Two-thirds of teens aren’t active enough for optimal growth and development. Partly to blame is the time teens spend watching television, playing computer games and surfing the Internet instead of playing outdoors, it adds.

“We have heard and seen enough to know that teens are in trouble,” says Dr. Claire LeBlanc, a member of the Canadian Pediatric Society. “Research shows that only 36 per cent of Canadians under age 19 are active enough to maintain cardiovascular health. The disease process leading to osteoporosis (brittle-bone disease), hypertension and cardiovascular disease begins in childhood if physical activity levels are insufficient.” (more…)

Among the delights of late summer are fresh berries, wild and cultivated. There’s a huge array of them out there; bearberry, soapberry, buffaloberry, bilberry, currants, mulberries, blackberries, longans, rambutans and more.  The cultivated sorts are more familiar to most people, including rambutans, blueberries, strawberries and huckleberries. The great news is that all of these sweet delights are high in fiber, vitamin C, manganese, bioflavonoids and the anti-cancer compound ellagic acid. Oh, and they have great flavor and color too.
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