Dr. Rippe's Blog

Not long ago, I read with interest that Gallup (the polling company) and Healthways have partnered to create a WellBeing Index for the country. For about a year and a half they've been polling 1000 Americans daily. The survey asks questions about Life Evaluation, Emotional Health, Physical Health, Health Behavior, Work Environment and Basis Access (to life's needs like food, health care etc). From these results they provide a "daily pulse" which over time graphs the percentage of the population which is "thriving," "struggling" or "suffering."

I was happy to see that the percentage of those identified as "suffering" stayed low, under 3% or so it appeared. Over the last year and a half, however, the lines for thriving and struggling have woven back and forth. The chart reminds of a line from an old spiritual--"sometimes I'm up, sometimes I'm down,...sometimes I'm almost to the ground."  My hunch is that looking at the graph most of us might say, yes, I can identify personally with those twisting lines of "thriving" and "struggling." And the pollsters have done a pretty good job, I think, of identifying the broad factors in our lives that contribute to our overall sense of well-being. I would also suggest that looking at areas where you can make choices that make a difference in your sense of well-being, such as health practices, could also be a useful exercise in our quest for balance.

As parents, my wife and I know that we want to do whatever we can to make sure that our daughters continue to enjoy balanced nutrition as they move through adolescence and into young adulthood.  If you're a parent of adolescents, you probably share the same concern. During adolescence, our children become more independent. Asserting their food preferences and practices and having more opportunities to put those preferences into practice is typical of adolescents. It's not coincidence, for instance, that as they grow older more and more adolescents skip breakfast on more days. The result, studies show, is that those kids tend to have lower intakes of some essential nutrients, such as calcium, for instance. Studies also show that they don't tend to make up for those nutritional inadequacies during the rest of the day.  And eating patterns that kids adopt during their adolescence tend to follow through into young adulthood.

What can we as parents do? Interestingly, a number of studies show that one of the most important correlates of adolescents following healthy eating patterns, such as regularly eating breakfast, is eating meals together with the family, meals that have at least one parent present.  In families who eat dinner together, for example, more children tend to eat breakfast regularly.  More children also eat breakfast daily if one parent is present. And the healthful eating patterns established in adolescence carry through to healthful eating patterns when those kids are truly out on their own as independent young adults.

When everyone in the family is as busy as most of us are, it can be a challenge to eat together. But it's a goal worth striving for as much as possible.

For the last couple of weeks, back-to-school ads have poured out of the radio and television and fattened the daily newspaper. Most children (including mine) catch the "can-I-have-that, please!" bug. Rather than bringing on headaches, back-to-school presents opportunities for learning and for fun--for both parents and children. A little preparation is key. And for me that preparation starts with inventory and budgeting, and making the kids part of the process.

Most children and youth are very aware that watching expenditures and the family budget is probably a priority. A recent survey of kids indicated that 74% were worried about the economy. So involve them in planning. Sit down as a family to set some goals and parameters for back-to-school preparation and shopping.

• First, what can be re-used from last year? This may take some hunting through desks and closets and some sorting. But it's a good start on savings--and a "green thing" to do as well.
• What's needed for this year? Most schools either sent home a list of "back-to-school" supplies at the end of the last school year or have it posted on their website. Talk about "needs" vs "wants" with your children and making smart choices.  Discuss what you can buy in bulk and where to store it. For instance, notebook filler paper, pens, and report covers often have the lowest prices of the year during back-to-school sales.
• Set budgets before going shopping. It's a good idea to have separate budgets for school supplies and clothes. Help children make individual lists for needed supplies and set an appropriate budget for each; if possible, you may give each child charge of his or her own supplies money.  Before shopping for clothes together, discussing some general "style guidelines" and "shopping rules/manners" can save arguments in the store. Pre-shopping using print catalogs and online catalogs can help you and each child discuss what kinds of clothing they'd like and what fits school guidelines and reach some understandings before you hit the malls. It also helps set realistic budget limits and expectations for everyone.

Answering the three simple questions before shopping can help everyone tame back-to-school mania:  What can we reuse? What do we need for this year? What can we spend?