MEDIA ADVISORY
Friday, March 8, 2013, Peterborough
Board of Health Meets March 13
Location: Council Chambers, Peterborough County Court House
The community is advised that the next meeting of the Board of Health will take place on Wednesday, March 13, 2013 at 4:45 p.m. in the Council Chambers of the Peterborough County Court House located at 470 Water Street, Peterborough.
Deputing at this board meeting will be local resident Hans Vink, and Casey Ready, Executive Director of the Community Counselling and Resource Centre, on the topic of the health impact of casinos.
To download the agenda and the online board package, please visit:
http://www.peterboroughpublichealth.ca/about-us/about-us-2/board-of-health/meeting-agendas
The final reports on gambling have now been posted on Public Health website by clicking on the Problem Gambling link on the home page. There are two reports: a technical report and a shorter staff report that represents an executive summary. Please note that the estimated numbers of both problem gamblers and the related health and social costs have been removed from the report as these estimates were based on very small sample sizes.
The meeting is open to the community and members of the media.
For further information, please contact:
Brittany Cadence
Communications Supervisor
Peterborough Public Health
(705) 743-1000, ext. 391
March 7, 2013 – Event Celebrates Healthy Eating and Student Nutrition Programs as Part of 2013 Nutrition Month
Today more than 5,000 local students and staff from 20 schools took part in a Canada-wide synchronized bite of locally grown crunchy fruit or vegetables to promote healthy eating during 2013 National Nutrition Month.
“The Great Big Crunch is a fun way to help kids learn about healthy foods and the role of local and global food systems,” said Chris McCarthy, Food For Kids Peterborough and County Student Nutrition Program Coordinator. “This event is growing in popularity every year and provides a great opportunity for our youth and teachers to understand how important nutrition is to lifelong learning and highlights the availability of local vegetables and fruit all year round.”
“The Great Big Crunch is a great way to get students excited about Nutrition Month and build healthy school nutrition environments ‘bite by bite’,” said Carolyn Doris, Public Health Nutritionist with Peterborough Public Health who also helped organize the event.
Food For Kids is a regional partner of the Ontario Farm to School Challenge, and as a result, Ontario grown apples, carrots and cucumbers for this year’s Great Big Crunch were subsidized through a grant from the Ontario Greenbelt Fund and Sustain Ontario. Local school breakfast programs have been part of an Ontario Farm to School Challenge which aims to increase use of locally grown foods in schools.
Organized locally by Food For Kids Peterborough and County, the Great Big Crunch is a national event initiated by FoodShare Toronto to raise awareness about healthy eating and local and global food systems. Last year a total of 148,095 participants across Canada joined in the loudest simultaneous apple crunch to date.
Food For Kids Peterborough and County is a non-profit community partnership which supports student nutrition programs in 46 elementary and secondary schools throughout Peterborough County and City. Each student nutrition program is staffed by volunteers who offer healthy food choices in an inviting inclusive and welcoming environment to all students. In the 2011-2012 school year, more than 960 community volunteers served 1.8 million breakfasts and snacks to local students. Over 175 local community partners donated food, funding, supplies, space, and volunteer time to support Food For Kids programs.
For more information about Food For Kids, visit www.pcchu-testing.ca/ffk. Follow Great Big Crunch activities on Twitter: #greatbigcrunch.
GREAT BIG CRUNCH – Carolyn Doris, Public Health Nutritionist (Audio Clip)
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For further information, please contact:
Chris McCarthy
Food For Kids Peterborough and County Student Nutrition Program Coordinator
(705) 742-2269
cmccarthy.snp@live.com
Brittany Cadence
Communications Supervisor
(705) 743-1000, ext. 391
bcadence@peterboroughpublichealth.ca
March 7, 2013 – New Ontario Government Introducing Ban on Tanning Beds for Youth Under 18
Read more here…
Tobacco and Marijuana
Lung Health and Cancer Risk
TUESDAY MARCH 26TH
7:00 p.m to 9:00 p.m
Peterborough Public Library
345 Aylmer Street North
FREE
DR. JOHN VLASSCHAERT, RESPIROLOGIST
Dr. Vlasschaert will compare the impact of tobacco and marijuana on lung health.
He will be joined by a community panel, including:
• an addictions counsellor
• two youth speaking about the influence on and outcomes of using pot and tobacco
This event is part of the Peterborough Drug Strategy series PotTalks. Follow the conversation on Twitter @drugstrategy #pottalks
For more information on this event and the Peterborough Drug Strategy:
www.peterboroughdrugstrategy.ca
March 4, 2013 – Public Health to Present Public Health Costs of Increased Gaming Access to Mar 5 Public Consultation Forum
According to Peterborough Public Health, the number of problem gamblers locally could double should a new casino come to Peterborough.
“There are a number of long-term social and public health costs associated with greater access to Electronic Gaming Machines and live gaming tables, such as increased prevalence of problem gamblers and greater alcohol use, especially among at-risk populations,” said Dr. Rosana Salvaterra, Medical Officer of Health. “Evidence tells us that ultimately the adverse effects of casinos far outweigh the benefits, especially when we consider the ripple effects faced by problem gamblers and the people in their lives including divorce, family breakdown, compromised child development through neglect and poverty, lost productivity and job loss.”
Research shows that prevalence rates for problem gamblers doubled in Niagara Falls the year following the introduction of a new casino, from 2.2% to 4.4%. The prevalence rate leveled off after a year or two once the casino lost its novelty. Assuming that Peterborough would see a doubling of the rates of 3.6% to 7.2%, it would result in an additional 3,984 residents becoming problem gamblers, bringing the estimated total to 7,969. In 2012, only 49 local problem gamblers sought treatment through FOURcast, a local addictions treatment service in Peterborough, representing 1% of the estimated number of problem gamblers in the community. This percentage is consistent with the research that shows that only 1 to 2% of problem gamblers seek treatment.
During her presentation to the public consultation session on March 5, Dr. Salvaterra will share the latest research used to predict the costs of problem gambling to our community for City Council’s consideration. It is estimated that every problem gambler costs our systems between $20,000 and $56,000 annually. That translates to an anticipated financial burden to the province and the Peterborough community in the range of $79.7 million to $223.2 million annually.
To receive a full copy of this report, please contact Monique Beneteau, Health Promoter, Peterborough Public Health at 705-743-1000, ext. 309 or mbeneteau@peterboroughpublichealth.ca .
For audio clips see:
Dr. Rosana Pellizari, Problem Gambling (Clip 1)
Dr. Rosana Pellizari, Problem Gambling (Clip 2)
Dr. Rosana Pellizari, Problem Gambling (Clip 3)
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For further information, please contact:
Brittany Cadence
Communications Supervisor
(705) 743-1000, ext. 391
