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November 24, 2014 – Public Health Calls For More Product Regulation As Concerns Grow Regarding Health Risks of E-Cigarettes

Today’s announcement from the Ontario government that it plans to prohibit e-cigarettes use wherever smoking is not permitted, and ban sales to minors, displays and promotion, was commended by Peterborough Public Health.

“This helps reduce the confusion when it comes to enforcing smoke-free places, and also upholds the cultural value that smoking in any form is socially unacceptable,” said Donna Churipuy, Manager of Environmental Health Programs with Public Health.  “Peterborough’s leadership over the years creating smoke-free spaces is an important part of public health’s success lowering tobacco use rates overall, so we’re pleased to see this latest provincial effort to protect the health of all residents.”

While today’s legislation makes it easier to enforce smoke-free places, Public Health pointed out that further regulation is needed to control the safety of e-cigarette products.  Currently there is no oversight governing how much nicotine or other chemicals are loaded into e-cigarette vials, causing poisoning in children in other parts of North America. Health units across the province have called for more legislation to address the growing concern of exposure to e-cigarette vapours containing nicotine and other chemicals.

In addition to its plans to restrict the use of e-cigarettes, the Ontario government also announced proposed changes that would make tobacco products less tempting by banning flavoured tobacco, including menthol. These changes are part of the province’s efforts to have the lowest smoking rate in Canada.

 

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For further information, please contact:
Donna Churipuy
Manager, Environmental Health Programs
(705) 743-1000, ext. 218

 

November 24, 2014 – Online Donations for Healthy Students, a Perfect Holiday Gift for Teachers

Looking for an extra special way to celebrate your child’s teachers this holiday season?  Make an easy, online donation to Food For Kids at www.peterboroughpublichealth.ca/ffk on December 2 to support your school’s breakfast club.

After Black Friday and Cyber Monday comes “Giving Tuesday”, a global day for giving back. “Giving to your local breakfast programs this holiday season in lieu of gifts is a great way to make a positive difference in Peterborough City and County—it’s a gift that gives more!  A $30 donation provides a school with 40 pounds of locally grown food,” said Luisa Magalhaes, Public Health Nutritionist.  “Donations are the backbone of Food For Kids’ student nutrition programs across the city and county, so we’re inviting families and community members to make a donation online that recognizes someone special while helping our students be well-nourished and ready to learn.”  Food For Kids Peterborough and County is a non-profit community partnership that has supported breakfast programs in local schools for over 20 years.

Donations made to Food For Kids can be directed to specific school programs.  Donors are able to include a message in the comment box, including a teacher’s name and school, and Food For Kids will send a thank-you card to the teacher on their behalf.  To make a donation, visit www.peterboroughpublichealth.ca/ffk, click on “Donate Now” and select “Food For Kids”. Tax receipts are available.

In the 2013/2014 school year, Food For Kids ensured that 17,434 students had access to breakfast programs in 47 schools throughout Peterborough City and County.  A total of 1,037 volunteers contributed an average of 903 hours each week to prepare and serve the meals for the students.  Over 160 generous local partners donated food, supplies, funds, time and space – truly a remarkable community-wide effort to give local students a healthy start to their day so that they can perform their best.

Ms. Magalhaes noted that kids come to school hungry for many reasons, such as long bus rides, rushed mornings, or lack of food at home.  Your local school program welcomes donations of food items such as bags of apples, cheese strings, and yogurt tubes throughout the school year.

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For further information, please contact:

Luisa Magalhaes, MHSc, RD
Public Health Nutritionist
(705) 743-1000, ext. 233

November 19, 2014 – For many smokers the cost of nicotine replacement products can be a barrier to quitting. The STOP (Smoking Treatment for Ontario Patients) Program workshop offers eligible participants in Peterborough five weeks of cost-free nicotine replacement therapy and smoking cessation information to help them in their quit attempt.

Nicotine replacement therapy has been shown to effectively help people quit smoking by easing withdrawal symptoms. Workshop participants also receive educational material with quit smoking and relapse prevention strategies, along with information to address other unhealthy lifestyle factors that are known to accompany smoking.

STOP workshops will be held in Peterborough on Tuesday, December 2, 2014. For more information, to see if you are eligible to participate and to register for the workshop(s) call Peterborough Public Health at (705) 743-1000.

The STOP Program is led by the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH), and is funded by the Ontario Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care as part of its Smoke-Free Ontario Strategy.

CAMH is Canada’s leading addiction and mental health teaching hospital. Integrating clinical care, scientific research, education, policy development and health promotion, CAMH transforms the lives of people impacted by mental health and addiction issues.

For more information contact: Michael Torres, CAMH Media Relations, at (416) 595-6015.

Mary Pat Fasken, Peterborough Public Health, at (705) 743-1000 ext. 217

Background: The STOP Program

Introduced in 2005 through a partnership between the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) and the former Ontario Ministry of Health Promotion and Sport, the STOP Program has already provided smoking cessation medication, free of charge, along with behavioural support to an unprecedented 90,000 Ontarians.

Questionnaires administered pre- and post-treatment will help STOP Program researchers learn more about the long-term impact of providing nicotine replacement therapy and other smoking cessation aids free of charge to smokers across Ontario. To date, results for STOP participants have shown an improvement of at least two times the typical quit rates.

November 18, 2014 – Free Orange Juice Given to Local Student Nutrition Programs Since 1996

Minute Maid staff were on hand this morning at St. John’s school serving food to students at the breakfast program.  The special event recognized Minute Maid, not only a proud supporter of Breakfast Clubs of Canada across Ontario since 2003, but also one of the area’s longest-standing donors to local student nutrition programs, helping our programs in Peterborough and County since 1996.

“For the past 18 years, Minute Maid has been a valuable sponsor to our programs,” said Chris McCarthy, Student Nutrition Program Coordinator with Food for Kids Peterborough and County.  “Minute Maid’s ongoing generous donation of juice contributes cost savings to our programs, and provides healthy food choices for our students.”  All 48 local schools who run breakfast programs are invited to pick-up a free case of orange juice every month; from January until June of this year, the donation valued $4,620.

Minute Maid is one of over 160 local generous community donors who support Food For Kids programs with financial and in-kind donations. Student nutrition (breakfast) programs are open to all students accessing healthy breakfasts and snacks, allowing them to attend school well-nourished and ready to learn.  In the 2013-2014 school year, 17, 434 students enjoyed almost 2.2 million meals locally through Food For Kids breakfast programs. Food For Kids is grateful to all who donate food, funding, supplies, space and volunteer time to make our programs a success! 

Programs are partially funded by the Ontario Ministry of Children and Youth Services, Breakfast Clubs of Canada, and Breakfast for Learning through the Peterborough Family Resource Centre, as well as from generous donations from the community.

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For further information, please contact:

Luisa Magalhaes, MHSc, RD                                         Chris McCarthy

Public Health Nutritionist                                              Student Nutrition Program Coordinator

Peterborough Public Health                  Food For Kids Peterborough and County

705-743-1000, ext. 233                                                  cmccarthy.snp@live.com

November 14, 2014 – To view the meeting summary from the November 12 meeting of the Board of Health please click the image below:

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November 13, 2014 – Free Presentation on November 25 by Peterborough Healthy Families Hosts Dr. Rosana Salvaterra

Peterborough Healthy Families invites everyone, especially parents of teenagers, to a special presentation on Tuesday, November 25 entitled “Let’s Talk About Sex: Talking With Your Teen”.

Featuring Diane Lockman, Public Health Nurse and Dr. Rosana Salvaterra, Medical Officer of Health from Peterborough Public Health, the presentation will cover birth control, sexually-transmitted infections, vaccines and healthy relationships.  The talk will be fun and participatory to make it easier to discuss what can be a touchy subject.

“Talking with your teen about sex can be a challenge, and we want parents to know there’s lots of support out there for them,” said Dr. Salvaterra.  “We hope to make this evening fun and interactive so parents gain the knowledge and approaches they need to make sexuality conversations feel more natural.”

This free presentation takes place on Tuesday, November 25 from 7:00 to 9:00 p.m. at the Peterborough Public Library on 345 Aylmer St. N.  Light refreshments are provided. For further information, please call Public Health at 705-743-1000.

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For further information, please contact:
Leisa Baker
Public Health Nurse
(705) 743-1000, ext. 312

 

November 13, 2014 – Public Health Releases 2014 Report “Limited Incomes: A Recipe For Hunger”

At last night’s Board of Health meeting, Peterborough Public Health released its annual Limited Incomes: A Recipe For Hunger report based on the recent Nutritious Food Basket survey.  This year’s report shows that people living on low incomes in our community cannot afford to eat a healthy diet.

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“It is distressing to see the health of thousands of local residents compromised because social assistance progr

ams, and often low wages, don’t provide enough income for them to afford nutritious foods,” said Dr. Rosana Salvaterra, Medical Officer of Health.  “It’s well known that when people gain food security it not only improves their overall quality of life but reduces future strain on the health system.  With 11.5% of our local households experiencing food insecurity, this is a public health crisis that requires the urgent attention and cooperation of all levels of government.”

The annual Nutritious Food Basket survey, conducted in May 2014 by Peterborough Public Health, consists of visiting seven grocery stores throughout the region to price 67 food items to determine the lowest available price for healthy food.  While the Limited Incomes report notes local food prices have increased by 7.6% over the past two years, the main issue for residents is not the cost of food, but that their incomes are too low. For example, after paying for his shelter costs, a single man receiving Ontario Works benefits would experience a monthly deficit of $245 each month if he spent the $286 required for a nutritious diet, after paying his shelter costs, and without considering the costs of other basic necessities such as clothing, transportation and medical costs.  In this case, social assistance benefits are clearly inadequate to cover the cost of a healthy diet and also meet basic living expenses. 

The problem of food insecurity exists not only for households receiving social assistance but also for those trying to live on minimum wage and other low wage employment.   Hunger Count 2014 from Food Banks Canada found that 9.3% of Ontarians using food banks have jobs.   

Food security is necessary for good health.   Programs such as food banks, community meal programs and emergency food access programs provide essential short-term relief to those who are in need. However, research shows that poverty is the root cause of food insecurity. Therefore, these short-term strategies need to be part of a broader and longer-term strategy that addresses poverty. Community members are invited to learn more about the work the Peterborough Community Food Network (www.foodinpeterborough.ca) and the Peterborough Poverty Reduction Network (http://ptbopovertyreduction.com) are doing to create more permanent solutions  which help families and individuals to make ends meet in the City and County of Peterborough. 

To access a copy of the 2014 Limited Incomes: A Recipe For Hunger report, please visit www.peterboroughpublichealth.ca, click on “About Us” and then “Plans and Reports”.

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For further information, please contact:
Brittany Cadence, Communications Supervisor
(705) 743-1000, ext. 391

November 8, 2014 – Ontario Further Protecting Children and Youth from Smoking

Click here to read more from the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care

November 7, 2014 – Location: Peterborough Regional Health Centre, Board Room (W5901)

The community is advised that the next meeting of the Board of Health will take place on Wednesday, November 12, 2014 at 4:45 p.m. in the Board Room (W5901) of the Peterborough Regional Health Centre located at 1 Hospital Drive, Peterborough.

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 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

141104 Lets Talk About Sex