October 18th, 2013
It’s Friday and you've worked hard this week so, how about something easy? It’s the Fast Friday 5 – a quick five things you need to know, served up nice and simple.
With news today that Prime Minister Harper has signed a free trade deal with the European Union, we found a few European wellness trends we'd like to see flow freely over our Canadian borders. Here are the top five.
1. Getting Hot & Sweaty. Whether it's the traditional Finnish sauna (interspersed with a Nordic bath plunge), a body scrub and steam or some hot birch branch thwacking, Europeans like to get hot and sweaty. Boasting health benefits like improved circulation, muscle relaxation, glowing skin and detoxification; we say bring on the heat!
2. Out of Office. While Canada does better than its neighbour to the south when it comes to mandated paid vacation days it's got nothing on the European standards. Countries in the European Union must offer at least 4 weeks of paid vacation. In countries like Austria, Portugal and Germany - it's even higher. Factor in the notion that summer means reduced work hours and you've got a lot more leisure time. More time to play and less stress means better overall health - let's import that.
3. Dying with Dignity. It's a hot button issue in Canada but as it stands, Canadians suffering in pain with terminal illnesses have to go to more mercifully-minded countries like Switzerland to find their relief. It's time for Canada to import the right to die with dignity instead of exporting their most desperate citizens.
4. Heck No, GMO. The European Union leads the world in terms of stringent GMO regulations. Each country is a little different but the approval process across the region involves rigourous testing and the ability to rescind approvals at the first hint of human health risk. Compare that to the Canadian head-in-the-sand approach and we're up for a little free-trade in common sense.
5. G-Spot. Sure we have blue bins and we all diligently recycle but what about those unaccepted items like clamshell plastic and electronics? The EU's Green Dot program puts the onus back on the manufacturers in dealing with the waste their products produce. That's a policy we'd love to see here and we're sure our landfills would agree.
So, Mr. Harper, go ahead and open up those borders but let's not limit it to wine and cheese.
Make the Fast Friday Five list grow. Which European wellness trends should Canada import from our Eastern friends?
Tuja Wellness from Toronto, Ontario
