Yep, we’re headed into the depths of the cold and flu season. And with the addition of the new flu - H1N1 - we’re also headed into some unknown territory. Now more than ever, it’s important to understand what it takes to avoid being infected, care for ourselves if we do get sick, and prevent the further spread of whatever virus we’ve picked up.

> A guide to good hand-washing hygiene

> Should I get a seasonal flu shot? What about an H1N1 shot?

> Find an H1N1 vaccination clinic in your area

> Know when to call in sick

> Watch: How the influenza virus takes hold vs. the onset of a cold

> Get a look at how immunizations and vaccinations work

> Considering a humidifier? 8 things to think about before you buy

> Tips for caring for someone with H1N1

> 8 must-have items for DIY cold relief

> Are you sure you blow your nose the right way?

> Get up-to-date news and information about the H1N1 swine flu virus

Every weekday morning, I pour myself a hearty, grainy bowl of granola and top it off with berries, bananas, or almonds. (On the weekend, I indulge my egg love).

Recently, I switched from my long-time favourite honey-and-oat-based cereal to one filled with pumpkin seeds and flaxseed - these teeny-tiny brown seeds that, I hesitate to admit this, I first thought resembled legless bedbugs. Eww, unappetizing, I know. Don’t get me wrong, they tasted great - slightly nutty and added just a bit more texture to the mix.

But once I read up on those little nutritional powerhouses, I realized what a good breakfast choice I’d made.

Why flaxseeds are fabulous:

- Just a tablespoon of flaxseed provides a hefty helping of the kind of omega-3 fatty acids that can help to protect us from heart disease, high blood pressure, and bone loss.

- Flaxseeds are one of the best sources for omega-3s for those who don’t eat fish or want to take fish oils.

- The little seeds pack lots of soluble and insoluble fibre to aid digestion and help to lower cholesterol and stabilize blood sugar.

A helpful flax fact: Flaxseeds are so small that it’s easy to just swallow them whole. What you’ll come to find out is that a flaxseed swallowed whole will, ahem, stay that way once it’s digested. Be sure to chew them up to get the full benefit of the seeds!

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Keep reading for more information about flaxseeds’ nutritional benefits as well as what they taste like and how to store them and sprinkle them into a healthy diet.

A stereotype exists of a woman possessed by premenstrual syndrome. The PMS beast apparently takes over a woman’s body and mind during the days leading up to her monthly period that makes her act irrational, emotional, and, so the story goes, crazy for carbs and sweet treats.

I know that I have felt that “PMS pull” toward unhealthy indulgences now and again. My cravings lean toward the salty, starchy potato type goodies rather than chocolate or sugar-packed snacks.

Is the PMS munchies-monster a myth? Do we women use “that time of the month” as an excuse for a salty-or-sweet splurge? Or is there something else affecting our pre-period appetite?

[Read more →]

In school, Friday was always the day teachers dropped the big tests and quizzes on us. So, today, let’s test your nutrition know-how! Do you know …

> A cuisine that cuts heart risks?
> A tea to help clean your teeth?
> The nutrients that boost brain power?
> A berry to fight infection?
> 9 colours to keep in your kitchen?
> 10 sweet alternatives to white sugar?
> Habits to help squelch heartburn?

One unbearably hot day last summer, I waited in a long, snaking queue to get on a ride at Canada’s Wonderland. Out of the corner of my eye, I spotted a slumping figure. I squinted toward the head of the line to see a young-ish, presumably preteen girl crumpled onto the grassy spot next to the line. She looked visibly distressed, but no one - not her friends, not anyone around her in line - seemed to be doing anything to help her.

I stood so far away that I couldn’t tell if perhaps I overestimated her condition; maybe she was just pretending, feigning a swoon to get some attention. I could see people looking at her and then looking around at one another. But still, no one approached her.

As she continued to slump there, I worried for her, figuring she was likely suffering heat exhaustion and dehydration. The line kept inching forward toward the ride, and she feebly moved forward alongside her friends. By the time I reached the head of the line, she and her friends were long gone.

For the rest of the day, though, I felt a gnawing guilt that I hadn’t tried to help her, offer my water … or something. More than that, I wondered why no one else - out of all the hundreds of people in that line - had stepped forward to at least check on her condition.

After that experience, I was *still* really surprised when I read a shocking stat about folks in Toronto … [Read more →]

(Photo credit: Anirudh Koul.)

Back in August, Celine Dion announced that she was pregnant for the second time, and that her baby was due in May 2010.

This pregnancy presumably resulted from using eggs frozen during her first round of fertility treatments, which led to the birth of her son, René-Charles Dion Angélil, in 2000.

But now Dion’s husband, Rene Angélil, has confirmed that the superstar singer is no longer pregnant.

via People: Forty-one-year-old Dion’s doctor announced that she was pregnant via in vitro fertilization very early in the process, and it is now revealed that the embryos transferred in August and October were unsuccessful.

Angélil is quoted as saying, “We are living the reality of the majority of couples who have to use [IVF]. The process can be long and arduous.” The couple plan to keep up fertility treatments and continue trying for a successful pregnancy.

- What goes on in fertility treatment? Understand the procedures and treatments.

- Celine Dion is not the only celeb who has struggled to become pregnant. Read the stories of Courteney Cox-Arquette, Marcia Cross, and Brooke Shields.

- How to cope if trying to get pregnant is stressing you out.

- If you’ve been trying and trying to get pregnant, answering 3 quick questions can help to send you off in the right direction.