Doctors Notes / en Feeling SAD? Head toward the light, advises ¸ŁŔűĽ§×ÔÎżexpert /news/feeling-sad-head-toward-light-advises-u-t-expert <span class="field field--name-title field--type-string field--label-hidden">Feeling SAD? Head toward the light, advises ¸ŁŔűĽ§×ÔÎżexpert</span> <span class="field field--name-uid field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden"><span>rasbachn</span></span> <span class="field field--name-created field--type-created field--label-hidden"><time datetime="2017-10-30T16:42:22-04:00" title="Monday, October 30, 2017 - 16:42" class="datetime">Mon, 10/30/2017 - 16:42</time> </span> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-field-cutline-long field--type-text-long field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Cutline</div> <div class="field__item"> Three to five per cent of Canadians suffer from Seasonal Affective Disorder, but there is help (photo by Amy Messere via Flickr)</div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-topic field--type-entity-reference field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Topic</div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/topics/our-community" hreflang="en">Our Community</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-story-tags field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/doctors-notes" hreflang="en">Doctors Notes</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/faculty-medicine" hreflang="en">Faculty of Medicine</a></div> </div> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p>It’s that time of year again, when the days become shorter – especially after the clocks get turned back early Sunday morning – and people begin to feel the effects of Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD).</p> <p>Dr. <strong>Robert Levitan</strong>, a professor of psychiatry and physiology and the Cameron Parker Holcombe Wilson Chair in Depression Studies at the University of Toronto’s Faculty of Medicine, says that peak season for SAD is late January and February, but at this time in the season, he&nbsp;sees “a lot of patients who are oversleeping and experiencing fatigue and cravings for carbohydrates such as sweets, pasta and bread – especially women.”</p> <p>These more physical symptoms set in first, followed by sad moods, which&nbsp;people begin to feel more towards&nbsp;the end of the year,</p> <p>There is help for the 3 to 5 per cent of Canadians who suffer from SAD, writes Levitan&nbsp;in this week’s edition of<em> </em><a href="https://www.thestar.com/life/health_wellness/2017/10/30/feeling-sad-head-toward-the-light-doctors-notes.html">Doctors’ Notes</a>, the&nbsp;<em>Toronto Star</em>’s weekly column created by medical experts from the University of Toronto.</p> <p>First and foremost, SAD sufferers should try&nbsp;<a href="https://www.thestar.com/life/2016/11/13/early-light-box-therapy-treats-seasonal-affective-disorder.html">light therapy</a>. It’s simple, he writes: "You sit next to an ultraviolet-filtered lamp designed for SAD for 30 minutes a day. Please only use a unit that has been created with UV-filters for the treatment of SAD."&nbsp;</p> <p>Levitan also writes that Canadian researchers have found that anti-depressant SSRI medications work as well as light, adding that doctors sometimes add a supplement called tryptophan to the light therapy.&nbsp;</p> <h3>Read the entire <a href="https://www.thestar.com/life/health_wellness/2017/10/30/feeling-sad-head-toward-the-light-doctors-notes.html">Doctors' Notes</a> column&nbsp;</h3> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-home-page-banner field--type-boolean field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">News home page banner</div> <div class="field__item">Off</div> </div> Mon, 30 Oct 2017 20:42:22 +0000 rasbachn 120404 at Asthma: ¸ŁŔűĽ§×ÔÎżexpert says breathing problems are often under-tested and over-treated /news/asthma-u-t-expert-says-breathing-problems-are-often-under-tested-and-over-treated-1 <span class="field field--name-title field--type-string field--label-hidden">Asthma: ¸ŁŔűĽ§×ÔÎżexpert says breathing problems are often under-tested and over-treated</span> <div class="field field--name-field-featured-picture field--type-image field--label-hidden field__item"> <img loading="eager" srcset="/sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_370/public/2017-08-15-torontohaze-flickr.jpg?h=afdc3185&amp;itok=9k3ozxcY 370w, /sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_740/public/2017-08-15-torontohaze-flickr.jpg?h=afdc3185&amp;itok=P7rYjzwX 740w, /sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_1110/public/2017-08-15-torontohaze-flickr.jpg?h=afdc3185&amp;itok=0zY72ToO 1110w" sizes="(min-width:1200px) 1110px, (max-width: 1199px) 80vw, (max-width: 767px) 90vw, (max-width: 575px) 95vw" width="740" height="494" src="/sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_370/public/2017-08-15-torontohaze-flickr.jpg?h=afdc3185&amp;itok=9k3ozxcY" alt> </div> <span class="field field--name-uid field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden"><span>rasbachn</span></span> <span class="field field--name-created field--type-created field--label-hidden"><time datetime="2017-08-15T12:10:46-04:00" title="Tuesday, August 15, 2017 - 12:10" class="datetime">Tue, 08/15/2017 - 12:10</time> </span> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-field-cutline-long field--type-text-long field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Cutline</div> <div class="field__item">Asthma patients are often given antibiotics even though flare-ups like pollution won't be helped by those drugs. (photo by stephen boisvert via Flickr)</div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-topic field--type-entity-reference field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Topic</div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/topics/city-culture" hreflang="en">City &amp; Culture</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-story-tags field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/faculty-medicine" hreflang="en">Faculty of Medicine</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/wellness" hreflang="en">Wellness</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/doctors-notes" hreflang="en">Doctors Notes</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-subheadline field--type-string-long field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Subheadline</div> <div class="field__item">Patients should make sure they get formal testing before taking medications</div> </div> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p>With its heat and humidity, summer is the season for breathing problems, like asthma flare-ups and aggravation of bronchitis. But Dr. <strong>Samir Gupta</strong>, an assistant professor in U of T’s Faculty of Medicine and a respirologist at St. Michael’s Hospital, says breathing issues are often under-tested and over-treated.</p> <p>From asthma and bronchitis to COPD, many physicians aren't properly testing patients and often prescribe too many antibiotics, Gupta explains <a href="https://www.thestar.com/life/health_wellness/2017/08/14/breathing-issues-are-often-under-tested-over-treated.html">in the current edition of Doctors' Notes</a>, a weekly column in the&nbsp;<em>Toronto Star</em> written&nbsp;by members of U of T's Faculty of Medicine.</p> <p>Patients who have been told they have COPD or asthma should ask their doctor to be tested, especially before starting treatment, Gupta writes. Too often, asthma patients are given antibiotics even though the most common triggers for a&nbsp; flare-up&nbsp;– allergens, smoke, pollution or viruses&nbsp;–&nbsp;won’t be helped by those drugs.</p> <p>There is help, Gupta says: overtreatment and under-testing are behind the “Choosing Wisely” movement, led by University of Toronto faculty members. They produce Top 5 lists that detail tests and treatments that are still used by doctors&nbsp;but aren’t supported by medical evidence.</p> <p>In the case of breathing problems, for example, they look at inhaler medications, which are often prescribed without a formal test. But Gupta points out that a recent large Canadian study showed that one-third of patients who had been told they had asthma by their doctor did not have it when formally tested.</p> <h3><a href="https://www.thestar.com/life/health_wellness/2017/08/14/breathing-issues-are-often-under-tested-over-treated.html">Read the entire Doctors’ Notes column in the Toronto Star</a></h3> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-home-page-banner field--type-boolean field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">News home page banner</div> <div class="field__item">Off</div> </div> Tue, 15 Aug 2017 16:10:46 +0000 rasbachn 112573 at Put down the screen, put on some sun screen: ¸ŁŔűĽ§×ÔÎżexpert on getting children physically active /news/put-down-screen-put-some-sun-screen-u-t-expert-getting-children-physically-active <span class="field field--name-title field--type-string field--label-hidden">Put down the screen, put on some sun screen: ¸ŁŔűĽ§×ÔÎżexpert on getting children physically active</span> <div class="field field--name-field-featured-picture field--type-image field--label-hidden field__item"> <img loading="eager" srcset="/sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_370/public/2017-08-08-screens-lead.jpg?h=afdc3185&amp;itok=ydWi5BpP 370w, /sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_740/public/2017-08-08-screens-lead.jpg?h=afdc3185&amp;itok=g1kOdgvA 740w, /sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_1110/public/2017-08-08-screens-lead.jpg?h=afdc3185&amp;itok=56AgEvDu 1110w" sizes="(min-width:1200px) 1110px, (max-width: 1199px) 80vw, (max-width: 767px) 90vw, (max-width: 575px) 95vw" width="740" height="494" src="/sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_370/public/2017-08-08-screens-lead.jpg?h=afdc3185&amp;itok=ydWi5BpP" alt="Photo of child's hand using screen"> </div> <span class="field field--name-uid field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden"><span>krisha</span></span> <span class="field field--name-created field--type-created field--label-hidden"><time datetime="2017-08-08T11:49:33-04:00" title="Tuesday, August 8, 2017 - 11:49" class="datetime">Tue, 08/08/2017 - 11:49</time> </span> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-field-cutline-long field--type-text-long field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Cutline</div> <div class="field__item">Screen time is not recommended at all for children under the age of two, Dr. Paul Cantarutti writes (photo by Brad Flickinger via Flickr)</div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-topic field--type-entity-reference field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Topic</div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/topics/city-culture" hreflang="en">City &amp; Culture</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-story-tags field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/children" hreflang="en">Children</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/faculty-medicine" hreflang="en">Faculty of Medicine</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/doctors-notes" hreflang="en">Doctors Notes</a></div> </div> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p>Kids should be putting down the screens, and putting on the sun screen, says Dr. <strong>Paul Cantarutti</strong>, an assistant professor at the department of family &amp; community medicine at the University of Toronto.&nbsp;</p> <p>The chief of the department of family &amp; community medicine at Southlake Regional Health Centre&nbsp;talks&nbsp;about children and physical activity in&nbsp;the current edition of <a href="http://www.thestar.com/life/health_wellness/2017/08/07/how-to-keep-kids-active-and-off-screens-in-summer.html">Doctors' Notes</a>,&nbsp;a weekly column in the&nbsp;<em>Toronto Star</em>, which is written&nbsp;by members of U of T's Faculty of Medicine.</p> <p>Cantarutti writes that while we know “physical activity, especially among young children, is highly beneficial, contributing to a lower risk of obesity and increased motor skill development, psychosocial health and heart health,” fewer&nbsp;than a third of Canadian children are receiving the minimum recommended “one hour of energetic play” by the age of five.</p> <p>Research shows that more than&nbsp;10 per cent of children between the ages of three and 19 are obese, and children who consistently spend over four hours watching TV on a daily basis are more likely to be overweight.</p> <p>“Although technology has provided us with advancements to improve efficiency, increase our accessibility for news and entertainment, and expand our capabilities for connecting with others, Canadian health guidelines recommend that children and adolescents should still limit recreational screen time to no more than one to two hours per day,” he writes. “Screen time is not recommended at all for children under the age of two,” he writes.</p> <p>Cantarutti recommends that both children and teenagers participate in at least an hour of physical activity each day, and that parents lead by example.&nbsp;</p> <p>“Remember, it’s OK for kids to be a little bored –&nbsp;this encourages them to develop the skills required to fill up their time. Encourage your children to use their imaginations, to connect with friends or find new activities that might improve their physical, cognitive and social skills.”</p> <h2><a href="https://www.thestar.com/life/health_wellness/2017/08/07/how-to-keep-kids-active-and-off-screens-in-summer.html">Read the entire Doctors' Notes column in the <em>Toronto Star</em></a></h2> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-home-page-banner field--type-boolean field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">News home page banner</div> <div class="field__item">Off</div> </div> Tue, 08 Aug 2017 15:49:33 +0000 krisha 111893 at Lyme disease: ¸ŁŔűĽ§×ÔÎżexpert says don't let fear of tick bites keep you inside /news/lyme-disease-u-t-physician-says-don-t-let-fear-tick-bites-keep-you-inside <span class="field field--name-title field--type-string field--label-hidden">Lyme disease: ¸ŁŔűĽ§×ÔÎżexpert says don't let fear of tick bites keep you inside</span> <div class="field field--name-field-featured-picture field--type-image field--label-hidden field__item"> <img loading="eager" srcset="/sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_370/public/2017-07-17-Lyme.jpg?h=afdc3185&amp;itok=MWv7E9BJ 370w, /sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_740/public/2017-07-17-Lyme.jpg?h=afdc3185&amp;itok=jowQkPki 740w, /sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_1110/public/2017-07-17-Lyme.jpg?h=afdc3185&amp;itok=3mX7Li7o 1110w" sizes="(min-width:1200px) 1110px, (max-width: 1199px) 80vw, (max-width: 767px) 90vw, (max-width: 575px) 95vw" width="740" height="494" src="/sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_370/public/2017-07-17-Lyme.jpg?h=afdc3185&amp;itok=MWv7E9BJ" alt> </div> <span class="field field--name-uid field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden"><span>ullahnor</span></span> <span class="field field--name-created field--type-created field--label-hidden"><time datetime="2017-07-17T15:55:21-04:00" title="Monday, July 17, 2017 - 15:55" class="datetime">Mon, 07/17/2017 - 15:55</time> </span> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-field-cutline-long field--type-text-long field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Cutline</div> <div class="field__item">After a day outside, take a shower and check your pet and yourself for ticks, says Tara Moriarty (photo by Bertrand Guay/AFP/Getty Images)</div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-author-reporters field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/authors-reporters/tara-moriarty" hreflang="en">Tara Moriarty</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-topic field--type-entity-reference field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Topic</div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/topics/city-culture" hreflang="en">City &amp; Culture</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-story-tags field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/health" hreflang="en">Health</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/wellness" hreflang="en">Wellness</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/medicine" hreflang="en">Medicine</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/doctors-notes" hreflang="en">Doctors Notes</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-subheadline field--type-string-long field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Subheadline</div> <div class="field__item">The importance of regular tick checks and showering after a day outdoors</div> </div> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p>This summer is shaping up to be a very big tick season because the weather has been cool and wet, says <strong>Tara Moriarty</strong>, an associate professor in U of T's Faculty of Dentistry who is also cross-appointed&nbsp;to the Faculty of Medicine’s department of laboratory medicine and pathobiology.</p> <p>Those are the ideal conditions for the black-legged tick that carries the bacteria causing Lyme disease, Moriarty explains in <a href="https://www.thestar.com/life/health_wellness/2017/07/17/doctors-notes-dont-let-fear-of-lyme-disease-keep-you-inside.html">the current edition of Doctors' Notes</a>,&nbsp;a weekly column in the&nbsp;Toronto Star,&nbsp;written&nbsp;by members of U of T's Faculty of Medicine.</p> <p>If this sounds worrisome, she's got good and bad news.</p> <p>“First, a reality check. Estimates from early Lyme disease vaccine trials suggest that about 90 per cent of people infected with the bacteria don’t develop major symptoms of the disease such as arthritis. Many don’t know they’re infected. Ten per cent are diagnosed with Lyme disease and receive antibiotics, and of those, another 10 per cent have a version of Lyme that doesn’t respond well to treatment. This means about one per cent of people infected with Lyme bacteria suffer the terrible, often crippling, long-lasting symptoms that make this disease so feared –&nbsp;but 99 per cent don’t.&nbsp;</p> <p>Lyme disease isn’t common yet in many parts of Ontario, including the Toronto region, because traditionally our climate doesn’t allow ticks to survive the winter in large numbers, Moriarty writes.&nbsp;But by&nbsp;2020, she predicts, all of southern Ontario extending east to Quebec and north to southern parts of Algonquin Park will be high-risk areas for Lyme-carrying ticks. And, thanks to&nbsp;climate warming, the GTA has developed the ideal conditions for ticks to live here year-round.&nbsp;</p> <h3><a href="https://www.thestar.com/life/health_wellness/2017/07/17/doctors-notes-dont-let-fear-of-lyme-disease-keep-you-inside.html">Read the entire Doctors'&nbsp;Notes column in the <em>Toronto Star</em></a></h3> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-home-page-banner field--type-boolean field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">News home page banner</div> <div class="field__item">Off</div> </div> Mon, 17 Jul 2017 19:55:21 +0000 ullahnor 110298 at