Washington, April 19 : A Dalhousie University psychologist warns that perfectionism is not a healthy approach to life''s challenges, explaining why individuals with a high degree of perfectionism are often setting themselves up for a host of physical, emotional and mental problems- particularly related to binge eating.

"Perfectionism is a double-edged personality trait," says Simon Sherry, Assistant Professor of Psychology.

Washington, April 19 : Griddling - cooking on a flat metal surface with no oil - or microwave cooking can help maintain the highest antioxidant levels in vegetables, according to a Spanish study.

Fruits and vegetables are considered to be rich in nutritional antioxidants, which provide cancer and disease-preventing effects. This is the reason why people are encouraged to eat several servings of fruits and vegetables.

Port of Spain  - UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Saturday praised improving ties between the United States and communist Cuba, which have been troubled for close to half a century.

"We have noted with interest the change of direction by the new US administration," Ban said at the Summit of the Americas in Trinidad and Tobago.

"It is a sign of changing times, of fresh winds blowing, in ways large and small," he said.

Port of Spain  - The first meeting between US President Barack Obama and Hugo Chavez was a "good start," the Venezuelan president said Saturday.

"We have started to talk with Obama, and in itself that is a start, a good start. I believe we have started with positive steps," Chavez told reporters at the Summit of the Americas underway in Trinidad and Tobago.

"It is time we have the true start of a new history, that there is a balance, that domination mechanisms end," Chavez said.

Port of Spain  - President Hugo Chavez on Saturday said he was considering restoring Venezuela's diplomatic ties with the United States, in light of the change in policy under new US President Barack Obama.

"We are considering it with great attention and I think there could soon start to be work meetings," Chavez said on the sidelines of the Summit of the Americas in Trinidad and Tobago.

He said there had already been some exchanges with US Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton.

Washington/Tehran  - The United States expressed deep concern Saturday over an eight-year prison sentence imposed by the Iranian judiciary on Iranian-American journalist Roxana Saberi for spying.

"I am deeply disappointed," Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said. "We will continue to vigorously raise our concerns to the Iranian government."

Saberi, 31, a reporter for US National Public Radio, was sentenced on charges of spying for the United States after the closed-door trial, her lawyer told reporters in Tehran.