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POSSIBILITIES Giles Period 3 Publications
By: Josh Grove
‘’Go Outside and Play!’’ The benefits of spending time outside and the consequences of being a couch potato
‘’Go outside and play!’’ It’s something that every kid’s mom has said to them at some point. However, new research suggests that maybe Mom really knew what she was talking about, and wasn’t just trying to get you out of her hair. In fact, your mother probably spent much more time outside when she was a kid than you ever have. When The National Trust surveyed 1,001 families, they found that the average kid between the ages of 4-14 spent 4 hours outside playing a week, compared to their parents, who spent an average of 8.2 hours a week outside when they were kids.
With the millennial generation there has been a steep trend away from spending regular time outdoors. However, this new pattern may be giving
up the advantages that previous generations enjoyed from spending time in the outdoors. Especially in a digital world, it seems necessary to decompress and get back to a more “primal” setting. With the constant notifications and “online responsibilities”, this has gotten more difficult, although it’s beneficial. So, what are the benefits of getting outside? Is it worth our increasingly precious and finite free time? Good for the Mind: Humanity has always had a kind of intuition on the benefits of nature. From the gardens of Babylon, to Central Park, Humans know, though may not fully understand, the escape from civilization that nature provides. In fact, Olmsted the designer of central park and a staunch defender of preserving American national parks wrote,
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By: Josh Grove
‘’it is a scientific fact that the occasional contemplation of natural scenes of an impressive character, is favorable to the health and vigor of men’’. -Fredrick Olmsted In Olmsted’s 1860’s the health benefits of nature were not fully understood as they are now, but Olmsted still felt the importance of having nature in our lives.
room had a lengthy recuperation. This supports the current hypothesis that nature has a stress relief effect. And in todays busy world, that can be critical. Good for the Body:
Recently there have been more scientific studies on the subject. A Swedish physician with a speciality in psychological research gave two groups of participants a stressful math test, with one group recovering in a conventional room, and the other recovering in a room with 3d nature scenes playing. While the group that recovered in the nature room experienced a vastly increased heart rate recovery, the group in the normal
Going out and getting some sunshine is not only great for the exercise, but the sun itself is also a great health benefit in moderation. The most obvious and well researched benefit of sunlight is vitamin d, this vitamin is required for maintaining a healthy immune system. But without enough vitamin d (it’s best to get natural vitamin d from sunlight), it is more likely that you will develop alzheimer's or cancer.
An incredible view after a long hike to a fire observation tower in Colorado 2
By: Josh Grove
A breath taking scene of the valley floor in Philmont New Mexico
Another important, yet newly discovered advantage of getting sunlight is better eye health. Going outside gets you away from screens and more specifically, blue light. Blue light causes CVS, or computer vision syndrome, which causes poor eyesight, as well as blurriness and dryness of the eyes. However, these symptoms can quickly dissipate or even reverse after spending time in the outdoors.
But while CVS is easily reversible, a lack of sunlight has been known to cause nearsightedness. In a Taiwanese school, a team
of researchers studied two schools where nearsightedness was equally common. They then had one school encourage more student outdoor time, while the other was told not to do anything other than what they normally would, to act as a control. After a year, the rate of nearsightedness in the control school was 17.65%, an increasingly normal phenomenon with students. While the school that encouraged and scheduled their students more outdoor time, experienced a near sightedness rate of just 8.41%. This goes to show that even a bit of outdoor time during the day can be very beneficial. 3
By: Josh Grove
‘’It’s fun and helps me take my mind off things’’
Parent tested, Eagle Scout approved: To learn more about the outdoors, I asked a person that I knew would have a wealth of knowledge. An Eagle Scout, and receiver of the 100 nights camping award, was Johnny. Like me Johnny has travelled to the famous Philmont scout ranch and backpacked for 12 days through the mountains of New Mexico. Philmont was a perfect example of something that everyone should one day experience. Being away from civilization for over a week in nothing but nature is an extremely valuable experience. Even though it may seem scary to millennials, it’s something that will make you see the world differently.
When I asked Johnny why he likes the outdoors so much, he said, ‘’Because it’s fun and helps me take my mind off things’’. Which as simple and obvious as it sounds is a huge benefit. How many of us just sit around all day at school or work, just to go home tired and sit around in front of a computer screen (I know I do)? And even when we do go out and play sports or exercise for a while, it’s usually only about an hour which is not enough outdoor time. What we need is regular, prolonged fun in the outdoors, it’s what our minds and bodies crave. So listen to Mom, and go outside and play!
July snow high up in the Rocky Mountains, a snowball fight ensues
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Kai Poulson
Travel Health
Fly Away
Space. The final frontier. What an amazing phrase that truly captures mankind's fascination with the universe. We’ve sent people to the moon, deployed a gigantic telescope, and built a freaking space station in low Earth orbit. However, I’m going to bring this back down to Earth. Specifically, air travel. What connections can I draw from space travel to plane travel? The symptoms that you experience during the flight, and for a while after the flight. Also, what you experience while flying, as stated by Tineke Boddé in Bioscience “Space travelers are turned, twisted, pulled, shaken, and exposed to environmental stresses such as weightlessness, sudden accelerations and decelerations, vibration and noise, ionizing radiation, interruption of their biorhythms, and changes in temperature, humidity, and atmospheric conditions. Airline passengers may experience some of these, but to a far lesser degree”.
Kai Poulson
Travel Health
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Kai Poulson
Travel Health
Sickness
Water and Blood
When air traveling, we can experience symptoms typical You will be extremely dehydrated during and after of an astronaut who has spent time in space. One of the flight. Drink lots of fluids. This might not even these is a decrease in red blood cells, which results in an help, however. Just keep drinking fluids. Keep increased chance of infection. This means that you better getting bottles or cups of water. Don’t feel like avoid being near a sick person for too long, because you you’re pestering the flight attendants, as it is their don’t want to be sick when you just arrived in a new job, and you need the fluids. Drink (water) country or state. That could be a major problem, throughout your flight and afterwards. especially if you’re attending a new school or expected at work. I have gotten colds a couple of days after arriving to my home country often. You can also bring things to Blood flow is definitely affected when traveling. Have disinfect your hands or seat. Or you can go to extreme you ever noticed how your feet and ankles are puffy measures if you want to look like Monk. This has been after a long flight? That’s because you are resisting proven by the Auburn University of Alabama, which found gravity by flying through the air at extreme speeds. Your in a recent study that “disease-causing bacteria can blood will tend to flow more towards the feet and ankles, survive for up to a week inside plane cabins, on surfaces causing you to feel light headed, and your shoes to no such as seat pockets, tray tables, window shades and longer fit. Astronauts have these same problems, only in armrests. Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), a bacteria that reverse. Because of zero gravity, their blood will flow up could cause infections, skin disease, pneumonia and to their head, making there face and eyes puffy. While sepsis, lived the longest (168 hours)”. Also, according the there problem can’t be, your problem can easily be Dr. Richard Dawood, who is Telegraph Travel’s expert on combatted by doing simple movements with your feet health, says that “virtually moisture-free” conditions inside while watching a movie or reading a book. Just move a plane cabin increase your vulnerability to airborne your feet up, hold infection. You're more susceptible to colds for 30 seconds, and respiratory infection, and viruses which then move it down are known to thrive in conditions of low“disease-causing bacteria can survive for towards the floor, humidity. Sometimes, though, getting sick up to a week inside plane cabins, on hold for 30 just can’t be helped. Make sure that you are surfaces such as seat pockets, tray tables, seconds. Rinse prepared for this. Bring basic medication and repeat. After a window shades and armrests. with you whenever you travel. Pack some in while, you will your luggage as well as your carry-on, so, Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), a bacteria notice that your when you feel sick, you can nip it in the bud. that could cause infections, skin disease, feet actually fit your shoes. You pneumonia and sepsis, lived the longest will need to do this Plane travel has another effect on your body. (168 hours)”. throughout the Constipation can result in severe discomfort, flight at the points so you will feel bloated and gassy upon when you feel like your feet are swelling up. Or, you can arrival, as well as for about three days afterwards. Again, do what I do, which is do it at random times in order to you are not alone here. Astronauts, due to the lack of avoid the swelling at all. Just don’t keep getting up and gravity, have these same experiences, but much worse. down. It disturbs those around you, and you’re stuck in a They typically have to strap themselves onto the toilet so tin can with them for quite some time, so it might not be they don’t float away (which would endanger everyone on a good idea to annoy them. board). Luckily, it goes away quickly. Unfortunately, you will feel the need to go to the bathroom, but you won’t be able to. You may also pass gas (no other way of saying it) at random points during the day, which is potentially embarrassing. I have no helpful way of dealing with this, other than go into a different room, or the bathroom, when something like this happens. For extreme cases, you may want to go to the doctor.
Kai Poulson
Travel Health
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Kai Poulson
Travel Health
Arrival Try and sleep on your flights. Maintain the schedule that you usually have at home on board the airplane. Doing so will help with jet-lag. If you’re like me, however, you won’t sleep. Well, maybe a little (like two hours). If this is the case, you can at least avoid staring at a screen the Astronauts can whole time, which might actually help you sleep. If not, then you can do your best to deprivation.” enjoy the flight and prepare for the sleepless nights and wakeless days to come (that’s what I do). Astronauts can “suffer sleep deprivation”. They actually need to strap themselves into a vertical sleeping bag, and strap their arms down, otherwise they would float around in what is known as the “zombie pose”.
“suffer sleep
Upon arrival, you’ll either feel rested, tired, or energetic (sometimes all three). But the good thing is; you made it! The most important thing now is to rest. Sleep if you can, read, whatever you want. When moving, it’s guaranteed you’ll be needed to help unpack and stuff, but, since your parents will probably be feeling the same way, it won’t happen until tomorrow. Or, better yet, get stuff done now so you have the next day to rest (cause in my experience, the second day is the worst).
Moving is a stressful time (not that I would know what it’s like to move to a different country). But I do know what it’s like to travel, and move (just not at the same time). It can be hard. Make sure that you are prepared for what you are about to experience, and make sure you have something that you like to do (pack some books, a kindle, a video game system [ since, you know, you’re moving]). Just do something that you find to be a stress reliever and something that can help you rest and recover, as well as a distraction from the fact that you just lost all your friends and will have to start over (oops, sorry for that reminder). But hey, it’s not like you’re moving to another planet.
Kai Poulson
Travel Health
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The Sleeping Blues
Sleep really is a beautiful thing I feel it’s safe to say it is loved universally. Being able to lie down in the hands of god himself, gently lulled to sleep by the peace of silence. Beep Beep Beep. Your hand juts out and you grab your phone. It’s a notification from Facebook about a “hilarious” video. You're already awake so why not check it out. You seem to blank out whether you're watching youtube, Netflix or just browsing your favorite social media. Time seems to slip away as you're transported to some alternate dimension where there is only entertainment whether it be dogs or cats. Suddenly you snap out of it looking at the time and seeing it’s 1:00am in the morning on a school night. You quickly shut off your phone to lie back down in your world of comfort. You feel something different this time it’s not as comfortable as before you can’t seem to find a comfortable position you just generally feel well not tired.
The Power of Sleep It’s well known that sleep is one of if not the most important bodily functions, especially so for teenagers who are in the midst of puberty. During puberty the body's Circadian Cycle (scientific for sleep cycle) is shifted where adults usually are sleepy at 8:00 to 9:00pm according to a UCLA(University of California Los Angeles) study teenagers get tired at the later hours of 10:00 to 11:00pm. A problem this causes in many teenagers is a lack of sleep, since they’re usually falling asleep later and waking up for school at about 6:00 am. These numbers are only an average, many kids go to bed much later than 11:00. This causes many teens to overlook the importance of sleep. This is a large mistake because…. Sleep may not be the key to happiness but you’re sure to be in a better mood if you're well rested. Jodi A. Mindell, PhD, a professor of psychology at St. Joseph's University in Philadelphia and author of Sleep Deprived No More states "Not getting enough sleep affects your emotional regulation,". Mindell has also stated there is a link between sleep deprivation and your physical awareness. She says a lack of sleep, "impairs your cognition, your attention, and your decision-making."
You know that feeling, when you go into a test confident because you had studied all night, only to forget everything during test. Well it turns it wouldn’t have been a bad idea to grab a couple extra hours of z’s. According to a 2007 Harvard paper “without adequate sleep and rest, over-worked neurons can no longer function to coordinate information properly, and we lose our ability to access previously learned information.”
An Intense Glow Screens, The screens of many devices today use what is called “blue light” this blue light is what most phones, tablets and laptops use in their displays.
We are naturally exposed to blue light throughout the day so screen use during the day has little to no effect. Except screen use isn’t limited to daytime, Screens have already taken over the bedroom with a 2014 study from the national sleep foundation determining that 79% of kids have at least one device in their room. Furthermore they said the majority of the 79% would check their phone after their “bedtime”. I know many people in this 79% one in particular is consistently late for school often sleeping through his alarm because of excessive use of technology in the bedroom. he’s told me he’ll watch tv until 3 in the morning on a school night. Terrible sleeping habits aside he’s not entirely to blame since the technology he’s using to watch his T.V is actively ruining his bodies natural clock. There have been many studies recently talking about the effects of blue light, one in particular being a 2013 study done by Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. The results showed volunteers who used an IPad for just 2 hours during an evening had halted the usual nighttime rise of melatonin.
In a New Light In order to solve the problems that come with blue light you can use programs like F.lux for your laptop and Twilight for your phone. These apps tint the screen to a darker orange shade later at night tricking your mind into thinking it’s dusk (when melatonin production starts) this small tint makes a huge difference. As of 2016 no studies have been done on the effects of f.lux or related apps but you can take my word that it works.
What used to feel like trying to sleep on a cold rock went back to a perfect state of bliss after I made the switch from blue light to orange. Some companies are starting to realize the effects and are installing night modes where you can tint your screen to an orange at night. At the end of the days what’s most important is being able to lie down comfortably in your own personal heaven while avoiding an uncomfortable hell
Wait, What’s Melatonin Melatonin is a protein produced in the body that regulates the body's sleep cycle it’s purpose is to make you drowsy. Melatonin levels rise in the absence of blue light. which is the reason screens(which produce blue light) are bad before(and after) bedtime.
Healthy Lifestyle Magazine
stop look &
LISTEN to me An insider on the teenage brain and its impulsive ‘achievements’; talking back, picking fights, rebellion, and more.
I
open my eyes slowly, savoring the new energy flowing
Sounds familiar, right? There is not one teenager or parent in
through my eyelids from the sufficient amount of sleep
history who hasn’t experienced this situation before. Besides
that I’d finally gotten. I swing my feet over the side of
the raging hormones (*cough cough bipolar), emotional ups and
the bed. It’s a calm, lazy Saturday morning, that is,
downs, and all the awkward and embarrassing sexual maturation
until I steal a glance at my bedside table-
BS (yuck) running at full capacity, the transition from childhood to adulthood is something all passerby’s cringe at. And what do
13:04
most people remember from these
Well I guess it’s not morning… Crap! I slept in I scramble down the stairs, not ready for the disapproving remarks that are already calling my name from the kitchen.“You missed breakfast, you missed lunch, what, are you going to miss the whole day too? For the past few years I’ve had to endure your personal, selfish habits. You are lazy and unmotivated and negative. The world doesn’t revolve around you! You have to realize the consequences that may come with-” “MOM! STOP TALKING! OF COURSE I GET UP LATE ON A SATURDAY - IT’S THE WEEKEND, I’M A TEENAGER, AND I’M TIRED. I HAVE A BUNCH OF STUFF TO DO, AND AT LEAST I HAVE A LIFE!” I get a glimpse of the flash of hurt on her face before I storm back up the stairs. I don’t need her endless blabbering in my ears, I have better things to do. Do I? The guilt starts to kick in...
years? Doing things that they regret… However it isn’t only us teens who regret what we do. “We can be over-involved in the wrong things, and under-involved in the right things.” says Madeline Levine Ph.D., psychologist, bestselling author of The Price of Privilege, and a mother herself. Levine realizes that even she, with her good intentions and expertise on the topic, can’t always be of help to her children. In fact, according to Northern Illinois University’s Department of Education, if parental pressures are too intense (much?), teens are much more likely to experience self - esteem and confidence issues, which is also a common source of questioning themselves. Now, dear parents, don’t get me wrong. I’ve thought things, said things that I wish I hadn’t, gone out of my way to make mom and dad miserable more than a few times, and pushed them away at a time I needed them most. So- why did I? Is there a reason why I avoided them even when there was a voice in the back of my head telling me otherwise? Why all they did seemed to be - to feel - wrong to me?
5 NO-NOs from Teens to Parents
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Being ‘Good Enough’ “The most important task of childhood and adolescence is a sense of self.” (Juliette Fay, author of The Shortest Way Home) Lack of self-confidence is a weakness all teens have to face one way or another. Not only do we put ourselves down, but get quite a few remarks from others too. Add in mom and dad’s voice to the picture and bring on the war. To a teen who is only just discovering him/ herself, what other people think is extremely relevant. To inflate their competency, parents must go beyond their teens’ thoughts; praise them.
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(Teen) Independence Day Teens love their freedom. The ability to do what we want to do (and sometimes having to get away with it (*winky face*) has a certain pull. We wish for the carelessness of a child, but the rights of an adult. And so, we want both granted. The resolution is simple, really: compromise. Both sides can meet in the middle. In fact, just knowing that parents are willing to reason it out means a whole awful lot.
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Innocent or Guilty Unfair punishments and misunderstood rules; teens not knowing what on earth they did wrong this time (*rolls eyes). “Parents can get very revved up.” Dr Coleman, a pediatrician of the The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) infers. When parents go on and on chastising us, other than feeling powerless against the undeserved consequences, all we hear is,“I’m going to control you for no reason”. What did we do wrong? Explain our faults clearly and concisely; No sugar-coating.
5 NO-NOs from Teens to Parents No Offense; None Taken?
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To accept is a blessing; to condemn is all-messing. Whether mom is looking you up and down and rolling your eyes at what you have chosen to wear out, or calling you selfish for only thinking of yourself, her judgement is important. “Some of their concerns are justified,” Coleman continues, “but other times they’re focused too far ahead and not on keeping their youngster’s life balanced now.”These snide comments are a common cause of alienating teens and driving them away from relationships. It doesn’t do so good for selfesteem either.
5 20 Teenagers said the first thing that comes to
I’m a Big Girl Now Talk to us as if we’re intelligent individuals who have a significant say in matters (Or as I like to call it: “I’m no longer a child, don’t treat me like one”) We are starting the journey to enter adulthood, and it would only be fair to be regarded with significance and listened to with respect. Considering what we say would mean you value us. You don’t have to agree with everything we say, just let us voice our opinions.
*Words increase in size
mind when they heard
with
the word
frequency
“parents”
of mention
See a pattern? It may seem like a lot to ask for, but what we ask for isn’t quite as complex as one might think: some freedom, understanding, respect, and trust. It’s easy to forget sometimes that us teens are human too, especially considering we can be quite… deranged, at times. Still, there is one thing that we may lie to ourselves about but can never truly deny; we need you. Calling out to all parents! We need you! Mom and dad - I need you. So show me you care by your actions and attitudes, listen to me with a caring heart, and most of all, trust me to get through my rough patches because we all know there will be many, many more that I hope we can look back and smile at.
- The next day 08:46 “Mom?” I hear the light pitter-patter of her footsteps as she nears. “Mom, I made breakfast.” It sounds more like a question than an answer. Like, Mom, I made you breakfast, see? Am I lazy still? Do you forgive me? She doesn’t answer and I can’t see her so I turn around. She is sitting at the chair on the dining table, her hands tucked in her lap and her plate ready in front of her. She looks at me and smiles. “Thank you, dear, that’s very thoughtful of you. Want to start?” All's well that ends well.
WORKS CITED Fair, Suze, and Marcia D. Dixson. "Teens Unmet Expectations." Explora. N.p., Nov. 2001. Web. 08 Feb. 2017. Levine, Madeline. The Price of Privilige. San Francisco: n.p., 2008. Print. MacKenzie, Jenn. "Becoming a Winning Parent." Collaborative on Early Adolescence (n.d.): n. pag. Print. Fay, Juliette. "Parental Pressure: The Fine Line Between Caring... and Caring Too Much." The Huffington Post. TheHuffingtonPost.com, 07 Dec. 2012. Web. 06 Feb. 2017. "When the Pressure to Excel Gets Out of Hand." HealthyChildren.org. American Academy of Pediactrics, 05 Jan. 2017. Web. 06 Feb. 2017. Icons Marketing. Digital image. TrickOneProductions. TrickOneProductions, 2015. Web. 12 Feb. 2017. Like. Digital image. Pngpedia. Pbgpedia, 11 Aug. 2014. Web. 15 Feb. 2017. Gavel Clipart. Digital image. Shutterstock. Shutterstock, n.d. Web. 13 Feb. 2017. I'M A BIG KID NOW. Digital image. Quick Meme. Quick Meme, n.d. Web. 12 Feb. 2017.