World Cup Fever – there is no cure!!

This Friday is the first match of the World Cup with home team South Africa playing Mexico at Johannesburg Soccer Stadium and the whole world will be watching. With this being only the third time South Africa has been to the World Cup compared to Mexico’s fourteenth, Mexico is favoured to win, however, anything can happen.

World Cup Fever is highly contagious and it is spreading like wild fire to every village and town throughout the world. You have probably seen it here in Canada. Flags you don’t recognize flying from cars, on front lawns and pasted to apartment windows. Soon random car horns will be heard and in some countries shots will ring out into the night sky. If sport can bring the world together, then football (soccer) is the sport to do it. With 32 teams from all over the globe, everyone can find a team to cheer for.

According to a Statistics Canada Report published in 2008, Soccer is now the number one sport of children age 5 to 14, beating out swimming, hockey, basketball and baseball in participation rates. So why the sudden popularity of Soccer, especially here in Canada? Some say it’s the game’s simplicity that makes it so popular. Others say it is because it transcends wealth. It is played in every country, by every ethnic group and religion. Any skill level can play the game and still enjoy it. You don’t need a proper pitch or even a goal post. No expensive equipment is needed, just a ball and the will to play.

As the world comes together to watch the games, read about some of the heroes of the sport in SIRC’s Collection.

SOCCER SAVIOR. Wahl, Grant, Sports Illustrated 5/24/2010, Vol. 112 Issue 22, p52

The article profiles professional soccer player Didier Drogba of the Ivory Coast, who will play in the 2010 FIFA World Cup soccer tournament. A discussion of Drogba's athletic ability and popularity, and of the role that he played in helping to end a civil war in the Ivory Coast, is presented.

A GRINGO'S GAME. Segura, Melissa, Sports Illustrated 5/24/2010, Vol. 112 Issue 22, p60

The article profiles professional soccer player Clint Dempsey of Texas, who was born Clinton Drew Dempsey and will play in the 2010 FIFA World Cup soccer tournament. A discussion of Dempsey's athletic ability and unique soccer playing style is presented. Dempsey's soccer playing philosophies are discussed.

A DIFFERENT KIND OF HOPE. Geddes, Mike, FIFA World Dec2009, Issue 7, p48

The article features the Khayelitsha Football for Hope Center, the first of the 20 Centres for 2010 as part of the official campaign of the 2010 FIFA World Cup. The center will be officially inaugurated on December 5, 2009 after the Final Draw, as part of the Football for Hope Center Kick-Off. Prominent personalities attending the event include Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) President Joseph S. Blatter, Western Cape Province Premier Helen Zille and South African international soccer player Lucas Radebe.

SIRC at the CASM-OMA Sport Medicine Conference

Being highlighted at two pre-conference workshops, SIRC started off the CASM Conference with a bang.

First, Reference Librarian, Brandie Adams spoke about membership during the Osteoarthritis Workshop Wednesday morning. Then, the article “The Sport Specific Movement Assessment” by Bruce Craven published in SIRCuit was highlighted during the Injury Prevention session. In the evening, Nancy Rebel and Brandie Adams were on hand to answer questions for CASM delegates ranging from how to log in, to what publications are in the SIRC Collection. Everyone loved that they could email or call one of the SIRC librarians and information specialists. It was great to hear how many people are familiar with SIRC and enjoy the SIRC Newsletters.

If you would like to visit SIRC at the CASM Conference we are located at booth 221-223 in the Metro East ballroom at the Westin Harbour Castle. Located next to the compression garment. booth which ironically is the topic of the latest newsletter!

CASM /SIRC Membership Benefits … Ask , Search, Receive

CASM members love SIRC. They love getting the SIRC Newsletters and SIRC Daily Press Releases but have a feeling there is more and they want to know how to tap into it.

Brandie Adams and Nancy Rebel were more than willing to explain some of the additional benefits. The three member benefits they highlighted to CASM were:

Ask A Librarian.
The librarians and information specialists at SIRC are available to answer member questions. It can range from how to register and log in to research for presentations and papers.

SIRC Collection.
We subscribe to hundreds of publications that our members can access providing electronic full text access and/or print document delivery.

Personalized Aisle.
CASM has worked with SIRC to establish a list of hot topics that are then made into an “aisle.” SIRC scans the collection and adds new references to these categories on a regular basis providing members with an easy access point on topics such as concussion, pregnancy and exercise and osteoarthritis.

Nancy Rebel and Amanda Street-Bishop will be at the CASM Conference Exhibit Hall today until 5:00PM. Located in the West Harbour Castle Metropolitan East Ballroom they are ready to answer any questions members may have regarding their SIRC membership.

CASM Sport Medicine Conference Concludes

SIRC concluded a successful trip to the CASM Sport Medicine Conference held in Toronto. Nancy Rebel and Amanda Street-Bishop represented SIRC on the final day of exhibits and were please to speak with many attendees. Professionals representing the sport medicine, chiropractic and physical therapy fields were pleased to find out about the SIRC services available to them. Particularly well received was the twice-monthly newsletter and access to the SIRC Librarians and Information Specialists to assist in their research needs.

Subjects of interest discussed with the attendees included:

• Concussions
• Aquatic Therapy
• Heat Exhaustion Recovery
• Injury Rehabilitation
• H1N1 and Swimming

SIRC is delighted to be working with the Canadian Academy of Sports Medicine (CASM) to be providing their members access to the latest in sports science and practitioner resources.

Athletics Ontario – a Meet to Remember

This past weekend, the SIRC Toronto Regional Information Specialist attended the Athletics Ontario’s National Qualifier Meet & Ontario Relay & JW 5000m & Combined Events Championships & National Junior Combined Events Championships (I know quite a mouthful). The event was a huge success for both participants and organizers despite the stormy weather. The event took place at the Toronto Track and Field Centre (TTFC) at the York University Campus. SIRC was on hand to promote the SIRC membership to Athletics Ontario Coaches, Trainers and Officials as they now have an association membership. The SIRC booth was visited by over 40 Athletics Ontario coaches and trainers, as well as numerous athletes and parents at the meet. The coaches were very excited about their new membership benefit and eagerly picked up brochures and searching guides. “I’d like to tell you that this is a great service, but I can’t, because it is more than great!” was just one of the comments made by coaches about the Athletics Ontario’s new SIRC membership. Coaches eagerly chatted with the SIRC Information Specialist about LTAD and overtraining as well as sport nutrition and developing effective warm up drills. Coaches and trainers not only talked about how SIRC would help them with their athletes, but also how it would help them in their jobs as elementary school teachers, wellness professionals and safety experts. Students and athletes were interested in SIRC’s career page and monthly newsletter, while parents were eager to know what they should be feeding their athletes before a meet. SIRC was able to meet all their information needs.

Injury, Safety and Obesity – Stats Canada releases Canadian Community Health Survey

Today Statistics Canada released its annual Canadian Community Health Survey and the results were very disappointing. Canadians are not only more obese than they were in 2008, but they are also getting injured more frequently when doing physical activity. Canadians are also risking more injury by not wearing a helmet when participating in sports such as cycling. According to the survey 46% of Canadians who cycle do not wear a helmet, even in provinces where there is helmet legislation, Ontario being the worse culprit, falling below the national average at 34% even though it is a province with helmet laws.

About 18% of Canadians aged 18 or older, or roughly 4.4 million people, were classified as obese in 2009, up from 15% in 2003. Despite government and nonprofit programs trying to alleviate this problem, it still persists and is growing worse.

Also this week the Canadian Institute of Wellbeing released two new reports on the well being of Canadians which found that time spent on leisure activities dropped from 15% in 1998 to 12% in 2005 and the proportion of Canadians experiencing high levels of time crunch grew from 16% in
1992 to 20% in 2005.

So how can these statistics improve so Canadians become more physically active and take better care of themselves, when they have less time to do it. The Honourable Roy J. Romanow, Chair of the Canadian Institute of Wellbeing Advisory Board states that "We need family-friendly policies for all workers and more community resources and supports for seniors. We need governments and public policies that support leisure and culture activities and venues - ensuring that equity and inclusion are overarching principles in our approach."

To read more about how you can maintain a balanced lifestyle and encourage employers to create more opportunities for physical activity and leisure see the articles below:

Bodies at Work: Everyone wins when employers provide health and fitness opportunities in the workplace.

The Work-Leisure Paradigm: The Stresses and Strains of Maintaining a Balanced Lifestyle. Lobo, Francis, World Leisure Journal 2006, Vol. 48 Issue 3, p22

Participation in recreational physical activity: why do socioeconomic groups differ? Burton, N.W.; Turrell, G.; Oldenburg, B., Health Education & Behavior Apr 2003: Vol. 30 Issue 2. p. 225-244

Over-scheduling your child and your family. Taylor, J., Ski Racing 6 Dec 2002: Vol. 35 Issue 6. p. 26

Exercise for Persons with a Disability

As we have recently been reminded, an increasing number of Canadians are overweight despite programming being implemented to address the issue (Canadian Community Health Survey). Many programs focus on the general population, but what about those who are Para or Quadriplegic. A recent article from the SIRC Collection discusses the value of exercise for individuals who have little or no voluntary movement (see reference below). The importance of exercising the legs in particular is addressed in their role as the main pump that returns blood to the heart. It is important to perform passive exercise that will help legs retain or improve their flexibility, range of motion, and bone strength, and help in atrophy prevention. Passive/active exercisers can allow the user to exercise from home while in a wheelchair or scooter or to continue their exercise on outings or while on trips. Passive/active exercise is beneficial for those with a wide range of physical disabilities including: paraplegia, quadriplegia, multiple sclerosis, cerebral palsy, arthritis, diabetes, stroke patients or those who have suffered brain trauma.

The Active Living Alliance for Canadians with a Disability also has a variety of resources and information on maintaining an active lifestyle. Resources include:

• Resource Library
• Activity Fact Sheets
• Service Providers & Practitioners Directory

Reference from the SIRC Collection:
Gray, R. Errol (2009). The Value of Exercise for Para and Quadriplegia, Total Access, Fall 2009, p.10-11.