OCTOBER 2015 MOST READ MOST TRUSTED
Q&A WITH PAUL GROSS ... 16 TIPS FOR BATTLING PROCRASTINATION ... 125 FINISH THIS SENTENCE ...9
WAYS
TO BEAT
A COLD
PAGE 56
MARGARET ATWOOD ON CREATIVITY
PAGE 62
KIDNAPPED AND BURIED ALIVE
PAGE 70
THE WORLD ISN’T FALLING APART
PAGE 78
HOW TO WRITE AN AIRTIGHT WILL
PAGE 106
THE MAN WHO LEARNED TO
WALK THREE TIMES
PAGE 112
WHY SOLITUDE IS GOOD FOR YOU
PAGE 29
NOW ON STAGE
ROYAL ALEXANDRA THEATRE
260 KING STREET WEST, TORONTO
1-800-461-3333 MIRVISH.COM
“ONE OF THE BEST
MUSICALS I’VE EVER SEEN.
KINKY BOOTS is crazy good.”
Steve Paikin, TVO
“FABULOUS, FUNNY
& FANTASTIC!
DON’T MISS THIS ONE!”
Jennifer Valentyne, Breakfast Television
ALL THE CRITICS SAY “YEAH!
”
THE REVIEWS ARE IN...
“A FEEL GOOD SHOW.
YOU LEAVE THE THEATRE WITH A BIG SMILE ON YOUR FACE
and a bounce in your high-heeled step!”
Carolyn MacKenzie, Global TV
“
SPECTACULAR CELEBRATION!”
Richard Ouzounian, Toronto Star
A NEW MUSICAL BASED ON A TRUE STORY
ALAN MINGO JR.
AJ BRIDEL & GRAHAM SCOTT FLEMING
Photos b y C yl la V on T iedemann
Cover Story
56
10 Ways to Beat a Cold
Handy tips for those times when you’re already sick. L I S A F I E L D S
Profile
62
Lady Oracle
Margaret Atwood on creativity and the future. L I S A B RY N R U N D L E
Drama in Real Life
70
Kidnapped and Trapped
Below Ground
Buried alive, a Texas man races against the clock. A N D R E W J O N E S F R O M 1 9 8 4
Society
78
The Case for Optimism
Regardless of what we read in the headlines, the world isn’t falling apart. S T E V E N P I N K E R A N D A N D R E W M AC K F R O M S L A T E . C O M
Family
86
Just the Nine of Us
Making ends meet requires patience and ingenuity. LO R R E T TA N E E B A RF R O M TO R O N TO L I F E
Heart
90
I Wish I Could Tell Her That Now
Michael Christie learns compassion for his mother, the parent. F R O M T H E N E W Y O R K T I M E S
National Affairs
96
Going for Title
In 2014, Tsilhqot’in Nation changed the way Aboriginal groups claim land. But the fight isn’t over. A R N O KO P E C KY F R O M T H E WA L R U S P.
|
62
JASON GORDON A D D I T I O N A L M E D I A I N O U R T A B L E T V E R S I O N S PHOTOGRAPHY BY JOCELYN MICHEL/ CONSULAT; (PHOTO ASSISTANT) MARC-ANTOINE DUBOIS; (HAIR AND MAKEUP) BRIGITTE LACOSTE; (STYLIST) MARIE-CLAUDE GUAY; (MODEL) SYLVIE LADOUCEUR FROM FOLIO rd.ca | 10•2015 | 1Contents
OCTOBER 2015READER FAVOURITES
9 Finish This Sentence 14 Laughter, the Best Medicine 20 Points to Ponder
68 @ Work 95 As Kids See It 105 Life’s Like That 127 That’s Outrageous! 129 Brainteasers 131 Trivia Quiz 132 Sudoku 133 Word Power 136 Quotes
VOICES & VIEWS
10 Senior
Project
Ardra Cole helps older people and older dogs stay connected. S U S A N P E T E R S
The RD Interview
16 In the Trenches
Actor and director Paul Gross on Canadian talent, going grey and his new war movie, Hyena
Road. C O U R T N E Y S H E A Department of Wit
18 The Waiting List
How a can-do fellow gets things done. A R T H U R B L AC K F R O M
PA I N T T H E TOW N B L AC K
P.
|
16
AIMÉE VAN DRIMMELEN
4 Editor’s Letter 6 Contributors 7 Letters
Money
106 Will Power
Veteran estate lawyers offer sage advice on managing your affairs. B A R RY M . F I S H A N D L E S KOT Z E R F R O M T H E W I L L S L AW Y E R S
Editors’ Choice
112 Keep Moving Forward
Peter Kavanagh’s polio diagnosis was just the beginning of a lifelong lesson in perseverance. F R O M T H E M A N W H O L E A R N E D TO WA L K T H R E E T I M E S 2 | 10•2015 | rd.ca Vol.
187
|
No.1,122
OCTOBER 2015Health
38 Crisis
Point
Charting the rise of suicide. S A M A N T H A R I D E O U T
Food
42 Nutrition for Life
Tips for eating well at every age. K R I S T I G R E E N
Pets
44 Sure
Shots
A guide to pet vaccination. VA L E R I E H OW E S
Culture
48 Past
Participants
In History’s People, Margaret MacMillan looks at the movers and shakers who shaped our world. S A R A H L I S S
MASTERFILE
P.
|
44
ART OF LIVING
29 One Is the Loveliest
Number
Why it pays to spend time alone. M E G A N J O N E S Health
32 Outsmarting
Breast
Cancer
How to manage the risks. S A M A N T H A R I D E O U T
GET SMART!
125 13 Things You Should
Know About
Procrastination
K AT I E U N D E R WO O D
128 Rd.ca
October website highlights.
IF YOU’RE LIKE ME, you dread the common cold. Every fall, it tries to forge an unholy alliance with my allergies and compound the respira-tory problems I’ve developed due to a collapsed sinus.
Any-one who similarly dreams of running away when they hear coughs or sniffles will enjoy our cover story, “10 Ways to Beat a Cold” (page 56).
If you’re like me, you know three people battling cancer. One of them, my sister-in-law, has
under-gone an operation and is struggling through che-motherapy. She now faces radiation treatments,
followed by five years of hormone injections. She is just one reason I read “Outsmarting
Breast Cancer” (page 32) with great interest. If you’re like me, you pay close attention to what you consume in the hopes of staying fit and enjoying the golden years ahead. But even if you’re younger than I am, the advice in “Nutrition for Life” (page 42) can set you up for decades of healthful eating.
And if you’re really like me and appreciate good reads, don’t miss our Editors’ Choice. “Keep Moving Forward” is the story of Peter Kavanagh, a Canadian man of uncommon perseverance who was diagnosed with polio in the 1950s at two months old and later underwent experimental surgery that required him to relearn how to walk.
Turn to page 112 for his truly inspiring story.
A Healthy Issue
ROGER AZIZ Send an email to [email protected] 4 | 10•2015 | rd.caEditor’s Letter
Published by the Reader’s Digest Magazines Canada Limited, Montreal, Canada Christopher Dornan Chairman of the Board
Robert Goyette Editor-in-Chief
Executive Editor Dominique Ritter Deputy Editor Stéphanie Verge
Senior Editor Sarah Liss Assistant Editor Megan Jones Contributing Editor Samantha Rideout
Proofreader Line Abrahamian
Researchers Martha Beach, Erica Rae Chong,
Alyssa Favreau, Rudy Lee, Leslie Sponder, Daniel Viola
Copy Editors Chad Fraser, Amy Harkness Associate Editor,
Digital Marci O’Connor Rights/Excerpts Coordinator Pierre Charlebois
Art Director Annelise Dekker
Assistant Art Director Danielle Sayer
Photo Director Patrice Larose
Graphic Designer Pierre Loranger
Project Manager Lisa Pigeon
Production Manager Lisa Snow
Publisher Karin Rossi
THE READER’S DIGEST ASSOCIATION, INC. President and Chief Executive Officer Bonnie Kintzer
THE READER’S DIGEST ASSOCIATION (CANADA) ULC President Brian Kennedy Chief Marketing Officer Janet Fletcher Legal Barbara Robins
HOW TO REACH US Advertising Account Managers Toronto Kati Bradshaw, Mary Coughlin, Sandi Lowry
Montreal Linda Desrochers, Pat Tramley Vancouver Jennifer Woolcombe
Advertising Operations and Programmatic Manager Kim Le Sueur
121 Bloor Street East, Suite 430, Toronto, ON M4W 3M5
416-925-8941
VOL. 187, NO. 1,122 COPYRIGHT © 2015 BY READER’S DIGEST MAGAZINES CANADA LIMITED. Reproduction in any manner in whole or in
part in English or other languages prohibited. All rights reserved throughout the world. Protection secured under International and Pan-American copyright conventions. Publications Mail Agreement No. 40070677. Postage paid at Montreal. Return undeliverable Canadian addresses to 1100 René Lévesque Blvd. W., Montreal, QC H3B 5H5.
CUSTOMER SERVICE [email protected] | 1-888-459-3333
Reader’s Digest Customer Care Centre, P.O. Box 970 Station Main, Markham, ON L3P 0K2
EDITORIAL OFFICE 1100 René Lévesque Blvd. W.|Montreal, QC H3B 5H5|514-940-0751|[email protected], rd.ca
FOR SERVICE TO SUBSCRIBERS Pay your bill, view your account online, change your address and browse our FAQs at rd.ca/contact. MAIL PREFERENCE Reader’s Digest maintains a record of your purchase and sweepstakes participation history for Customer Service and
Marketing departments, which enables us to offer the best service possible along with quality products we believe will interest you. Occa-sionally, to allow our customers to be aware of other products and services that may be of interest to them, we provide this information to other companies. Should you wish, for any reason, not to receive such offers from other companies, please write to: Privacy Office, Reader’s Digest, P.O. Box 974, Station Main, Markham, ON L3P 0K6. You may also write to this address if you no longer wish to receive offers from Reader’s Digest or should you have any questions regarding your record or wish to examine or correct it.
Reader’s Digest publishes 12 issues per year and may occa-sionally publish extra, special and double issues (special and double issues count as two)‚ subject to change without notice. We acknowledge the financial support of the
Govern-ment of Canada.
Print subscriptions, $32.97 a year, plus $8.99 postage, processing and hand-ling. Please add applicable taxes. Outside Canada, $53.96 yearly, including postage, processing and handling. (Prices and postage subject to change without notice.) ISSN 0034-0413. Indexed by the Canadian Periodical Index.
Editor-in-Chief, International Magazines Raimo Moysa
PETER DIAMOND (Illustrator,
“Kidnapped and Trapped Below Ground,” page 70)
Home base: Vienna. Previously published in Howler and The
Progressive. When illustrating this sort of piece, you look for the drama in the story. But here, I tried my best to be empathetic and not to sensationalize. My drawing technique is influenced by Euro-pean turn-of-the-century illustrators and the comics I read as a kid.
RAINA KIRN (Photographer, “I Wish I Could Tell Her That Now,” page 90)
Home base:
Toronto. Previously published in
The Globe and Mail and ESPN The Magazine. Working on Galiano Is-land was amazing! Wilson, my busi-ness partner with whom I normally shoot, and I are from British Colum-bia, so Galiano is special. I’m very inspired by the people I photo-graph. We recently shot Pan Am ath-letes. Their work ethic was so moving.
SUSAN PETERS (Writer, “Senior Project,” page 10)
Home base: Winnipeg.
Previ-ously published in Maclean’s and
Cottage Life. As a writer, I like stor-ies about humans interacting with animals—they’re fun. Animals can bring people together across gener-ations, from 20-something students to 90-something retirees. I’m defin-itely more of a dog person than a cat person. I want to pet every pooch I see walking on the street. LISA BRYN RUNDLE
(Writer, “Lady Oracle,” page 62)
Home base: Toronto. Previously published in Toronto Life and
The Walrus. I was nervous to in-terview Margaret Atwood. I looked into her eyes and just froze. She was like some kind of angel. But, thank-fully, my skittishness passed and we had a lovely chat. I’d love to inter-view Kim Kardashian. I have a lot of questions for her, although I’m not sure I want to know the answers.
(DIAMOND
) MANUEL CARREON L
OPEZ; (KIRN) WILSON BARR
Y
; (PETERS) CHEYENNE RAE
6 | 10•2015 | rd.ca
A TIME TO RECHARGE
“The Benefits of Taking Breaks” (June 2015) put a smile on my face. When I was a pupil at Sir Adam Beck Col-legiate in London, Ont., I used to peer out the windows of the second-floor classrooms and daydream. I would see views that were inaccessible from the street—the rooftops, the big church, the gardens, lawns and factories. One teacher allowed this “refuelling,” but others were always after us to keep our eyes to the front.
Much later, when I taught at a school in Nipigon, Ont., an entire wall of my classroom was made up of windows that overlooked the town. Often, my students and I gathered at the windows to watch whatever was taking place outside. I hope they benefited from our short refuelling stops—I know I needed them!
GLENA CLEARWATER, Ni p i g o n , O n t .
PETER R
Y
AN
BORN TO BE WILD
I really enjoy the magazine, espe-cially the Drama in Real Life stories. However, a recent one, “Lion Attack!” (August 2015), rubbed me the wrong
way. Instead of having sympathy for Lauren Fagen, the young woman who was attacked, I found myself feeling much more sorry for the pair of lions involved.
rd.ca | 10•2015 | 7
Letters
Humans have brains and are supposed to use them. Animals follow their instincts. In my opinion, those beautiful creatures were by no means at fault. Given the envi-ronment in which they were forced to live, it’s no wonder they were protective of the little territory they had.
BETH BARNES, B u r l i n g t o n , O n t .
FAMILY STORIES
“Notes From My Father” (June 2015) was very touching. It almost made me cry. Well worth reading!
GAYDA JACKSON, o n Fa c e b o o k
LONG-TERM COMMITMENT
I started reading Reader’s Digest as a kid. I think it’s the best magazine out there. It is educational, humorous, challenging and modern. I especially appreciate being privy to people’s real-life anecdotes and learning new vocabulary from the Word Power section every month.
As I age, this magazine ages with me. I even bought a huge magnifying
glass to make seeing the text easier. Always an enjoyable experience— thank you, Reader’s Digest!
DONNA THOMPSON, E d m o n t o n
MISSED DIAGNOSIS
I really enjoyed the article “See Changes” (July 2015). Unfortunately, you forgot a disease: myasthenia gra-vis, a chronic autoimmune condition that causes muscle weakness. My first symptoms were droopy eyelids and double vision. It took a month to pinpoint the problem (my optomet-rist was reluctant to send me to an ophthalmologist), and shortly after my diagnosis, I began to have trouble swallowing. I lost 20 pounds, had dif-ficulty getting up out of a chair and was unable to move around without a walker. I began taking medication, and after about a year my health sta-bilized. It is amazing how few people have heard of this disease.
BILL KENNY, F e r g u s , O n t .
Published letters are edited for length and clarity.
We want to hear from you!Have something to say about an article you read in Reader’s Digest? Send your letters to [email protected]. Please include your full name and address.
Contribute Send us your funny jokes and anecdotes, and if we publish one in a print edition of Reader’s
Digest, we’ll send you a free one-year subscription. To submit, visit rd.ca/joke.
Original contributions (text and photos) become the property of The Reader’s Digest Magazines Canada Limited, and its affiliates, upon publication. Submissions may be edited for length and clarity, and may be reproduced in all print and electronic media. Receipt of your submission cannot be acknowledged.
R E A D E R ’ S D I G E S T
The song that always
makes me feel
better is…
Visit the Reader’s Digest Canada Facebook page for your chance to finish the next sentence.…“Me
and Bobby
McGee”
by Janis Joplin. It brings back wonderful memo-ries of camping in Cape Breton, N.S., during my youth. TINA TOWNSEND, KITCHENER, ONT.…“What a Wonderful World.”
It always puts things into perspective for me.
LILA NORRIS DUFFY, PAKENHAM, ONT.
…any
disco
song.
Because I’m a disco queen. ALENA BAJKOV, OSOYOOS, B.C.…“Stronger”
by Kelly Clarkson. It makes me feel like I can conquer anything!MICHELE LONG, KANATA, ONT.
…“Tomorrow”
from Annie. In winter here it can rain an awful lot, so singing about the sun is great!
SUSAN JAMES, NORTH VANCOUVER
…“Happy”
by Pharrell Williams. My wife passed away in 2010, at the age of 36. This song helps me get through the day.JONATHAN T. DEAN, MONTREAL
rd.ca | 10•2015 | 9 FINISH THIS SENTENCE
➸
!
SEVEN YEARS AGO, Ardra Colewalked out of her late brother’s To-ronto home, his chocolate Labrador retriever by her side. Her sibling’s sudden death meant the 10-year-old dog, recently diagnosed with cancer, had no one to care for him. “What happens to all the Mr. Browns of the world when they’re old and sick and lose their human companions?” Cole asked herself.
Then an educational psycholo-gist and adult educator in her late 50s, Cole had studied how people caring for family members with Alzheimer’s viewed their dogs as stress relievers. She had also seen
first-hand the calming effect her own therapy dog had on patients she visited in palliative care. Start-ing an organization to support sen-iors with dogs and senior dogs that had lost their owners seemed like the next logical step—and a fitting memorial to her brother.
Cole founded ElderDog in 2009, as Mr. Brown, who had been adopted by her pack of Portuguese Water Dogs, happily chased sticks despite his waning strength. “Caring for him toward the end of his life was such a gift,” she says. “He was at his most vulnerable, and I feel like it really brought out the best in me.”
Senior Project
BY S U SA N P E T E R S
Ardra Cole helps older people and
older dogs stay connected
P H OTO G R A P H Y BY AA R O N M c K E N Z I E F R AS E R
10 | 10•2015 | rd.ca
Ardra Cole (seen here with her Portuguese Water Dog, Cacao) founded ElderDog to serve aging people and aging dogs, and to foster the bond between the two.
With eight chapters in Prince Edward Island, Nova Scotia (where Cole has lived since 2012), Ontario and Alberta, ElderDog strives to help seniors keep their pets at home as long as possible. The organiza-tion’s 320 volunteers—who include seniors recovering from the death of their own canine companions and people living in apartments that prohibit animals—offer rides to vet appointments, provide care (brush-ing fur, administer(brush-ing
medicine) and walk the dogs.
Students who miss their childhood pets also give their time, says Sacha Nadeau, one of the organiza-tion’s volunteer coordinators. The 26-year-old gerontol-ogy graduate regularly walks two Samoyeds,
which bark excitedly, jump up and wag their entire bodies as soon as Nadeau opens the gate to their house. The owner, an older man worried about being toppled by the energetic pair—which Nadeau lik-ens to mini polar bears—leaves jok-ing voice mails whenever the dogs are “ready, willing and able to walk.”
If an owner must be admitted to hospital or passes away, ElderDog will foster a pet temporarily or find it a new home. To date, the group
has placed 80 dogs, some of which have gone to people whom tradi-tional pet shelters deemed too old to adopt. One of those seniors is Joy Saunders. The 96-year-old has a life-long fondness for retrievers, but when her most recent dog, a Nova Scotia duck tolling retriever, passed away, Saunders’s family tried to con-vince her to get a canary. Instead, Cole proposed a golden retriever named Prayer, now 12.
“She is old, so am I— we suit each other,” says Saunders. The pair strolls a kilometre and a half through the woods near the town of Lunenburg, N.S., three times a day, stopping to chat with other dog walkers along the way. “My social life is on the street,” says Saunders. “At my age, my con-temporaries are dead, and it’s very lonely. On this trail where I walk, I have all sorts of friends.”
Saunders is well aware of the health benefits, emotional and phys-ical, of owning a dog. And as Cole notes, it’s the kind of relationship that works both ways. “When you get to a certain age and your family—if you have family—has moved away, you might look at yourself and think, I’m not needed anymore. But this dog really does need you.”
On the trail
where
96-year-old Joy Saunders
walks her golden
retriever, Prayer,
she has “all sorts
of friends.”
R E A D E R ’ S D I G E S T&3"1%"* ))+"4)&#" 6!,+ 1&+$1,), ) +!+ 1&,+ )+,+-/,910 1 )2"&)) $"Ķ ,2/$"+1)620"!!&0$2&0"04&))* ("0,*",+"")0"3"/6 % --6ķ4%& %#"")0$/" 1ś ,/*,/"&+#,/* 1&,+,+4%,6,2/!,+ 1&,+0 "+"91ķ +!1,0 %"!2)" #/""-& (2-ķ$,1,3 )2"3&)) $"Ķ ,*ű!,+ 1"Ķ
Think you can make us laugh? Send us an original joke, and it could mean a free year’s subscription for your household. See page 8 or rd.ca/joke for details.
BIOLOGY LESSONS
Ed: My uncle and I went on safari to Africa last year.
John: Oh, yeah? How did it go? Ed: We spotted a leopard. John: Don’t be silly. They’re born
that way! gcfl.net
A man walks into a fish-and-chips shop with a fish under his arm and asks, “Do you have any fish cakes?” “Of course,” says the shop owner. “Great,” replies the man, gesturing at the fish he’s carrying. “It’s this
guy’s birthday.” gcfl.net
FALL FROM GRACE
A husband and wife were visiting the fairgrounds together one after-noon. The wife wanted to go on the Ferris wheel, but her husband was too afraid, so she went on the ride by herself.
The wheel went round and round until suddenly the wife was thrown out and landed in a heap on the ground.
Her husband raced over and asked, “Are you hurt?”
“Of course, I’m hurt!” she replied. “Three times around, and you didn’t
wave once!” gcfl.net
THE BEST JOKE I EVER TOLD BY GRAHAM CHITTENDEN
Sometimes it’s nice to get off the computer and go reconnect with people to talk about what I saw on the computer. Follow Graham on @grahamchit.
WE’RE PUNNY THAT WAY
■I tried to catch some fog. I mist.
■They told me I had Type A blood,
but it was a Type O.
■I wondered why the baseball was
getting bigger. Then it hit me.
■I’m reading a book about anti-gravity. I can’t put it down. reddit.com
14 | 10•2015 | rd.ca
Laughter
Seals exposed nerves to help repair sensitive teeth.
SENSITIVE TEETH?
THERE’S A BETTER CHOICE.
Ordinary Sensitivity Toothpaste Colgate Sensitive Pro-Relief†Superior sensitivity relief vs. ordinary sensitivity toothpaste containing 5% potassium nitrate (equivalent to 2% potassium ion). ††With regular use. Toothpaste also fi ghts cavities. Colgate-Palmolive Canada Inc. *TM Reg’d/M.D.
STOP NUMBING.START REPAIRING SENSITIVE TEETH. ††
Can you explain the title of your film? What is Hyena Road?
A few years ago, I went to Afghanistan to meet the troops. The experience was not at all what I had imagined. It’s a complex, chaotic place, both beautiful and harsh. When I was there, every road they were build-ing had a nickname Canadians would find easy to remember. A lot seemed to be about beer—Route Molson Ice, Route Sleeman. With Route Hyena, the military wanted to [access] the Panjwai district in the region con-sidered to be the birthplace of the Taliban, one of the hardest places to control.
Actor and director Paul Gross on Canadian talent,
going grey and his new war movie, Hyena Road
In the
Trenches
BY CO U R T N E Y S H E A I L L U S T R A T I O N B Y A I M É E V A N D R I M M E L E N 16 | 10•2015 | rd.ca THE RD INTERVIEWWhat surprised you most about what you learned over there?
Just how phenomenally complicated counter-insurgency is. To borrow a line from the movie: there is no win-ning—there’s just an end state laid down by foreign policy.
Do you consider Hyena Road a political movie?
I don’t have a position on whether we should be engaged in these types of conflicts, but once we were there, our military represented us with enormous dignity. I was interested in the semi-blind nature with which wars like this are conducted. I tried to convey the idea that nobody really knows what’s going on. Within the military, a sniper would have little knowledge of what an intelligence officer is doing and [vice versa].
The film has moments of levity: dancing, farting, Skype sex. Was it important to show that quality?
Yes, because soldiers laugh a lot. When death is proximate, you
need a giggle.
On to more important mat-ters: this film heralds your silver fox, or, in your case, snowy fox period.
[My hair] has been like this for almost 30 years, but I always dyed it. Two years ago, I visited the Sahara.
There was nobody there to dye my hair. I liked how it looked, so I left it.
You have been referred to as a “stubbornly Canadian” artist. What does that mean to you?
I’ve spent a lot of time here, though I’ve worked in the States, too. I feel most at home in Canada, but I’ve also been very lucky to be able to do the things I’m interested in doing here. A lot of people aren’t able to.
What should our film industry be doing to keep talent from defecting?
We need projects for our great tal-ents. William Hutt was a stalwart of the Stratford Festival—he played in King Lear multiple times—but nobody ever made a movie for him.
Speaking of stalwarts: you’ve been married to fellow actor Martha Burns for 27 years, which is hardly the norm in showbiz. Any tips?
First you have to find somebody who is as patient as Martha, because with-out that, I don’t know where we’d be. I think respect is the most important thing—from respect comes patience.
And when times get tough, you can always pull out your Mountie cos-tume from Due South.
If she gets a little bit criminal, that’s what I have to do.
Hyena Road opens in theatres Oct. 9.
How a can-do fellow gets things done
The Waiting
List
BY A R T H U R B L AC K
FROM PAINT THE TOWN BLACK I L L U S T R A T I O N B Y I A N T U R N E R
!
AS A MOSTLY RETIRED GUY, I get to spend a lot of time on chores and projects I never seemed to get around to when I was nine-to-fiving it. Naturally, I try to bring the same level of professional efficiency to these non-paying pastimes as I did to my job. We’re not splitting the atom or solving the Middle East conflict here. The key is simple, no-nonsense day-to-day organization. That’s why each night, before I turn in, I sit down and make out a to-do list. Here, for instance, are my goals for today:1. Do stretching exercises 2. Paint garden gate 3. Groom dog 4. Change oil in car 5. Weed flower bed 6. Pay bills
Now, I wasn’t born yesterday. I know life is unpredictable and cir-cumstances change. A guy needs to be flexible and creative if he expects to get anything accomplished. He can’t just blindly charge down the field if somebody moved the goal-posts overnight.
This morning, for example, has turned out to be grey and overcast. You can practically smell rain in the air. That means I can say goodbye to my plans to weed the flower bed and
18 | 10•2015 | rd.ca
paint the garden gate. Fortunately— here comes that flexible, adaptive quality I mentioned—I have a backup: an emergency list of to-do chores to fill such gaps. So we have a rain delay? What a magnificent op-portunity to cross off an item from my reserve list, like… the weekend cross-word puzzle! That’s been weighing on my mind since Saturday. What’s a five-letter word for HIJKLMNO?
1. FINISH CROSSWORD PUZZLE
Well, that took a little longer than I expected. The answer was “water”— H to (2) O—get it? Neither did I. I had to Google it. And since I was al-ready at the keyboard, I decided to…
2. CHECK EMAIL
Which also took longer than I had anticipated. (Have you seen the video where the shark comes up right under the tour guide’s kayak? I never get tired of watching that.)
Anyway, no point getting up to my elbows in used engine oil right before lunchtime, so scratch the oil change. And I’d be way too uncom-fortable doing stretching exercises on a full belly, so skip that, too. On to alternative chore No. 3:
3. CHECK EMAIL
Oh. Already did that. Well, no harm in seeing if anything new came in….
Cripes, where did the time go? It didn’t rain after all. In fact, it’s full sun in the garden now. Baaaad time to paint the gate; I’m pretty sure I read that paint won’t set properly if it’s too hot. That leaves: groom dog.
You’ve heard the saying “Let sleeping dogs lie,” right? There’s a lot of wisdom in those old adages. I had the brush, comb and clippers all ready to go when I spied my dog snoring under the hammock. Under the unoccupied hammock.
4. TEST OUTDOOR SLEEPING GEAR
I’m not going to lie to you. I took a little break there. Oh, I could have crossed the bill-paying chore off my list, but come on—in weather like this? You can’t appreciate a ham-mock in January, you know. Best to make hay while the sun shines, as they say. Or in this case, saw logs. Just a quick 40 winks listening to the birds and the drone of someone else’s lawn mower, far, far away.
Actually, a little more than 40 winks, I guess. As a matter of fact, the sun’s going down and it’s getting cool. I could probably get those bills paid after supper, except the Monty Python reunion special is on cable tonight. According to TV Guide, it’s three hours long.
That’ll leave me just enough time to make my to-do list for tomorrow. PAINT THE TOWN BLACK BY ARTHUR BLACK, HARBOUR PUBLISHING, 2015, HARBOURPUBLISHING.COM
There is something violent in
politics that you do not expect
until you have lived it. There is
pressure from party supporters,
from opponents, from the media.
It gets inside you physically.
There is a constant discomfort.
JULIE SNYDER, p a r t n e r o f P a r t i Q u é b é c o i s l e a d e r
P i e r r e K a r l P é l a d e a u , in L’actualité PHO
T
O
S: (MAR
TIN) © 2015 MLBAM.LP; (SNYDER) © GROUPE TV
A. QUO TES: (MAR TIN) SPOR TSNET (APRIL 2015); (LINC OLN) NA TIONAL PO S T (NO V . 11, 2014); (MA U) DEC. 200 7; (HUNTER) THE GL
OBE AND MAIL
(JUNE 19
, 2015); (SNYDER) © 2015.
I think I was more nervous at that moment seeing him play in front of a crowd than I was in my first big-league game—and I was really nerv-ous in my first game.
B l u e Ja y s c a t c h e r RUSSELL MARTIN on watching his father play “The Star-Spangled
Banner” on the saxophone before a Dodgers game
By the end of the war we were crack-ing 90,000 messages a month, and Churchill called us the geese that laid the golden eggs and never cackled.
E d m o n t o n r e s i d e n t DOROTHY LINCOLN on her work as a code breaker in Britain during the Second World War
No matter what the specific nature of a project—whether it’s a park or a product, a book or a business— optimism is always central to my work. It’s as important to what I do as research tools, computer systems or a sense of colour.
D e s i g n e r BRUCE MAU, in The Walrus
Over the years, I have kept myself out of the stories I write as much as he wrote himself into his. I suspect I have avoided trying to compete with his extraordinary life. It is easier to be ordinary.
J o u r n a l i s t JUSTINE HUNTER
on her father, Bob Hunter, founder of Greenpeace
BY C H R I ST I N A PA L A S S I O
20 | 10•2015 | rd.ca
PHO T O S: (SUNG) C OUR TES
Y OF HANNAH SUNG; (RIVES
T) C
OUR
TES
Y OF VÉRONIQUE RIVES
T
QUOTES: (SUNG) THE GLOBE AND MAIL (MAY 28, 2015); (DOMISE) JULY 3, 2015; (LANGLEY) THE GLOBE
A N D M A I L (JUNE 19, 2015); (FURNISH) THE TORONTO STAR (JUNE 26, 2015); (RIVEST) MAY 23, 2015;
(SILVERMAN) THE GLOBE AND MAIL (APRIL 24, 2015)
I remember my mom saying: “I love you and I support you, but all I look at is a life of unhappiness, isolation, prejudice and illness.”
DAVID FURNISH, f i l m m a k e r a n d h u s b a n d o f E l t o n J o h n , on coming out to his mother during the AIDS crisis
Everyone is paying so much attention to what’s in our food. So why are we drinking so much crap?
VÉRONIQUE RIVEST, t h e w o r l d ’s t o p f e m a l e
s o m m e l i e r, in The Globe and Mail
We won’t be looking at what hap-pened today in Parliament. At times we’ll be satirical, humour-driven, personality-driven, and I think that’s a thing that doesn’t exist today.
CRAIG SILVERMAN, f o u n d i n g e d i t o r o f t h e n e w B u z z f e e d C a n a d a
As long as people of colour have been free to form communities, white supremacy has existed to remind us where we stand. And as long as white supremacy has resulted in violence against our bodies, white culture has existed to downplay the problem, instruct us on how to deal with it peaceably and deny it exists at all.
C o m m u n i t y a c t i v i s t a n d w r i t e r ANDRAY DOMISE, in Hazlitt magazine
I’ve been a chef in the industry 10 years now and I recognize that behaviour; you see it everywhere. It’s the mentality of, you’re in the kitchen; you’re with the bros… you’re kind of like one of them. Slapping on the a**, lewd com-ments… whatever. That’s what kitchens are like, a lot of them.
C h e f CHARLOTTE LANGLEY on the culture of sexual harassment in restaurant kitchens
[Snoop Dogg] owes an apology to
any fans whose lives were steeped
in his misogyny, growing up
mem-orizing his casually tossed-off,
subhuman descriptors of women
and sexual relationships.
F o r m e r Mu c h Mu s i c V J HANNAH SUNG on the rapper’s self-proclaimed changed attitude toward women
SPECIAL FEATURE
Source: Reader’s Digest Trusted Brand™ Contest submissions, January 8 to April 9, 2015. ™ Trusted Brand is a registered trademark of Reader’s Digest Association Canada ULC
READ ON
TO LEARN
MORE!
Reader’s Digest conducts an annual Trusted Brand™ survey in which
we ask Canadians to vote on the brands they trust the most. In this study, Canadians voted for brands across 40 product categories, from consumer
packaged goods to fi nancial institutions and Canadian retailers. Survey participants also shared their overall feedback on why trust
is so important when making a purchase decision.
“Canadians should feel confi dent
in the products we purchase and that
we know that our safety is the most
important standard to be upheld.”
Source: 2015 Reader’s Digest Trusted Brand™ Study. ™Trusted Brand is a registered trademark of Reader’s Digest Association Canada ULC. Commissioned by Reader’s Digest in an independent opinion poll, Ipsos Reid conducted a nationwide online survey of over 4000 Canadian adults, including an over-sample of 1,510 Quebec residents. Quota sampling was used and the sample was stratifi ed by language (English n = 2,634 and French n = 1,392). The results were weighted according to census data to ensure that the overall sample is representative of the Canadian population. The precision of online polls is measured using a credibility interval. In this case, the overall results are considered accurate to within +/-1.8 percentage points, 19 times out of 20, of what the results would be had the entire population of adults in Canada been polled.
Th
ank you for sharing your thoughts on
why trust is so important when you are
purchasing a new product or service.
of Canadians would pay more for the products and services they trust.
of Canadians are
word-of-mouth marketers, praising trusted brands to family and friends. SPECIAL FEATURE
We know you have high standards for the products and services you select. You’re knowledgeable consumers who do the research, take test drives, make comparisons, and form educated opinions.
Our survey covered brands across 40 categories: everything from life insurance to vitamins, toothpaste to sunscreen, bottled water to hybrid cars. Whether you’re looking to make a big purchase or a small one, these are the brands to watch.
TRUST BY THE NUMBERS
WHEN A BRAND RETAINS THE TRUSTED BRAND
™SEAL,
IT’S A SIGN OF CONSUMER CONFIDENCE. AND THEY DELIVER
ON THEIR PROMISES. VISIT
TRUSTEDBRANDS.RD.CA
SPECIAL FEATURE
Source: Reader’s Digest Trusted Brand™ Contest submissions, January 8 to April 9, 2015. ™ Trusted Brand is a registered trademark of Reader’s Digest Association Canada ULC
We asked our
readers to share
how trust infl uences
their purchase
decisions and overall
shopping habits.
Here’s what Canadians
told us about why
trust matters when
purchasing a product.
WHY
TRUST
MATTERS
“I look for consistent high quality in all products that I buy. I am willing to pay more for a product that I know will always meet my expectations, whether it’s a disposable product or one that I plan on using for a long time. I have a 10-year-old car (Toyota) that has been low maintenance, reliable and safe. Reliability and consistency are very important to me.”
– KAREN, ONTARIO
“I am very careful about the brands that I purchase and I do research on certain products to make sure that the product is trustworthy.”
– WENDY, NORTHWEST TERRITORIES
“To me, trust is extremely important when purchasing a product because I believe the products I invest in greatly help identify my lifestyle. I only use cruelty-free beauty and makeup products. Th at said, by trusting the labels and companies of the products I believe in, I feel as though I am doing something good for both myself and others.”
– JESSICA, QUEBEC
“I have greater trust in North American brands, particularly Canadian brands, that I know have gone through stringent regulatory processes to get on the shelves.”
– PAMELA, BRITISH COLUMBIA
“Trust is built by years of providing quality products, tested by real consumers, and offered at a fair price. If there is a problem immediate action is taken and the customer feels appreciated. If I have this trust with a company I will buy their product and feel at ease with my purchase.”
– NICOLE, NOVA SCOTIA
“Canadians should feel confi dent in the products we purchase and that we know that our safety is the most important standard to be upheld.”– DEBBIE, ALBERTA
SPECIAL FEATURE
Whether it’s word of mouth, industry or consumer reviews,
a sales staff recommendation, advertising, popular trends
or coupon/incentive, please tell us what would most likely
infl uence your decision to try a new product or service.
VISIT
TRUSTEDBRANDS.RD.CA/CONTEST
TO ENTER FOR
A CHANCE TO WIN THE GRAND PRIZE OF $500! THERE ARE
ALSO TWO SECONDARY PRIZES OF $250 TO BE WON!
For full contest rules and to enter, please visit trustedbrands.rd.ca/contest or write to: Trusted Brands Contest, Reader’s Digest Prize Award Administrator’s Offi ce, 1125 Stanley Street, Montréal, Québec H3B 5H5. The fi nal close date for this contest is December 6, 2015 at 23:59:59 EST.
WHAT WILL MOST
LIKELY INFLUENCE
YOUR DECISION TO
TRY A NEW PRODUCT
SPECIAL FEATURE
ONE OF THE MOST TRUSTED
PASSENGER CAR MANUFACTURERS
Toyota is proud to have been named a Reader’s Digest Most Trusted Brand™ for seven consecutive years in the Passenger car category.
It’s a status that has now become even stronger thanks to the bold new 2015 Toyota Camry and Camry Hybrid. Engineers and designers rebuilt and reimagined the bold new Camry from the ground up with an emphasis on striking design and superior handling, all the while maintaining Toyota’s legendary quality, dependability and durability. As a result the exterior is more attractive than ever, with more contoured lines, sculpted head-lamps and a bolder stance. Visual appeal is particularly pronounced for the all-new XSE model, through its aggressive new front grille. The interior of all Camry models features soft-touch materials, detailed stitch-ing and a redesigned and highly functional centre console. Topping it off, there’s a quieter cabin, more responsive steering, available wireless charging, and advanced safety technologies with a choice of three powertrains—4-cylinder, V6 and hybrid (featuring Toyota’s proven Hybrid Synergy Drive®) to give drivers
the performance and effi ciency they desire.
™Trusted Brand is a registered trademark of Reader’s Digest Association Canada ULC.
Toyota is renowned for delivering cars and trucks that boast superior quality, safety and affordability—while also being very fun to drive.
“Toyota has a stellar record of offering our customers cars and trucks that deliver exceptional and long-lasting value. A great example is the all-new 2015 Toyota Camry. North America’s number-one selling car just got even better, taking a bold step forward with a striking new look and an equally enjoyable driving experience.”
– SEIJI ICHII, PRESIDENT AND CEO, TOYOTA CANADA INC.
CAMRY XSE CAMRY SE
P A S S E NG ER CAR MANUFA CT UR ER
Safe & effective NHPs – look for the NPN.
Visit chfa.ca to learn more.
NPN#
87654321 Join the millions of Canadians who use natural health products (NHPs). The Canadian Health Food Association (CHFA) promotes a Canada in which ever one benefits from safe and effective NHPs.
Why it pays to spend time alone
One Is the
Loveliest Number
BY M E G A N J O N E S I L L U S T R A T I O N B Y G R A C E C H O rd.ca | 10•2015 | 29ART
of LIVING
!
IN 2011, RESEARCHERS at Har-vard University and the University of Virginia exposed study participants to a small, painful electric shock. They then handed over $5 and asked each person how much of the $5 they’d be willing to forfeit to avoid the unpleasant sensation. In the next step of the study, the participants sat, solo, in a room for 15 minutes. The only available stimulation was the option of shocking themselves by pushing a button. Of those who had said they’d offer money to escape the zap, more than 60 per cent of the men and a quarter of the women volun-tarily shocked themselves. Physical pain, it seemed, was preferable to spending a few minutes alone with their thoughts.Solitude, clearly, isn’t our most comfortable state. But based on recent research, we’d be wise to overcome anxiety around being by ourselves. While nobody’s advocating becoming a hermit, there are benefits to spending at least some time alone.
We become better people
According to Eric Klinenberg, a sociology professor at New York University, having smartphones and social media accounts at our finger-tips heightens our aversion to being on our own. Our fears of missing out are stoked by endless photos of friends doing exciting things. We constantly need to be entertained,
Klinenberg says, and as a result we’ve become alienated from what he calls “productive solitude.”
Reflecting on our actions and thinking about future personal improvements are the cornerstones of productive solitude. Carving out time to do these things can help make us happier, stronger and more accountable. The process allows us to step back, then return to the world with more insight and energy.
“The only way we have a chance to make sense of our choices is [through] solo reflection,” Klinenberg says. “Unless you’re completely content with who you are and the way you live, productive solitude is necessary.”
We’re kinder to strangers
In a 2012 study published in the
Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, researchers completed
a series of experiments to determine how being socially connected affects the way we relate to those outside of our close social groups.
In one experiment, researchers split participants into two groups. Members of the first were asked to arrive at the lab with a friend; those in the second were instructed to show up alone. Participants were divided into pairs (those who came alone were matched with strangers; the others were teamed with their friends), shown pictures and told that the images were of people R E A D E R ’ S D I G E S T
responsible for a terrorist attack. Subjects then answered a number of questions, some of which were intended to measure their willing-ness to mistreat others, e.g., “How important is it to treat these people humanely?” Participants who’d been accompanied by a pal were signifi-cantly more likely to endorse harm than those who’d shown up alone.
Researchers hypothesized that those who spend a lot of time with close friends may be less motivated to associate with others. It’s counter-intuitive, but more time spent with acquaintances might lead us to be less empathetic toward strangers.
We miss out on less
For many, the idea of going to a concert or out to dinner alone sparks dread—what if other patrons think we’re social pariahs? But University of Maryland professor Rebecca Ratner believes that fear is causing us to forgo fun. “People have activi-ties that they want to do—see a movie, or a show that’s coming to town for one night only—but they lack friends to go with them, and so they miss out,” she says.
What’s more, her research has shown that doing an activity alone isn’t any less enjoyable than taking a friend. In a study published this year, Ratner’s team recruited partici-pants from a student union and asked them to spend at least five minutes in a nearby art gallery. Some were sent in solo, others in pairs. Participants were surveyed beforehand and asked how much they anticipated enjoying the activ-ity. Unsurprisingly, those attending alone believed they’d have less fun. Upon leaving the gallery, however, the two groups reported enjoying themselves equally.
HAVING TROUBLE
DISCONNECTING?
Michael Harris, the Toronto-based author of The End of Absence:
Reclaiming What We’ve Lost in a World of Constant Connection,
says you can trick yourself into taking breaks from socializing. Harris suggests going for a walk and leaving your cellphone at home or taking a book to a res-taurant and having dinner for one. While you might feel frus-trated 20 minutes in, there’s no reneging: you’ve committed to time by yourself.
Harris believes we should bal-ance solitude and socializing the same way we go about maintain-ing a healthy diet. “Social con-nection is not an evil thing any more than sugars and fats are,” Harris says. “It’s not about abstin-ence. It’s about giving yourself multiple modes of being.”
How to manage the risks
Outsmarting
Breast Cancer
BY SA M A N T H A R I D E O U T IS T OCKPHO T O!
AMONG THE REMAININGmysteries of breast cancer is a very basic one: its causes. It’s not unusual for women to develop this form of cancer without having a single one of the known risk factors.
Many of the risk factors identified so far—particular genes, family hist-ory, late menopause, dense breast tissue and so on—are beyond your control. Nevertheless, there are a few preventive steps you can take.
The first is to drink lightly. Epide-miologic studies around the world have found that the more alcohol someone imbibes on a regular basis, the greater the increase in risk. “This link is quite well-established now, even though it’s not one of the cancer facts that’s getting much attention,”
says Kevin O’Hagan, a spokesperson for the Irish Cancer Society.
Even two drinks a day increases the breast cancer rate compared to abstaining, though only by seven to 16 per cent. (By contrast, a BRCA1 gene mutation like the one Angelina Jolie carried can increase a woman’s risk by up to 2,900 per cent.) A pos-sible explanation: alcohol raises es-trogen levels, which promotes some types of breast cancer, while lower-ing levels of essential nutrients, like folate and vitamin A, that protect against cell damage.
Extra estrogen and progesterone exposure are also the reasons why women should give careful consider-ation to hormonal treatments— including hormone replacement
32 | 10•2015 | rd.ca
therapy and birth control pills. There is good news for pill users, however: a woman’s breast cancer risk returns to baseline levels by
the time she’s been off the pill for about 10 years. For many women, one or both of these treatments might be worth the modest increase in breast cancer risk, given the benefits of contraception and menopausal symp-tom relief.
When it comes to gaining a modi-cum of control over your risk, staying active is key. Exercise’s protective effect against breast cancer requires
further study, but research has shown that even as little as 2.5 hours of brisk walking a week could reduce the chances of devel-oping the disease by around 18 per cent compared to a seden-tary lifestyle.
Remember that prevention manage-ment isn’t an all-or-nothing endeavour. Nobody lives risk-free, nor is that a realistic goal. But being aware of po-tential hazards means you can take action—getting mammograms be-fore age 50, say—if you have several risk factors.
Myth
Busting
Contrary to popular
miscon-ceptions, bras, abortion and
deodorant do not contribute
to breast cancer risk.
Source: Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation
Mediterranean Diet
Boosts Brainpower
A Mediterranean-style diet enriched with olive oil or nuts might help minimize the decline of cognitive function in older people. That’s the
con-clusion of a trial conducted in Barce-lona, Spain, and published in JAMA
Internal Medicine this summer. Over
six years, subjects assigned to diets rich in produce, legumes,
whole grains and fish had lower losses of brain
function than those in the control group.
Looking Tired?
You’ll Be Judged
for It.
We know sleep depriv-ation is bad for our
minds and bodies, but
News From
the World of
Medicine
AD AM V OORHES; (PROP S TYLIS T) ROBIN FINLA Y rd.ca | 10•2015 | 33new research shows it’s bad for how others perceive us, too. In studies from the University of Stockholm published earlier this year, participants examined photos of people with varying amounts of shut-eye and evaluated their attractiveness, health, reliability, leadership, employability and trustworthiness. When the photo-graphed subjects appeared tired, they scored worse on these meas-ures than when they looked well rested. The implications are that getting enough sleep could help further a person’s career and inter-personal relationships.
TEST YOUR MEDICAL IQ
A keloid is…
A. A disease that mimics multiple
sclerosis, causing misdiagnosis
B. An overgrowth of scar tissue
C. A fibre-rich food
D. An instrument that
operat-ing-room staff use to meas-ure weight
Answer: B. A keloid is an
over-growth of scar tissue that can form after surgery or an injury. Although its lumpy or ridged tumour-like appearance can be alarming, it is usually harmless.
Seeing Calcified Coronary
Arteries Improves Health
Of 189 Danish patients diagnosed with non-obstructive coronary artery disease, half were given standard information about risk and lifestyle. The other half were given this same advice, plus shown images of the specks of calcium forming in their arteries. This new research revealed that patients who saw these images were more likely to stop smoking (91 per cent versus 78 per cent), eat a healthy diet (66 per cent versus 36 per cent) and adhere to their statin therapy, suggesting that visualizing a health threat motivates people to make changes to reduce their risk.
Psoriasis Sufferers Get the
All-Clear With New Drug
A new group of medications, known as IL-17A inhibitors, block a particu-lar protein linked to inflammation in psoriatic skin. One such drug, secukinumab, was approved in Eur-ope and North America earlier this year, and a potential competitor, ixekizumab, is in the midst of Phase III clinical trials. Compared to previ-ously existing treatments, they are giving more patients clear or near-clear skin within three months. It’s not all good news, though: the devel-opment of yet another IL-17A inhib-itor, brodalumab, stopped last May because some patients reported sui-cidal thoughts during clinical trials. R E A D E R ’ S D I G E S T
life opens up with a healthy mouth
© Procter & Gamble, Inc. 2015 ORAL-19226
What is Blue Light?
Blue light is a colour in the “visible light spectrum” that can be seen by human eyes. It has the shortest and highest-energy wavelength in the spectrum, and it can be found in energy sources such as the sun, electronic devices, and fluorescent and LED lighting. While blue light can be beneficial because it helps regulate the body’s natural sleep and wake cycle (circadian rhythm), boost alertness and elevate moods; too much blue light exposure can have serious consequences on our health, starting with our eyes.
Why has Blue Light become a hot topic?
Studies suggest that 60% of adults spend at least 6 hours a day in front of a digital device and the number rises to more than 7 hours for children between 8 and 18 years old. These staggering sta-tistics correspond with the rise of digital eyestrain. Blurry vision, difficulty focusing, dry and irritated eyes, and headaches are becoming common health issues observed by eye care professionals. “The Blue Light Exposed awareness campaign is essential for educating the population about the effects of artificial blue light, and the solutions available to reduce its impact”, states Nicolas Fontaine, O.D., M.Sc., F.A.A.O., Assistant Professor, École d’optométrie, Université de Montréal. Dr. Fontaine is the principal researcher of a study conducted by the university, which found conclusive results about the efficacy of lenses with blue-light filter coatings that demonstrated wearing these lenses helped reduce the symptoms of eye-strain by half during prolonged computer exposure.
SHINE THE LIGHT ON BLUE LIGHT – CANADIAN AWARENESS CAMPAIGN
We all know how important it is to protect our eyes from
the sun’s harmful UV rays; but what about the harmful
effects from blue light rays?
Beneficial Effects & Harmful Effects
Because of the growing popularity of computer screens and other digital devices, exposure to blue light sources has drastically increased, leading to negative effects on our health and eye vision. To educate parents, children, and eye care professionals on this serious and crucial subject, a Canadian awareness campaign called Blue Light Exposed has been developed.
Helps activate the pupillary construction reflex, boosts memory and cognitive performance Disruptions to the circadian rhythm, the body’s natural sleep and wake cycles
Digital Eye Strain Syndrome: blurry vision, difficulty focusing, dry and irritated eyes, headaches, neck and back pain Increased risk of depression
of people spend more
than 6 hours a day in front
How Blue Light interferes with sleep
Blue light prevents the production and release of melatonin, the hormone that makes us sleepy. So using electronic devices in the early evening hours before bed makes it more difficult to fall asleep. Children are affected even more than adults because they are more vulnerable to blue light’s effects. Having electronic devices in the bedroom can also affect the quality of sleep, as these devices often stay on all night long emitting blue light which can disrupt sleep patterns.
What can you do about Blue Light?
The use of protective lenses can play an important role in shielding eyes against blue light. Sunglasses, specially dark tinted or polarized to absorb blue light rays, are ideal for outdoor activities. While for indoors, ophthalmic lenses with a special coating designed to protect against blue light _ such as Essilor’s Crizal®
Prevencia™, Nikon’s SeeCoat Blue UV, or Shamir Glacier Blue Shield™ UV _ are available.
The Blue Light Exposed awareness campaign is an initiative from ophthalmic lenses manufacturers Essilor Canada, Nikon Optical Canada and Shamir Canada. Findings by the National Sleep Foundation
*TV, laptop, tablet, smartphone, video game, MP3 player or radio
The Vision Council reports on digital eye strain, 2012 & 2013
63%
of adults do not know
that electronics emit “Blue Light”.
USEFUL TIPS TO HELP
RELIEVE DIGITAL EYESTRAIN
“20-20-20 breaks”: every 20 minutes, take a 20 second break and look at something 20 feet away.
Reduce exposure to blue-light emitting electronics in the evenings, at least two hours before bedtime. Supervise and limit your child’s screen time, and reduce your own to set a good example.
Make sure your child doesn’t
hold the screen too close to their eyes, especially for long periods of time. Have eyes checked annually (you and your child’s).
Adults
68%
89%
Have 2 or more electronic devices* Have at least 1 electronic device in their bedrooms*
51%
75%
Have 2 or more electronic devices* Have at least 1 electronic device in their bedrooms*
Children
Sources of Blue Light
Learn how to protect yourself
at www.bluelightexposed.com
S P O N S O R E D C O N T E N T
!
COMPARED TO OTHER public health issues, suicide gets less than its fair share of attention. Although talking about this subject in a frank way can help support those who are struggling, suicide is often treated as a taboo—in part because we aren’t always comfort-able addressing the subject, but also because glorifying self-harm has been shown to sparkcopycat behaviour. In Canada, suicide rates are highest among adult males aged 40 to 59. Self- sufficiency and sto-icism are considered “manly” in our culture, and we tend to en-courage these traits in boys as they age, so it’s not uncommon for men to view emotional distress as weakness.
Compared to their female counter-parts, members of this demographic are statistically less likely to ask for help. And when they do attempt sui-cide, they more often choose a vio-lent method that leaves little chance of accidental survival.
While the suicide rate among Canadian men of all ages has gone down by almost a third over the past
30 years or so, total sui-cides among girls and young women aged 10 to 19 have increased by nearly 50 per cent since 1980. A possible ex-planation for this shift is that girls are entering puberty earlier than ever, giving them less time to develop coping skills before taking on the pressures of adoles-cence. Other stressors that can contribute to
80-90
Percentage of people who die by suicide who
had a treatable mental illness or addiction.
35
Percentage of men who die by suicide who sought mental-health care during
the preceding year.
Charting the rise of suicide
Crisis Point
BY SA M A N T H A R I D E O U T I L L U S T R A T I O N B Y T R A C Y W A L K E R
38 | 10•2015 | rd.ca
Get full Meta recipes, tips & coupons at metaeff ect.ca
EFFECT
THE
TM
Meta powder contains 100% naturally sourced psyllium fi bre, the kind I use (and rave about). The kind of fi bre that helps to temporarily suppress your appetite when taken prior to a meal* and even lowers your cholesterol levels.**
HARLEY PASTERNAK
META USER, CELEBRITY TRAINER & NUTRITIONIST
Pick a tip and boo st your fibre intake!
Harley’s Smoothie 5 almonds, 1 red apple, 1 banana,
3/4 cup nonfat Greek yogurt, 1/2 cup nonfat milk, 1 tsp. Meta,
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon.
Mind Changer Change your mindset and you have the power to change your life. Want to add more fi bre to your diet? Keep Meta at the offi ce and at home.
SEE HOW META POWDER CAN
SUPPRESS YOUR APPETITE
*
AND
HELP YOU AVOID OVERINDULGING
AVAILABLE AT †
†
To ensure this product is right for you, always read and follow the label. © 2015 P&G.
*For Adults Only: To achieve this new benefi t, use two servings of Metamucil in 240 mL of cool liquid with meals, up to 3 times daily.
**Lowers mildly to moderately elevated cholesterol levels when taken with a low-fat diet. For occasional use only. †®/ ™ Trademarks of Loblaws Inc. Used with permission. All rights reserved. ©2015. Loblaws Inc., its parent company or any of its franchisees and/or affi liates are not a sponsor of, nor affi liated with Procter & Gamble.
Walk This Way Set a number of steps you must take
before going to bed. Like 10,000 a day. Cool down and get your fi bre by
suicidal thoughts include mental ill-nesses, abuse, substance-use prob-lems and intergenerational trauma. Though suicide may appear to happen out of nowhere, there’s often a process leading up to the act. Indi-viduals who are considering taking their own lives might seem with-drawn, demonstrate unreasonably angry behaviour or make reckless decisions. If you suspect that some-one in your life is suicidal, the first step in prevention is asking if he or she is considering self-harm. If the response is yes, help him or her find a crisis resource: a phone line, centre or professional who can offer imme-diate support and provide guidance in figuring out longer-term options.
Suicide remains a relatively rare phenomenon across all age groups, which is worth noting, since the assumption that suicide is common can be a risk factor. Still, it’s not un-usual to feel suicidal—without ne– cessarily acting on it—at least once in one’s life. A helpful approach is to develop cognitive strategies to deal with stressful situations. As the Harvard Medical School’s guide to suicide prevention explains, “The happiest people are not those with the fewest problems, but those with the best coping skills.”
A list of Canadian crisis centres and phone lines is available at suicideprevention.ca/ thinking-about-suicide/find-a-crisis-centre.
Reported moderate to major improvements
Tried the treatment It’s useful to know about treatments that work for many people, but the popularity of a treatment doesn’t auto-matically make it the best fit for you. Always take your family history, personal preferences and doctor’s advice into consideration.
AIDS TO WELLNESS
Based on feedback from close to 13,000 users of CureTogether, a website where patients discuss health challenges, here’s a look at the effectiveness of 10 selected treatments against depression.
Exercise:
993
1,391
Talking with family or friends: 559 1,022 SSRI medications: 485 843 Relaxation: 403 836 Avoiding intoxicants: 340 797 Journaling: 318 704 Meditation: 371 618
Cognitive behavioural therapy: 352
552
Maintaining a daily routine: 252 530 Music therapy: 128 169 R E A D E R ’ S D I G E S T 40 | 10•2015 | rd.ca
©2015 Nature’s Bounty, Inc. 15NB1347ra As a reminder, discuss the supplements and medicines you take with your health care provider. These products
may pose risks and may not be suitable for everyone. Always read label directions and warnings prior to use.
At Nature’s Bounty,®
the quality of our products is at the core of everything we do. Our ingredients are verified for purity and our formulas
are guaranteed for 100% potency, which means you can be certain that you’re getting high quality vitamins and supplements.
www.naturesbounty.ca
!
OUR BODIES CHANGE as we get older: hormones see-saw, the metabolism shifts, and muscle tone decreases. Luckily, certain nutrients can support our fluctuating needs, and healthy eating habits can have a tremendous impact.According to Vancouver-based registered dietitian Nicole Fetterly, vegetables and fruits should always make up half of what we eat. These foods are rich in antioxidants, which stop disease-causing free radicals and slow the symptoms of aging.
Their effects can be visible (helping to preserve skin tone, for example) or internal (like warding off arterial damage). For help on how to fill the rest of your plate, here’s a primer.
In your 30s
After our 20s, we have a slower metabolism and require fewer calo-ries. Help regulate blood pressure and conserve muscle and bone with magnesium-rich foods like chard, soy yogourt and wheat bran. Limit meat intake to reduce the risk of
Tips for eating well at every age