Teen Health

Archive for March, 2010

Copyright (c) 2008 SharpBrains

Dear Mr or Mrs Next US President,

The health and medical blogosphere would like to make sure you and your team take into account the issues outlined below as you and your aids formulate your policies and put together the team that will further define and implement them.

40 different health bloggers have asked these questions that I now pose to you and your team.

Dear Mr or Mrs Next US President,

1. Your main asset is your brain. What have you done lately to maintain your brain? (SharpBrains).

Health Policy

2. Who do you support as US Science Advisor? (A Blog Around the Clock).

3. Not to depress you but…are you aware that healthcare reform is really hard? how will you change all this? (Medinnovationblog).

4. How will you increase price transparency of medical procedures and engage consumer forces? (Val Jones).

5. Sorry to insist, but this is an important point. Why is there so much confusion and misinformation about procedure prices? (Insure Blog).

6. Have you seen the recent figures that show how lack of insurance reduces cancer survival rates? (Highlight Health).

7. The cost of fruits and vegetables is growing higher than inflation rates, and we have a growing obesity problem. What will you do? (The Diet Dish).

8. In the midst of multiple economic pressures, how will you make sure to add “Care” back to Health Care? (Hospital Impact).

Health Sector Professionals

9. How will you address the Nursing Shortage? (Emergiblog).

10. How will you reward, motivate and recognize medical innovators? (Clinical Cases and Images).

11. How will you motivate professionals who put their own health and happiness at risk to take care of others? (In My Humble Opinion).

12. Would you agree that this neurosurgeon deserves his compensation? (Retrospectacle).

13. How can we motivate more doctors to take Emergency Calls? (Everything Health).

14. If you are Obama, you already know this. If you aren’t, how are your healthcare proposals better than his? (Healthline Connects).

15. Have you spent time dealing with the realities of day-to-day hospital issues? (Trauma Queen).

16. Mr(s) President: you are a key participant. Do you know how much we want you to suceed? (Chronic Babe).

Emerging Topics

17. Aging-related research is neglected in comparison to disease-specific research – which doesn’t make much sense. How will you help correct this? (Ouroboros).

18. How will you facilitate cross-sector collaborations to design, evaluate and bring to market new technologies? (Diabetes Mine).

19. Should every physical rehab facility make Nintendo Wii games available to patients? (How to Cope with Pain).

20. Is evidence-based medicine the panacea? (Hope for Pandora).

21. Will you help us help ourselves? (BrainFit4Life).

22. How will you help set the balance between the benefits and the misuse of antibiotics? (A Chronic Dose).

23. Will technology and games help reduce depression rates? (Doc Gurley).

Global Issues

24. What will you do to help the thousands of veterans (estimated at 30% of returning soldiers) coming back from Iraq with PTSD? Will you take this toll into account before you embark into another war? (NY Emergency Medicine).

25. What can we do to reduce cholera rates in Africa and parts of Asia? (Kolahun).

26. Given the risk of global epidemics, what will you do to prevent outbreaks and dissemination of infectious diseases? (Interested Participant).

27. Why has the malaria problem grown so much in Africa, and what can we do to reverse it? (Ipex).

28. Can you help reduce the rate of innocent mistakes in South Africa? (Other Things Amanzi).

Ethical Concerns

29. Should doctors use the placebo effect in the patient’s benefit? (Just a Geeky Girl).

30. A cocaine vaccination is no longer science-fiction. Would you allow, enforce, or prohibit it? (Mind Hacks).

31. What is your position on the lethal injection debate? (Every Day Nurses).

32. If nothing else works, how do we ensure noble and comfortable deaths? (Digital Doorway).

33. If you see him, would you please remind Dr. Phil of HIPAA regulations? (JeffreyMD).

Specific Medical Conditions

34. How will you help parents whose kids have attention deficits navigate through emerging research? (Health Business Blog).

35. We live in an increasingly complex world. What can you do to help improve the mental health of our teenagers? (Teen Health 411).

36. Imagine that, while hiking with some friends, one of them gets injured. Would you know how to provide first aid? (Medicine in the Outdoors).

37. How will you help disseminate best practices, such as this example for Chronic Rhinitis? (Allergy Notes).

38. Do we really know what Schizophrenia is? (Med Journal Watch).

39. Can we do better newborn screening for “Bubble Boy Disease”? (Science Roll).

40. Can eating beans help prevent Diabetes? (Disease Proof).

Dear Mr or Mrs Next US President, good luck with the primaries and the elections.

Yours sincerely,

Alvaro

Reports show that teenagers nowadays have a high rate of obesity as compared to the previous years. Alarmed of this issue, the teens want teen dieting to solve obesity and understanding the problem is very much important. One of the causes is the proliferation of fast food stores with their affordable recipes The foods which are usually cooked in oil being served in these outlets usually contain much fat and cholesterol. Preparing these foods in volume to meet the demands of the consumers the following days also need the use of preservatives, which are also known to contain some elements detrimental to health.

Another cause of obesity is that the teenagers are doing less extraneous activities. Before, teenagers who were briskly walking to the school together with their schoolmates were a regular sight on the streets. But too much crowd using the pedestrian lanes and the problems caused by traffic jams force the teens to ride in metro trains thereby lessening the chance of a regular exercise. Their preoccupation of the computers also hastens obesity because it forces them to sit over a long period of time, thereby lessening fat burning activities.

Taking effective dieting is what the teens want. Before proceeding, the teenagers and their parents must be better educated to choose the right teen dieting. It could be done through self sacrifice from their usual eating food habits, or they could use diet pills.

Most teens are aware that an effective dieting means abstinence from food that causes much obesity, or from eating more food than what is needed by the body. Diet pills if true to their claims, whether prescription or non-prescription cannot really prevent obesity and from getting fat if the insatiable need for food cannot be avoided. Instead of the usual pre-packed foods and goodies, encourage them to eat vegetables and minimize those fat inducing convenience food. After eating, why not ask your teens to wash the dishes, at least a little exercise could be had.

Studies show evidence that there are better ways to address the problem than the use of diet pills. Considering that they too, help teenagers from getting obese, they are also considered teen dieting without diet pills.

The teenagers must be encouraged to be more active by participating in various fitness programs. A variety of these programs are available such as dance classes of various forms and plain exercises to more extraneous activities such as body lifting, karate, judo and other forms of martial arts. Regular participation in youth camps would not only bring fun to the teenagers, they also afford them the opportunity to learn skills, and of course, the needed exercise. To those who want to stay at home, tending the flowering plants, or accompanying their pet dogs in its strolls will already burn the fats in their bodies.

If teens want dieting seriously, they should cooperate by lessening their use of the computers, cutting short their phone conversations or to decrease time spent from watching television programs. Instead of staying inside their homes, they must learn to spend more time outside. After all, a little sacrifice will contribute to a healthy life.

When we talk about fitness, it can either be performance-related fitness or health-related fitness. This teen fitness article focuses on both type of fitness that affects both the mind and the body of teen guys and teen girls. Being fit gives you more energy for work, school, and allows you to enjoy life better. It wards off heart attack, colon cancer, diabetes, and high blood pressure; and being fit does not only assures good health but it makes you feel good about you and lets you stay active.

Yoga does a lot of great things to the mind and body of teenagers. It’s a simple solution to beating stress from exams, peer pressure, social anxiety and fear of being ridiculed common to teen guys and girls alike. If perform before and after study hours, yoga can have tremendous relaxing benefits that allows the mind to perform better.

Teens who are independent and loved variety can engage in aerobic exercise outside the gym. Running, cycling, swimming, tennis, dancing, are just some of the many that you can engaged in to build stamina and endurance while strengthening your heart muscle for better health. A 20 minute intense aerobic exercise three or more times a week is recommended by the American Heart Association. Active teenagers are most likely to develop active and healthy lifestyle as they grow older, and are healthier than their sedentary counterparts.

Teen wants to stay on top of everything; why not stay on top of your self defense. Martial art such as Kung Fu is a fun and exciting way to stay fit while building your confidence that comes from knowing that you can protect yourself. Martial art training relives tension and stress you experienced as a teenager whilst building up your fitness level. Spending time training martial arts is also a great diversion to occupy your self learning productive activities than otherwise.

The cheapest way to stay healthy and fit for teenagers is to have a good, well balanced diet rich in vitamins and minerals, and fibers from fruits and vegetable. Boys trying to beef up their muscles need to eat more protein rich food to spur muscle growth. It’s not so much about dieting but rather it is about healthy eating. When you are younger, your body’s metabolic processes are most likely working well so that you do not need to worry too much about calories. Naturally though, teenagers are active so that you need more calories than adults. However, if you tend to be sedentary often, that’s when you get the problem of sugar and fats in your body. That is why you need to live like a teenager, go out and have fun.

You do not need a lot of money to finance your fitness activities. You can seek advice from your friends or relatives who knows about staying fit and healthy, and just try to fit their advice on your lifestyle, and financial and physical capacity. Certainly staying away from smoking is the cheapest and surest way to ensure healthy lungs and tip-top stamina.

Q: What is obesity?
A: According to the Centers for Disease Control, obesity is defined as “the condition of an excessively high amount of body fat or adipose tissue in relation to lean body mass.” 1 A more commonly-known definition of obesity is that of an individual’s weight being 30% or more above what is considered normal as defined by a standardly-accepted height/weight chart (e.g. The National Center for Health Statistics or Metropolitan Life Insurance Company). Overweight and obesity are also commonly determined by calculating an individual’s body mass index.

 

Morbid obesity means that the individual weighs anywhere from 50 to 100% percent more than normal weight or they are more than 100 pounds over normal weight. Morbid obesity literally means that the amount of overweight a person is carrying is life-threatening, due to its related health risks. Morbid obesity also often significantly hinders or prevents an individual from accomplishing many day-to-day functions. Surgical procedures like gastric bypass are often seriously considered as a weight control option for those who are morbidly obese.

 

Q: Why should obesity taken seriously?
A: Obese individuals have a 50 to 100% increased risk of death from all causes as compared to normal-weight individuals. 5

 

Q: What is the difference between being overweight and obese?
A: The CDC defines overweight as referring to increased body weight in relation to height as determined by comparison to a standard height/weight chart. 1 People who are considered overweight have not reached a high enough weight to qualify as being obese. As a rule of thumb, the medical community usually considers someone to be overweight rather than obese if their weight is 10% higher than normal as definied by height/weight charts.

 

Defining Overweight and Obesity

 

Overweight and obesity are both labels for ranges of weight that are greater than what is generally considered healthy for a given height. The terms also identify ranges of weight that have been shown to increase the likelihood of certain diseases and other health problems.

 

Definitions for Adults

 

For adults, overweight and obesity ranges are determined by using weight and height to calculate a number called the “body mass index” (BMI). BMI is used because, for most people, it correlates with their amount of body fat.

 

An adult who has a BMI between 25 and 29.9 is considered overweight.

An adult who has a BMI of 30 or higher is considered obese.

 

See the following table for an example.

 

HeightWeight RangeBMIConsidered

5’ 9”
124 lbs or less
Below 18.5
Underweight

125 lbs to 168 lbs
18.5 to 24.9
Healthy weight

169 lbs to 202 lbs
25.0 to 29.9
Overweight

203 lbs or more
30 or higher
Obese

 

It is important to remember that although BMI correlates with the amount of body fat, BMI does not directly measure body fat. As a result, some people, such as athletes, may have a BMI that identifies them as overweight even though they do not have excess body fat. For more information about BMI, visit Body Mass Index.

 

Other methods of estimating body fat and body fat distribution include measurements of skinfold thickness and waist circumference, calculation of waist-to-hip circumference ratios, and techniques such as ultrasound, computed tomography, and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI).

 

Definitions for Children and Teens

For children and teens, BMI ranges above a normal weight have different labels (at risk of overweight and overweight). Additionally, BMI ranges for children and teens are defined so that they take into account normal differences in body fat between boys and girls and differences in body fat at various ages. For more information about BMI for children and teens (also called BMI-for-age), visit BMI for Children and Teens.

Health Risks Associated with Obesity

Research has shown that as weight increases to reach the levels referred to as “overweight” and “obesity,”* the risks for the following conditions also increases:1

Coronary heart disease

Type 2 diabetes

Cancers (endometrial, breast, and colon)

Hypertension (high blood pressure)

Dyslipidemia (for example, high total cholesterol or high levels of triglycerides)

Stroke

Liver and Gallbladder disease

Sleep apnea and respiratory problems

Osteoarthritis (a degeneration of cartilage and its underlying bone within a joint)

Gynecological problems (abnormal menses, infertility)

The health risks of obesity are serious and even life-threatening. Heart disease, for example, is the number one cause of death in America and can be directly linked to obesity.

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Although it is a difficult task to watch over the health of your teenage child, it is an important time of growth and development for him or her. As your teenager moves into adulthood, his or her body goes through rapid changes, many with permanent effects.

It is important to ensure that your teenager is getting the right nutritional balance each day. The best way to do this is to provide your teenager with the resources that he or she needs in order to know the consequences and benefits of dietary choices. In doing this, you can help your teenager to want to eat the right type of meals each day.

Issues concerning teenagers today

Of course when dealing with teenagers on health or any other topic, you have to recognize the powerful influence that their peers have and will have on them. Teenagers are also prone to developing personal issues with their looks. The rapid changes in their bodies also present them with a feeling of awkwardness in their appearances.

Be aware of any behavioral signs of anorexia or bulimia. These are more and more common diseases among teenagers who suffer from issues of self-esteem. If you monitor your teenager enough to be sure that he or she is eating healthy food each day, you will not have to be as concerned with these issues.

Educating your teenager about proper nutrition

Teenagers need a full nutritional complement every day. In addition to making sure that your teen eats a well balanced diet, including all five food groups, you should also make provision for them to receive nutrients they may not be receiving in their daily diets.

Because teenagers are at an age of partial autonomy, they will make decisions on a daily basis such as whether to eat out or grab a snack at a vending machine. Educate your teenager on what nutrients are in the foods that he or she eats as well as what nutrients his or her body needs every day. Do this and you provide the proper information that your teenager needs to formulate and adapt meals to include the nutrients that will make him or her healthy. More importantly, your teenager will know how to grow a healthy body, one that he or she can be proud.

For most parents, it is only feasible on weekdays to monitor either a teenager’s breakfast or supper. Provide your teenager with several nutritional options on those times that you are around. Doing so may help encourage your teenager to make healthier choices when you aren’t around. Have nutritious food options around the house and set a good example for your teenager to follow. Remember that when you are not around, your teenager is more likely to do what you do than what you say to do.

Engage your teenager in healthy physical activities

Do not forget that good teen health is more than just providing the proper nutrients. A teenager must also be active and exercise the body. Encourage your teenage child to join a gym or health club if he or she is uninterested in participating in sports at school. While your teenager may decide that these are not viable options, you should still let your teenager know that you feel it would be a healthful benefit.

Helping your teenager make the right choices

As your teenager gets older and gains increasing independence, he or she will make more and more choices about food and exercise. Your guidance along the way can help your teenager learn how to make these decisions thoughtfully. As your teenager becomes an adult, the lifestyle you have implanted in him or her will continually have its influence.