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Has Anyone Ever Told You...A Fat Free Diet Is Good For You?

There is some truth to the fact that the less fat you consume in your diet, the better your risk profile becomes. This is especially true for reductions in saturated fat. An extremely low-fat or completely fat free diet is very difficult or impossible to achieve, and may carry its own health risks. Dietary fats are needed to carry fat soluble vitamins such as A, D, E, and K. Fats are needed by every cell in our body too, and are vital for the functioning not only of the brain, but also for controlling the production of hormones that control many body functions. The real key is balance, variety, and moderation. A national recommendation has been to consume less than 30% of total calories as fat, and less than 10% of that total should come from saturated fats. For information and answers to questions and other nutrition myths such as... Processed food is less nutritious than raw food. Sugar causes diabetes. Missing meals helps you lose weight. Preservatives are bad for you. It is bad to eat between meals. You can not digest more than one type of food at a time. To lose weight, become a vegetarian. A fat free diet is good for you. You need less food in hot weather than when it is cold. It is always better for you to eat vegetables raw. ...go to Gourmet Connection Magazine

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Accidents Do Happen Do you know of a child that has been hurt in an accident? Chances are you do. The simple fact is that accidents happen to all of us. It is however, particularly difficult to see a child suffer. Because of a child's lack of knowledge and experience, they may be more vulnerable to accidents. Some sources cite accidents as the leading cause of death in children ages 1-4. According to the Center for Disease Control, at least one adolescent (10-19 years old) dies of an injury every hour of every day; about 15,000 die each year. Injuries kill more adolescents than all diseases combined. For every injury death, there are about 41 injury hospitalizations and 1100 cases treated in emergency rooms. While it is true that most accidental deaths are unintentional (60%), violence (homicide and suicide) accounts for the remaining 40%. With spring now here, children will be playing outside more, riding bicycles, scooters, and inline skates. There are numerous ways to reduce the risks of injury on the playground and at home. In this issue, you will hopefully find some of the information useful. Ron Hager Health and Fitness Section Editor

Featured Web Sites

Bicycle Helmet Safety Institute: a small, non-profit consumer-funded program acting as a clearinghouse and a technical resource for bicycle helmet information. The National SAFE KIDS Campaign: the first and only national organization dedicated solely to the prevention of unintentional childhood injury. National Program for Playground Safety: established in 1995 at the University of Northern Iowa under a grant from the Centers for Disease Control and Injury Prevention.

If you have ideas, comments, letters to share, or questions about particular topics, please email one of the following Section Editors:

	Scott Roberts
	Andy Jenkins
	Darren Dale
	Ron Hager

Making Play Safe Playground injury is the most common school-related injury among children ages 5 to 14. Most of these injuries (79%) involve falls. Falls also account for 90% of the most severe playground equipment-related injuries (typically head injuries and fractures) and 24% of playground-related fatalities. The risk of injury is four times greater if a child falls from playground equipment that is more than 1.5 meters high (approximately 5 feet). Whatever the cause, kids are at greater risk of injury when unsupervised. Lack of supervision is associated with 40% of playground injuries. A recent study found that children play without adult supervision more often on school playgrounds (32% of the time) than on playgrounds in parks or childcare centers. Young children who play on equipment designed for older kids are also at increased risk.

Helmet Safety

Does My Child Really Need One? The simple answer is yes. Laws now require helmets in many areas. The reason is because medical research shows that 85% of cyclists' head injuries can be prevented by a bicycle helmet. More than 800 bicycle riders are killed in the U.S. every year - almost all in collisions with cars - and 75% of them die of head injuries. Many thousands more suffer less severe, but still debilitating injuries which are far worse than the physical pain of scraped skin or even broken bones. Your child can suffer permanent personality changes and learning disabilities from a brain injury, and both of you will be aware of what they have lost. Common long-term effects include concentration difficulties, aggressiveness, headaches, and balance problems. Imagine your anguish if this happens to your child. Will My Child Actually Use It? Yes, if other children wear one, their parents use one, the teacher at school has told them how much good helmets do, and the child has picked out the one they really want. No, if the helmet makes your child feel like a geek, nobody else uses one, and it does not fit well. Perhaps yes, if you have the will to enforce the rule. Most situations fall somewhere in between, and you know your child best. Seventh grade seems to be the most resisting age for helmets, when the feeling of invincibility is strong, and the rage for teen fashion is undeniable. The key motivator of helmet use for kids is fashion, not safety. Try to make use of that.

Adult Fitness

One Set- or Three? Time constraints is one of the most common excuses given for not participating in regular exercise routines. What if you could get about the same results from a strength training routine in less than half the time? A new study coming out of the University of Florida suggests that you can. Men and women performed either a one-set or a three-set routine. Results of the study indicated that muscle strength and endurance went up across the board, and the three-set lifters saw greater increases. However, their gains weren't that much greater—less than 2% on average, for their one-rep max of five exercises. And, once you factor in the time savings (about 25 minutes for one set, an hour for three) the payoff for the time spent starts to look pretty good. Resistance Training for Older Adults Although keeping muscles stronger helps keep aging bodies younger, there are health considerations. Read this article for more information on this important fact.