Reading Time: 2 minutes Between 30 and 40 per cent of Canadians have high cholesterol, and many don’t even know it. And they may continue not knowing it until they get a lab result, or, worse yet, a heart attack. Cholesterol is the broad term used for lipoproteins and triglycerides found in the body. By accumulating in blood vessels, […] Read more
Guide Health: What you can do to lower your cholesterol
Don’t wait for your body to give you a cholesterol warning. You may be too late!
Guide Health: Toe nail fungus is not a pretty thing
Eliminating toe nail fungus takes patience and persistence, but it rarely clears up on its own
Reading Time: 2 minutes Toe nail fungal infections are difficult to treat and for some people can result in discomfort, pain and even disfigurement. But that doesn’t mean you have no options. More scientifically called onychomycosis, the condition affects about seven per cent of Canadians at any one time, although the number may be higher because people may not […] Read more
Guide Health: Dealing with dizziness and vertigo
Knowing what causes dizziness is the first step in preventing it
Reading Time: 2 minutes Dizziness involves a group of symptoms. There can be lightheadedness, a sensation of spinning, and even fainting. You have probably felt these sensations. None of them are pleasant! Vertigo is a more technical term. It refers to a feeling of motion when there is none, or an exaggerated sensation of motion in response to movement. […] Read more
Guide Health: Fortified water – a good thing or not?
Many of these drinks may make sense for pro football players, but not the rest of us
Reading Time: 2 minutes Undoubtedly you will have seen the rows of fortified and flavoured water drinks in just about any store, as well as energy and sports water products too. According to the advertising, these beverages are just the thing you need for your health. But are they? Canada’s Food Guide has recently been updated, and it recommends […] Read more
Guide Health: Hearing loss – listen to this!
Too many of us mistakenly believe that hearing loss is an inescapable part of the aging process
Reading Time: 2 minutes Anywhere from 20 to 50 per cent of Canadians report some degree of hearing loss, with the higher numbers being among seniors. A great many of these people accept diminished hearing as part of aging, or alternatively do not realize that they do not hear as they once did. Often, it is actually a different […] Read more
Guide Health: Are you getting enough dietary fibre?
Start slowly — adding too much fibre too fast will result in adverse effects
Reading Time: 2 minutes You know that fibre is an important part of your diet, but do you get enough? Daily recommendations vary from 25 to 30 grams of fibre, with older people and women needing even more. A penny weighs about a gram, so that’s about 25 to 30 pennies in weight. (I suspect you can remember pennies!) […] Read more
Guide Health: Bed bugs – yuck!
Bed bugs are very resilient and can go without feeding for up to 11 months
Reading Time: 3 minutes Bed bugs of the species Cimex lectularius are certainly unpleasant. However, they are not harmful. Bed bugs are parasites, and different types of bed bugs are specific to different species of animals. They feed on blood, and when they do, they inject some of their saliva into the bite. It is this saliva that causes […] Read more
Guide Health: The cold, hard truth
If you do experience a cold injury, warm the area gently – no rubbing!
Reading Time: 2 minutes In cold weather, you will obviously want to be dressed warmly to avoid frostbite, frost nip, or even more serious injury. But it may not be as simple as you think. Cold damage is caused by ice crystals forming in your skin and tissues. It is this direct damage that leads to tissue death. About […] Read more
Guide Health: The bother of warts
Most warts may be harmless, but it’s still important to know what to do and expect
Reading Time: 2 minutes Yes, warts are usually considered harmless, but they certainly can be a bother. Warts are caused by a group of viruses known as the human papillomaviruses. About 12 per cent of the population is affected at any one time, with children and young adults experiencing warts more often. The spread is via direct skin-to-skin contact, […] Read more
Guide Health: Exposed to Lyme disease
The number of diagnosed cases in Canada is climbing, and so is the geographic area at risk
Reading Time: 2 minutes One of the hazards of outdoor activity is exposure to insects, and one of the insect-like species out there is the black-legged or deer tick (ixodid tick), which can carry Lyme disease. The name originates from Old Lyme, Connecticut, the place where the disease was first identified in the late 1980s. Recently, the incidence of […] Read more
A message from April Stewart, Country Guide's Associate Editor
