–Please do not repost without acknowledging the Public Health Bugle–

Today, I’m joining educators across the U.S. to kick off National Drug Facts Week by offering up my own shout-out for educating teens about drug abuse. Sponsored by the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), National Drug Facts Week is an official health observance designed to shatter the myths and spread the facts about drug abuse and addiction. To learn more about today’s “CyberShoutout” in support of National Drug Facts Week, checkout Sara Bellum Blog.

My discussion today will start off with a brief understanding of the world of drugs. Then I will delve deep into current data that looks at the prevalence of illegal drug use in the U.S. and current research that will take us to some interesting places. By the end of the article, I hope to provide insightful knowledge that teens can use to prevent illicit drug and alcohol use.

When discussing drugs, it’s best to understand that they can be categorized into four groups (image courtesy of David McCandless of Information Is Beautiful). It’s interesting to note that Cannabis falls right in the center as the “Super Drug,” and that Alcohol is categorized as a “Depressant.”

Now, what is the prevalence of illicit drug use by teens? Recent data (2007) from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) shows that:

• 8.0% of persons 12 years of age and over have used illicit drug in the past month.
  

• 5.8% of persons 12 years of age and over have used marijuana use in the past month.
  

• 2.8% of persons 12 years of age and over have used a psychotherapeutic drug (for non-medical use) in the past month.
  

Also, a report from the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy found that even though there is a “significant downturn in usage levels, they remain at high levels and it has been shown that the earlier drug use is initiated, the more likely a person is to develop drug problems later in life.” It goes without saying that there are a number of health effects that can undermine a teen’s academic performance, peer and family relations, and even lead to increased chances of juvenile delinquencies. In relation to excessive alcohol consumption and marijuana use, a recent report published in the January 2011 issue of Alcoholism: Clinical & Experimental Research (summary found HERE) found that “drinking during adolescence alters normal developmental processes in a way that negatively impacts learning and social adjustment into adulthood.” In other words…alcohol consumption is associated with BRAINDAMAGE! To learn more about U.S. trends for teen illicit drug use, please visit the following LINK.

I want to share three pieces of research that have been conducted this year.

By: Ali Al-Rajhi

When food companies have to slap a sticker claiming they use “all natural” ingredients, I start to question if it’s truly natural ingredients I’m consuming. I decided to take the initiative to do some research and determine what is meant by “all-natural” and how companies are able to make such claims – which are often misleading.

One medical doctor (Dr. Mercola) states that an “all natural” food label claim means “Zero. Zilch. Nada. Zip;” and when you attempt to find a definition for the phrase “all natural,” you can notice that nothing is set in stone:

• “Natural foods” and “all natural foods” are widely used terms with various meanings and no legal definition. Natural foods are not necessarily organic foods: - wikipedia.com
• Food that contains no artificial ingredients (eg, colors, flavors, preservatives and other chemicals) and is only minimally processed (so the raw product is not fundamentally altered): - vansfoods.com
• Made without artificial ingredients or preservatives. - snackaisle.com

What’s even more surprising is that the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) “has no plans in the near future to establish a definition of the term ‘natural’, saying it has other priorities for its limited resources.”

To my understanding, the FDA checks food labels,  to see whether or not the Nutrition Facts panel is visible, rather than the accuracy of the information. In addition, the FDA allows for food labels to be no more then 20 percent off before it violates federal law and that 10% of all food labels contain inaccuracies in what they report.”

So, what can you do?

• Buying locally is a start. Check out your local farmer’s market where you can purchase products without additives, antibiotics, growth hormones, etc. Also, you are supporting the sustainability of these local farmers.
  
• Read the ingredients of the foods you are purchasing. The more natural the food is, the less ingredients it will contain.
  
• When shopping at your local grocery store, look for Non-GMO products (Organic Certified). Even then I question organic certified foods, but requirements to get organically certified by the USDA are more stringent and it’s an alternative for shoppers who don’t have access to a farmer’s market.
  
• If you have an iPhone, you can download a Non-GMO shopping guide free from the App store by searching “ShopNoGMO.”

Buying healthy, safe foods might require you to put in some effort as far as preparing in advance and to knowing what to look for, but in the end your are doing it for your health.

“To provide opportunities for students to put theory into practice, nutrition education should go beyond the classroom” –W.T. Yeung, PhD

Comic source: www.tuberose.com

There are an endless number of research conducted which focuses on understanding how the today’s youth make dietary decisions. I have interpreted a consistent theme in most of these studies: That simply educating students about proper nutrition and partaking in some form of physical activity is not enough. Take for example a studied conducted by Yeung et al (2010) that  sampled 836 students (age 11-18; 41% male & 59% female) and looked at perceptions of body weight and image, their eating attitudes and behaviors, eating habits, food knowledge, and perceptions and mastery of cooking skills. The study concluded that despite a majority (94%) having studied food and nutrition in their curriculum, felt competent in making healthful food choices (67%), learned to cook (86%), had “food label-reading skills” (75%), and the majority (92%) knew  the benefits of exercising, less than half ate breakfast every day and fruit and vegetable consumption was below recommended daily intakes (RDI).

I strongly believe that there needs to be a radical change in how we implement dietary education. Our youth need to develop long-term focus in their dietary habits, i.e. life-long work on the process to improve their nutrition and physical activity…not a focus on instant results and diet-trends.  How can this be achieved? I can share my personal experiences in what has allowed me to improve (and continue to improve) my overall dietary habits.

Stock up well: The easiest way to influence your child as a parent is to stock your pantry and fridge with healthy foods. It’s surprising how quickly kids will adapt their diet based on what is provided at home. Yes, you might be indirectly forcing you’re kid to choose an apple over processed apple sauce, but someone needs to crack the wipe to get them on the right track.

“The Sauce is the Boss”: Cooking is still an important process in teaching proper nutrition. A study (HERE) by the University of Minnesota found a direct influence of family meals have on influencing adolescents to eat a healthy diet. The most enjoyable process of cooking, I believe, is preparing the sauce. Using a different sauce creates a different experience even for the same meal. Getting your child to start cooking is one thing…but to get them hooked, then teaching them a handful of simple sauces is the way. HERE is a list of simple sauces that can be taught.  Also, what about giving your child the responsibility to preparing a complete meal for the family every now and then…the parent should help, of course. Another benefit for making sauces…you can easily incorporate several veggies in a batch of your favorite sauce (e.g., tomato sauce for a pasta meal).

Dr. Gary Foster is a professor of  medicine and public health at Temple University. In this short audio interview, he shares current issues with obesity and practical solutions to how we, as a nation, can tackle the obesity pandemic.

Realistic Solutions to Obesity: Interview with Dr. Gary Foster

(source: The Obesity Society)

By: Ali Al-Rajhi

My notes from the interview

Is obesity more of lifestyle or medical problem?

Dr. Foster that obesity is more of a medical problem: but what is the source?

• Look at biological and environmental factors…genes haven’t changed much, but people’s environment has changed significantly.

Black Females have the highest rate…we don’t know why but Dr. Foster’s guess is that it may be linked to the environmental they live in, cultural lifestyle, and their socio-economic status.

What can be done to tackle the issue of obesity? Overall message is to “eat less and move more,” and current interventions are focusing on the following approaches:

• Level 1: Behavioral modification; Level 2: pharmaco-therapy; Level 3: Bariatric Surgery
• People must think through the whole process differently – instead of working on the “reinforcement” side, work more on the “antecedent” side (e.g., what are the early triggers that make one overeat or stay sedentary?).
• Think of caloric intake as you do when balancing your finances: Understand how much energy goes into body and how much is burned (energy in and energy out).
• Change your relationship with food and don’t focus on losing pounds (e.g. don’t diet, just eat healthier)
• Change kids preferences at an early age…even pre-uteri as research has shown (e.g., talk to mom about what she eats).

What about diet plans? Generally not effective, but every diet works to some extent if it gets you to eat healthier or eat less then what you did before.

Diabetes is the most costly from a health care point-a-view and closely tied to obesity…both a medical and economic problem

To influence children to eat healthier just change environment at home with healthier selections and don’t point fingers as teens might resist…show by action and not words. Same can be said about school environment (e.g., change what is offered in the cafeteria and vending machines)

What about folks that are biological pre-deposed to be overweight?

• These people might make changes but will quit because they feel defeated if they don’t see changes.
• The solution: Think of it as an endless life-long marathon and just make small changes in your diet (e.g., think of ways to eliminate unhealthy calories like replacing whole milk with fat-free milk).

Where can the public get good information?

• The NIH has practical outlines and patient handouts that are ethnically diverse. Just type in “obesity” into the search.