benefits. 
In this study, 41% of participants with mild obesity had high fitness levels, while 25 per cent and 11 per cent of the participants with moderate and severe obesity, respectively, had high fitness.  Individuals with severe obesity were more likely to have high blood pressure, glucose, and triglycerides if they were in the lowest 20 per cent of fitness levels, but were not more likely to have these issues if they were in the 80 per cent group. Earlier research has shown that much less physical activity is required to improve health than is needed to lose weight.  However, this is some of the first research suggesting that physical activity may be more important for people living with severe obesity.

“In my practice, I see many patients who are looking for different results,” says Wharton. “There are some patients that want to significantly improve their health and others that are only looking for an aesthetic goal. When it comes to health, this study reinforces the notion that people don’t need to lose weight to be healthy.”

The Canadian Institutes of Health Research funded study, Association between cardiorespiratory fitness and metabolic risk factors in a population with mild to severe obesity was recently published in BMC Obesity.

Watch this video with Professor Kuk’s interview: https://youtu.be/AiJsBdJkZAw

York University champions new ways of thinking that drive teaching and research excellence. Our students receive the education they need to create big ideas that make an impact on the world. Meaningful and sometimes unexpected careers result from cross-disciplinary programming, innovative course design and diverse experiential learning opportunities. York students and graduates push limits, achieve goals and find solutions to the world’s most pressing social challenges, empowered by a strong community that opens minds. York U is an internationally recognized research university – our 11 faculties and 25 research centres have partnerships with 200+ leading universities worldwide. Located in Toronto, York is the third largest university in Canada, with a strong community of 53,000 students, 7,000 faculty and administrative staff, and more than 300,000 alumni.  York U's fully bilingual Glendon Campus is home to Southern Ontario's Centre of Excellence for French Language and Bilingual Postsecondary Education.


Monday 5 February 2018

Halotherapy (also known as Salt Therapy at the Old Mill Spa

Halotherapy (also known as Salt Therapy) helps with respiratory issues, skin conditions, boosts the immune system & improves an overall sense of well-being! The calming & detoxifying effects can support the immune, nervous & lymphatic systems. It is great for stress relief and promotes deep relaxation!











https://www.oldmilltoronto.com/the-spa/halotherapy/

Friday 2 February 2018

Sunday Antique Market


"It will be a picture perfect day to shop at the The Sunday Antique Market this Sunday. Over 90 vendors from Ontario and Quebec bringing their best to 125 The Esplanade in the St. Lawrence Market Neigbourhood from 7:00 am until 5:00 pm. See you there!"