Zoomer Week in Review

September 1 2024-Tips For This Wasp Season & The "Grandma Babysitting Club" They seem to be everywhere this summer…unwanted guests at our backyard bbq’s, outdoor family gatherings forcing many of us indoors. Why so many wasps now, is there anything you can do to keep them away, and what should you do if you get stung? We posed these questions and more to Royal Ontario Museum’s entomology expert Antonia Guidotti. And An Ontario grandmother has come up with a novel approach to help families find temporary childcare. Since launching the ‘Grandma Babysitting Club’ earlier this year, founder Maria Martin has recruited six other Grandmas to the club offering in-home child care, with the goal of expanding the program. It has the added bonus of keeping the retirees young. We reached Maria Martin at her home in Kitchener.

August 25 2024-Wait Times for Surgery in Ontario & What Are We Agreeing to When We Click “I Agree” There is a staggering variation in wait times for elective surgery in Ontario. For cataract surgery for instance, it ranges from 15 days for some patients to 249 days for others. And it’s not just the difference from one hospital or clinic to another, but from surgeon to surgeon. I talked with Dr. David Urbach, head of surgery at Women’s College Hospital, and author of a study that tracked the time between a diagnosis and the date of surgery. And Thankfully Disney has backed off its bid to block a wrongful death lawsuit. But the entertainment giant had been claiming that a man could not sue it over the death of his wife because of terms he signed up to in a free trial of Disney+. But the question remains: what are we agreeing to when we click “I agree.” I talked with Technology analyst Carmi Levi.

August 18 2024-Professional Grief Counselling For The Loss Of A Pet & The Rich History Of The Noble Anchovy To take on ownership of a pet is to welcome a new, full-fledged member into your family, and there is an entire industry devoted to their care. With the strong emotional ties that bind people to pets, there is even professional help available to overcome the loss when they die. Certified pet grief counsellor Helen Goldberg helped us explore this service. And For something so small, they get a big reaction on both sides of the spectrum. Love 'em or leave 'em, anchovies have a rich, storied history dating back thousands of years. We caught up with author Christopher Beckman, who wrote the book on them.

August 11 2024-LTC Home Offering 24/7 Medical Record Access & How Flooding Can Damage Your Vehicle It’s believed to be a first in this country. A Toronto long-term care home is offering families direct access to their loved ones’ medical records 24 hours a day..the first not for profit to offer the service. Meighen Health Centre, run by the Canadian Salvation Army, reports that 84 percent of families are using the app regularly, cutting down on time spent calling staff about their loved ones. We reached Varsha Chaugai, a biomedical engineer in Ottawa and co-founder and CEO of Evoke Health. And Scenes of flooding and driver rescues on the DVP and other arteries this Summer come amid a record rainfall for July. And with climate change, comes a stark reminder of the dangers of heavy rainfall when travelling. For some tips on what to do if you’re caught in high rising water, we reached Shari Prymak, Senior Consultant with Car Help Canada.

August 4 2024-Are the Olympics Worth the Cost for Host Cities & How Olympics Will Impact Upcoming Tennis Tournament in Toronto Billions of people around the world are watching the Summer olympics in Paris. There’s no question the spectacle is entertaining and sometimes uplifting. But Sports Economist and senior lecturer Moshe Lander argues the games and similar events like the World cup do not deliver the benefits they promise to the locals who foot the bill. And, We’ve been talking about the perils of hosting a big international event like the Olympics. How does it compare to smaller annual events like the National bank Open Tennis set to start next week? The experts say those can make money and benefit the local economy because they come back to the same venue year after year. I talked with Tennis Canada CEO Gavin Ziv.

Toronto was already one of the most congested cities in the world, But the simultaneous construction projects now underway have made it unbearable. It takes hours more to commute on the Gardiner. Travel time has tripled along Spadina and it can take 40 minutes to drive a few blocks on the only road now open in and out of Liberty Village. It may also be shortening our lives. I talked with Jeffrey Brook, Associate Professor at the University of Toronto’s Dalla Lana School of Public Health. And Libby speaks with cyclist Lloyd Taylor about his journey with Parkinson's disease, how exercise has been helping to alleviate symptoms he deals with and how he is raising awareness about the benefits of movement and exercise through the Spinning Wheels cross-Canada relay.

July 21 2024- What a Trump Presidency Would Mean For Canada & Backlash From Overtourism What would a Donald Trump victory in the US mean for Canada? At this week’s Convention, Republican leaders blamed free trade for massive job losses in the American rust belt. And there’s the impact of trying to meet our NATO spending target and trying to compete with lower American taxes. Canadian politicians on all sides of the political spectrum are worried. I talked with Jack Mintz of the Macdonald Laurier Institute and the University of Calgary's School of Public Policy. And For most of us, it’s a great thing - the ability to get on a plane, to fulfill a bucket list item or capture the perfect Instagram shot by visiting one of the great cities of the world. But with tourism approaching record levels, the strain on local resources and residents is bringing a backlash. I asked Toronto Metropolitan University Hospitality Professor and author Rachel Dodds what we can and should do about it.

July 14 2024-What Ottawa Promised at the NATO Summit & The History of Our Obsession with Cats Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has finally announced that Canada intends to meet Nato’s 2% military spending target by 2032. The last minute announcement came after heavy criticism from allies at this week’s NATO summit in Washington. Libby Znaimer reached Prof. Stephen Saidman at the NATO Summit Expert Forum in Washington DC. And, Their antics take up a huge amount of bandwidth on the Internet and we are vastly amused at seeing them dressed as humans and doing human-like things. I am speaking , of course, about cats. But it wasn’t always this way. Cats were seen as common pests mainly useful for catching mice until the end of the 19th century. That’s when author and historian Kathryn Hughes says the great cat mania set in. Libby reached her in London to talk about her book, "Catland".

July 7 2024-Dan Hill Reflects On His Father's Legacy & Heritage Sites Lacking Safeguards In Canada The name of a Canadian human rights defender will appear on a Toronto public library after a six month renaming effort. It's another piece of Toronto that's been stripped of the Dundas name, joining Yonge Dundas Square, to be renamed Sankofa Square. This fall, the Jane Dundas branch will be named after the late Daniel G. Hill, a historian, writer, and activist who served as the inaugural director of the Ontario Human Rights Commission, later as commissioner. In the 90s, Hill was awarded the Order of Ontario and appointed an Officer of the Order of Canada. We reached his son, Grammy and Juno award -winning artist Dan Hill. And Last month's devastating fire at Toronto's St. Anne’s Anglican Church is a cautionary tale about preserving historic buildings. Built between 1907 and 1908, the church did not have a sprinkler system to protect its collection of religious murals — including some by the Group of Seven — that have now been lost. Experts warn that hundreds if not thousands of churches across Canada are in the same predicament of lacking certain safeguards. We reached Deb Crawford, Chair of the Architectural Conservancy Ontario.

June 30 2024-Canada's Changing Population & New Biography Reflects on Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's Triumphs and Failures The number of Canadians 85 and older is expected to triple by the year 2073 to as many as 4.3 million. The projections released this week by Statistics Canada aso finds that the overall population could reach 63 million in half a century. Low birth rates mean migration will be the main driver of Canada's growth for the foreseeable future. We reached demographer Doug Norris who worries the trends will put added pressure on several fronts. And The triumphs and failures of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau are chronicled in a new biography by award-winning journalist and author Stephen Maher. Maher spoke with over 200 insiders to reveal the public and private life of the man who’s led this country for nine years, chronicling the Liberals leader’s triumphs and failures. We reached Stephen Maher to talk about his book called Prince: The Turbulent Reign of Justin Trudeau

June 23 2024-Best Before Dates & June is Migraine Awareness Month Best before dates are prompting Canadian consumers to throw away food, wasting up to $400 dollars worth of edible groceries each year. In financial terms, the value of this potentially rescuable food is an astonishing $49.5 billion. That's why there’s a new campaign called Look, Smell, Taste: Canada's Recipe for Reducing Food Waste as experts try to dispel the belief that ‘best before’ does not mean ‘bad after.’ We reached Sylvain Charlebois, Senior Director, Agri-Food Analytics Lab at Dalhousie University to find out how it works. And June is Migraine Awareness month, and there’s a national campaign to offer more supportive working environments to the millions of Canadians living with the debilitating neurological disease. As a show of solidarity with sufferers, Canadians are encouraged to turn their out of office alert for four hours - which is the minimum duration of an average migraine headache. We reached Dr. Elizabeth Leroux, neurologist and founder of Migraine Canada to find out about the campaign and new treatment options available.

June 16 2024-B.C.'s Senior Advocate Is Championing the Rights of Canada's 65 + & This Canadian Zoomer Makes Miss Universe Pageant History He’s only been Seniors Advocate for B.C. for several months but Dan Levitt has been a champion for Seniors for years and, as you’ll hear, this acclaimed international speaker, elder care leader, writer and gerontologist has returned from New York where he attended the UN Summit on Ageing on behalf of all older Canadians. He spoke with Bob Komsic. And Regardless of what your take is on beauty pageants, the Miss Universe pageant-- the one Donald Trump co-owned from 1996 to 2015--has dropped its age requirement this year. For the first time in 72-years anyone over 28 is permitted be they married, pregnant, gay or trans. Lorraine Peters of New Brunswick will make history next month in Windsor when she becomes the oldest contestant at 58. She spoke with Bob Komsic.

June 9, 2024- Cyclist raises cancer awareness at the age of 81 & Where should people spend their summer? This weekend will mark the 17th annual Princess Margaret RIDE to Conquer Cancer. More than 5,000 cyclists will ride over 200 kms over the two days, starting from the Exhibition Place in Toronto to Niagara Falls, with a pit stop in Hamilton. Last year, the ride received a contribution of $17.3 million with the help of cyclists, donors and sponsors. We reached 81-year-old Mary Jane McKeen, to tell her story about suffering from long-term cancer and biking her 15th ride this year. AND It’s going to be summer soon! Are you looking for suggestions for your next adventure? What should you do? Where should you go? Bob Comsic talked to Doug Wallace, travel journalist from TravelRight.Today to update our listeners on the latest travel trends.

June 2 2024- 80th Anniversary of D-Day & The Health Benefits of Tai Chi On D-Day, 6 June 1944, the Allies came ashore in Normandy, France when some fourteen thousand Canadians stormed Juno Beach that day, and launched a campaign that helped turn the tide of the Second World War. Both in this country and abroad, Canadians are encouraged to explore the stories of those who courageously served in this campaign. We reached Alex Fitzgerald-Black, Executive Director of the Juno Beach Centre Association about what to expect this coming Thursday. AND There's plenty of evidence that exercise can help protect our bodies and brains. In fact, a new study finds Tai Chi, a slow-moving form of martial arts, can help slow cognitive decline and protect against dementia. It’s a gentle, low-impact exercise in which practitioners perform deliberate, flowing motions while focusing on deep, slow breaths. Dr. Patricia Huston and public health expert in the department of Family Medicine at the University of Ottawa has been doing Tai Chi for a decade and says there are even new benefits emerging. She joined Christine Ross in conversation.

May 26 2024-Canada's Truck Problem & Cancer Diagnoses in the ER Have you noticed that most of the vehicles on our roads are very big and getting bigger every season? Eight of the top 10 are now defined as trucks and some experts say they are a health and safety hazard. Libby Znaimer spoke with HEC Montréal Associate Finance Professor Amir Barnea. AND It’s bad enough to get this news from a doctor you know well and trust, but receiving a cancer diagnosis in an emergency room is becoming more routine in Canada. That’s how one in four new patients find out. Libby Znaimer talked with critical care physician Dr. Jamie Spiegelman

May 19 2024- Dr. Eileen De Villa reflects on her leadership during COVID-19 & Life after Caregiving She became a household name as one of the key leaders who guided us through the COVID-19 pandemic. Dr. Eileen de Villa announced she will step down as Toronto’s Medical Officer of Health at the end of the year. She spoke with Libby Znaimer about her reflections on navigating the crisis. AND Nearly 6 and a half million Canadians do the same for family and friends - on average, 5 hours a day for four and a half years. We’ve heard a lot about the challenges of providing this unpaid care. But what happens after? That’s the focus of the latest series from Best Part Productions. Libby Znaimer talked with founder Brenda Rusnak.

May 12 2024-Anti-Israel protests are not peace protests & Liberal MP Pam Damoff describes toxicity in politics The late iconic anti war activist Jerry Rubin's son has written an article titled "This is definitely not my dad’s antiwar protest", referring to the current anti-Israel encampments at universities and elsewhere across the globe following the October 7th attacks in Israel by Hamas terrorists. Adam Rubin argues that his father and others in the anti war movement six decades ago advocated for peace and justice, unlike today where he says genuine activism has turned to violent extremism. Adam Rubin joins Christine Ross from his home in Los Angeles. AND She’s the latest in a series of politicians to step away from public life due to threats to their safety and mental health. Federal Liberal MP Pam Damoff says she’s experienced misogyny since the day she was elected 9 years ago. What’s even more disturbing than the chaos on Parliament Hill, Damoff says the toxic culture has spread to the riding level leaving her feeling unsafe in her hometown of Oakville. She joins Christine in conversation.

May 5 2024-Sophie Grégoire Trudeau's Journey to Self-Acceptance & Jane Philpott on the Primary Care Crisis It’s not exactly a memoir - though the Prime Minister’s ex, Sophie Grégoire Trudeau talks about her struggle with an eating disorder, growing up an only child, and meeting Justin Trudeau. Her book is about her journey to self-awareness and self-acceptance. Libby talked with Sophie Grégoire Trudeau about “Closer Together, Knowing Ourselves, Loving Each Other". AND If there’s anyone qualified to figure out a fix for our health system, it’s former Liberal Health Minister Jane Philpott - currently the Dean of Queens’ University School of Medicine. She’s calling for a radical overhaul with one crisis at the core: the shortage of family doctors. I talked to Jane Philpott about "Health for All: A Doctor's Prescription for a Healthier Canada".

April 28 2024-Crossing the Trans Canada Trail at 50 & Preparing Your Lawn The first person to cross the Trans Canada Trail: 500 DAYS IN THE WILD, a documentary by the award-winning filmmaker Dianne Whelan who spent six years crossing the entire 24,000 kilometre Trans Canada Trail, mostly alone. She began in St. John’s Newfoundland in 2015 ending in Victoria BC in 2021 and has documented her trek across the world’s largest trail in her new film that’s now streaming. Preparing your lawn after the damage from winter: Itching to get your lawn green and lush again after the damage of winter that can cause long-lasting damage? We live in a lawn obsessed culture, some say embrace the dandelions others mortified by the sight of annoying weeds on their lawn. What are the best practices you can do right now to get your lawn in the best shape? We consulted an expert, Professor Katerina Jordan, the Director of the Guelph Turf Grass Institute.

April 21 2024- Canadian charitable donations dropping: report & National Volunteer Week Have you ever made any charitable donations? Do you still make them? Any? Or have you stopped? Many have as Nicole Danesi at CanadaHelps explains. AND National Volunteer Week that just ended is held annually as a way to celebrate the many who give of their time to help others in the community, who possibly would be in even more difficulty without volunteers. Bob Komsic spoke to a volunteer driver for Meals on Wheels.