More than 115 cases of eye damage reported in Ontario after solar eclipse
More than 115 people who viewed the solar eclipse in Ontario earlier this month experienced eye damage after the event, according to eye doctors in the province.
Indigenous and remote communities that rely on fish for sustenance shouldn’t worry about mercury levels in their food as the benefits of eating the meal outweigh the risks, according to a new study.
The study, published recently in the journal Environmental Research, examined 443 blood samples and 276 hair samples from residents across nine communities in the Mackenzie Valley of the Northwest Territories and found that mercury exposure “may be low even when it is sometimes present in elevated levels,” according to a news release.
The study was part of a broader “biomonitoring project” to address concerns within these communities about potentially harmful containments within their traditional food sources, such as fish.
“Previously, elevated levels of mercury were found in some fish species in some lakes and therefore, communities wanted to know if these sometimes-elevated levels in fish also meant they were elevated in people,” Sara Packull-McCormick, a PhD candidate at the University of Waterloo’s School of Public Health Sciences, said in a news release.
“The good news is that generally, the exposure in communities we studied was low. It means the benefits of consuming these foods tend to outweigh the risks, which is important for these communities since fish consumption has nutritional, cultural and economic benefits.”
According to Health Canada, mercury exposure is associated with “impaired functions of the central and peripheral nervous systems” and can lead to a decreased IQ and delays in walking and talking among young children. Adults, meanwhile, can experience personality changes, changes in vision and memory loss.
In 2017, the Canadian Health Measures Survey (CHMS) reported that mercury levels among Canadians were “well below” Canadian guidance, but the survey did not include participants from any of the Canadian territories or Indigenous people living on reserves.
Brian Laird, a professor in the School of Public Health Sciences and principal investigator of the study, said this latest research should help those communities not included in the CHMS.
“This study is important because it provides these communities with the information they need to help guide their decision-making,” he said.
“Mercury can pose serious risks to people’s health, but these communities now have a baseline to see what changes occur in the future, especially taking into account those that may be caused by climate change.”
More than 115 people who viewed the solar eclipse in Ontario earlier this month experienced eye damage after the event, according to eye doctors in the province.
A Sherwood Park family says their new house is uninhabitable. The McNaughton's say they were forced to leave the house after living there for only a week because contaminants inside made it difficult to breathe.
A man has been handed a lengthy hunting ban and fined thousands of dollars for illegally killing a grizzly bear, B.C. conservation officers say.
The B.C. NDP has asked the federal government to recriminalize public drug use, marking a major shift in the province's approach to addressing the deadly overdose crisis.
The Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) says it's investigating an interaction between a uniformed officer and anti-Trudeau government protestors after a video circulated on social media.
An emergency slide fell off a Delta Air Lines jetliner shortly after takeoff Friday from New York, and pilots who felt a vibration in the plane circled back to land safely at JFK Airport.
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says there is 'still so much love' between her and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as they navigate their post-separation relationship co-parenting their three children.
George Mallory is renowned for being one of the first British mountaineers to attempt to scale the dizzying heights of Mount Everest during the 1920s. Nearly a century later, newly digitized letters shed light on Mallory’s hopes and fears about ascending Everest.
A loud explosion was heard across Hamilton on Friday after a propane tank was accidentally destroyed and detonated at a local scrap metal yard, police say.
As if a 4-0 Edmonton Oilers lead in Game 1 of their playoff series with the Los Angeles Kings wasn't good enough, what was announced at Rogers Place during the next TV timeout nearly blew the roof off the downtown arena.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
A property tax bill is perplexing a small townhouse community in Fergus, Ont.
When identical twin sisters Kim and Michelle Krezonoski were invited to compete against some of the world’s most elite female runners at last week’s Boston Marathon, they were in disbelief.
The giant stone statues guarding the Lions Gate Bridge have been dressed in custom Vancouver Canucks jerseys as the NHL playoffs get underway.
A local Oilers fan is hoping to see his team cut through the postseason, so he can cut his hair.
A family from Laval, Que. is looking for answers... and their father's body. He died on vacation in Cuba and authorities sent someone else's body back to Canada.
A former educational assistant is calling attention to the rising violence in Alberta's classrooms.
The federal government says its plan to increase taxes on capital gains is aimed at wealthy Canadians to achieve “tax fairness.”