Live chat: Busting health myths (replay)

Canadian citizens are facing an escalating health challenge. Two-thirds of the country's population is overweight, and about 20 per cent are considered clinically obese, according to Dr. Arya Sharma, one of Canada's leading obesity experts.

A poll commissioned by the CBC has found that Canadian adults agree obesity is the No. 1 health issue affecting Canadians today, followed by poor nutrition and cancer. However, many Canadians think they're healthier then they actually are -- only 51 per cent of the adults surveyed considered themselves overweight or obese, and about 77 per cent believed they were generally living a healthy lifestyle and eating a healthy diet.

What accounts for this disconnect? One major reason could be that Canadians are bombarded by a huge amount of health information. Roughly half of the adults surveyed said they felt overwhelmed by all the information available about healthy living. From glossy health magazines to nutritional blogs and reality weight-loss shows, there's no shortage of advice and opinion -- some of it conflicting. What's a healthy rate of weight loss? What's the most effective way to measure overall health? How much sleep do we actually need to stay healthy? You can find different answers everywhere.

We want to help separate fact from fiction. On Wednesday, Jan. 5, obesity physician Dr. Ali Zentner, who is also one of the health experts on CBC's new Village on a Diet program, CBCNews.ca health writer Amina Zafar, and CBC Radio health reporter Pauline Dakin participated in a live chat. They identified some of the top myths surrounding nutrition, exercise, sleep, and stress. You can watch the chat replay below.

For more information on diet, exercise, and stress, visit CBC's Live Right Now campaign.