Public Health/Edu, meet Today, Social Technology..

Food+Tech: that's the name of a meetup group I joined recently. Upon signup, they require you to introduce yourself. I didn't fawn over it and kept it succinct: 'electrical engineer turned nutrition educator. i blog about health.'

I didn't really know what the group was about so I attended their latest meetup about a week ago to find out. They call it 'Five On Food', where basically, five presenters have the opportunity to share what projects they're working on, theoretically in the realm of its name, food+tech.

Highlights of the event included these three speakers from..:

1) WindowFarms, which are vertical, hydroponic, modular, low-energy, high-yield edible window gardens built using low-impact or recycled local materials.

Goal 1: Empower urban dwellers to grow some of their own food inside year-round.

Goal 2: Create a web platform that allows citizens to collaboratively innovate globally toward more sustainable cities using locally available materials to suit locally specific conditions, a process we call R&D-I-Y.

R&D-I-Y: Mass Collaboration to Solve Environmental Problems:
The ultimate aim of the Windowfarms project is not primarily to create a perfected physical object or product. Rather, the targeted result is for participants to have a rewarding experience with crowdsourced innovation. The team is interested to learn from participants' experience as they design for their own microenvironments, share ideas, rediscover the power of their own capacity to innovate, and witness themselves playing an active role in the green revolution.

The windowfarms project approaches environmental innovation through web 2.0 crowdsourcing and a method called R&D-I-Y (research and develop it yourself). Big Science’s R&D industry is not always free to take the most expedient environmental approach. It must assume that consumers will not make big changes. Its organizational structure tends toward infrastructure-heavy mass solutions. A distributed network of individuals sharing information can implement a wide variety of designs that accommodate specific local needs and implement them locally. Ordinary people can bring about innovative green ideas and popularize them quickly. Web theorists like Clay Shirky claim that this capacity to “organize without hierarchical organization” will be a fundamental shift in our society brought about by the web over the coming decades.

2) Fresh, which is a grassroots efforts for a grassroots movement.. [It's] more than a movie, it’s a gateway to action. Our aim is to help grow FRESH food, ideas, and become active participants in an exciting, vibrant, and fast-growing movement.

Fresh uses social networking, such as Facebook and Twitter, to help spread the word.

3) NOAH [Networked Organisms And Habitats], which is a tool that nature lovers can use to explore and document local wildlife and a common technology platform that research groups can use to harness the power of citizen scientists everywhere.

An example of one of their current missions is called Vegetable Varieties for Gardeners, where users can share info with fellow gardeners to learn what can grow best in their garden.



Today, I went to another meetup event for another group- totally unrelated- on media and publishing. Co-founder of Foursquare and expert in mobile apps, Naveen Selvadurai, discussed key ingredients that go into creating a fun digital experience.

In case you don't know what Foursquare is, it's a mobile app that's focused on fostering social meetups/gatherings/community and learning/exploration/discovery of cities, particularly one's own, using game-based theory. The gaming aspect basically acts as an incentive for users— users 'check-in' to locations and when they meet certain criteria, they can win various badges [action->reward].

One such badge is called the Gym Rat, which you can earn if you check in to venue tagged 'gym' 10 times in 30 days. At one point in his presentation, Selvadurai shares a user's comment, which said his desire for this badge got him to go to the gym and is healthier because of it. Yoga studios, parks, farmers' markets, health food stores, restaurants with healthy fare, are other examples of how this app can and has been influential within communities, by themselves no less.


While these four ventures are very different from each other in content, they do all have an underlying common principle: that is, social media as a means to influence peoples' [each others'] behaviors. And isn't that what public health/education is all about?

[Rhetorical question.] Yes! Public health and education is about communication and influence. Social media is a [or, currently, the?] major portal & tool for both. We can't deny, overlook, or be ignorant of it anymore. It's time to get with the program, folks, there's a difference [many, actually] to be made.


Happy Healthy Juicy Wake UP! Social Technology [4BetterHealth], umm, rah!

For many, Pregnancy can be a Bumpy Ride (don't fall off the wagon.. nom nom)

Who is Ali Larter? I've seen her name a bunch of times and since she is referred to under the assumption that people know who she is, I still don't know who she is nor would I be able to identify her if she were in a lineup of blonds. She's blond— that much I know. So, to put an end to the mystery, yet, more so to know who I'm referring to for the start of this post, I Googled her. [For those of you who are as clueless as I, she's an actress and has actually appeared in a bunch of things. oops.]

And in case you're not updated on the latest, she more than four months preggers with her first child. Speaking of pregnancy, she's been quoted as recently saying:

"I eat everything. I bake myself strawberry shortcakes and then I wake up at three in the morning and I eat them... I work out. I play certain roles where it's important for me to look a certain way. But now it's just freedom. It's like, 'Bring on the Sprinkles cupcakes, pizza, pasta.' I'm loving it!"

Too bad she didn't mention burgers, fries, and nuggets with that list— she could've added McEeDee's to her CV.

The unfortunate thing in this is that Ms. Larter is not the only woman to say, think, and act like this. Take reality star Kendra Wilkinson, for example. During her pregnancy last year, she's been quoted as saying:

"I’ve been eating a lot of breakfast - eggs, bacon and cheese sandwiches with wheat toast, a lot of waffles with peanut butter. Peanut butter is my biggest craving. I actually put bananas and syrup all over it, too. Even though I don't usually eat much meat, I've been eating a lot of ribs with barbecue sauce and steak. Also, my craving for chocolate came back. I never ate it before because it gave me migraines."

And...

“I never ate fast food before I was pregnant. But every now and then I’ll get this sudden craving for, you know, like Arby’s or Taco Bell. A lot of spicy food, too!”

And, commenting on a trip...

There were so many rides and SOOOOOO much awesome food!!!!!!!!!! I seriously couldnt stop eating! lolololol. I ate bbq ribs, baked beans, chili, and a sandwich…to name a few. Oh the perks of being pregnant hahahaha!!

That's not to meant to support the notion, though, that all blondes are, well, dumb. Contrary, supermodel Gisele Bundchen, who also had her first child the end of last year, was quoted as saying..

"I did kung fu up until two weeks before Benjamin was born, and yoga three days a week."

She also said she was "mindful" about what she ate and explained,..

"I think a lot of people get pregnant and decide they can turn into garbage disposals."

Thank you, Ms. Bundchen, case and point. I couldn't have said it better myself.

Happy Healthy Juicy, You [& Your Unborn Child] Are What You Eat!

A Loving Home is Better Than None

Within this week alone, I've unintenially encountered, on three separate occasions, stories of alternative means of parenting. I wonder: Is this the next or latest trend?

First, there was the article in the August issue of Marie Claire, which admittedly has some of the best articles on love and relationships. The [true] story is about a single, divorced woman who has and a child with her two gay best friends. Well, only one of them donates the sperm, but, together, they are all raising the 'baster' child.

Then, I caught glimpse of this new tv show, called '{Strange} Sex', on none other than the network that brings you the Duggers, Gosselins, and 'I Didn't Know I Was Pregnant', good ole' TLC. The episode features this self-proclaimed high-self-esteemed woman and two guys in a polyamorous relationship, where she has a kid with one of them, but they raise the kid together, as they all live together. The episode ends with the three parents meeting a new potential love interest, who might join the group, as 'poly' isn't limited to just three [plus baby].

Then, as a supporter of Team BritBrit, I cracked open the August issue of Cosmopolitan, a read I don't recommend if you want to boost or even maintain your faith in men. The article discusses how more and more women are not depending on being in a relationship to attend to their biological clocks ticking away; instead, they're purposefully inducing themselves into single parenthood.

[T]he idea of “family” has changed drastically over recent years, and people have a more flexible view–whether it’s kids being raised by unmarried couples, gay couples, or single parents. “A large number of us have also witnessed our parents go through a nasty divorce or had absentee fathers, so that intact nuclear family just isn’t the model anymore,” says Mattes [the director of Single Mothers By Choice]. The result: single motherhood is a growing trend.

The whole thing is pretty fascinating. The first two stories remind me of Full House [funny but unconventional and, at least on screen, it worked, if the sappiness wasn't debilitatingly nauseating], the last makes me come up with Jay-Z. The idea of an 'intact' [whatever that means] nuclear family being the ideal is a rigid one. Love is love and is unbounded and fruitful, whether it be from 1, 2, 3,...


Happy Healthy Juicy Parents with Love!

One small step for fashion, one giant leap for legkind..

Stop holding your breath, Ladies, literally. This fall season's fashion lineup is finally rolling out Jeggings!

Yes, I know, it's not even August yet—perhaps this is retail's way of saying, 'Hey, you're not spending enough.' So to get your wallet, I mean, attention, stores are already starting to put out autumn threads, despite triple digit weather.. How's that for strategy? In a couple of weeks, it'll be costumes for Halloween, which'll be *like* just around the corner..

So what are jeggings? Jeggings is the hybrid name for jeans + leggings.

With skinny jeans leading the trends, women have had to cram their bottom halves into tight, unforgiving sleeves of denim for a while now, which is not completely a bad thing in that the practice likely helps increase body awareness, but cutting off circulation isn't the only way to achieve that; things like fitting rooms, the media, and the beach take care of it already.

Finally though, with jeggings, maybe women can now be more mobile, comfortable, and maybe even be a little more active. I'm excited to see what shoemakers come up with..


Happy Healthy Juicy Fashionable Comfort!

Crack a Smile, Not Your Butt.

Garbology - the study of garbage.

Chaology - the study of chaos [or theory of].

Momilogy [..that's '-ilogy' not '-ology', the latter still has yet to make its way to a non-urban dictionary..] - the study of mUmmies.

And gelotology? - study of.. Jello? .. ..ha ha?
Butt yes! 'Ha ha' is right!
Gelotology - the study of laughter. [from the Greek gelos, geloto meaning laugh, laughter, laughing..].

Laughter has apparently become a popular trend within the scientific/medical field. If you do a search on PubMed with these key words: 'laugh OR laughter OR laughing OR funny', at least 2273 citations result. Many scientists are trying to better understand the mechanisms and effect of laughter on health. Most, if not all, confirm laughter in the positive [laughing at another's expense not included].

Studying laughter, though, can be a little complicated-- 'level' of laugh [giggle vs. roar], length of laugh [count 1, 2,..], frequency [episodes per day], cause, physiology, effect [short and long term].. But details—and ones we thankfully don't have to worry about. Laughs, big or small, they're all good, including this latest discovery..


Butt Paste!     plain&simple

Goes on and cleans off easily

Very handy for travel

Available in convenient sizes

Pleasant scent

And yes, this is real. It goes for about $22 per 16oz. jar, for those times when you, accidentally, let it go.

Was this created out of sitology? Funny you should ask, to some extent, yes, though it's more like 'created out of the output of..'.

Sitology - the study of foods, food values, nutrition, diet, etc.; dietetics.

You might think this association of 'sit' and 'food' was born out of the American lifestyle but in fact, in Greek, sitos actually refers to food, grain. ..o those Greeks.. [chuckle] <— psst. add to daily count [wink. grin.] [& that too].


Happy Healthy Juicy Giggles & Guffaws!

Feeding our kids.. better, let's try.

A woman is out to lunch with her child and is ordering her meal—salad complication. When she finishes ordering, she then explains/apologizes, but her son won't be getting anything.

She uses some lame excuse— he's a picky eater [proceeded by..] he only eats these giant black&whites cookies, which she points to and which she conveniently picked up for him on the way over. [Story 1].

. . . .

Not everyone has the time, or money for that matter, to afford to eat lunch out at a sit-down restaurant. Subway dining or noshing is an alternative many in the city tend to practice, even parents...

A mom strolls her child in the subway around noon-ish and comfortably sits in the two-seater at the end of a car. There is a paper bag nestled on the top of the stroller— a convenient place many stroller parents stash their nosh while on the go. She reaches her hand in and pulls out some fries, along with a whiff of McDonald's that permeates the stagnant air. She hands a fry to her daughter and snacks on some herself— it's lunchtime. Apparently, it's also branding time. [Story 2].


(She looks hooked, doesn't she?... oops.)

. . . .

It's (almost) 10pm and the woman sitting next to me does know where her child is because, after a slight yawn, her little one asks, 'Mommy, where's my cheese doodles?', in the cutest of voices no less.

Mommy responds, 'I don't have any cheese doodles.'

As if Mommy did.not.just.say.that, the 3 year old calmly repeats: 'Mommy, where's my cheese doodles?' Then taps Mommy's big purse bag, in case she had a slight lapse in memory.

Mommy repeats, 'I didn't buy any cheese doodles.', opens her bag, and stands by her word. And that was that. No cheese doodles were consumed. Should Mommy have had the so-requested cheese doodles, however, another story would have resulted. [Story 3].

. . . .

With parenting, comes great responsibility. Are they safe? Are they getting what they need? Are they healthy?

The thing about parenting is that we can only do so much. In just but a few years of life, kids go off to school and playdates and whathaveyou and become subject to things outside the guidance, rules, principles, and culture of their parents/guardians. Nonetheless, however, parents and guardians still hold, for the most part, most of the accountability of how their children are raised.


The above three stories are real and in each there is value we can gain from.

Story 1: Mother eats healthy but doesn't feed her son so.
Response: Props to Mother for eating her greens but enabling cookie-monster tendencies in her son is uncalled for, nutritionally unwise, and preventable. A) Children don't have money or much means to get food on their own. B) Children need to eat. C) Children will [have to] eat what they are given when they are hungry. Share some salad, Mom.

Story 2: Mother noshes on [double] fried & flavored starch.
Response: Mother, what you eat is [to some extent] your business, but do you have to endorse the multi-billion dollar business and train your child's taste preferences with its fuel [aka. fries et al.] which will later then fuel its already ridiculous profit margin? Children need nutrients. Food [naturally] with vitamins, minerals, and fiber, they're all a good thing. O, and parents, they need nutrients too.

Story 3: Mother doesn't enable and child doesn't fuss.
Response: OMG, I know. It is actually possible to not feed your child crap and without headache too. Because the child knows about cheese doodles, though, implies Mom's bought them for her before, but hey, as always, everything in moderation.


It's not about perfection— which doesn't exist — or restriction, for that matter. It's about..


Happy Healthy Juicy Child Nutrition & Their Future!

Busting Up Shop... or perhaps your chops instead.

Office Space— the classic yet iconic flick nerds love.

For many (..of those who sport the sock-sandal ensemble?.. oops), this is considered the best movie scene ever..



Well, it turns out this smashing deed isn't just for geeks, the big screen, or men even.

A shopping mall in China has "opened a special store for [WOMEN ONLY] to break all kinds of things to relieve pressure and bad mood for a minute in Shenyang", according to People's Daily.

The store is partitioned by room theme, so women can choose to vent in a bedroom or living room— a kitchen is supposedly on its way.

Though the concept is pretty ingenius and absolutely hilarious, it's questionable whether dealing with frustration like this is productive. ..Might these behaviors eventually present themselves in real life?

Some healthy alternatives, or at least until we get one of these shops ourselves, you might consider these activities instead:

• Pound pavement: Running or jogging work your body from head to toe, and if you do it long&hard enough, you're sure not to have energy to be angry thereafter.
  
• Splash water: It's summer, man [&wo-]. If you need to vent, that's really all you do when you're under the deep blue.
  
• Paddle water: If you don't want to actually get in it, try a canoe or kayak instead.
  
• Hit the gym: If you really can't handle the great outdoors, get your heart pumping, body sweaty, and squeeze the negative energy out of you any which way you can, non-violently, that is. That's really the key to any great workout.

Happy Healthy Juicy Anger [&Fitness] Management!

Summer Lovin' Sweets

We're about a third of the way through summer, folks.

As we frolic out and about, outdoor nosh can be alluring— grease carts & trucks drawing in the crowds...




Just remember, too, though, to...




This $1.5 million dollar initiative is helping by providing you [in the NYC area] with all-natural, fiber-filled, antioxidented-up, super sweet treats, including...

• Berries [all kinds & colors]
  
• Cherries
  
• *Figs*
  
• Mangos
  
• Nectarines
  
• Peaches
  
• Plums
• ...

Get 'em while you can, as winters can be pretty dull without them..

Happy Healthy Juicy Sweetness!

Surviving the [Big] Apple Crisp..

The weather people must’ve had a field day today with a lovely high of 103degF breaking the 101degF record way back in 1999.

Props to those whose day at work [outside] was more hellish than usual.

Tomorrow, we should get a few degrees of relief with the ‘feel like’ temps dropping from 110 to 105degF, but still, to get through the day, here are..

19 things to help keep you cool:

1. Cold water: Genius, I know.. Cool yourself down from the inside out by drinking this refreshing beverage, which is all-natural, zero in calories, and great for your digestive system, kidneys, and skin. Optional: Jazz up a glass with a twist of lemon.

2. Iced Tea: To kick that cup of water up a notch, sip on some unsweetened iced tea as an occasional alternative. Skip the justabuck Sweet Tea at McEee Dee's— a small has about as much sugar as a can of soda.
3. Frozen water: Spare your teeth, don't bite or chew it. Sucking makes it last longer anyway.
4. Fake sweat: Wet your skin. Think about it like an assisted cooling system, which sweating actually is.
5. Wet towel: This works same way as above-mentioned but theoretically lasts longer, as the water doesn't evaporate as quick.

6. Ice vest: If you want to get really fancy, not to be confused with stylish, click the vest. -->
7. Ice cream: This seems like a no-brainer, but actually, ice cream can make you thirsty. So, drink extra water if your stomach churns for it. And go easy on your arteries: choose lighter versions.
8. Paper fan: Remember those handmade 'crafts' you made in elementary school? [Not talking those that fly..] Take a sheet of [scrap] paper, fold it up like an accordion; fold and hold one end, and voila: an eco-friendly wind maker.
9. Bra & ultra-short shorts: Ladies, at home, bare [maximally] all, strut your stuff, and build your body love.
10. Swimming pool: It's free! And great for your heart [& knees]! And fun! ..Rah!

11. Frozen berries, soft bananas, ice, water: Brrrrr.. Banana Berry Smoothie.
12. Water-based and cold foods: Hydrate and cool down fruit, salad, gazpacho!, cold leftovers..
13. -OH with fruit: Corona with lime, Blue Moon with orange, Sangria with frozen grapes, if you must.
14. Curtains&blinds: It's good if your house is green but a greenhouse it does not have to swelteringly be [nor is it more eco-friendly].
15. Parasols&trees: [para=against, sol=sun; um=..? ..well, umbrellas work too]. SPF is one way to protect your skin from intense beating rays; even better, avoid exposure altogether.
16. Wash your face more often: Sweat that's dried on your skin is sticky and uncomfortable and clogs your pores. Second showers also help if it's that bad.
17. Tepid showers: It's tempting to take a cold shower to cool off, but once the water stops running, the heat'll feel even more unbearable.

18. Think cool: Mind over matter. And try not to complain too much, it's unbecoming and can heat up those around you, and maybe yourself, even more.
19. Keep the artificial air high: Like the cold shower thing, setting your a/c to arctic temps sets you up for even greater discomfort when you step out; plus, if it breaks down, then.. uhh, well, time to start folding some paper..

Happy Healthy Juicy Coolness!

Public Health Educators: Who are they really?

According to Wikipedia: Education, in the largest sense, is any act or experience that has a formative effect on the mind, character or physical ability of an individual. In its technical sense, education is the process by which society deliberately transmits its accumulated knowledge, skills and values from one generation to another.

When we think of the word ‘education’, we think: academia, discipline, school, classroom, homework, tests, studying [or cramming]..

When we think ‘physical education’, we think: manly female gym teacher, locker rooms, goofing off, class without tests..

When we think ‘health education’, we think: awkward lessons about and during puberty, birth control and STDs, smoking, drugs, alcohol, peer pressure..

But what about ‘nutrition education’ [NE]? I mean, unlike the above, nutrition education is still a very new and emerging field/area/subject. After all, it’s only since about the ‘80s—that's a mere 30-some years ago—that the nutritional health of Americans has plummeted, weight sky-rocketing.

Typically, though, NE is associated with learning about healthy eating/eating healthy. Sub-consciously, that translates into die with a T, deprivation, restriction, bland, hunger, guilt, preaching, nagging, rules to break. Realistically, it often translates into type A dietician[?]; blowoff course, or a joke, but an easy A; just knowledge like anything else; lame, or worse, boring; inaction; useless; zero improvement and perhaps further decline in health.

Moreover, because of the term education and the implications of learning, NE is generally thought of/envisioned as occurring particularly on the grounds of an educational setting— ie. school, [organized, do-good] programs, etc.

But wait! What is education again? For one, it is not location-specific. School may be in the business of, but it definitely is not the monopoly. Parents, friends, celebrities, media, people around us are all teachers by their power to influence. That said, education isn’t just about facts or knowledge. What we do with that knowledge, or understanding, and how it affects us, is just as relevant, if not more.

Girls, for example, learn that they aren’t naturally beautiful and so, fueling a multi-billion $$ industry, they wear makeup, day.in.&.day.out. Kids, for example, learn what’s cool and then themselves, drink, smoke, use, wear, listen, watch, act whatever it is that they learned. What we learn affects our behavior, for better or for worse.

The premise of nutrition education lies on the same principle: its aim isn’t to look prettier or be cooler, obviously, but [rather the opposite, oops..] to live a more optimal, healthier, happier life/style and is achieved via both knowledge and ‘behavior change’.

Ack, behavior change: I vividly remember my professor preaching this in my intro class to nutrition education. I remember [vocally, oops] only partially agreeing. As an educator, I thought it would be my job to empower others to make better decisions/choices—whether they actually would, though, would be up to them and not within my control.

I mean, it’s not my job to force feed people [here doesn't come the choo choo of broccoli..] but just be convincing enough that they’ll do it themselves, on their own. *Like*, you could be the best parent in the world but that doesn’t necessarily guarantee your kid won’t turn out to be a criminal. Over the years I guess I’ve come to accept it as true, though: my actions/purpose as an educator is geared toward [un-forceful, yes, but nonetheless] behavior change [for the better].

But wait! [sorry, again]. These non-optimal [aka. unhealthful] behaviors, who/what are exacerbating them, fueling the fire? Exactly—the real educators.

In the realm of nutrition, this translates into:

Marketers—think ads/commercials, product placements etc.

Designers—think product packaging, food styling etc.

Writers—think articles, posts, blurbs [newspapers, magazines, websites].

Producers—think tv shows [news, cooking shows, reality tv, morning tv etc.]

Business(wo/)men—think $$$. They do. And look at the results they get..

Entertainers—think anything remotely interesting enough to catch someone’s attention and good enough to have it stick and play into action.


These are the folks who really have a handle on education— nutrition, health, and all. Currently and unfortunately, those with the actual titles do not.


Public health has to change if the goal is for the health of the public to. Period.