Metabolism slows with age, thereby contributing to weight gain in our older years. After age 45, the average individual loses around 10 percent of their muscle mass per decade. This equates to losing about one-third to one-half a pound of muscle each year and also gaining that much in body fat.

At first bite, there's a lot to love about the double-deep-fried Mars bar, a beer-battered, sugar-dusted treat that's one of the highlights of this year's Taste of Edmonton.

Served in a white paper cone, the trashy delicacy oozes warm chocolatey goodness out of a chewy, flavourful crust. It is, in the words of Sherwood Park's Karin Monkman, more like a Mars-flavoured cake than a convenience-store candy bar.

Fed by weekly magazines and reality TV, hunger for stories about the seriously overweight is insatiable. Is the coverage given to obesity helping to raise awareness – or is it fuelling the problem?

In another life, Barry Austin would be up to his neck in blood and guts fighting for his country in the Afghan badlands or some other far-flung theatre of war. But instead of following his boyhood dream of becoming a professional soldier, Austin selected a different career path. He chose food; lots and lots of food.

At home I have a wall of shelves filled with every diet book I've ever read, and some I have even written myself.
 

It's a collection which represents 40 years of my own interest in slimming and nutrition, and I can sort them into piles: 'bad', 'mad' and 'sad'.
 

THE number of severely obese teenagers undergoing Lap-Band surgery here is increasing, said surgeons.

The surgery involves placing an adjustable band around the upper stomach. The band can be adjusted according to the patient's requirements and removed if needed.

my paper spoke to several surgeons here and most said that they have seen about a 5 to 6 per cent increase in the number of teen patients, compared to five to six years ago.