Help Your Loved Ones Stay Healthy

I received this at work in our monthly newsletter and I wanted to share.

Help Your Loved Ones Stay Healthy
Random Acts of Fitness, Nutrition and Health
Some ideas (in random order of course):
• Keep a variety of foods in the kitchen.
• Make sure you talk to them about other things besides weight loss and fitness.
• Stock kitchen with healthy cookbooks, leaving them where people can find them.
• Get the junk food out of the house.
• Plan an active activity after dinner.
• Make it a habit to play outdoor games together.
• Plan a cooking date.
• Cook at least three times a week for the household.
• If you already cook, cook healthier foods for the family.
• Maintain an upbeat attitude.
• Get a physical and urge them to do the same.
• Give “active” gifts, like personal training packages, a bicycle, roller blades, etc.
• Make a bet.
• Use positive language all the time.
• Be straight up and let them know you’re concerned about their health.
• Opt for activities as an excuse to spend time together.
• Turn off the TV and hide the remote.
• Give big, positive attention to changes that are made.
• If it’s your turn to pick, choose a healthy restaurant or one that’s within walking distance.

Kids’ Health: TV, Internet Causing Kids Harm: Media in general is boosting rates of obesity, and other woes

There's a strong link between media exposure and childhood obesity, smoking and sexual activity, according to U.S.
researchers who reviewed 173 studies on media and health conducted over the past three decades.
According to the review, 80 percent of the studies concluded that higher amounts of television and other media exposure
were associated with negative health effects in children and adolescents. The strongest association was between media
and obesity. Of the 73 studies that examined media/childhood weight, 86 percent showed a significant association
between increased media exposure and obesity.
The findings, by researchers from Yale University School of Medicine, the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH), and the California Pacific Medical Center, were released Tuesday by Common Sense Media, a nonprofit organization that seeks to
improve the impact of media and entertainment on children and families.
"This review is the first-ever comprehensive evaluation of the many ways that media impacts children's physical health,"
lead researcher Dr. Ezekiel J. Emanuel, of the NIH, said in a news release.
"The results clearly show that there is a strong correlation between media exposure and long-term negative health effects
to children. This study provides an important jumping-off point for future research that should explore both the effects of traditional media content and that of digital media -- such as video games, the Internet, and cell phones -- which kids are using today with more frequency," Emanuel said.
He and his colleagues recommend that parents limit their children's exposure to media and make wise, age-appropriate
decisions for their children. There should be media literacy programs in schools, the researchers said, and policy makers
need to make media education programs a national priority.
"Media is increasingly pervasive in the lives of children and adolescents," James P. Steyer, Common Sense Media
founder and CEO, said in a group news release. "Parents and educators must consider the effects of media when they're
trying to address issues with their child's health. This report makes is clear that we need a bold new agenda on media and
technology use. We hope this report will create a new sense of urgency in that regard."