Eating Disorders also Affect Boys and Men

Eating disorders are not just a problem for girls and women. Boys and men also suffer from eating disorders such as anorexia, bulimia and binge eating disorder. The common misconception that this disease only affects females means that boys often arrive to treatment later in the disease process, according to Nancy Farrell, MS, RDN, a spokesperson for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics.

Physical signs and behaviors of this disease may be inadvertently missed by loved ones, school staff or sometimes busy health professionals. This coupled with an inadequately nourished brain, delays young boys in acknowledging the disease, and their need to reach out for help. Consequently, males become more ill as more time elapses. As indicated in a 2011 study, and reported by the National Eating Disorders Association, 20 million women and 10 million men suffer from a clinically defined eating disorder at some point in their life. So, for every two women that have an eating disorder, one male also is struggling.

Pressure Comes from Media and Peers

Many parents and activists worry about the messages young girls learn from the media: Are girls learning that thinness defines their self-worth? Do they succumb to peer pressure to look and dress a certain way?

Yet, boys and men also fall prey to pressure from their peers and from the media's portrayal of the physically strong man. Many strive for athletic bodies with an unrealistically low amount of body fat, says Farrell. "Often boys strive for rock-hard abs," she says. "Without fully understanding the best strategies, or the implications of undesirable practices, males may believe that a lower body fat percentage is the means in reaching that goal." Media outlets, online sources and peer discussions give youth an impression of what standards they should adhere to, and what they should look like, Farrell says. This in turn, can influence how one feels about themselves. Males, as well as females, admit that body weight teasing and bullying was a trigger in beginning their eating disorder behaviors.

"Parents, health professionals and even school staff are now recognizing that eating disorders are not gender specific," says Farrell. "Know the warning signs, as early detection and intervention lead to the best health outcomes." Signs that a man or adolescent boy has an eating disorder may include being overly focused on body shape, muscles and imperfections. Additional indicators include anabolic steroid use, excessive time spent exercising at the expense of other activities, heading to the restroom immediately after eating and following a strict eating routine.

Eating disorders affect an individual's emotional and physical health. Many with eating disorders suffer from depression and social withdrawal. These men may also experience constipation, electrolyte disorders, irregular heart rate, dental enamel erosion and low levels of testosterone.

Help is Available

If you're struggling with your eating, ask for help — even if you don't know if your problem qualifies as an eating disorder. If you're concerned that someone you know has an eating disorder, don't ignore it or think it will get better on its own. Talk to him about your concerns and ask him for his opinion, Farrell suggests. Understand that the primary problem is not food, so simply going on another diet is not the solution. The dangerous eating patterns seen with eating disorders are symptoms of psychological problems.

The health-care team should involve mental health, nutrition and medical specialists. If your friend or family member recognizes his eating disorder but doesn't know what to do about it, you can help by offering to look for a specialist. If he denies the problem, bring it to his attention again at a later date. In the meantime, learn what you can about eating disorders and make an appointment with a specialist to talk over your concerns and to get support.

Reference: http://www.eatright.org/resource/health/diseases-and-conditions/eating-disorders/eating-disorders-problem-also-affects-boys-and-men

Do You Know What the Healthiest Countries Eat?

HEALTH

What makes a country healthy?

Low pollution and cancer rates? Higher-than-average life expectancy? Access to affordable healthcare to screen for diseases before they become serious concerns?

If you answered that all of these factors contribute to the health of a country’s citizens, you’re absolutely right. But the biggest issue plaguing our global health, by far, is obesity.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), “Worldwide obesity has more than doubled since 1980.”

More than 600 million adults were classified as obese during 2014, and “41 million children under the age of 5 were [labeled] overweight or obese.”

“The rise in obesity among children is especially troubling,” says Marie Ng, Assistant Professor of Global Health and lead author of a study published in The Lancet about the global obesity epidemic. “We know that there are severe downstream health effects from childhood obesity, including cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and many cancers.”

Here’s the worst news: most of the obese population is also suffering from malnourishment.

How’s that possible when they seem to be eating plenty?

Because as processed foods become cheaper options, adults and children fill themselves with foods that lack nutrition and are instead packed with empty calories, sugar, and harmful ingredients, causing them to shovel more unhealthy food in their tummies.

This vicious cycle is entirely preventable.

While extra playtime and less sitting is key to weight loss (for both kids and adults!), diet is a crucial part of keeping our waistlines at healthy levels, too.

“A thicker waistline increases heart attack risk,” says Nieca Goldberg, MD.

Excess stomach fat has been correlated with higher blood pressure and blood sugar levels—both of which lead to the development of heart disease, the number one cause of death in the US.

But what about countries outside the US?

Roughly 33% of the US is obese, but check out how the obesity rates of a few slimmer countries compare:

France 17%

Spain 16%

Sweden 12%

Denmark 11%

Italy 10%

Norway 10%

China 3%

Japan 3%

India 0.7%

Vietnam 0.5%

Now, the majority of these countries reject processed, sugary foods and embrace home-cooked meals with as little packaging, pesticides, and hormones as possible. Quite different from the standard American fare.

Reference: http://www.nutritionsecrets.com/do-you-know-what-the-healthiest-countries-eat/

What and How Much Should My Preschooler Be Eating?

Young children need the same variety of nutrient-rich foods as older kids and adults, just in smaller quantities. As portions have gotten bigger, some parents and caregivers have developed a distorted view of the amount of food toddlers and preschoolers need. Feeding children becomes less frustrating and less complicated when adults know what kids need to grow well and be healthy.

Defining a Young Child's Serving Size

An appropriate serving size for children 2 to 3 years of age is about one-half an adult serving. This rule of thumb is based on serving sizes recommended by MyPlate, not portions served in many restaurants. So a serving of bread for a 2- to 3-year-old would be half of a slice.

Foods Young Children Need

Most 2- to 3-year-old children need to consume about 1,000 to 1,200 calories per day. Here's how to distribute those calories in a healthy eating plan:

• Grain Group: About 3 to 4 ounces of grains per day, preferably half of them whole grains. For example, that is one or two slices of bread plus one cup ready-to-eat cereal and ½ cup cooked rice or pasta.
• Vegetable Group: 1 to 1½ cups raw or cooked vegetables per day. Like adults, young kids need variety: mashed sweet potatoes, broccoli with low-fat dip or tomato sauce for pasta.
• Fruit Group: 1 cup fresh, frozen, canned, or dried per day. Limit juice to 4 to 6 ounces per day. Emphasize whole fruits rather than juice. Kids love melon balls, mandarin oranges (fresh or canned in juice) and frozen berries.
• Milk Group: 2 to 2½ cups cups per day. Whole milk is recommended for children younger than 2. Older children can have lower-fat, calcium-rich choices such as fat-free or low-fat milk, yogurt and cheese.
• Meat and Beans Group: 2 to 3 ounces total per day. Options include lean meat, poultry, fish, an egg, cooked beans (black, pinto, kidney) and peanut butter.

For more information about eating plans and serving sizes for preschoolers, visit https://www.facebook.com/letstalknutritious/.

What to Do About Snacks, Sweet Drinks and Desserts

Plan two to three small snacks at set times during the day to refuel small, active bodies. Make small servings of sweet drinks and desserts "sometimes" foods. Let's Talk Nutrition recommends limiting sodium to 1,500 milligrams per day, saturated fat to 11 grams per day and added sugars to 25 grams per day for young children.

Reference: http://www.eatright.org/resource/food/nutrition/dietary-guidelines-and-myplate/size-wise-nutrition-for-preschool-age-children

Does Washing My Clothes Kill All the Germs?

Laundry serves far nobler purposes than stamping out body odor. It also protects you from getting sick. 

Imagine that someone who lives in your house is ill. A single gram of his fecal matter contains millions of viruses, and exposure to just a hundred of those viruses can make you sick.says Kelly Reynolds, a germ researcher and associate professor of environmental health at the University of Arizona.

Regardless of how assiduously he wipes, the average person has about a tenth of a gram of fecal residue in his underwear, says Chuck Gerba, a professor of microbiology at Arizona. If you’re washing that sick person’s underwear with your own, chances are very good that his sickness-causing organisms are going to make their way onto your clothing.

“We’ve found that one germy item in the washer will spread to 90% of the other items,” Reynolds says. And no, it doesn’t matter how hot you set the water temperature on your machine. “When it comes to molds that cause skin or respiratory infections, or organisms that cause colds, flu and stomach flu, most of them will survive the wash cycle,” she says.

It’s the dryer—not the washing machine—that lays waste to harmful microorganisms. “High heat drying for at least 28 minutes is the most effective way to kill viruses,” Reynolds says. The “high heat” setting is key. Energy efficient, low-heat settings may not get the job done, she says.

You’re not even safe if you wash your sick housemate’s clothing separately from your own, since his germs will hang out in the washer even after the clothing is gone. Run a wash cycle with bleach or another type of disinfectant to clean it of sickness-cause organisms, Reynolds says.

The good news is that if no one in your household is sick, you can relax a bit about killing the germs in your load. “It’s when someone is ill that you really want to up your game,” Reynolds says. If your housemate catches something, have him or her wear clothing and sleep on sheets that you can wash and dry using high heat.

And yes—it’s ok to spare your expensive, line-dry only gym gear from the dryer. Your big worry there is probably foul odors, not viral pathogens. If you’re diligent about washing your hands (and wiping down the machines at the gym before you climb aboard) you shouldn’t have much to worry about, Reynolds says. Just be sure to wash your duds soon after you finish exercising. “The longer those clothes remain damp with sweat, the more mold and bacteria are going to proliferate,” she says.

If your first instinct after reading this is to double down on detergent, don’t. A washing machine’s cycles are designed to break up and wash away only so much cleaning agent, says Jolie Kerr, an author, cleaning expert and host of the podcast Ask a Clean Person. If you have a heavy hand with the pump or scoop, the excess detergent can build up on your clothing and lock in bacteria and odors, she says. (Fabric softener, too, can coat your clothing in a residue that traps smells, she adds.)

If you can’t dry your stuff on high heat—or at all—hang it up outdoors or in direct sunlight. The sun’s ultraviolet light has disinfecting properties, Reynolds says.

Finally, be mindful of transferring your clothes from the washer to the dryer. “Unless you’ve used bleach or some other disinfectant, those items are not sanitized,” Reynolds says, so be sure to wash your hands after handling them.

Source: http://www.health.com/syndication/washing-machine-germs