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To no one’s real surprise, NS still has the longest wait times in Canada for knee and hip replacement surgery. Compared to Ontario’s 90-93% rate, we rank 47-51% for providing surgery within the 6 month benchmark established by the Federal government when they doled out 5.5 billion dollars to the provinces to improve wait times for the most commonly required surgical procedures, such as hip and knee replacement, cataract removal, heart surgery, and radiation oncology.

Good job, NS. We’re not even a close second to Saskatchewan (48-63%) and Manitoba (58-62%), two other Canadian wastelands. So while other provinces showed a marked improvement in wait times for hip and knee replacement surgeries, what did NS do with its share of the funding? Mismanaged it into oblivion, of course. And now that the funding is set to end by 2013, we can only assume that things will get even worse.

If that’s possible.

Global obesity rates double since 1980: study

No surprise there. As more and more countries adopt a “Western-style” diet, this trend will only continue.

When will government agencies and health officials recognize that the low-fat, high-carbohydrate experiment has failed? They complain about trans fats yet forget that it was the low-fat doctrine that caused food manufacturers to remove lard and fat from their foods and replace it with trans in the first place. Also, at the same time they were removing fat content, the food manufacturers were adding salt, sugar, and an assortment of nutritionally useless fillers to make the stuff taste half decent. Unfortunately, this has been at the expense of our health.

If you are trying to follow the Canadian or US dietary guidelines, don’t. There is still too much financial and political incentive for them to continue pushing grains and starches as the foundation of a healthy diet. Stick to fresh and whole foods like meats, eggs, fish, veggies, some fruits, and fats, and try to reduce intake of breads, pastas, potatoes, cereal grains, and other highly-refined foods (like most anything sold in a box or package). And of course, try to get off your ass a few times per day.

And remember—fat doesn’t make you fat!

After enjoying the original Swedish version of this film, I was hesitant to watch the American remake. We all know Hollywood often trips over it’s own feet trying to over-commercialize movies to the point they lose all heart and soul. With the unfortunate success of the Twilight books and movies, I was worried that the empty suits would try to spin this into something it was never intended to be in order to generate a few extra bucks. Thankfully, the film is just as good—if not better in some ways—than the original.

It’s a horror flick and yeah, there’s some stuff about vampires, but those looking for the generic “kids go into the woods and get killed” type of movie will be disappointed. However, those looking for a cerebral, beautifully shot film about loneliness, love, and coming of age that stays true to the intent and vision of the original film and novel are in for a treat.

Carrying the movie are two young actors, Kodi Smit-McPhee as Owen, and Chloe Moretz as Abby. Smit-McPhee never really got a chance to flex his chops in The Road, but here he delivers a powerful and honest performance. And Moretz, who kicked ass as Hit Girl in the aptly named Kick Ass, proves once again that she is an actress of impressive talent.

The movie needed an honest chemistry between the two characters, and director Matt Reeves is able to craft a story that takes them through several stages, from their initial childish innocence and curiosity to the subtle shadows of darkness that lurk just below their surfaces, acting as a force that both attracts and binds them together. You truly feel for the characters and the loneliness they convey (Owen is bullied at school and neglected by his divorcing parents; the phone call to his father was truly painful to watch), with the fixed notions of good and evil blurring to a gray area that feels “right”, despite the sinister overtones.

My only beef with the film was with a few of  the CGI “attack” scenes. They just seemed a bit choppy and overly fake. Other than that, this movie is pretty much note-perfect. And the climactic scene in the pool…well, let’s just say Reeves is able to deliver the same satisfying emotional wallop that the original did, thanks to the actors being able to generate a relationship that viewers can invest so heavily in.

Let Me In is one of the best films of 2010. Highly recommended.

The 2011 USDA dietary guidelines are out and not much has changed. They are still pushing a low-fat, grain-enriched diet and encouraging Americans to eat less and get more exercise. However, there are a few problems with this recommendation:

1. Grains, whether whole or refined, are carbohydrates and thus stimulate a rise in blood sugar which in turn spikes insulin levels.
2. Higher insulin levels lead to fat accumulation and the inability to mobilize stored fat as fuel (the body prefers to burn glucose).
3. An increase in exercise, in conjunction with a diet rich in carbohydrates, leads to an increase in appetite and hunger, thus making it difficult to reduce caloric intake.

It’s also too bad that the “dietary fats make you fat” myth seems to persist. Low-fat milk. Lean meats. Avoid saturated fats and eat more fruits. If the majority of  Americans follow these guidelines, it seems all but certain that obesity (and all the diseases and health issues associated with it) will continue to be a major health problem now and in the future.

I don’t know what it is about clowns. They creep the hell out of me. Maybe it has something to do with being a kid, going to the circus, seeing some clowns, smelling  ether, waking up naked and chained to a pipe in some basement, living in my own filth for several days, screaming myself hoarse. I don’t know. But they creep me out.

Watch this short clip of a dancing clown. This clown is harmless enough and just wants to make us laugh. So why does it make my flesh crawl and my bowels slacken?

Yeesh!