Monthly Archives: August 2011
Why are After School Sports and PE Programs Important?
As a kid, I didn’t consciously think about being active or exercising. It was just something I did. I’d ride my bike every day or go for a swim or play outside with friends. It was about having fun. The sweat and exercise was just an added benefit.
These days, kids aren’t so eager to be active and often coop themselves up inside to play video games or watch TV. After school curriculum should focus more on exercise and less on rotting in front of a monitor.
Why are after school sports and physical education games so important?
Childhood Obesity
Recent studies have shown that childhood obesity is becoming a prominent problem in our nation. In the last three decades, childhood obesity rates have tripled in America. About one in three children are either overweight or obese.
If the trends continue, one third of all children born in the year 2000 or later will suffer from diabetes. Even more daunting is the fact that childhood obesity can lead to all sorts of medical problems early in life. These health issues include asthma, heart disease, high blood pressure, and even cancer. Aside from health problems, being overweight or obese can spawn low self-esteem and a general lack of self-confidence.
This is where after school sports come into play. Along with maintaining a healthy diet, exercising regularly is a primary means of losing weight. Physical activity is essential to living a healthy life. As well as controlling weight and reducing fat, exercise builds leaner muscles and promotes development of bones and joints.
Physical Education
The average child needs at least an hour of moderate to vigorous activity every day, which makes physical education an essential part of the puzzle. Physical education programs stress important lessons about the human body while offering up various physical activities, from team sports to innovative exercises that can be done in the comfort and safety of home.
The most important key is to offer skills and instruction that kids can then apply outside of class. This is most apparent when it comes to nutrition. It’s important for kids to understand nutrition and the benefits of a balanced diet. As important as exercise is, eating right is half the battle. If kids learn the basics of eating right and exercising regularly, they can stay healthy and avoid the dangers of obesity.
Ways Green Tea Benefits the Skin
Considering that green tea was discovered in China thousands of years ago, it’s amazing to know how it still plays such an important part in health even today. People reach for a cup to ease symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis, lower cholesterol and drop excess weight.
Now, science has proven that there is an important place for green tea in skin care products. From anti-aging formulas to even acne treatments, this ancient substance helps reveal youthful skin.
A fantastic green tea product out on the market is named Skin Care Heaven Green Tea Soothing Cream. Packed with antioxidants, it reduces visible signs of aging, but is still gentle. Its unique formulas add moisture to dry skin while giving it the rejuvenation it needs. Among its refreshing anti-aging blend, it is also ideal for those with acne and Rosacea challenges.
Also by the same manufacturer, Skin Care Heaven Green Tea Soothing Serum is another fantastic product worth mentioning. Like its sister product, this serum is supercharged with antioxidants which reduces pore size, fine lines, wrinkles, and photo-damaged skin. Caffeine is an important ingredient in this serum which promotes the effects of antioxidants. Combined together, the results are dramatic.
Both Skin Care Heaven products are superb for post-procedure skin and a great anti-inflammatory.
- Green tea topical creams and serums have been used to treat:
- Acne
- Mature Skin
- Skin irritation
Green tea harnesses powerful antibacterial ingredients which fight breakouts. Its natural, anti-inflammatory rich formula minimizes swelling and redness.
Research reveals its precision ingredients help with hormonal levels which jumpstart acne flare-ups.
Like other wonderful antioxidant skincare products, green tea is on the list to ward off free radicals which can age and irritate the skin. And this included sun damage. Green tea is also designed to treat dry, scaly, and rough skin patches.
Above all, it’s a collagen promoter which means younger and more gorgeouslooking skin.
The strong antioxidant in green tea is EGCG; it’s often been described as a “cell rejuvenator” which heals the skin.
- Topical green tea consumers have reported the following restorations
- Firmer and softer skin
- Hyper-pigmentation and age spots improvement
- Less lines and wrinkles
- Reduced pore size
- Skin hydration
- More powerful than Vitamin C and E, EGCG protects the skin against future environmental injury.
There’s a general rule of thumb when choosing between a green tea cream or serum. Cream tends to provide additional hydrating formulas for mature skin, while serum is a good pick for oilier skin that needs hydration, too. Both types are powerful while catering to a particular skincare mission.
The Oldies But Goodies of Cosmetic Procedures
Like every field of medicine, cosmetic surgery has its “oldies but goodies” – procedures that have been around for a long time, having been perfected and improved through the use of new techniques and equipment, but basically still having the same effect. The facelift surgery, the nose job and the eyelid surgeryare three of these “old timers” of the cosmetic surgical world. And while it used to be you had to be a celebrity or accident victim to even consider one of these procedures, new advancements in equipments and techniques have made these more traditional facial cosmetic surgeries more accessible to the general public.
Invented in 1901, the facelift surgery has been around for a very long time. And we all know the jokes about certain celebrities – Joan Rivers, Phyllis Diller, Donatella Versaci – who have gone overboard with facial procedures. But a really well-done facelift can literally take years off your looks. There are several “types” or methods of facelifting – each one involving different layers of the facial tissues, or different portions of the face. Some surgeons utilize combinations of these methods, depending on the patient’s needs and the desired outcome. Combining the newer methods with newer surgical equipment, including mini-cameras and laser scalpels, cosmetic surgeons can now perform facelifts with better results, longer lasting effects, less down time after surgery and fewer “after effects.”
The nose job has been around since ancient times in India and Egypt, making the facelift a mere babe in arms comparatively. Nose jobs in those days, though, were typically performed not to improve your looks, but to give one a functional nose after having lost your own in battle or accident. (Alright, so if you didn’t have a nose, I guess the nose job did improve your looks.) Today’s nose jobs don’t require you to have lost your original one first, thank goodness, but rather help to reshape it into a more pleasing form. Some nose jobs are also done to improve functionality, such as repairing a perforated septum or straightening the crookedness common with nasal fractures. Whatever the reason for the procedure, having a nose job has also been improved through the use of such equipment as laser scalpels, and even non-surgical techniques.
The real “new kid” when it comes to facial procedures is the eyelid surgery, invented in 1918. Eyelid surgery involves “ lifting” the eyelid by removing or repositioning fat and muscle tissues around the eye. A loss of muscle tone – brought on by aging or trauma – can cause the eyelid to droop down over the eye. This can impair vision as well as attractiveness, making eyelid surgery less of an alternative and more of a necessity than many other cosmetic procedures.
Now, when you start to feeling “old” and thinking you’re looking it, too, don’t be surprised if your cosmetic procedure turns out to be even older.