How menu labeling can help you detect good food gone bad

<span style="font-size: large;">Last night I ate dinner out with a dear friend at a local Applebee's.</span><br /><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><span style="font-size: large;">   This particular Applebee's had calorie information for a few items on its print menu.  It had comprehensive nutrition information on its website.  You can see that information <a href="http://www.applebees.com/~/media/docs/Applebees_Nutritional_Info.pdf" target="_blank">here</a>.  </span><span style="font-size: large;">I accessed (and assessed) the information prior to my visit, but I could have seen it from my smartphone while at the table.  Not everyone can do either of those two things.</span><br /><span style="font-size: large;">  While dining, I told my friend that I saw some items on the menu that had over 2000 calories.  This was in reference to the research articles I talked about <a href="http://yourhealtheducator.blogspot.com/2013/06/why-do-we-have-to-count-calories-at.html" target="_blank">here</a>, which showed the average restaurant meal has over 1000 calories, more than half a days worth for many of us.</span><br /><span style="font-size: large;">   She asked me which items, but I could not remember at the time.  I looked again today and it was the appetizer sample and two dishes with riblets.</span><br /><span style="font-size: large;">   My friend and I both ordered the blackened tilapia meal which had a very reasonable 410 calories (as opposed to the fish and chips which had 1690!).  My meal had less than 410 calories because I asked the chef not to use butter and I replaced the potatoes with steamed broccoli </span>(great service from the wait person and manager, Winston Salem, NC).<span style="font-size: large;">  My friend and I ate similar volumes of food but I had fewer calories (I make these choices because I like to eat many times a day).  </span><br /><span style="font-size: large;">   The tilapia looked like a good choice and it was a good choice. I can't say the same for the grilled chicken salad which had 1290 calories.  There was also this great find on the children's menu.  The item was titled 'Kids Celery Side with Dressing."  In case you didn't know, 3 whole cups of chopped celery has less than 50 calories.  This 'low calorie' vegetable side item had 220 calories - I am guessing that about 200 of those calories were from the dressing.  To be fair, the celery - even with this dressing - had half the calories of the kids french fries.</span><br /><span style="font-size: large;">    Speaking of kids meals, remember <a href="http://yourhealtheducator.blogspot.com/2013/05/childrens-meals-and-diet-quality.html" target="_blank">this post </a>regarding the nutrition in children's meals at certain restaurants.  Applebee's did make it to the low end of the upper half of the list with 4 to 8 % of its children meals meeting expert nutrition standards.  It paled in comparison to Subway and even Red Lobster and IHOP.</span><br /><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><span style="font-size: large;">Oh and btw - I just started a twitter feed so if you want to follow me there you can. I expect I will mostly tweet photos of volumetric meals and maybe an occasional research update, esp related to diet quality and public health policy.  @DeirdreDingman</span>

How menu labeling can help you detect good food gone bad

Last night I ate dinner out with a dear friend at a local Applebee's.    This particular Applebee's had calorie information for a fe...

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The Silk v Almond Breeze Battle Wages On - and We Win

<span style="font-size: large;">   I have written about the virtue of almond milk 3 or 4 times in the past year.  I believe it has a lot to offer as a replacement for cow's milk.  It has a better nutrient profile, zero sugar (unless you buy a version that is sweetened.. and why would you DO that?), and it has  good fat from almonds.</span><br /><span style="font-size: large;">    In the second or third post, I spoke about one brand having slightly more calories than the other. If your interested in why that might matter  h<a href="http://yourhealtheducator.blogspot.com/2013/03/choosing-lower-calorie-option.html" target="_blank">ere is that post</a>.</span><br /><span style="font-size: large;">     Not only was there a calorie difference between the two brands but a significant price difference as well.  I was, initially, paying 50 cents more for the lower calorie milk (and I use two cartons a week). </span><br /><span style="font-size: large;">    I followed up sometime later to tell you that the other brand miraculously determined or changed so that it didn't have those 10 extra calories after all.  This was great news.  I could buy the cheaper milk  because the producer changed its recipe! YAY </span><br /><span style="font-size: large;">    I must not be the only calorie sleuth in the almond market nor the only one who sacrificed money to get less calories. Once the calories were equal I switched to the lower priced milk.  That must have been the behavior of many customers because the higher priced milk is now only 10 cents more.  In other words, the other company also changed based on the behavior of customers.  We had an effect on the producers.</span><br /><span style="font-size: large;">So this is fantastic. Consumers driving healthier options.</span><br /><span style="font-size: large;">   This is exactly the type of response we are starting to see and hoped to see with restaurant menu labeling.</span><br /><span style="font-size: large;">If I can get a lower calorie (read healthier) meal at one restaurant then I will go to that restaurant. If restaurants want my business they will smarten up and give me more lower calorie choices - and prices will even out just like they did for the milks.  (if there are lots of people making choices this way)</span><br /><br />

The Silk v Almond Breeze Battle Wages On - and We Win

   I have written about the virtue of almond milk 3 or 4 times in the past year.  I believe it has a lot to offer as a replacement for cow&#...

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My Running Playlist

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><i>Ain't nothin' gonna to break my stride<o:p></o:p></i></div><div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><i>Nobody's gonna slow me down, oh-no<o:p></o:p></i></div><div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><i>I got to keep on movin'<o:p></o:p></i></div><div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><i>Ain't nothin' gonna break my stride<o:p></o:p></i></div><div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><i>I'm running and I won't touch ground<o:p></o:p></i></div><div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><i>Oh-no, I got to keep on movin'<o:p></o:p></i></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal">This reggae tune from Matthew Wilder in 1983 links the idea of running with an unforgettable tempo. Never mind for a moment that the song was actually about a failed relationship. To wit one could imagine a quicker paced inquiry from rocker Lenny Kravitz <i>“Are You Gonna Go My Way?”<o:p></o:p></i></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Seriously Len Kravitz (not the rocker but an exercise scientist from the University of New Mexico) has looked into the <a href="http://www.ideafit.com/fitness-library/beat-goes-effects-music-exercise">effects of music on movement</a>.  </span>For example he has reviewed studies that show the beat rhythm in music provides auditory cues to improve gait regularity in stroke patients and motor control for other disorders.<br /><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal">In theory music may enhance fitness exercise in four possible ways:</div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]-->1.<span style="font-size: 7pt;">       </span><!--[endif]-->A reduction in the feeling of fatigue </div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]-->2.<span style="font-size: 7pt;">       </span><!--[endif]-->An increase in levels of psychological arousal </div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]-->3.<span style="font-size: 7pt;">       </span><!--[endif]-->A physiological relaxation response </div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]-->4.<span style="font-size: 7pt;">       </span><!--[endif]-->An improvement in motor coordination. </div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Personally I find that listening to music helps during runs and in particular the longer runs with staying upbeat while perhaps experiencing some fatigue. </span><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Lately I have been wondering which music tempos will best enhance training for faster running. In other words what is the ideal stride frequency? To be sure <a href="http://www.runnersworld.com/running-tips/how-boost-your-cadence">elite runners on average run at 180</a> steps per minute.  </span>Although there is at least <a href="http://www.ladysouthpaw.com/running-rocks-blog/180-bpm-running-playlists">one blog</a> and apps (e.g. CruiseCtrlRun and Synchstep) to suggest songs to match a running pace, I am a bit skeptical of the reported BPM generated by them.<br /><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">Top runners prance along, because they</div><div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">use the flick of the ankle and save energy</div><div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">that would otherwise be demanded by</div><div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">hamstrings and other major muscles</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Jeff Galloway has noted that the ankle is a class 2 lever that enables runners to touch lightly with each step. He says a key to faster running is stride frequency. </span><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> </span><a href="http://www.therunningclinic.ca/medias/mailinglist/2011-heiderscheit-cadence-et-for-2.pdf">One study</a> has shown that increasing stride rate reduces loading on joints which may prevent injury.<br /><div><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJhnOAfoj8odYD7dFcSqNuaIe9bUBg71cCVo6s0AgETSseuNWNvoWUJeDjr3gtrpxk67b9MPRli8TDu8vP8k2MtlO3prJGfvRdMHcAtJkSNYnLh_28DEZ1c3UVRx8BiQ42LBdN6wxMi9P7/s1600/Run+Playlist.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="346" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJhnOAfoj8odYD7dFcSqNuaIe9bUBg71cCVo6s0AgETSseuNWNvoWUJeDjr3gtrpxk67b9MPRli8TDu8vP8k2MtlO3prJGfvRdMHcAtJkSNYnLh_28DEZ1c3UVRx8BiQ42LBdN6wxMi9P7/s400/Run+Playlist.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My Runnin' Playlist</td></tr></tbody></table><div><br /></div><div><div class="MsoNormal">So using an app called TempoPerfect (basically it turns an iPad into a metronome) I went through my own collection of mp3 song files while tapping my feet to the beat. The result shown above is a playlist of 17 tunes in the range of 163-188 BPM. To my disappointment a couple of more inspiring run tunes such as Green Day's "Know Your Enemy" (158 BPM), Foo Fighter's "Learn to Fly" and Icona Pop's "I Love it" (148 BPM) were dropped because they fell deeper into the Allegro (120-167 BPM) range or just a notch below the Presto (168-199 BPM) range.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal">Admittedly I have yet to measure my actual run cadence or stride frequency but I suspect it is well below the recommended 180. Fitness professional sites nevertheless are encouraging. For instance <a href="http://www.acefitness.org/acefit/healthy-living-article/60/3346/turn-up-the-volume-on-your-workout-motivation/">Julz Arney of ace fitness </a>says that “whether or not you can keep a beat, your body is internalizing the beat and trying to sync up.”</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Aside from increasing stride frequency the other option would be to increase stride length. The danger would be running the risk of over striding and injury so a prudent approach would be to increase leg strength using heavy weight and low repetitions.  </span>Keith Livingstone includes this in a program called <a href="http://hitsystem.com.au/">Healthy Intelligent Training</a>. Now to find some more good hits!</div><div class="MsoNormal"></div></div></div>

My Running Playlist

Ain't nothin' gonna to break my stride Nobody's gonna slow me down, oh-no I got to keep on movin' Ain't nothin' gonn...

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Menu labeling proceeds without the FDA

<span style="font-size: large;">    I have noticed that my blog gets the most views when I stick with calorie and menu labeling stories. (don't worry I only see the absolute number of viewers not WHO is viewing the blog.. that's not my department  ha ha)</span><br /><span style="font-size: large;">   Good news.  Two more restaurants have decided to go ahead with menu labeling for all their stores, not just in states or cities where it is already the law.  </span><span style="font-size: large;">I don't blame them. Even as the government drags it feet - new estimated date is 2014, the demand from customers is there.</span><br /><span style="font-size: large;">    The two stores in the news are Taco Bell and Starbucks.  I just have a few comments and then I think you should <a href="http://www.usatoday.com/story/money/business/2013/06/18/starbucks-menu-board-calories-taco-bell-power-protein-menu/2431801/" target="_blank">click this link</a> to a great USA Today interactive.  It lets you guess the calories in some of the 2 restaurants meals and beverages.</span><br /><span style="font-size: large;">   My first comments are about Starbucks. The company has now decided to label the items in its pastry cases as well as the beverages.  They have been labeling the beverages for some time. After NYC passed a menu labeling in 2008, researchers conducted a study to compare the amount of calories purchased by Starbucks customers before and after the law and in locations without a law (like Boston at the time).  The law did seem to have the intended effect. The amount of calories purchased did go down after the menu labeling was introduced.  However, when the researchers looked more closely, they found that the customers were buying less food calories, not less beverage calories.  You will see in the USA Today 'game' that the beverages are a substantial source of the calories.</span><br /><span style="font-size: large;">   Now about Taco Bell.  They are also going to post calories on their menus but with great fan fare.....also announced that they would include the amount of protein (in grams) each item contains. REALLY?  Because we don't get enough protein?  The only rationale I see for this is that they want to distract the customer from the fact that most of the items have ridiculous amounts of calories.</span><br /><span style="font-size: large;">   Trust me - Americans as a group are not protein deficient.  What we don't get enough of is vitamins, nutrients, antioxidants and fiber from complex carbohydrates like those in whole grains, fruits and vegetables.  Do I think they should list the amount of carbs in an item - lord gosh NO... That is more confusing than the protein label. (sugar and starches are also carbs).  </span><br /><span style="font-size: large;">   Best ideas for all of us is</span><br /><br /><ul><li><span style="font-size: large;"> choose the lower calorie option that has more vegetable than meat and cheese, </span></li><li><span style="font-size: large;">watch out for too much fat (which you will be doing if you choose the lower calories),</span></li><li><span style="font-size: large;"> choose fruit over potatoes, etc.  </span></li><li><span style="font-size: large;">And try not to drink your calories - unless its a (as in one) glass of beer or wine, maybe.</span></li></ul><br /><span style="font-size: large;">Here is the citation for the study I mentioned.</span><br /><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 16px;">Bollinger, Bryan, Phillip Leslie, and Alan Sorensen. </span><i style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 16px;">Calorie posting in chain restaurants</i><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 16px;">. No. w15648. National Bureau of Economic Research, 2010.</span><br /><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 16px;"><br /></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; line-height: 16px;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">And here is <a href="http://www.usatoday.com/story/money/business/2013/06/18/starbucks-menu-board-calories-taco-bell-power-protein-menu/2431801/" target="_blank">the link</a> again if you waited.  </span></span>

Menu labeling proceeds without the FDA

    I have noticed that my blog gets the most views when I stick with calorie and menu labeling stories. (don't worry I only see the abs...

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The Obesity WHAT?

<span style="font-size: large;">The obesity paradox.  I want to say a few words about it today.  I think I recently mentioned this phenomenon in passing with the plan to return to it.</span><br /><span style="font-size: large;">I am especially sensitive to the issue because I am a low to low-normal weight person to whom the paradox applies.</span><br /><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><span style="font-size: large;">Some 13 years ago, researchers and physicians began noticing something odd regarding differences in outcomes between low weight and overweight people who were in the hospital with certain diseases.  The diseases included diabetes and several manifestations of heart disease, e.g., heart failure, peripheral vascular disease, coronary heart disease - especially at end stages or  during severe acute episodes.</span><br /><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><span style="font-size: large;">When people get sick enough that they end up in hospital intensive care units, low weight people (like me) are more likely to die than obese people.  That is the paradox. Its a paradox because being overweight is bad for people (so bad the AMA has just today determined that obesity is a disease) but seems to 'protect'  from death in the ICU.</span><br /><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><span style="font-size: large;">There are several "ideas" for what is going on here.  One that gets a lot of press and one that food companies LOVE is ...."being thin is  actually a bad thing".  </span><br /><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><span style="font-size: large;">Before you go grab that box of donuts, there are a few things to consider.  First a disclaimer... as much as I want to read all the studies and give this issue its proper due, I just don't have the time right now.  </span><br /><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://science.howstuffworks.com/life/human-biology/obesity-paradox.htm" target="_blank">This blogger</a> did a good job explaining the history of the issue and some of the actual studies that led to the term.  He does not conclude that being overweight is a good thing - just in case you were looking for that.</span><br /><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><span style="font-size: large;">My thoughts:</span><br /><br /><ul><li><span style="font-size: large;">We have already established that something about obesity - inflammation, fat processing, metabolism, etc increases the risk for the diseases I mentioned (and several others).  This means that more overweight and obese people have diabetes and heart disease.  There will be more of these people in the hospital to begin with..  </span></li><li><span style="font-size: large;">It is also possible that the thin person in the hospital with end stage renal failure from diabetes - is thin because they have diabetes, but he or she was not thin when diagnosed.  One study I saw refutes what I just said.  However, they looked at people who were low weight at diagnosis but were over the age of 40.  (what if a person is low weight in their 20s, 30s, 40s, i.e, their <u>normal</u> weight is low?)</span></li><li><span style="font-size: large;">I also 'wonder' about the person who </span><span style="font-size: large;">was</span><span style="font-size: large;"> a low or normal weight because they followed recommendations on nutrition and physical activity but still got diabetes or heart disease.  Suppose that person got sick for genetic reasons and their disease was more progressive than the one the obese person got which was related to their lifestyle?</span></li><li><span style="font-size: large;">I would like to see a study that was able to compare people based on some of these factors.  Especially looking at the thin person who is in the ICU with heart disease or diabetes complications.  What was that persons lifecourse?  Were they always thin?  Did they eat right and exercise?  Did they smoke?</span></li><li><span style="font-size: large;">I believe people who are thin because of a healthy lifestyle are much less likely to end up in hospital.  I do agree that once in the ICU they have less reserve (fat store) to call upon to fight off hospital acquired infections and prolonged periods of supplemental feedings (ng tube, etc).</span></li></ul><br /> <span style="font-size: large;">Bottom line for me?  For goodness sakes, stay out of  the hospital!</span>

The Obesity WHAT?

The obesity paradox.  I want to say a few words about it today.  I think I recently mentioned this phenomenon in passing with the plan to re...

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The Sunscreen Study

<span style="font-size: large;">A few weeks ago, the popular press (print, online and TV) was a buzz about a study that showed a reduction in the look of skin aging with regular use of sunscreen.  I made a note to find that study because I wondered how the finding was determined.  I wanted to know who the comparison group was.</span><br /><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><span style="font-size: large;">Here is the study citation:</span><br /><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; text-indent: -48px;">Hughes, M. C. B., Williams, G. M., Baker, P., Green, A. C. (2013). Sunscreen and prevention of skin aging: A randomized trial. </span><i style="background-color: white; font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; text-indent: -48px;">Annals of Internal Medicine, 158</i><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; text-indent: -48px;">(11), 781-790. doi: 10.7326/0003-4819-158-11-201306040-00002</span><br /><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; text-indent: -48px;"><br /></span><span style="background-color: white; text-indent: -48px;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">The study took place in Australia and involved about 900 adults who were under the age of 55.  </span></span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: inherit; font-size: large; text-indent: -48px;">The authors noted, and I found interesting, that having old looking skin when you are under age 55 is related to the affect of the sun only, not that of the sun </span><i style="background-color: white; font-family: inherit; font-size: x-large; text-indent: -48px;">and</i><span style="background-color: white; font-family: inherit; font-size: large; text-indent: -48px;"> getting old.  </span><br /><span style="background-color: white; text-indent: -48px;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></span><span style="background-color: white; text-indent: -48px;"><span style="font-size: large;">Otherwise and to be honest, the research design in this particular study was hard for me to follow.</span></span><br /><span style="background-color: white; text-indent: -48px;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span><span style="background-color: white; text-indent: -48px;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">People in the study were randomly assigned to one of two or four conditions (my confusion). The study was not just about sunscreen and aging. The researchers also wanted to know if taking a beta carotene supplement would reduce the signs of photoaging.  It looks like people were assigned to a group where they were asked either to apply sunscreen every day (and they were supplied with the sunscreen) or to use sunscreen on their own and at their will.  These same people (2 groups) or more people (4 groups) were assigned (blindly) to take beta carotene pills every day or to take a placebo  pill.  In other words, the people did not know which pill they were taking. I can't tell if the people in the sunscreen group were the ones randomly assigned into pill groups.  It would make more sense to have 4 groups, but then it would also make more sense to report it as two separate studies.  However, the pills didn't help and they are not the point of this blog.</span></span><br /><span style="background-color: white; text-indent: -48px;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span><span style="background-color: white; text-indent: -48px;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">The main point is that no one was assigned to a no sunscreen  group (because that would be unethical) and more importantly, no one was assigned to a lotion only group.</span></span><br /><span style="background-color: white; text-indent: -48px;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span><span style="background-color: white; text-indent: -48px;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">All the people in the study were assessed for the signs of aging in 1992 before they began the study and most of them were assessed again four years later.  The assessment consisted of a visual exam of the skin on their hands.  The exam was done by trained professionals and they graded the skin on a scale from 1 to 6.  People in the daily sunscreen group had lower grades on this visual inspection than those in the other groups - at the second time.  Lower grades are good.  There was no difference in the grade for those who took the supplements.  (They also answered questions about their daily sun and other lifestyle habits).</span></span><br /><span style="background-color: white; text-indent: -48px;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span><span style="background-color: white; text-indent: -48px;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">I am 100% in favor of sunscreen and I do believe that it prevents damage from both UV A and B rays.  From this study alone, I am not convinced that sunscreen is as effective or more effective than  body lotion for preserving a youthful skin appearance.  </span></span><br /><span style="background-color: white; text-indent: -48px;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span><span style="background-color: white; text-indent: -48px;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">I am especially baffled by using the hands as the assessment.  It would seem that the face would get more sun exposure and that the hands would tend to get washed a lot during the day so as not to be truly 'sun screened.'</span></span><br /><span style="background-color: white; text-indent: -48px;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span><span style="background-color: white; text-indent: -48px;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">I have youthful skin - so say I :).  I attribute mine to stopping smoking many years ago, eating healthy, getting daily exercise (blood and oxygen flow) and by applying body lotion from my head to the bottom of my feet every single day - because my Mom told me to.</span></span><br /><span style="background-color: white; text-indent: -48px;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span><span style="background-color: white; text-indent: -48px;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">So wear your sunscreen, hats and glasses but </span></span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: inherit; font-size: large; text-indent: -48px;">do these other things as well.</span><br /><span style="background-color: white; text-indent: -48px;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span><br /><div style="text-indent: -48px;"><br /></div>

The Sunscreen Study

A few weeks ago, the popular press (print, online and TV) was a buzz about a study that showed a reduction in the look of skin aging with re...

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Fitness Exercise and Sport Builds Character

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="MsoNormal">Like many people I started a personal fitness exercise program out of a physical need.  I started running to lose weight. As soon as the body weight went down…my speed increased. Losing or maintaining weight coupled with faster racing times provided good extrinsic motivation to continue running. Eventually I identified with this physical activity I do the most and proudly claim “I am a runner!”</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal">Running does not require much skill compared to other fitness activities. It does however require some health related fitness components. Five components are muscular strength and endurance, flexibility, cardiovascular endurance and body mass index. As an added benefit some health related fitness components tend to improve with adherence to an exercise program.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal">Other fitness activities and sports usually involve skill components. Five main skill components of fitness are agility, balance, coordination, power, and reaction time. Most activities rely on a combination of skills to various extents. Dancing primarily uses balance and agility. Coordination helps in golf and bowling. Power assists in swimming and football. Reaction time can be critical in baseball and basketball. Again some skill components will improve with adherence to sports and exercise programs.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal">“Who does that?”</div><br /><div class="MsoNormal">Which fitness activities are compatible with you? In addition to the aforementioned health components and skill considerations there must be some psychological rationale for how a given exercise fitness or sports program will stick with certain individuals. Psychologists have studied how fitness activities are influenced by a participant’s character or personality traits. <a href="http://www.ideafit.com/fitness-expert/jim-gavin">Dr. James Gavin</a> (Concordia University) has developed a unique model for person-activity matching that has been adopted as a method for coaching individuals into an active lifestyle of wellness.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbAW_mPxiFXS-PoxsG0lXDZJq7SXxeqRSElaNY3tx1CKSK80aByJR9mcEE0qQwoK1zCpfurcWI6N0X-5IeD6jyDA9JbQwg3qTxeJjZlVa-S-nkpUEEzU2IECSkDcvHmCqIqadylLlLYWcX/s1600/TRAITrelated.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="205" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbAW_mPxiFXS-PoxsG0lXDZJq7SXxeqRSElaNY3tx1CKSK80aByJR9mcEE0qQwoK1zCpfurcWI6N0X-5IeD6jyDA9JbQwg3qTxeJjZlVa-S-nkpUEEzU2IECSkDcvHmCqIqadylLlLYWcX/s400/TRAITrelated.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Figure 1: Seven Personality Traits and Physical Activities</span></td></tr></tbody></table><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal">In the December, 2004, issue of The Physician and Sportsmedicine, Gavin presented rankings of 19 popular sports on each of 7 psychometric scales of personality traits. The rankings were based on extensive interviews with participants and fitness professionals. I have highlighted the upper end of those scales graphically (Figure 1). Note that the activities are rather generic, for example instead of individually listing soccer, baseball, hockey, etc. he uses the term “team sports.” Likewise the activity labeled racquets actually includes tennis, squash, badminton, etc. </div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal">Comparison of seven personality traits of an individual (using a five-point Likert scale) to a physical activity found that greater degrees of matching were associated with more hours of participation or adherence to program and satisfaction. The seven personality traits are described as follows:</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]-->1.<span style="font-size: 7pt;">       </span><!--[endif]--><b>Sociability </b>– degree to which one prefers social interaction over solitary pursuits.</div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]-->2.<span style="font-size: 7pt;">       </span><!--[endif]--><b>Spontaneity </b>– extent to which an individual lives in an intuitively guided open manner whereby spur-of the-moment happenings are welcomed, rather than emphasizing high level of control and predictability, while avoiding fluid situations</div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]-->3.<span style="font-size: 7pt;">       </span><!--[endif]--><b>Motivation </b>– degree to which individual exhibits high levels of self-determination and willpower, as opposed to require external support and reinforcement to stick with challenging activity</div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]-->4.<span style="font-size: 7pt;">       </span><!--[endif]--><b>Assertiveness </b>– extent to which individual confidently and actively demonstrates determination, rather than behave gentle, non-aggressive, or even passive.</div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]-->5.<span style="font-size: 7pt;">       </span><!--[endif]--><b>Competitiveness </b>– extent to which individual enjoys and pursues challenge or rival engagement, as contrasted with avoidance or preference for noncompetitive or collaborative pursuits.</div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]-->6.<span style="font-size: 7pt;">       </span><!--[endif]--><b>Mental Focus </b>– degree to which individual demonstrates ability to concentrate and prefers activities in which the mind is absorbed solely on activity in contrast to one that prefers high levels of stimulation, multiple, simultaneous engagements or distractions.</div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]-->7.<span style="font-size: 7pt;">       </span><!--[endif]--><b>Risk Taking </b>– extent to which individual pursues adventure and engages in risky behavior as a thrill seeker in contrast to a cautious one, concerned with safety and security.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal">These traits are not equally weighed by everyone. While assessing these personality traits it is important to ask the fitness participant “Which of these traits are the most essential to your choice of exercise?” It is also possible that a fitness participant may wish to build new character traits and a different profile. First to make a change a participant may not need to adjust their fitness activity as much as the way they go about it. For example not all running has to be done solo there are possibilities for group runs such as relays for life or adventurous events such as mud or color runs.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal">Your fitness program can develop your personality traits. This suggests that personality trait components of fitness will improve with adherence to the appropriately ‘matched’ sports and exercise program. Attention to personality trait components in addition to health and skill components should enable fitness participants to recognize the multidimensional physical, intellectual, and psycho-social realms that sports and exercise can access to improve wellness.</div><div class="MsoNormal"> </div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div></div>

Fitness Exercise and Sport Builds Character

Like many people I started a personal fitness exercise program out of a physical need.  I started running to lose weight. As soon as the bod...

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French Toast Compare

<span style="font-size: large;">    My last post highlighted research that supports the idea that restaurant meals, in general and regardless of type (quick service, fast casual, sit down, chain or independent) contain excessive amounts of calories.  Recall that one study showed how eating all  3 main meals at restaurants, would lead someone to consume 1000 extra calories a day.</span><br /><span style="font-size: large;">   </span><br /><span style="font-size: large;">   Well I love to cook and show off my talent for calorie reduction so lets compare my french toast breakfast to two others.  One from IHOP and one for Denny's. </span><br /><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><span style="font-size: large;">   IHOP has several versions of French Toast.  One of them is called  Simple and Fit - so we can expect that one to be their least caloric version.  Some versions have over 800 calories!  You can check them all <a href="http://www.ihop.com/menus/main-menu/french-toast" target="_blank">here. </a></span><br /><span style="font-size: large;">The Simple and Fit, shown below has 490 cals and 23 g of sugar.</span><br /><span style="font-size: large;">   </span><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEga9bF-MkhiN33C-l8gmlFap6pLtNNKrKYFzLvMtF_R4vFbil1WbWKAXEUCLoNkixc3c2c4yLhRHLPpEyhzGPvJuXc72JC4nZoPSvq7OMjvOhzvw9VCu90mJODE3gqoZ1WSHAlse4kfIkDu/s1600/IHOP.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="350" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEga9bF-MkhiN33C-l8gmlFap6pLtNNKrKYFzLvMtF_R4vFbil1WbWKAXEUCLoNkixc3c2c4yLhRHLPpEyhzGPvJuXc72JC4nZoPSvq7OMjvOhzvw9VCu90mJODE3gqoZ1WSHAlse4kfIkDu/s1600/IHOP.JPG" width="400" /></a></span></div><br /><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><br /><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><span style="font-size: large;">  Denny's has a Fit Fare section on its menu, but doesn't include French Toast there.  Just in case your curious, they do have Fit Fare pancakes - how fit?  Not so much...780 calories.  Interestingly, that is the SAME amount of calories in their one French Toast dish.  See below.</span><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwYCkfzex4imw65nITyjT4jzU91JZ96Orb7ixFPl9EAIaplLkLjXCzStmvJTWVR-8VFyrU9vlPbFv367ENjH1o7brQPrBCvtWHOlR-TvMVjX2aORK80rA8hBKWJw1EkRM25v1nX9ceJm5e/s1600/Dennys.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="263" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwYCkfzex4imw65nITyjT4jzU91JZ96Orb7ixFPl9EAIaplLkLjXCzStmvJTWVR-8VFyrU9vlPbFv367ENjH1o7brQPrBCvtWHOlR-TvMVjX2aORK80rA8hBKWJw1EkRM25v1nX9ceJm5e/s1600/Dennys.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><span style="font-size: large;">    So how does the French Toast meal from Deirdre's Kitchen compare?  Quite exceptionally - I'd say... calorie and sugar wise.  None of these meals could be considered faultless.  For example, mine uses processed sugar free products </span><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><span style="font-size: large;">(Walden's Farms)</span><span style="font-size: large;"> and bread that isn't whole grain.  That being duly noted, we are talking about low calorie and low sugar today and so I WIN! </span><br /><span style="font-size: large;"> (with < 200 calories for my whole meal)</span><br /><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEim1pYoJTiFdSkXVnUPcjLkzhO03aOz094oy1ST4EpqXHWmU_TMvWh2ezBVlpJY9ob_b4-edkwIUd3OdKZWrryeLuGjZXTtfOfkwPThq_-BHomTjupFKv8UoU6zNkhGCKyPTCXvICtS6txv/s1600/french+toast.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="297" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEim1pYoJTiFdSkXVnUPcjLkzhO03aOz094oy1ST4EpqXHWmU_TMvWh2ezBVlpJY9ob_b4-edkwIUd3OdKZWrryeLuGjZXTtfOfkwPThq_-BHomTjupFKv8UoU6zNkhGCKyPTCXvICtS6txv/s1600/french+toast.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">To be fair, this is a picture of a real plate of food that I quickly ate. <br />I did not use a food picture editor -or stage this with fake food!</td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-size: large;">   French Toast, Egg Beaters, Strawberries, and a Cereal Bar.  </span><br /><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><span style="font-size: large;">  Find more ideas on my <a href="http://www.youtube.com/deerunstoo" target="_blank">You Tube Channel.</a></span>

French Toast Compare

    My last post highlighted research that supports the idea that restaurant meals, in general and regardless of type (quick service, fast c...

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Why do we have to count calories at restaurants?

<span style="font-size: large;">    Three studies recently published speak to the nutritional content of away from home meals and the public's lack of awareness of just how 'unhealthy' those meals can be.</span><br /><span style="font-size: large;">   I am going to give you a <strike>brief</strike> bottom line summary from the research.  The citations for the studies are:</span><br /><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><div style="background-color: white; font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; margin-left: 0.5in; margin-right: 5px; text-indent: -0.5in;">Block, J. P., Condon, S. K., Kleinman, K., Mullen, J., Linakis, S., Rifas-Shiman, S., & Gillman, M. W. (2013). <b>Consumers’ estimation of calorie content at fast food restaurants:</b> cross sectional observational study. <i>BMJ, 346</i>. doi: 10.1136/bmj.f2907</div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; margin-left: 0.5in; margin-right: 5px; text-indent: -0.5in;">Urban, L. E., Lichtenstein, A. H., Gary, C. E., Fierstein, J. L., Equi, A., Kussmaul, C., . . . Roberts, S. B. (2013). <b>The energy content of restaurant foods without stated calorie information.</b> <i>JAMA Internal Medicine, May 13</i>, 1-8. doi: 10.1001/jamainternmed.2013.6163</div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; margin-left: 5px; margin-right: 5px;"></div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; margin-left: 0.5in; margin-right: 5px; text-indent: -0.5in;">Scourboutakos, M. J., Semnani-Azad, Z., & L’Abbe, M. R. (2013). Restaurant meals: <b>Almost a full day's worth of calories, fats, and sodium</b>. <i>JAMA Internal Medicine</i>, 1-2. doi: 10.1001/jamainternmed.2013.6159</div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; margin-left: 5px; margin-right: 5px;"></div><br /><div style="background-color: white; font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; margin-left: 5px; margin-right: 5px;"></div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; margin-left: 5px; margin-right: 5px;"></div><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">    In the Block study, researchers found that American's continue to underestimate the amount of calories in quick service (counter service) restaurants, in general, but do an especially poor job estimating calories in restaurants perceived to be healthier (e.g., Subway, Panera Bread).  There was a slight difference in how accurate people were based on whether they were adults, children or teenagers, but everyone underestimated the total calories by about 200 calories.  Most interestingly, teenagers and adults were off by 300 and 400 calories, respectively, for Subway meals. T</span><span style="font-size: large;">he more calories a meal had, the worse people did at guessing them.  By the way, the average calorie content for a meal at KFC and Wendy's was less than the average calorie content for a meal at Subway.  Adult meals from McDonald's, on average, had more calories than Burger King (606 v 530).  This study supports the need for onsite, in your face, nutrition labeling.  The restaurants in this study are covered by the national menu labeling law.</span><br /><div><span style="font-size: large;">   The Urban team reviewed the calorie content of meals at restaurants that will not be covered by the national law. They studied independent or small chain restaurants (less than 20 stores nationwide), that were within 15 minutes of downtown Boston (USA).  They included 9 popular types of restaurants (e.g., Italian, Indian, Vietnamese, American) in their study.  They determined which 4 meals were the most popular at each establishment and focused on those.  They ordered each meal, with one side item, and brought the food back to a lab.  They determined </span><span style="font-size: large;">the exact number of calories in each meal</span><span style="font-size: large;"> through chemical analyses.  They also determined the number of calories per gram of food (energy density).  In their paper, they provided the average total calories and density for each of the 9 restaurant types. In some instances, they were able to make a direct meal comparison between an independent, local restaurant and a national chain.  For example, a lasagna dinner at a quaint Italian bistro in Boston, compared to a lasagna dinner at Olive Garden or Macaroni Grill.  The average calories for one meal at all but the Vietnamese restaurant was more than a third of a days worth of calories!  The average calorie content (1327 kcal) was HIGHER than the average for chain restaurants covered by the law (890 kcal)!  The highest averages of the local restaurants were at the Italian, Indian, Chinese and American restaurants.  Italian was the worst - 1755 calories for an average meal.  That is just about what I consume in a whole day but  I split it up so I can eat about 8 times.  The average amount of calories for a Vietnamese meal was 922 and they had the lowest calorie per gram.  When the researchers matched meals to a national chain, there were still more calories in the independent restaurants, but the difference was less.  Bottom line - too many calories in restaurant foods and your local restaurant isn't doing any better.</span></div><div><span style="font-size: large;">   Lastly, and quickly, Scourboutakos looked at more than just calories in 24 sit down chain restaurants in Canada.  Her team found that for breakfast, lunch and dinner - each average meal provided over 50% of a days worth of calories, total and sat fat, sodium/salt and trans fat.  If you ate your 3 main meals at these restaurants, you would consume over 3000 calories in one day and I bet you are not Michael Phelps.</span></div><div><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: large;">   When did it become necessary to count calories at a restaurant?  When we started eating at them several times a week instead of several times a year.</span></div>

Why do we have to count calories at restaurants?

    Three studies recently published speak to the nutritional content of away from home meals and the public's lack of awareness of just...

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Why I want to teach Physical Education

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: #F6F6F5; color: #333333; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">“Those that can't do, teach; and those that can't teach... teach gym.”<o:p></o:p></span></div><br /><div class="MsoListParagraph" style="margin-left: 148.5pt; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;">-<span style="font-size: 7pt;">          </span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Jack Black, as Dewey Finn in The School of Rock (2003)</span></div><div class="MsoListParagraph" style="margin-left: 148.5pt; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6UCz4dXaIGnSU5U6YkHaHfc7DzyPGgpNBiBJ7pHjxeppAsE_OfkBlCqiu1bWmvwbdsS2zxrsCkijZvKywqfcxzHEETPb3IwadpimJM-EBEf-16tlTfQEvtYk5Z211QhFEofzMY-30jHvM/s1600/teachPE.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="164" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6UCz4dXaIGnSU5U6YkHaHfc7DzyPGgpNBiBJ7pHjxeppAsE_OfkBlCqiu1bWmvwbdsS2zxrsCkijZvKywqfcxzHEETPb3IwadpimJM-EBEf-16tlTfQEvtYk5Z211QhFEofzMY-30jHvM/s320/teachPE.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span class="apple-converted-space"><span style="background: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">Slap</span></span><span style="background: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">it, shoot it, ka-boot it.</span></td></tr></tbody></table><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">It seems popular in movies to depict teaching as quite comical. Some films and documentaries have been downright demeaning toward the teaching profession.  In response to such criticisms Taylor Mali has created a poem on “what teachers make.” Although I like and agree with much of what Taylor said in his poetic response I think he gets too emotional and overly defensive, he makes inappropriate gestures, and then tops it off with the pompous claim "<i>I make a difference!</i>"   <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Good grief how about a little humility?<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Obviously the clich<em><span style="background: white; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">é</span></em> quote on teaching is all about pride. It is the classic knee-jerk response to put someone down because you have failed to better yourself. Perhaps bad gym teachers are the ones to blame for this in the first place. They were the stereotypical star athletes that peaked in high school or college. Now they are middle-aged teachers who seek to reaffirm themselves on pudgy and out-of-shape kids through dodge ball games. For example check out the Billy Bob Thornton character in the movie Mr. Woodcock (2007). </span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">The fact of the matter is I recently got into fitness as a middle-aged chemist </span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">working in the pharmaceutical industry. Sure we “made things” and just before a Pfizer takeover they wanted to make a blockbuster diet pill. Now one thing I have learned is that<a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/22/health/nutrition/22best.html?pagewanted=all"> <b>fitness is not an overnight sensation.</b></a> </span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">In addition there are so many benefits beyond the physical that come with a sense of personal wellness.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">This fitness journey changed my world view. I want to teach because I would like to <i>help</i> <i>inspire</i> students to make a difference in their world. During student teaching I have experienced moments in which students have expressed the excitement of having figured out a pattern of my “silent jumping jacks,” or the joy of adding their personal movements to a jai ho dance lesson, or even just seeing their smile after doing a cartwheel for the first time. They are all the joys of taking a risk at a career change and not for taking the easy way out.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">After seeing some of the more egregious failures of the American public education system documented in “Waiting for Superman" (2010) a little humility might be needed. Certainly there is an urgent unmet need for passionate teachers with creative lessons, new and exciting ideas to build the fundamental skills and understandings of American youth to match their confidence. I want to inspire our youth to move, to learn about their movement, which in turn will help them realize the difference they can make.</span>.</span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;"> </span></div></div>

Why I want to teach Physical Education

“Those that can't do, teach; and those that can't teach... teach gym.” -           Jack Black, as Dewey Finn in The School of Rock (...

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Are you on a path to ideal aging?

<span style="font-size: large;">   What is really cool about this recent study from Akbaraly et al is not what they found but what they were looking for and how they defined those things (the constructs).</span><br /><span style="font-size: large;">Here is the citation:</span><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt 0.5in; text-indent: -0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: large;">Akbaraly, T., Sabia, S., Hagger-Johnson, G., Tabak, A. G., Shipley, M. J., Jokela, M.,  Kivimaki, M. (2013). Does Overall Diet in Midlife Predict Future Aging Phenotypes? A Cohort Study. <i>The American Journal of Medicine, 126</i>(5), 411-419.e413.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt 0.5in; text-indent: -0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: large;">And you can see the study summary abstract by clicking <a href="http://www.amjmed.com/article/S0002-9343(13)00080-6/abstract" target="_blank">here</a>  <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt 0.5in; text-indent: -0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><span style="font-size: large;">   My goal today is to explain the variables they used and the assumptions behind them such that you might consider your lifestyle in the same context.</span><br /><div><span style="font-size: large;">   The researchers wanted to see if a persons diet pattern and score on the Alternative Healthy Eating Index (AHEI) in mid life - 30 to 60 years old, impacted how they aged, beginning at age 60.  First of all, seeing a study that used the AHEI made me happy and the index should sound familiar to you.  See past posts and a good explanation of the system that scores your diet's quality <a href="http://yourhealtheducator.blogspot.com/2012/09/quantifying-healthiness-of-your-diet.html" target="_blank">here.</a></span></div><div><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: large;">   Akbaraly et al studied more than 5000 adults.  At one time during the 16 years of study, they asked the participants to complete a food frequency questionnaire (FFQ).  They used a statistical program to assign people to one of two dietary patterns based on their FFQ.  They also  gave them a score on the AHEI.  The two dietary patterns were "Healthy Foods" and "Western Type".  You might already guess that the Healthy Foods group also scored best on the AHEI. </span></div><div><span style="font-size: large;">   The Healthy Foods group consumed more fruits and vegetables, whole grains, and fish while the Western Type group consumed more fried foods, processed food and red meat, plus pies, sweetened desserts, chocolates, refined grains, high-fat dairy products, and condiments (like that crazy fattening mayonnaise!).  </span></div><div><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: large;">   You can consider the diet patterns the predictors.  What do they predict?  The type of aging one might experience.</span></div><div><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: large;">   The researchers created 5 categories of aging.and assigned people to one of them at the end of the study (2007-2009). The first is IDEAL aging, next is where a person has nonfatal heart and circulation diseases, then fatal heart and circulation disease (i.e., the person died from heart attack or stroke before 2007), the fourth type is death from another cause, and the fifth is referred to as usual or natural aging - these people have the usual chronic diseases (e.g., heart disease, diabetes, cancer) that are NOT really normal as in many cases they could have been prevented.</span></div><div><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: large;">   The Healthy Foods diet was associated with better health and functioning in older age.  A high score on the AHEI reduced the chances of dying too soon.  A premature death is one that  occurs before age 75 in most high income countries.  (BTW -In this study they concentrated on the diet and 'made like' everyone weighed the same and exercised the same).</span></div><div><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: large;">   But don't you most want to know what it means to have aged <b><i><u>Ideally</u></i></b>?  I will tell you - as I am well on my way of doing just that thing :)  - knock on wood please.</span></div><div><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: large;">At the end of the study, the ideal agers:</span></div><div><span style="font-size: large;">1)  were alive, and</span></div><div><span style="font-size: large;">2)  did not have any chronic diseases (e.g., diabetes (or blood sugar levels requiring medicine), cancer, coronary (heart) disease, or stroke risk/history, or </span></div><div><span style="font-size: large;">3) mental health problems (determined by responses to  questions on a trusted survey)</span></div><div><span style="font-size: large;">4) had good thinking and memory skills (they were tested for this - including word recall and basic math), and</span></div><div><span style="font-size: large;">5) normal blood sugar levels (for ones age and sex), and</span></div><div><span style="font-size: large;">6) good lung function (for age and sex), tested with the forced expiratory volume (FeV1) Remember that?  <a href="http://yourhealtheducator.blogspot.com/2011/11/spirometry.html" target="_blank">See this post.</a></span></div><div><span style="font-size: large;">and </span></div><div><span style="font-size: large;">7) had normal or above normal walking speed for age and sex</span></div><div><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: large;">   There are things that happen to us when we get older that we have no control over - like our hair turns grey or gets thinner, we get some wrinkles and age spots (more if we don't take care of our skin), but disease in old age is NOT inevitable - you can reduce your chances of some of the 'usual' diseases of aging by eating well and exercising - NOW.</span></div><div><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: large;">   Remember too, it's only a healthy lifestyle if you engage in it everyday - and it only helps you as long as you do it (minor and infrequent indulgences allowed :))</span></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div>

Are you on a path to ideal aging?

   What is really cool about this recent study from Akbaraly et al is not what they found but what they were looking for and how they define...

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<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 18px;"><b><span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace;">Holidays have started for the Muskaan girls. They are packed with plenty of story books to read and enjoy their holidays.</span></b></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="line-height: 18px;"><b><span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace;"><br /></span></b></span></div><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 18px;"><div style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace;">We will see them on 24th June.</span></b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace;"><br /></span></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0HALDM23bzz0Z1hlylI9VTAzRdynkMoqo3w7uApdPQm5kywwQOU5P1K2QDrCWismfgwwykDU-snbcWY_pLBtcpALOxWqTygQgfIK8QT7Fj1diy0GtBs_tZetEeeyfUgoDG7paZy0SQVgU/s1600/5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0HALDM23bzz0Z1hlylI9VTAzRdynkMoqo3w7uApdPQm5kywwQOU5P1K2QDrCWismfgwwykDU-snbcWY_pLBtcpALOxWqTygQgfIK8QT7Fj1diy0GtBs_tZetEeeyfUgoDG7paZy0SQVgU/s640/5.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace;"><br /></span></b></div></span></div>

Holidays have started for the Muskaan girls. They are packed with plenty of story books to read and enjoy their holidays. We will see them o...

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For Monika Ma'm.....with love, Muskaan :)

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 18px;"><b><span style="color: #660000; font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Ma'm as you could not come to bid farewell, we are sending you this card.</span></b></span></div><b><span style="color: #660000; font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 18px;"><div style="text-align: center;">Have a nice time at Bangkok </div></span></span></b><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="line-height: 18px;"><b><span style="color: #a64d79; font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b></span></div><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 18px;"><div style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: #a64d79;"><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Don't forget </span><span style="font-family: lucida grande, tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">us.</span></span></b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #660000;"><b><span style="font-family: lucida grande, tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></b></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguiF_Eu4UYooVjU8BhTXuAUJ-xurojgJo3mRra2s0kU-xLKgi9mk5iHqwspPoG8KJtYOoxtVPjCwz6IGqc66e7gaqNBM9RmySZFBbSYSe2FtpFfMy1blOegydY-E8jhIfziC1UlSugfdeH/s1600/6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguiF_Eu4UYooVjU8BhTXuAUJ-xurojgJo3mRra2s0kU-xLKgi9mk5iHqwspPoG8KJtYOoxtVPjCwz6IGqc66e7gaqNBM9RmySZFBbSYSe2FtpFfMy1blOegydY-E8jhIfziC1UlSugfdeH/s400/6.jpg" width="288" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_JmvMYoY1H8VGpIh98lE5kboyIp6ojVaEFqagx6NOfZULBK4VllldDXaeMntNbc_OOvQbvzrL3rdVL8qy1WgUi7qMaUMfPvEv-FbJ5VS9VCEvFygsL8KVriECLrK-wBV1zg76bzjooMwJ/s1600/7.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="275" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_JmvMYoY1H8VGpIh98lE5kboyIp6ojVaEFqagx6NOfZULBK4VllldDXaeMntNbc_OOvQbvzrL3rdVL8qy1WgUi7qMaUMfPvEv-FbJ5VS9VCEvFygsL8KVriECLrK-wBV1zg76bzjooMwJ/s400/7.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #660000;"><b><span style="font-family: lucida grande, tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></b></span></div></span></div>

For Monika Ma'm.....with love, Muskaan :)

Ma'm as you could not come to bid farewell, we are sending you this card. Have a nice time at Bangkok  Don't forget us.

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Rs 500 a month plan for FHE

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqrIozqSq14UFnfkTkXcebcE4p75xtiXr5yDYI-lVpCBq3ArMa6DQazO5fgB9_jzJj2LNiW13wdlvh9PM6i05uDlJJjIfVHkuRM2i50nTM7ifIVac_aJdvU53IhONdN10wPL2Ebnatj1K6/s1600/4.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="344" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqrIozqSq14UFnfkTkXcebcE4p75xtiXr5yDYI-lVpCBq3ArMa6DQazO5fgB9_jzJj2LNiW13wdlvh9PM6i05uDlJJjIfVHkuRM2i50nTM7ifIVac_aJdvU53IhONdN10wPL2Ebnatj1K6/s640/4.png" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 18px;">A suggestion from Mr. Sushant Sinha, a volunteer of FHE.</span></span></b></div><b><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><br /></span></div><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><div style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: #0b5394; font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 18px;">Would you like to be a part of this project of sustaining Muskaan?</span></span></b></div><span class="_4-k1 img sp_8zb1sd sx_c6b1ca" style="background-color: white; background-image: url(https://fbstatic-a.akamaihd.net/rsrc.php/v2/yk/r/t_j4FmHG-TR.png); background-position: 0px -719px; background-size: auto; color: #333333; display: inline-block; font-style: italic; height: 16px; line-height: 18px; vertical-align: -3px; width: 16px;"><div style="text-align: center;"></div></span></span></b><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b></div></div>

Rs 500 a month plan for FHE

A suggestion from Mr. Sushant Sinha, a volunteer of FHE. Would you like to be a part of this project of sustaining Muskaan?

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<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><b style="color: #990000; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 18px;">Muskaan girls are very sad now as their English teacher Jeanne is leaving to Shanghai.</span></b></div><span style="color: #990000; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 18px;"><br /></span></div><b><div style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 18px;">Children are asking, "Who will now teach us English and good manners?" </span></b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 18px;"><div style="text-align: center;"><b style="background-color: transparent;">We will miss u Jeanne Ma'm.</b></div></span></b></span><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #990000; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 18px;"><br /></span></b></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhscjFHUXY2rXL7onuEil3bhTWwjsAi0jZBYpsl3ZSB5Nj5SWLe4BD-O4rMrd_VkjxDB1ZI8-H990Hsj4YPxcCldypI06sRauRWApUrVAflq3Ckg6pUyyFfk5gtYFe3j8sO39zCtlSmQT7N/s1600/3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhscjFHUXY2rXL7onuEil3bhTWwjsAi0jZBYpsl3ZSB5Nj5SWLe4BD-O4rMrd_VkjxDB1ZI8-H990Hsj4YPxcCldypI06sRauRWApUrVAflq3Ckg6pUyyFfk5gtYFe3j8sO39zCtlSmQT7N/s640/3.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><span style="color: #990000; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 18px;"><br /></span></b></span></div>

Muskaan girls are very sad now as their English teacher Jeanne is leaving to Shanghai. Children are asking, "Who will now teach us Engl...

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Dental Camp at Muskaan

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><b style="background-color: white; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; line-height: 14px;"><span style="color: #351c75;">Dr. Javali and her assistant did a great job with the 'children's mouths' <i class="_4-k1 img sp_8zb1sd sx_be6b6c" style="background-image: url(https://fbstatic-a.akamaihd.net/rsrc.php/v2/yk/r/t_j4FmHG-TR.png); background-position: 0px -770px; background-size: auto; display: inline-block; height: 16px; vertical-align: -3px; width: 16px;"></i></span></b></div><span class="userContent" style="background-color: white;"><span class="_4-k1 img sp_8zb1sd sx_5d2945" style="background-image: url(https://fbstatic-a.akamaihd.net/rsrc.php/v2/yk/r/t_j4FmHG-TR.png); background-position: 0px -634px; background-size: auto; color: #333333; display: inline-block; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-style: italic; font-weight: bold; height: 16px; line-height: 14px; vertical-align: -3px; width: 16px;"><div style="text-align: center;"></div></span></span><span class="userContentSecondary fcg" style="background-color: white; color: grey; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11px; line-height: 14px;"></span><br /><div><span class="userContent" style="background-color: white;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitH3FBzlPNIWkYUbZjcgMECU7rZDKe6NYBD5fKKxdpIcnDhL4Hew1ugRRv6C54iwmokoX6t1AcN9eVg-mOauKl14L4KWGUj5ciXaAMq9IQwPNtzyItpFrHjAAABi_yycNDSoRwmN8nW2fU/s1600/487616_675518565795890_1454548781_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitH3FBzlPNIWkYUbZjcgMECU7rZDKe6NYBD5fKKxdpIcnDhL4Hew1ugRRv6C54iwmokoX6t1AcN9eVg-mOauKl14L4KWGUj5ciXaAMq9IQwPNtzyItpFrHjAAABi_yycNDSoRwmN8nW2fU/s400/487616_675518565795890_1454548781_n.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwYyFq1RdCHzy5F3O3dD2kReaEQEX7D3ZoNRPNojgVQsPWUhhUCKPAuZ5HehMw4qLV-ULH9u5SSZKgsxjxRDNGm-vwEzMgXYfAYRlHeDt5nJJCVsim54AZm96gz7cZoJkxt3bTKx1bFxSM/s1600/936896_675518382462575_336701375_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwYyFq1RdCHzy5F3O3dD2kReaEQEX7D3ZoNRPNojgVQsPWUhhUCKPAuZ5HehMw4qLV-ULH9u5SSZKgsxjxRDNGm-vwEzMgXYfAYRlHeDt5nJJCVsim54AZm96gz7cZoJkxt3bTKx1bFxSM/s400/936896_675518382462575_336701375_n.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBNJShIP2EwVT8_yWW9j7v9oWQ4q_79pDNeUKRgw3_2R7vQkmn1B1Y2fw90ZWEE_eIbAI3r5fqujzgzFRW5Ssy-gYgu5AXvN4-frYjD5tkg-8-o2h9pnqeylhIWDFhZT_i7cO2I8I_fRR_/s1600/484645_675518395795907_1054713894_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBNJShIP2EwVT8_yWW9j7v9oWQ4q_79pDNeUKRgw3_2R7vQkmn1B1Y2fw90ZWEE_eIbAI3r5fqujzgzFRW5Ssy-gYgu5AXvN4-frYjD5tkg-8-o2h9pnqeylhIWDFhZT_i7cO2I8I_fRR_/s400/484645_675518395795907_1054713894_n.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 14px; text-align: left;"><span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><b>All Muskaan girls got Colgate toothpaste and brush</b></span></span></td></tr></tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDHY3xYFbHYeBaBz-WXvJOCwnufH8mLjbZHEzfMPJf4W5iBd-irDDb-GL07e2rTd8I0m9LcIUkdkhFVrByyPPg_YJLvMyPlDIUmEEgMHxxWrg80q0MlWIrwbbMxaXhui-ahc5bqq3nO6Xw/s1600/168284_675518432462570_1493815713_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDHY3xYFbHYeBaBz-WXvJOCwnufH8mLjbZHEzfMPJf4W5iBd-irDDb-GL07e2rTd8I0m9LcIUkdkhFVrByyPPg_YJLvMyPlDIUmEEgMHxxWrg80q0MlWIrwbbMxaXhui-ahc5bqq3nO6Xw/s400/168284_675518432462570_1493815713_n.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 14px; text-align: left;"><span style="color: #3d85c6; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: small;">a class on mouth hygiene</span></span></td></tr></tbody></table><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="userContent" style="background-color: white;"><br /></span></div></div>

Dental Camp at Muskaan

Dr. Javali and her assistant did a great job with the 'children's mouths'  All Muskaan girls got Colgate toothpaste and brush a ...

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KSHITIJ...AN INSPIRATION FOR THE YOUTH

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="text_exposed_root text_exposed" id="id_51aa479bb22541e10136513" style="background-color: white; display: inline; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="color: #134f5c;">A big thanks to KSHITIJ GOYAL, a B.Tech. final year student of National Power Training Institute (NPTI), New Delhi, for putting in so much effort to collect money from his college to donate to FHE.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: #990000;">It is heartwarming to know that you voluntarily visited Muskaan, talked to the girls and teachers there,<br />asked for a presentation of FHE from Lenny Mathew (a volunteer of FHE, also from NPTI),<br />presented it in the college auditorium,<br />made </span><span class="text_exposed_show" style="display: inline;"><span style="color: #990000;">a collection from the students and teachers present there<br />and then donated it to us.</span></span></span></div><div><div class="text_exposed_root text_exposed" style="background-color: white; display: inline; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span class="text_exposed_show" style="display: inline;"><span style="color: #990000;"><br /></span></span></span></div></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDg2jG7yFs-iehAgftHEH8u9pCBP7m6u6YO0pktZuEmNrcCWJicBWpxq_mboDjaHyzrH6Rw4YI0MPzsJK9sLTyL0UP0Nygejt9VGW9O5xO5R1HuXL5KUIKvhOzyEyT1W-JxwpzOeYCX8wD/s1600/2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDg2jG7yFs-iehAgftHEH8u9pCBP7m6u6YO0pktZuEmNrcCWJicBWpxq_mboDjaHyzrH6Rw4YI0MPzsJK9sLTyL0UP0Nygejt9VGW9O5xO5R1HuXL5KUIKvhOzyEyT1W-JxwpzOeYCX8wD/s640/2.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div><div class="text_exposed_root text_exposed" style="background-color: white; display: inline; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span class="text_exposed_show" style="display: inline;"><br /><span style="color: red;">We appreciate your efforts, Kshitij. Hope many more get inspired to help the way you did.<br /><br />Also, we were very glad to know that you were inspired by your MOTHER and your seniors of NPTI who are volunteers of FHE.<br /><br />KEEP IT UP !!<br />THANK YOU</span></span></span></div></div></div>

KSHITIJ...AN INSPIRATION FOR THE YOUTH

A big thanks to KSHITIJ GOYAL, a B.Tech. final year student of National Power Training Institute (NPTI), New Delhi, for putting in so much e...

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Pooja Dhingra along with Monika brought uniforms for the children

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 14px;"><span style="color: #0b5394; font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b>Pooja Dhingra visited Muskaan along with Monika and </b></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 14px;"><span style="color: #0b5394; font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b><br /></b></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 14px;"><span style="color: #0b5394; font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b>gave new shoes and </b></span></span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif; font-size: large; line-height: 14px;"><span style="color: #0b5394;"><b>uniforms to the </b></span></span><b style="background-color: white; color: #0b5394; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif; font-size: x-large; line-height: 14px;">new kids of Muskaan</b></div><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; line-height: 14px;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQ83I8qvhLlLMTZTEnmFoeLVWX3XlCKFjsI53NQK3IUULVqKdaHCY7TXFmzqnL0Of9MIwJytS-kkNyuZw8mmZwMCOQD_drT3UOdXaeSCUdnpkAPgsX2l9qcyc4vADPEtOjm46khReczn_I/s1600/12.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQ83I8qvhLlLMTZTEnmFoeLVWX3XlCKFjsI53NQK3IUULVqKdaHCY7TXFmzqnL0Of9MIwJytS-kkNyuZw8mmZwMCOQD_drT3UOdXaeSCUdnpkAPgsX2l9qcyc4vADPEtOjm46khReczn_I/s400/12.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaLoOyQ4ynZlVy_7xf-6maWv-0RWE3s52wefkvikQ9t4cD3YrJbOAw6YHZ7qOo3TnKbJa3r_Fz20LnhPlmvIRc-2AToSwVr2-Io0j5VNOfOki6PVfvWthYyD7tSGeGTov_K_1YUJYyp2Hc/s1600/13.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaLoOyQ4ynZlVy_7xf-6maWv-0RWE3s52wefkvikQ9t4cD3YrJbOAw6YHZ7qOo3TnKbJa3r_Fz20LnhPlmvIRc-2AToSwVr2-Io0j5VNOfOki6PVfvWthYyD7tSGeGTov_K_1YUJYyp2Hc/s400/13.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkAp-RNumyBmAVPYGyFDEHk646BCllq2o8k0TupDHZJE58w5nc_DBQCf-DKEs_gaTTyjRPdRqQ8Ff2DXGzKyh1CaxloDKiEzNCMEZeQOaMTsxbzNq3rgwQcuOJk8rxIwDnD1sSiuQrKDwG/s1600/14.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkAp-RNumyBmAVPYGyFDEHk646BCllq2o8k0TupDHZJE58w5nc_DBQCf-DKEs_gaTTyjRPdRqQ8Ff2DXGzKyh1CaxloDKiEzNCMEZeQOaMTsxbzNq3rgwQcuOJk8rxIwDnD1sSiuQrKDwG/s400/14.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFXKurdUlijFIBTNYFoZ_tnlEkXdJhpFZAFibwhRX8uJWVRTPgKYZs9mSpnXhNVghh0ZbTCLIXI5253s7tUDVsmm5HXziDFfWNYJCP7c2dkJ5cOcY-1Br3TkEdn7MMRbqRiu8zZqS6K-Df/s1600/11.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFXKurdUlijFIBTNYFoZ_tnlEkXdJhpFZAFibwhRX8uJWVRTPgKYZs9mSpnXhNVghh0ZbTCLIXI5253s7tUDVsmm5HXziDFfWNYJCP7c2dkJ5cOcY-1Br3TkEdn7MMRbqRiu8zZqS6K-Df/s400/11.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; line-height: 14px; text-align: left;"><span style="color: #cc0000; font-size: small;"><b>The girls with their new shoes and uniforms</b></span></span></td></tr></tbody></table><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; line-height: 14px;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></span></div>

Pooja Dhingra along with Monika brought uniforms for the children

Pooja Dhingra visited Muskaan along with Monika and  gave new shoes and  uniforms to the  new kids of Muskaan The girls with their new shoes...

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New teacher

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><span style="color: purple; font-size: large;">Our new teacher Rinku teaching the girls of Muskaan.</span></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></div><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitdQznRoSJ5wNkWQYq5P25r-d1ypRGJMmN3wP-XUa2jnfz6GMwq4dGnk5JtHxSPIkspE9zm5Ur-wAbgsAGDYvJg_RTtUEhOeq7FfS8pmKpYOJEGMqUmtiBm0MXDY3dN36Sp8H5gC6Smcio/s1600/1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitdQznRoSJ5wNkWQYq5P25r-d1ypRGJMmN3wP-XUa2jnfz6GMwq4dGnk5JtHxSPIkspE9zm5Ur-wAbgsAGDYvJg_RTtUEhOeq7FfS8pmKpYOJEGMqUmtiBm0MXDY3dN36Sp8H5gC6Smcio/s640/1.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></div>

New teacher

Our new teacher Rinku teaching the girls of Muskaan.

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VISIT OF THE INDIAN GIRLS AT MUSKAAN

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBs_uQWPM-xjKiAhcEU6-kWXra8yodX3T9MaAVNBfOyB9kVhdbfpKhLTv2AJfU9gXuJ8zsU3hcncVlviANwy5oxY6DI0cImPprAPGXFwGmxwLw_SlDxCtTRXw4lXBbl2nnA2Cr0uGdNqcp/s1600/1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBs_uQWPM-xjKiAhcEU6-kWXra8yodX3T9MaAVNBfOyB9kVhdbfpKhLTv2AJfU9gXuJ8zsU3hcncVlviANwy5oxY6DI0cImPprAPGXFwGmxwLw_SlDxCtTRXw4lXBbl2nnA2Cr0uGdNqcp/s400/1.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnCAT7FYM-xvxR4h4D7qlTTs0RfftGA2bce5t08uWdv-dEEXUZhS4IXdCofGb3F6Sk8qB8K-IHvbuNk2kNI1e0oAHrE2RoKb6xe7MFxWLdzohp0Z5ELTZTDrDWCF9TgndFyiA3Noy_wMzA/s1600/2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnCAT7FYM-xvxR4h4D7qlTTs0RfftGA2bce5t08uWdv-dEEXUZhS4IXdCofGb3F6Sk8qB8K-IHvbuNk2kNI1e0oAHrE2RoKb6xe7MFxWLdzohp0Z5ELTZTDrDWCF9TgndFyiA3Noy_wMzA/s400/2.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span aria-live="polite" class="fbPhotosPhotoCaption" data-ft="{"type":45}" id="fbPhotoSnowliftCaption" style="background-color: white; color: #333333; display: inline; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px; outline: none; text-align: left; width: auto;" tabindex="0"><span class="hasCaption"><span style="font-size: small;">Muskaan girls waiting to welcome the 'Indian Girls'</span></span></span></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMIB-9HjzBeqJQdHOWBroxkSLKgx2b_EiK-kg9J7FXGRjmItJszFOBv7ZQLG5vRFdFh0TI4EaWpo39mJf03dQfLdQrqb4Gvm6Wvdb3JK13GWunkTsdt8bOPpMyrYlvXnEgw4XJts9KYRCO/s1600/428454_666768893337524_1717855196_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMIB-9HjzBeqJQdHOWBroxkSLKgx2b_EiK-kg9J7FXGRjmItJszFOBv7ZQLG5vRFdFh0TI4EaWpo39mJf03dQfLdQrqb4Gvm6Wvdb3JK13GWunkTsdt8bOPpMyrYlvXnEgw4XJts9KYRCO/s400/428454_666768893337524_1717855196_n.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhR57Otl1ySXUP4KFq-G0FxmU33WY4uPMR2LrSRWj5pI2dkxaimEceW9T72_cXvVraas3KyPXrWsDu_pTcyk4xJj2Gg8HJ4j8FKUxpoCaOeEOIxSacy_PSGok638I9o4jwRSAdgC-RihMDt/s1600/485492_666768960004184_1608543880_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhR57Otl1ySXUP4KFq-G0FxmU33WY4uPMR2LrSRWj5pI2dkxaimEceW9T72_cXvVraas3KyPXrWsDu_pTcyk4xJj2Gg8HJ4j8FKUxpoCaOeEOIxSacy_PSGok638I9o4jwRSAdgC-RihMDt/s400/485492_666768960004184_1608543880_n.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBNZzx4THLGbjc590zFwEer5GTwO44ACHozExlJMr9v6ZnHdP4b9xZvDIJMx3X9DDzE-fdncb4cFR1D3qnLumiTbqFk0YUYadYIH3MOA1XnlYETUkj5ce67LrL4H9UybPWwH7gTVKeCjXS/s1600/935175_666768970004183_1987292063_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBNZzx4THLGbjc590zFwEer5GTwO44ACHozExlJMr9v6ZnHdP4b9xZvDIJMx3X9DDzE-fdncb4cFR1D3qnLumiTbqFk0YUYadYIH3MOA1XnlYETUkj5ce67LrL4H9UybPWwH7gTVKeCjXS/s400/935175_666768970004183_1987292063_n.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /></div>

VISIT OF THE INDIAN GIRLS AT MUSKAAN

Muskaan girls waiting to welcome the 'Indian Girls'

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