100-year-old Toronto Marathon runner denied record

The Canadian Press 

Posted: Oct 24, 2011 11:25 AM ET 

Last Updated: Oct 24, 2011 11:21 AM ET

Hundred-year-old marathoner Fauja Singh won't have a spot in the Guinness World Book of Records after all.

Singh attracted worldwide attention when he completed the Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon on Oct. 16.

But Guinness World Records told the BBC it won't recognize claims that Singh is the world's oldest marathon runner, because he can't show a birth certificate from 1911.

Singh has a British passport showing his date of birth as being April 1, 1911, as well as a letter from the Queen congratulating him on his 100th birthday.

A letter from Indian government officials state that no birth records were kept in 1911.

It took Singh over eight hours to cross the finish line, where he was met by a throng of media, supporters, family and friends.

Three days earlier, Singh claimed another eight records for 100-year-old men in eight track and field distances from 100 metres to 5,000 metres.

It appears those records will be recognized by World Masters Athletics..\

http://yorkregionbreakingnews.com/

© The Canadian Press, 2011

October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month

October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month

Your best partner in the fight against breast cancer

Breast cancer is the most frequently diagnosed cancer in Canadian women. We estimate 23,200 women in Canada will be diagnosed with breast cancer and 5,300 women will die from the disease in 2011.

The Canadian Cancer Society fights back against cancer by leading breast cancer prevention initiatives, offering information and support services for breast cancer patients and their families, funding world-class breast cancer research and advocating for cancer-related issues.

Prevention
We fight breast cancer by doing everything we can to prevent cancer from ever happening in the first place. As part of our mission work, we create awareness of the Ontario Breast Screening Program and educate women about breast screening through our Thingamaboob tool.

Take action! Did you know mammograms save lives by detecting the disease early when it's most treatable? If you're a woman 50 to 69 years old, fight back against breast cancer by getting a mammogram every two years. Talk to your healthcare professional or call the Ontario Breast Screening Program today at 1 800 668-9304 to book your own appointment.

ServicesThe Society cares about women living with breast cancer and their families. Our information and support services have been proven to decrease anxiety and increase people's ability to cope with cancer. If you know someone who is living with breast cancer, either as a patient or caregiver be sure to tell them about our free information and support services.

ResearchThis year, the Canadian Cancer Society is investing $2.7 million to support world-class breast cancer research. Recently, two of our ground-breaking breast cancer clinical trials made news headlines because they will change how breast cancer is prevented and treated around the world.

Our first study related to preventing breast cancer in women who are at increased risk for the disease. For these women our study found that the drug exemestane reduces their risk of developing the disease by 65 per cent.

The second study related to the treatment of breast cancer. Our study found that additional radiation treatment reduces risk of reoccurrence for women with early breast cancer.

Read more: http://www.cancer.ca/ontario/about%20us/od-mark%20your%20calendar/october%20is%20breast%20cancer%20awareness%20month.aspx?sc_lang=en#ixzz1bpKRUWm8

Chocolate lovers have fewer strokes: Study

Written by: Reuters Oct. 11, 2011


Tempted by a chocolate bar? Maybe indulging every so often is not a bad thing — especially if it’s dark chocolate.
According to a Swedish study in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology that looked at more than 33,000 women, the more chocolate the women said they ate, the lower their risk of stroke.
The results add to a growing body of evidence linking cocoa consumption to heart health, but they aren’t a free pass to gorge on chocolate.
“Given the observational design of the study, findings of this study cannot prove that it’s chocolate that lowers the risk of stroke,” said Susanna Larsson from Karolinska Institutet in Stockholm, in an email to Reuters Health.

While she believes chocolate has health benefits, she also warned that eating too much of it could be counterproductive.
“Chocolate should be consumed in moderation as it is high in calories, fat and sugar. As dark chocolate contains more cocoa and less sugar than milk chocolate, consumption of dark chocolate would be more beneficial.”
Larsson and her colleagues tapped into data from a mammography study that included self-reports of how much chocolate women ate in 1997. The women ranged in age from 49 to 83 years.

Over the next decade, there were 1,549 strokes among the group. The more chocolate women ate, the lower their risk.
Among those with the highest weekly chocolate intake, more than 45 grams, there were 2.5 strokes per 1,000 women per year. That figure was 7.8 per 1,000 among women who at the least, less than 8.9 grams a week.
Scientists speculate that substances known as flavonoids, in particular so-called flavanois, may be responsible for chocolate’s apparent impact on health.

According to Larsson, flavonoids have been shown to cut high blood pressure, a risk factor for strokes, and improve other blood factors linked to heart health. Whether that theoretical benefit translates to real-life benefits remains to be proven by rigorous studies, however.

Nearly 800,000 people in the United States suffer a stroke every year, with about a sixth of them dying of it and many more left disabled.
For those at high risk, doctors recommend blood pressure medicine, quitting smoking, exercising more and eating a healthier diet — but so far, chocolate isn’t on the list.