Our lead columnist, Dr. Art Hister, graduated from McGill University, in Montreal, Canada, in 1970. In 1971 he moved across the country to Vancouver to become the first full-time physician with the Pine Free Clinic, the first Canadian clinic established to deal exclusively with transient youth. Dr. Hister left the Pine Free Clinic in 1977 to enter private practice.
Our
regular health columnist, Claire Sowerbutt, monitors medical news on a daily basis.
Claire is a widely published and respected health and medical writer with hundreds
of articles published on the web and in print. Her career as a medical journalist
spans more than a decade, and as a non-medical professional with a wealth of
contacts in the medical profession, she brings a unique consumer-oriented insight
to her columns. She has the expertise to know what’s relevant now, and
how it could affect you.
Guenther Krueger is a PhD Candidate at Simon Fraser University with interests in research methodologies, computer mediated communication and palliative care. With a background in nursing and counseling psychology he has spent the past fifteen years working as a freelance medical journalist. Learn more about 
Some answers to common questions about vitamins, how much water to drink in a day, and whether sunblock and sunscreen are the same.
A friend recently asked me whether the higher-end brands of vitamins are better than the cheaper generic or store brands, and if so why? The short answer is no – the more expensive brands are not necessarily better than the less expensive ones - at least according to the experts at the Mayo Clinic. In fact, the folks at the Mayo suggest that it’s not price you should be checking, but labels. The labels for multivitamins, for example, should indicate that the multivitamin levels contain 100% of the Daily Value (DV) of most essential nutrients. Interestingly, they point out that large doses of vitamins and nutrients, which is considered more than the recommended DV, and pills that contain extras like herbs, amino acid, and enzymes should be avoided because they may pose a health risk, particularly if you’re taking prescription medications.