Striving for a healthy lifestyle  

March is National Nutrition Month, which makes it a great time to examine what we eat and what changes we need to make in our diets to help us live longer, healthier lives.

A basic, healthy diet should include at least three nutritious meals a day and one or two snacks. A well-balanced diet is made up of carbohydrate-rich foods, protein, and some — but not too much — fat. High-fat, high-sweet foods can still be enjoyed, but the key is moderation. Healthy eating is not about denial, but instead focuses on balance.

Those who want to change the way they eat can start by reducing some of the fatty foods in their diets and eating smaller portions (about 20 per cent smaller). Increasing the amount of vegetables, fruit and fibre in a diet is also helpful.

Canada's Food Guide to Healthy Eating is a good reference to start with. It's divided into 4 groups : Grain Products, Vegetables and Fruits, Milk and alternatives and Meat and alternatives. The Food Guide emphasizes the grain, vegetable and fruit food groups as studies show them to be associated with lower incidence of most chronic diseases such as heart disease, cancer, diabetes and obesity.

A balanced diet is an important part of being and staying healthy, but is highly effective when it's combined with exercise. Physical activity helps to keep the body's metabolism (the rate at which the body uses food energy, i.e., burns calories) higher. For people who include muscle toning/building exercises in their exercise program, there are even greater benefits. Muscle has a higher metabolic rate (that is, it burns calories faster) than fat. So those who build some additional muscle will increase the rate they burn calories.

The benefits of healthy eating and regular exercise are endless. People will reduce their risk of heart attack, stroke and other medical problems. They will feel more confident and even have more energy.

For more information about nutrition and achieving a healthy lifestyle visit :

• HealthyOntario.

The Ontario government is expanding stroke care across the province so that people who suffer stroke receive better and faster care, Health and Long-Term Care Minister George Smitherman announced.

"We want to ensure that all Ontarians have access to quality stroke care as soon as possible," Smitherman said. "Prevention and quicker treatment will save lives and improve the quality of life of people affected by, and at risk for, strokes.”

Four more hospitals will now become District Stroke Centres, bringing the total to eighteen across Ontario. Quinte Health Care, Pembroke General Hospital, Brantford General Hospital and Peterborough Regional Hospital will provide high-quality acute stroke care.

Six additional hospitals will become Secondary Clinics, bringing the total to nineteen. New locations at Grand River Hospital in Kitchener, North Bay General Hospital, The Ottawa Hospital, Thunder Bay Regional Hospital, Stratford General Hospital and St. Joseph's Hospital in Chatham will provide prevention services to people who have had a small stroke or are at high risk for one.

The newly-designated Stroke Centres and Clinics will receive $402,000 in start-up funding.

The Institute for Clinical and Evaluative Sciences estimates that the Ontario Stroke Strategy, when fully implemented, will save almost 10,000 lives and $588 million over five years.

"The Heart and Stroke Foundation of Ontario is proud of its role in the development of the Ontario Stroke Strategy and its partnership with the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care,” said Andrew Scipio del Campo, President and CEO, Heart and Stroke Foundation of Ontario.

Stroke is the third leading cause of death and the leading cause of disability in Canada. Every year, stroke afflicts more than 16,000 people in Ontario. Currently, at least 90,000 Ontarians are living with the effects of stroke.

"By keeping our people healthy and caring for them when they need care, we are protecting our most precious resource,” said Smitherman.

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