When I was young, I didn't like riding in the car all the time with my parents. Oh, I loved going for a ride with my dad, go with them to the beach, head off on vacation to the beach in the United States or somewhere within the country. But when we went out for an evening, to dinner or any other official happening, I would be stuck between my father who smoked and my mother who put on one of her powerful perfumes and didn't want any windows open for fear it would ruin her hairdo.
That's when I inevitably started having nausea.
It happened on many occasions where I would ask my parents to stop so I could take a breather outside the car, and all that time, I never understood what was causing me this problem. I think back about it today and I can only feel compassion for all our generation of children who had to put up with this pulmonary torture. Although we still find this kind of behaviour with certain parents today, it's marginal now that we know the effects of second-hand smoke. But the disease caused by the automobile has more diverse aspects. One of those aspects is: The Suburbs.
Is the suburbs a dream that's turning against us?
I've always lived in the city. Even today, I reside in a Montreal district where I can walk to the convenience store, the pharmacy, the supermarket, the post office and even the movies. I go to work on my bike or on rollerblades in the summer and with public transport during winter. This way, physical activity is part of my way of life as well as most of the residents in my neighbourhood.
However, my mother moved to the suburbs last year. Since I visit her on a regular basis, it was possible for me to notice several times how the transportation was for people living in the suburbs. I quickly discovered that for all the activities that someone could take for granted possible on foot or on a bicycle in several neighbourhoods in the city, they were instead accomplished by car in the suburbs. Going to the convenience store can be done on foot from my mother's place, but in a neighbourhood without sidewalks (they make roads because there are cars, but is it because they don't want pedestrians that they don't make sidewalks?!) and having to cross over a highway overpass, we have to admit that it's not very inviting.
Bad marks on the health reports of suburbanites
The Canadians' annual Health report published by the heart disease foundation shoots down the myth that living in the country or in the suburbs is better for your heart's health. The very first report of the Foundation about the difference between urban and peripheral life clearly indicates that the Canadian population that are automobile-dependent do much less physical activities and have a higher risk of becoming overweight and obese.
In other words, the suburban dream seems to be turning to a nightmare.
"The evidence is conclusive: our dependency of cars is killing us. We will have to centralize our lifestyle on healthy habits and cease being led by the 'drive-thru services'," says Dr. George Honos, spokesperson for the Heart Disease Foundation and cardiologist. Among men and woman in Quebec, 84% think that the urban areas' tense lifestyle and rapid rhythm are more harmful for their health.
According to the Foundation, for people living in the suburbs, in small centres and in rural areas, this false feeling of security could lead to bigger risks of cardiovascular diseases, cerebrovascular accidents that city citizens could. The Foundation's research indicates that those living in the city have twice as many chances to walk, bicycle or use public transport than those living outside the city. In addition, a bigger proportion of townspeople do their daily shopping on foot or on their bike.
That's when I inevitably started having nausea.
It happened on many occasions where I would ask my parents to stop so I could take a breather outside the car, and all that time, I never understood what was causing me this problem. I think back about it today and I can only feel compassion for all our generation of children who had to put up with this pulmonary torture. Although we still find this kind of behaviour with certain parents today, it's marginal now that we know the effects of second-hand smoke. But the disease caused by the automobile has more diverse aspects. One of those aspects is: The Suburbs.
Is the suburbs a dream that's turning against us?
I've always lived in the city. Even today, I reside in a Montreal district where I can walk to the convenience store, the pharmacy, the supermarket, the post office and even the movies. I go to work on my bike or on rollerblades in the summer and with public transport during winter. This way, physical activity is part of my way of life as well as most of the residents in my neighbourhood.
However, my mother moved to the suburbs last year. Since I visit her on a regular basis, it was possible for me to notice several times how the transportation was for people living in the suburbs. I quickly discovered that for all the activities that someone could take for granted possible on foot or on a bicycle in several neighbourhoods in the city, they were instead accomplished by car in the suburbs. Going to the convenience store can be done on foot from my mother's place, but in a neighbourhood without sidewalks (they make roads because there are cars, but is it because they don't want pedestrians that they don't make sidewalks?!) and having to cross over a highway overpass, we have to admit that it's not very inviting.
Bad marks on the health reports of suburbanites
The Canadians' annual Health report published by the heart disease foundation shoots down the myth that living in the country or in the suburbs is better for your heart's health. The very first report of the Foundation about the difference between urban and peripheral life clearly indicates that the Canadian population that are automobile-dependent do much less physical activities and have a higher risk of becoming overweight and obese.
In other words, the suburban dream seems to be turning to a nightmare.
"The evidence is conclusive: our dependency of cars is killing us. We will have to centralize our lifestyle on healthy habits and cease being led by the 'drive-thru services'," says Dr. George Honos, spokesperson for the Heart Disease Foundation and cardiologist. Among men and woman in Quebec, 84% think that the urban areas' tense lifestyle and rapid rhythm are more harmful for their health.
According to the Foundation, for people living in the suburbs, in small centres and in rural areas, this false feeling of security could lead to bigger risks of cardiovascular diseases, cerebrovascular accidents that city citizens could. The Foundation's research indicates that those living in the city have twice as many chances to walk, bicycle or use public transport than those living outside the city. In addition, a bigger proportion of townspeople do their daily shopping on foot or on their bike.