Low 25-hydroxyvitamin D levels are more prevalent in Canadians of South Asian than European ancestry inhabiting the National Capital Region of Canada.

The US Institute of Medicine defined serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25OHD) cut point values of 30 nmol/L and 40 nmol/L were used to assess the vitamin D status of South Asian and European Canadians of self-identified ancestry living in the National Capital Region of Canada. Serum 25OHD values were measured in the spring and fall of 2012 to represent status during the winter and summer months, respectively. A total of 1238 measurements were obtained from 669 participants (49% South Asian ancestry): some participants were measured only once (spring or fall).

An Analysis of Factors Associated with 25-Hydroxyvitamin D Levels in White and Non-White Canadians.

Vitamin D status was assessed in 19-79 year old whites (8351 participants of European ancestry) and non-whites (1840 participants encompassing all other ancestries) from cycles 1 to 3 (years 2007-2013) of the Canadian Health Measures Survey. Status was assessed using the U.S.

Brominated flame retardant concentrations in sera from the Canadian Health Measures Survey (CHMS) from 2007 to 2009.

Pooling of surplus serum from individual samples, collected between 2007 and 2009 during Cycle 1 of the Canadian Health Measures Survey (CHMS), was performed to develop a national baseline estimate of brominated flame retardants in Canadians. Serum samples were categorized by sex and distributed by five age groups ranging from 6 to 79years. Nearly 5000 (4583) serum samples were used to form 59 composite pools.

Canadians continue to consume too much sodium and not enough potassium.

Objectives: Excessive sodium (Na) intakes and insufficient potassium (K) intakes are known contributors to hypertension. In July 2010, the Health Canada-led multi-stakeholder Sodium Working Group issued recommendations to lower Na intakes of Canadians. Baseline data and ongoing monitoring are needed.

Iodine concentration in milk sampled from Canadian farms.

A study was conducted to determine the iodine concentration in milk and the relationship between that concentration and milking and feeding management practices. Milk samples were collected from the bulk tanks of 501 farms in all provinces of Canada. With a view to obtaining further information about farm management, a questionnaire was completed at each of the selected farms.

PCB, PCDD and PCDF residues in fin and non-fin fish products from the Canadian retail market 2002.

Fish products (n=129) available on the Canadian retail market were collected and analyzed for levels of PCBs, PCDDs and PCDFs during the spring of 2002. The collection included samples from eight fish groups (Arctic char, crab, mussels, oysters, salmon, shrimp, tilapia, trout) from the wild and those raised on fish farms, as available. Sample collection included both domestic and imported fish products, however, no significant difference in residue levels was observed between these groups of fish products.

Psychiatric therapy in Georgian Britain.

Background: This paper examines the emergence of 'oral treatment' in British psychiatry.

Method: Re-examining a range of largely well-known sources, this article begins by outlining the social and intellectual shifts entailed by the secularization of madness at around 1660. The boundaries of various schools of psychiatric treatment are distinguished according to: (a) how much moral autonomy they accord the insane patient; and (b) whether they promote 'body' or 'mind' first (are 'somatopsychic' or 'psychosomatic').

Two registers of madness in Enlightenment Britain. Part 2.

In Part 1 of this essay, I argued that in Augustan and Georgian England it was widely understood that madness could have two more-or-less distinct meanings. "Moral" madness was the subject's own fault, and he/she remained accountable for actions commissioned under its effects. The "morally" mad individual's thoughts and actions were understood to be self-directed; at base, in moral madness, delusional ideas arose in the mind, and by definition remained within the moral province of the individual.

Two registers of madness in Enlightenment Britain. Part 1.

Part 1 of this essay argues that in Augustan and Georgian England it was widely understood that madness could have two more-or-less distinct meanings. 'Moral' madness was the subject's own fault, and he/she remained accountable for actions commissioned under its effects. The delusional ideas arose in the mind, and by definition remained within the moral province of the individual.

Comparison of dietary fiber contents of selected baby foods from two major brands in Canada using three methods.

Of the two major brands of baby foods in Canada, one reports lower dietary fiber values than the other, although the products appear to be similar. To investigate the reasons for this discrepancy, seven selected samples of baby foods from both brands were analyzed for total dietary fiber (TDF) according to the Mongeau (rapid Health Protection Branch; HPB) method. Two cereals were also analyzed by using the Prosky and the Englyst (nonstarch polysaccharide; NSP) methods as an internal check on the methodology as well as a means of investigating the reasons for the discrepancies.

Influence of dietary protein and fat on serum lipids and metabolism of essential fatty acids in rats.

A 120 d feeding study with adult rats was conducted to evaluate the influence of two protein sources (casein and gelatin), two protein levels (50 and 300 g/kg diet) and two fat levels (50 and 150 g/kg diet) on serum lipids (total cholesterol, HDL-cholesterol and triacylglycerols) and liver polyunsaturated fatty acid levels. In general, the concentrations of serum triacylglycerols and total cholesterol and liver phospholipid levels of arachidonic acid (AA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) were higher in rats fed on casein diets compared with those fed on the gelatin diets. These effects were more pronounced in rats fed on the high-casein (300 g/kg)-high-fat (150 g/kg) diet.

The long-term effects of functional communication training in home settings.

A four-phase study was conducted in the homes of 4 young children who displayed aberrant behavior. Phases 1 and 2 consisted of a series of descriptive and experimental analyses to identify the environmental antecedents and consequences that controlled aberrant behavior. Phases 3 and 4 evaluated the short- and long-term effects of treatment on aberrant behavior, target mands, and collateral (social and toy play) behaviors.

A Collaborative Study on the Detection of Staphylococcal Enterotoxins in Foods with an Enzyme Immunoassay Kit (TECRA).

One of the commercially available enzyme immunoassay kits for the detection of staphylococcal enterotoxins (SEs) in foods, the TECRA screening kit (Bioenterprises Pty. Ltd., Roseville, New South Wales, Australia), has microtiter plates coated with a mixture of antibodies to all of the SEs.

A collaborative study on the detection of staphylococcal enterotoxins in foods by an enzyme immunoassay kit (RIDASCREEN).

The RIDASCREEN SET kit (R-Biopharm GmbH, Darmstadt, Germany), a commercial staphylococcal enterotoxin (SE) immunoassay kit, utilizes monovalent capture antibodies against SE types A to E (SEA to SEE); therefore, it simultaneously detects and identifies the enterotoxin types. A collaborative study was conducted to ascertain whether the specificity, sensitivity, repeatability and reproducibility of the kits would meet food safety criteria. Twelve Canadian laboratories participated in this study to analyze various foods to which 1.

Two measures of preference during forced-choice assessments.

A forced-choice preference assessment was conducted in which two dependent measures were used to select preferred stimuli: (a) approach responding and (b) latency to the first aberrant response. Stimuli identified as preferred based on both dependent measures were then evaluated during treatment. The results suggested that latency may be a useful measure in the selection of preferred stimuli during forced-choice assessments.

Glutathione peroxidase activity in a healthy Canadian population. Effects of age, smoking and drinking habits, exercise and oral contraceptive use.

The activity of the enzyme glutathione peroxidase (SeGSHPx) has been suggested as an indicator of selenium status. The purpose of this study was to measure the activity of this enzyme in a large sample of healthy, free-living Canadians to determine normal distributions and the effects of age, smoking, and drinking habits, exercise, and the use of oral contraceptives (OCs) or estrogen replacement therapy. The population consisted of 386 self-selected subjects between the ages of 24 and 75.

Ultrasound of hemobilia: a clinical and experimental study.

Clinical observations on patients with hemobilia secondary to percutaneous biliary procedures and laboratory studies on animals with experimentally induced hemobilia indicate that the presence of fresh blood or clot within the biliary tree may yield an erroneous impression of duct size in ultrasound examinations. Recognition of this potential source of error becomes increasingly important as the use of percutaneous procedures for the relief of biliary obstruction increases.

Percutaneous pancreaticobiliary biopsies in 173 patients using primarily ultrasound or fluoroscopic guidance.

Two hundred and one biopsies of the pancreas and/or extrahepatic bile ducts were performed in 173 patients using primarily ultrasound (US) or fluoroscopic guidance. Computed tomographic (CT) guidance was used twice. The success rate for detecting malignancy was 82.

Diagnosis and evaluation of spondylolisthesis and/or spondylolysis on axial CT.

A critical review was made of the CT findings in 300 patients who underwent axial CT of the lumbar spine in which spondylolysis and/or spondylolisthesis had been diagnosed. Findings indicate that axial CT is superior to conventional radiographs in several areas: (1) for consistent and accurate demonstration of spondylolysis, (2) for disclosing the various changes in the apophyseal joints associated with degenerative and reverse spondylolisthesis, and (3) for uncovering minimal degrees of spondylolisthesis by the presence of a pseudobulging disk in many cases with equivocal or negative radiographs. Axial CT is a highly accurate method for diagnosing and evaluating spondylolysis and all types of spondylolisthesis.

Spontaneous resolution of cholelithiasis in infants.

Follow-up sonographic studies of five infants whose initial sonograms had displayed evidence for the diagnosis of cholelithiasis demonstrated spontaneous resolution of the gallbladder defects. These defects may have been caused by tumefactive sludge with acoustic shadowing. Whether sludge or gallstones are being imaged, in the absence of other clinical or imaging evidence of biliary tract disease, conservative (i.