Women may avoid weight training for fear of “bulking up”. And they may also avoid dairy products for fear of “puffing up”. But new research reveals that women would do well to add a bit of both to their lives. [Read more →]

> We talked about this last year, and the time has come again for “One Day Without Shoes”. Anyone up for a barefoot day tomorrow? If not, consider purchasing a pair of TOMS shoes - their one-for-one policy means that for every pair of shoes you buy, one pair will be given to a child in need.

> Here are the 3 healthiest ways to cook fish … and with no lingering, fishy smelling kitchen! (That’s Fit)

> Svelte Gourmand discusses the surprising fat-fighting benefits of seaweed + Medbroadcast reels in more reasons to add sea vegetables to your diet. (Svelte Gourmand + Medbroadcast)

> Jonah Lehrer on why our commute can make or break our happiness + the toll traffic takes on our health and 7 ideas for learning to love your daily work trek (The Frontal Cortex + Medbroadcast)

Amidst all of the talk about Nutrition Month in Canada, I found myself discussing, of all things, Tim Hortons donuts.

I’d called a friend while he happened to be queued up at Tim’s to grab a coffee and a snack. We joked about which donut could possibly be the least dreadful for his health.

Since donuts don’t come with nutritional labels, a consumer has to seek out the sweet treat’s sugar-fat-cal stats. My friend is trim and fit, but he tries not to overdo it on sugar, since type 2 diabetes runs in his family, so we wondered which variety might have fewer grams of sugar.

I bet him it was the old fashioned plain and became curious if I was right. So, I decided to look up a few donut detals, first here and then here. I was most surprised by what I learned about that tinier treat - the Timbit! [Read more →]

Is it the can that puts most people off? Or is it the way the wee slimy, sardines are packed in the tin? Is it the fishy smell? Or the oil? Honestly, sardines have a few strikes against them in the “visually appetizing” category. Get past your hesitation, though, and you’re feasting on one of the finest fish around.

Why you should pull back the tab on a can of sardines:

> Since sardines are so small, they contain very little mercury, especially compared to larger fish like salmon or tuna.

> Good things come in small packages, and one can of sardines packs in a lot of good things: 35% of your daily needs in calcium, 15% of your daily needs in iron, 63% of your vitamin D needs, and a whopping 137% of your daily needs in vitamin B12 (crucial for the health of nerve and red blood cells).

> While one can fills 16% of your daily fat quota, only 1 of the 11 grams is saturated. The rest is in the form of better-for-you fats - monounsaturated fat, polyunsaturated fat, and omega-3 fatty acids - that buoy heart health by lowering cholesterol and blood pressure.

Keep reading for sardine serving, selection, and safety warnings …

Fat-free: Most dieters keep an eye out of for those magic food label words. That’s because each gram of fat in the foods you eat will cost you 9 calories. And cutting calories coupled with exercise is one of the healthiest ways to lose weight.

The word “free” means that you’re totally in the clear, fat-wise, right?

[Read more →]

You don’t have to go trick-or-treating to be haunted by Halloween candy. Bite-sized chocolate bars and chewy sweet treats tempt us from overflowing bowls in offices, lobbies, and front halls every year.

You see those tiny packages and shrug, “Oh well, one won’t hurt me.” But then one can quickly turn to three, especially if the candy sits in the office kitchen or on the table near your front door.

If you’re like many people this year - trying to stretch your dollar a bit farther - you’ll buy big bulk bags of candies to hand out to the parade of trick-or-treating tots who ring your doorbell. Though the mega-bag may list the nutritional info of each type of candy inside, those teensy individual portions do not.

Here’s the bittersweet nutritional rundown of some of our bite-sized favourites: [Read more →]