Welcome to December, and might I add… Brrrrrr! I hope all of you are enjoying the holiday season as much as I am, and attempting to keep warm!

In this month's section I tried to share a variety of different materials surrounding Health, Fitness & Nutrition! I start off with some exercise ideas to help reduce boredom and make PE classes fun! Then, I offer a section on school recess, and how recess helps develop the "whole"child. You will also find a section addressing the possibility of drinking to much water, and how doing so may have negative effects on the body.

To add more variety, you will find great resources on the use of steroids and 'blood doping,' and also information on vitamin B12 deficiency, which can often be found among vegan and vegetarian lifestyles, as well as the elderly.

I hope you enjoy all the information and remember, "Tis the season to be health conscious!" Happy Holiday's everyone, and have a great new year!

Angela Roth
Health & Fitness Section Editor

Fitness Pen Pals

Fitness Pen Pals incorporates language arts skills with the promotion of fitness. The target audience is elementary, middle, and high schools YMCAs, health clubs, gyms and school clubs.

The idea of Fitness Pen Pals was implemented to help encourage students to correspond with other students, and to learn about each other by gaining insight into what it is like to live in a different location, and to gain a better perspective of the world around them.

Classroom teachers from both schools are asked to be involved, and in addition to typical information in letters, a fitness goal will also be exchanged. One of the benefits of this is the response from the students themselves. Many parents have said that it has really helped their children realize the importance of physical education. Students find that the pen pal stranger is generally nonjudgmental, and this helps create a non-pressured and positive view between pen pals.

Students are asked to make a fitness challenge to their pen pals every time they write, and each challenge should be doable and measurable. The letters continue throughout the school year, and at the end of the year all students involved are given a special certificate from the school's physical education teacher.

This chapter includes teacher tips on implementing this project. The chapter also includes samples of a pen pals bulletin board, letters, checklist, press release, as well as a sample certificate to help with implementation.

A big reason people don't want to exercise is due to boredom. Many people become bored with the repetition of an exercise, or an exercise program, and just stop doing it. Most people who have run in circles around a track for 40 minutes know what I’m talking about.

So in order to promote healthier lifestyles, especially among kids, we need to make exercise fun again! Here are a few Track and Field activities that you can use in your curriculum to make running a bit more exciting.

ENDLESS RELAY - The purpose here is to complete a 400-meter run as quickly as possible.
	Directions: Split your class into teams of 5 students with 1 baton for each team. For the 400-meter relay, place two students at the start and one at each 100-meter segment. Each student will run 100-meters of relay until he/she ends up at his/her original starting position. The entire team will have covered 5 laps, but each student will have only run one lap. Scoring the teams is easy! Use the total number of seconds it took to complete the entire course.
SOFTBALL THROW - The purpose of this activity is to throw a softball up and down the field as quickly as possible.
Directions:
	Place all teams at the back of the field. (Or end zone if using a football field)
	The first person throws the softball as far as possible.
	The entire team runs to the ball.
	The second person now throws the ball as far as possible.
	If thrown over the back of the end zone line, the team brings the ball back to the end zone, then throws it back toward the starting line.
	Keep going until the team covers the entire field at least 3 times.
	Scoring: The total number of seconds it took to cover the designated distance.
LONG JUMP - The purpose of this activity is to jump 100 feet in the least amount of jumps.
Directions:
	Students line up in the long jump area. Jumping one after another in order, students try to perform the least number of jumps possible to total 100 feet.
	Each jump is measured to the nearest foot.
	All foot-fault jumps are added to the number of jumps made, but no distance is measured.
	Scoring: Multiply the total number of jumps by ten.

Promoting Better Health for Young People through Physical Activity and Sports: A Report to the President: This report from the Secretary of Health and Human Services and the Secretary of Education, and released by the White House, outlines ten strategies to promote health and reduce obesity through lifelong participation in enjoyable and safe physical activity and sports.

Physical Education and Recess:Are Both Necessary? - Read a research report on why kids have the need for recess, and how they differentiate between PE and recess.

The Case for Elementary School Recess - There is a misconception in our society that recess does not serve any real purpose. The Board of Directors of the American Association for the Child's Right to Play believe that recess is vital to the child's overall healthy development. They are pleased to offer parents, teachers, and school administrators this information that supports the need for elementary school recess. - source: site

Should Schools Take a Break from Recess? - Does it make sense, educationally and developmentally, to eliminate recess for students in elementary school? That question is the subject of debate among educators. What do teachers and parents have to say?

The Value of School Recess and Outdoor Play - With the high level of childhood obesity, a good case for higher academic achievement just doesn't 'cut the mustard.'

Most of us have been told to drink lots of water, and that drinking lots of water can't be 'bad' for us. However, there are new findings that suggest too much water within a short amount of time could be detrimental. A number of endurance athletes are developing hyponatremia, or 'excessive amounts of water' in their system.

Hyponatremia is caused by a drop in the body's sodium level due to drinking excessive amounts of low-sodium fluids, like water, for long periods. Symptoms may include confusion and seizures, and in the most serious of circumstances can result in death. This has led some organizations to change its hydration guidelines from "drink as much as possible" to "drink as much as needed to replace fluids lost through sweat."

For the full article "Water Everywhere," please see: 'Joe Weider's Muscle & Fitness' magazine. Woodland Hills: Dec 2005. Vol. 66, Iss. 12; pg. 64, 1 pgs ISBN: 07445105 Periodical. The original article is written by Matthew G Kadey. Weider Publications.

More resources on hyponatremia:

	Hyponatremia: Maintaining the Delicate Balance Between Electrolytes and Fluids - Why salt tablets are insufficient in preventing a salt deficiency.
	Hyponatremia - The electrolyte disturbance hyponatremia exists when the sodium level in the plasma falls below 135 mmol/l. It is an abnormality that can be seen in isolation or, as most often is the case, as a complication of other medical illnesses. Read the rest...
	Salt and the ultraendurance athlete - Recently, Americans have been urged to pay more attention to their sodium intake. Decades ago, all foods seemed heavily salted. Then, a link between sodium intake and high blood pressure was discovered. See also: Hyponatremia & Exercise - There are thought to be three potential mechanisms to account for hyponatremia during exercise.
	Tips on Preventing Hyponatremia - For years, the mantra among runners has been: "Drink as much water as possible." But a condition called exercise-related hyponatremia shows that, like many things, too much of a good thing can be unhealthy. Read the rest...
	The Facts About Over-Hydration & Runners Beware: Over-Hydration Can be More Dangerous Than Dehydration - The more than 200,000 runners approaching the starting line of major marathoners must be warned about a recently identified, potentially life-threatening hazard that may be caused by drinking too much water, hyponatremia.

Vitamin B12 recommendations for total-vegetarians! - Individuals seeking to support their health by following a vegan (total vegetarian) diet often face a multitude of advice-laden comments from friends, family, and even their physicians. Typically, these communications suggest that vital nutrients are commonly deficient in the vegan diet. The old standby, "But you can't get enough complete protein without meat," recently has been joined by, "But you need fish oil for essential fatty acids."

Such advice is, of course, incorrect, being little more than the "deficiency paranoia" of the ill informed. Knowledgeable people have few serious health concerns about the adoption of a vegan diet. Vitamin B12, however, is the rare exception. Read the whole article...

B12 and Chronic Disease: Homocysteine
Summary: Vegetarians who do not supplement their diet with vitamin B12 tend to have elevated homocysteine levels. Elevated homocysteine is probably a cause of early mortality, heart disease, stroke and recurrentpregnancyy loss. It also may be a partial cause of Alzheimer's disease, neural tube defects, and certain eye disorders. Vegetarians who eat B12-fortified foods or supplements in amounts of 3 to 100 µg per day will minimize any elevated homocysteine problems due to a low B12 intake.

Vitamin B12 in the Vegan Diet
The requirement for vitamin B12 is very low. Non-animal sources include Red Star Vegetarian Support Formula or T-6635+ nutritional yeast (a little less than 1 Tablespoon supplies the adult RDA), and vitamin B12 fortified soymilk. It is especially important for pregnant and lactating women, infants, and children to have reliable sources of vitamin B12 in their diets. Read the rest...

Stress Fractures - Find out about stress fractures, and how to treat them. More great information here.

Stress Fractures - What is a stress fracture? A stress fracture is an overuse injury. It occurs when muscles become fatigued and are unable to absorb added shock. Eventually, the fatigued muscle transfers the overload of stress to the bone causing a tiny crack called a stress fracture. Read the rest...

Stress Fractures in Female Runners - Forty-five percent of competitive female runners develop stress fractures, small cracks on the surface of the bones in their legs and feet. The women most likely to suffer these injuries are those who restrict food and those who have irregular periods. Read the rest...

Managing Common Stress Fractures: Let Risk Level Guide Treatment - An excellent article, which includes x-ray photos of stress fractures.

Athletic Skin Injuries: Combating Pressure and Friction - In Brief: Because the skin is the athlete's first line of defense, it is exposed to friction and pressure in nearly every athletic setting. Whether applied acutely or chronically, friction and pressure often cause skin trauma, such as abrasions, chafing, calluses, blisters, talon noir (black heel), and acne mechanica. Sports medicine clinicians, who regularly see skin injuries, can speed healing by making a timely diagnosis, recommending effective treatment, and discussing prevention strategies.

The integument, positioned at the interface between the athlete and the sporting environment, represents not only the body's largest organ, but also the one that experiences disruption from acute or long-term application of sports-related friction and pressure. Prevention and treatment of injuries that develop in this setting can greatly enhance a participant's ability to compete successfully over short and long periods in various settings. Read the rest...

Childhood Sports Injuries and Their Prevention - A guide for parents with ideas for kids. Read how to help your child from becoming injured in athletics. Get tips on what to do when he/she IS injured. Also, you need to be aware of potential injury to growth plates when children are involved in sports/athletics. Please read Questions and Answers About Growth Plate Injuries.

Get information on Injuries - Treating Sprains, Strains, and Other Sports Injuries - General Prevention of Sports Injuries - Bike Safety

Articular Cartilage Injury - Articular cartilage is a complex, living tissue that lines the bony surface of joints. It's function is to provide a low friction surface enabling the joint to withstand weight bearing through the range of motion needed to perform activities of daily living as well as athletic endeavors. In other words, articular cartilage is a very thin shock absorber. Read the article...

Concussion - A concussion is an injury to the brain that results in temporary loss of normal brain function. It is usually caused by a blow to the head. Cuts or bruises may be present on the head or face, but in many cases there are no signs of trauma. Many people assume that concussions involve a loss of consciousness, but that is not true. In most cases, a person with a concussion never loses consciousness. Read the rest...

Runners of All Types Prone to Injuries - By most estimates, nearly 70 percent of runners will become injured. While many of their injuries will appear minor, they can become more serious over time if not properly treated.

Tennis Elbow - This is an interactive tutorial providing lots of information on elbow injury. Requires Flash.

Daniel E. Cooper, MD: Specializing in Athletic Injuries. This is a great interactive site that shows movies of treatments for different athletic injuries.