Zoomer Week In Review

A new book details how a cold case team brought modern investigative techniques to a decades-old Holocaust mystery: who betrayed Anne Frank and her family? The project took nearly five years, and used AI in addition to more than 20 people and dozens of consultants. Libby Znaimer talked with Canadian author Rosemary Sullivan about The Betrayal of Anne Frank: A Cold Case Investigation. AND It’s a hypothesis that’s been investigated for years but now for the first time there is compelling evidence that Multiple Sclerosis is caused by the Epstein-Barr virus. It’s a difficult connection because while 95% of us have been infected by Epstein-Barr, MS is a relatively rare inflammatory disease of the central nervous system. Libby Znaimer reached Dr. Kassandra Munger, co- author of the paper and director of the Multiple Sclerosis studies at Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health

Do you still carry a lot of cash and how often do you use it? There’s no question the pandemic has accelerated the move to contactless payment. Our next guest argues that the end of cash is almost here and it will affect us in many ways. Libby Znaimer reached Eswar Prasad, a Cornell professor, an author, and a fellow at the Brookings Institution. AND According to research from the CMHA and the University of British Columbia, the pandemic is taking a big toll on our mental health. The dead of winter is always a difficult time. Margaret Eaton of the CMHA has some coping tips as we approach Blue Monday - on the third week in January - which some say is the saddest day of the year.

On January 6th 2021, the world watched in horror as the United States capitol building was attacked. Since then, over 700 rioters have been charged, many remain in jail, and a commission is tasked with finding the roots of the insurrection and plans to release its final report this summer. Christine Ross spoke with political science professor Dr. Christopher Gelpi to reflect on the one year anniversary of the attempted coup. And Abstaining from alcohol for 31 days this month may not seem like a big sacrifice but health experts say it not only offers immediate benefits, but can be a good test for whether you have a problem. And with more Canadians drinking as the pandemic continues its relentless grip, giving up booze may be harder than ever. Christine Ross spoke with Dr. Peter Selby, who specializes in addictions at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health about Dry January.

Feeling too overwhelmed to make New Year's resolutions as we head into yet another uncertain future amid a pandemic? According to science, making small positive changes in your life may matter more in these times. Exercise ranks among the top resolutions this year as more people vow to lose the pandemic pounds but the best advice is self care and no need to go big. Christine Ross spoke with Dr. Anne Wilson, psychology professor at Wilfrid Laurier University. AND Holiday meal prep and cooking left you burnt out? How about a gourmet tasting meal without all the fuss? You should check out "A Pot, A Pan and A Bowl", the latest cookbook offering from beloved celebrity chef and Emmy award winning TV personality Lidia Bastianich. It contains 100 homey recipes, that require fewer steps and fewer ingredients. But she’s quick to remind us this minimal approach still requires finesse. Lidia joins Christine to ‘dish’ on her new no-fuss recipes.

It’s traditional at this season to forecast trends in business, technology, fashion, design, and even food. One major consulting company says this year there are changes that are more profound that will alter our relationships and how we see ourselves. I talked with Accenture’s Ryan McCRacken. AND How did hostages Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor become innocent pawns in the geopolitical conflict between China and the U.S.? And how did Canada finally manage to secure their release after 1019 days in captivity? Fen Osler Hampson and Mike Blachfield take us behind the scenes in their book “The Two Michaels.” I talked with Mike Blanchfield.

One in four Canadians over 15 lives with this condition and it is notoriously hard to treat. Alan Gordon developed the method called “Pain Reprocessing Therapy” which relies solely on talk therapy. Libby Znaimer reached him in Los Angeles. AND Thousands of people are rethinking holiday plans because of the rampant Omicron variant. Hosts are cutting back, guests are cancelling, and it’s all up in the air. How to decide what to cook? Libby consulted cookbook author and food columnist Lucy Waverman.

She’s probably the most prominent lawyer in Canada and also the most vilified. Defending notorious clients—especially former CBC star Jian Ghomeshi—made Marie Henein a lightning rod and a target for “Cancel Culture.” It also inspired her to write her memoir “Nothing But the truth.” AND The Toronto Board of Health is asking the federal government to decriminalize the possession of small amounts of illegal drugs in the city. It’s just one of the bids to override the law to help tackle the opioid overdose crisis which  has reached record levels.  Libby Znaimer talked with Dr. Leslie Buckley, Chief of the Addictions Division at CAMH, the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health.

Lung cancer is the number one cause of cancer death and now there’s a new program that will save lives. Ontario is the first province to start screening people who are at high risk for the disease. Dr. Paul Wheatly Price is an Oncologist, specializing in lung cancer at The Ottawa Hospital Cancer Centre. Libby Znaimer talked with him about how the program works and who is eligible. AND These days we talk a lot about trauma - but rarely mention its antidote - consolation. Music, painting, literature and religion are all places we have turned to through the ages to find comfort in dark times. That’s the subject of former Liberal leader Michael Ignatieff’s latest book: On Consolation.

Mark Schatzker Interview It’s a fascinating new theory on what’s behind the huge increase in  obesity. It turns on the idea that the solution to a different epidemic - 100 years ago - became one of the causes of the obesity epidemic. And it also explains why many Europeans  who eat calorie-rich diets manage to stay thin. I talked with author Mark Schatzker about “The End of Craving - Recovering the Lost Wisdom of Eating Well.”

Born out of an urgent need to help seniors get vaccinated against COVID-19 early in the pandemic, York Region’s PinkCars is still in high gear driving seniors to get their COVID booster shots, and helping them download vaccine QR codes. But PinkCars is providing more than a chauffeur service, it’s helped lift the isolation felt by so many seniors during the pandemic. Shonta Sundarason is the driving force behind Pink Cars. AND Author Sheila VanZile had a seemingly successful and satisfied life. But like many women of her generation, by age 60, she felt disconnected, unhappy and unfulfilled after neglecting her own needs. Her awakening came after her Mother’s death, launching Sheila on a new path where she’s learning to let go of trauma and self loathing. In her book MY WATERFALL OF AWAKENING, VanZile explores forgiveness, grief and invites the reader to share their own feelings through a guided journal.

How do you choose the charities you support and how do you know if your contribution is making an impact? With the holiday giving season about to begin, the non-profit Charity Intelligence is out with its annual analysis and rankings. Libby Znaimer talked with researcher Greg Thomson. AND She was the first female foreign correspondent on network television. Libby Znaimer first met Canadian Hilary Brown when she was a fledgling reporter in the Tel Aviv bureau of the Associated Press and she was a star correspondent for NBC. By that time, she had already covered the Vietnam War and the Yom Kippur War. She came by our studios to talk about her memoir “War Tourist.”

This year marks a century since the poppy became a symbol of remembrance in Canada. We became the first country to adopt it - after the cause was taken up by a French woman inspired by John McCrae’s iconic poem In Flanders’ Field. Libby Znaimer learned about the history of the poppy from Steven Clark National Executive Director of The Royal Canadian Legion. AND The discovery of insulin was one of the greatest medical breakthroughs ever and it remains the only effective treatment for Type 1 diabetes. A hundred years ago this week, the first experiments at the University of Toronto were successful. And while the credit usually goes to Sir Frederick Banting and Charles Best - there were two others who made it all possible. Libby reached Dr. Jacalyn Duffin, to learn more.

Have you helped an adult child buy a home by giving them a large cash gift? With housing prices through the roof, two thirds of first time buyers say the Bank of Mom and Dad was the main source of their down payment. And according to a new report from CIBC , Canadian parents kicked in a total of $10 billion last year - with the average gift here in Toronto topping $130,000. Libby Znaimer talked with CIBC economist Benjamin Tal for the story behind these numbers. AND Like every other medical procedure, the treatment for stroke was set back because of the pandemic with many patients waiting too long to go to the hospital. This week marked World Stroke Day - a good time to go over the signs, symptoms and most of all the timeline for ensuring a good recovery. Libbt talked with Dr. Atif Zafar, Director of the Comprehensive Stroke Program at St. Michael’s Hospital.

Will you have enough income for a comfortable retirement? Have you taken the cost of ageing in place into account - especially if you need extra care? The National institute on Ageing says the answers to these questions is a resounding no. And Bonnie-Jean MacDonald, the director of financial security research has some suggestions. AND Less than two weeks ago a U.S. expert panel said Doctors should no longer routinely prescribe daily low-dose aspirin, for most people who are at high risk of heart disease. That’s because the risk of bleeding outweighs the benefit. But it only applies to people who have not had a cardiac event. That’s why cardiologists here are worried this guideline could cause harm. I talked with Dr. Mike Farkouh Cardiologist at UHN.

Cartoonists make a living lampooning the establishment - but now five of them are getting an honour reserved for national icons - their own stamps! The legendary Terry Mosher is also a prolific author and ideaCity alumnus who draws for the Montreal Gazette under the name Aislin. Libby Znaimer reached him in Montreal. AND We usually talk about loneliness in terms of health - but author Noreena Hertz has put an economic lens to it - explaining how the way we live has fragmented our communities and what we can do about it. Libby called her in London to talk about “The Lonely Century.”

It is one of the most beautiful aspects of our northern climate - the changing colours of fall foliage make for dazzling displays all across Ontario. But while most of us concentrate on where to to look at leaves Libby Znaimer asked Dr. Marc Cadotte, of the Department of Biological Sciences at University of Toronto-Scarborough, why their colours change. AND It’s something we should do every day, not just on Thanksgiving. There’s a school of thought which holds that practising gratitude can make us happier. Libby talked with psychologist Dr. Sam Klarridge.

It’s one of the biggest unanswered questions about the pandemic. How and where did it start? Last year, the most commonly accepted explanation was that it originated in the wet market in Wuhan. The thinking on that it changing but it bothered Toronto investigative journalist Elaine Dewar from the start. Libby Znaimer talked with her about her new book: On the Origin of the Deadliest Pandemic in 100 Years: An Investigation. AND CARP convened a huge virtual meeting to mark National Seniors Day on October 1. It was billed an emergency meeting because of their take on the approach or lack thereof to older Canadians by all parties in the recent election. Libby chatted with David Cravit, CARP’s Chief Membership Officer.

Was it a 600 million much ado about nothing? The dust is settling on the federal election that did little to shift the balance of power in Ottawa. Call it groundhog day, or deja vu, but Justin Trudeau returns to power again to form a minority government. No leaders have stepped down, but Trudeau failed to secure a majority, Erin O'Toole and Jagmeet Singh failed to achieve breakthroughs for the Conservatives and N-D-P, and the leaders of the People's Party of Canada and the Green Party failed to win their seats. Zoomer News VP Libby Znaimer assembled a group of political pundits to weigh in. AND Citing air pollution as one of the biggest environmental threats to human health, the World Health Organization has just introduced new guidelines aimed at reducing deaths from key pollutants that cause cancer, cardiovascular and respiratory diseases. The agency believes these new stricter rules could save millions of lives after finding air pollution’s impact on health is far worse than previously thought. We reache

“Oops I forgot to Save Money” - The book title captures a conundrum that many people, especially women, face. It’s a big problem that author, actor and screenwriter Monica Parker owned up to and overcame. We talked about her story. AND When the election was called he was unfamiliar to most Canadians and not especially popular even with Conservatives. But Erin O’Toole has led his Conservative Party to a dead heat with Justin Trudeau’s Liberals. I talked with him earlier this week about his plans for older Canadians.

There are some events, when recalled, that take us back to that day. The assassinations of the Kennedy brothers, John and Robert, or Martin Luther King Jr. And the 9-11 attacks are another such tragedy. Two of the four coordinated terrorist attacks targeted New York's World Trade Center, 20 years ago. Sharing his recollection now, Hans Gerhardt, former general manager of Toronto's Sutton Place, who lost one of his sons, Ralph, who worked at the World Trade Centre. AND As many Canadians and their families know, COVID-19 has exhausted so many healthcare workers, including nurses that many want out. And while the country faces an urgent shortage, nursing schools are having to turn away some of those wishing to make it a career. Bob Komsic spoke with Linda Silas, president of the federation of nurses unions that represents almost 200-thousand unionized nurses and nursing students.