by Renée Canada With the promise of a new year and a fresh start, many are ringing in 2012 with a list of resolutions and grand expectations for the upcoming year. Some of my friends are committed to heading back to the gym on a regular basis, getting out of credit card debt, quitting smoking, going gluten-free, quitting their full-time job to start their own business, or losing those extra 15 … [Read more...]
by Renée Canada When I was in the clock-ticking years of my late 20s, I happily watched a number of my friends and former classmates become mothers and fathers. Ironically, while I was probably expected to be the first of my group of friends to have children, it was turning out that I would be among that last, even after those friends who had vehemently declared they would never be parents. Yet … [Read more...]
by Renée Canada With more than 2.6 million breast cancer survivors in the United States in 2011, it isn't hard to find numerous resources and a great number of women willing to speak about living with this disease. One of those women I interviewed in 2000, Doris Dietart, then 50, surprised me when she told me that she had been living with the disease for more than 28 years. Dietart was 22 when … [Read more...]
by Renée Canada While the state of Connecticut enjoys many honorable distinctions, one of its latest associations is nothing to brag about. Bridgeport, CT, along with New York, NY and Newark, NJ, makes up the fifth smoggiest metropolitan area in the country to date in 2011, according to a report released Wednesday by Environmental California. The area had among the highest number of smoggy days … [Read more...]
by Renée Canada Yesterday I got that annoying, telltale reaction that tells me something’s off in my body: a rough rash and puffy sensation around my lips. I remember commenting on it but just chalking it up to my body’s reaction to decreasing my dose of prednisone again. Over the last several weeks as I’ve been weaning myself off the medication, I’ve been having infections and odd reactions in … [Read more...]
by Renée Canada For the last 10 years, I have woken up to a bowl of oatmeal each morning. Before you start groaning—I know some of you are imagining a food that feels (and tastes) like gluey gruel from the moment it enters it your mouth until the time it settles like a brick in your digestive tract. However, let me reassure you that this is no ordinary bowl of oatmeal. First, I begin by chopping … [Read more...]
by Renée Canada Yesterday was the toughest day I've had in quite a while. I suppose I couldn't expect that recent reprieve to be anything more than temporary. One could hope with all that they have, and even begin to believe. I know I did. In addition to the itching and burning of the conjunctivitis (pink eye) in both eyes that refuses to go away, the discomfort of the styes and other … [Read more...]
by Renée Canada It’s once again that time when schools are letting out for the calendar year. People are packing up for vacations, and more of us will be taking advantage of the rising temperatures to spend time outdoors. Tuesday, June 21, not only marked the beginning of summer, but also the longest day of daylight. With extra daylight come more opportunities for people to be exposed to the … [Read more...]
by Renée Canada On June 9, Connecticut become the first state in the nation to ban the chemical bisphenol A, otherwise known as BPA, in “thermal receipt paper” that customers receive at retailers, banks and gas stations. The chemical is used as a coating on receipt paper so that it prints in color when heated. BPA is not bound to the paper, as it is to, say, baby bottles, making it easily … [Read more...]
-by Renée Canada As information continues to flow about how maternal health impacts fetal health, expectant mothers have increasingly more to consider when it comes to diet and their unborn children. Most are aware of the importance of having a calcium-rich diet for developing bones and getting enough folic acid to help prevent neural tube defects like spina bifida. Certain types of fish, like … [Read more...]