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The tobacco talk

Two-Way Discussion Street to Steering Kids Away from Smoking The Bureau of Tobacco Prevention Program’s Tobacco Free Florida campaign is designed to boost the ranks of Floridians whose health and lives can be enhanced by living without tobacco – including teens and young adults. Health Department Director and USF faculty Dr. Daniel Haight encourages parents…
Fast-track to fit or dead end?

The Truth About Minute Fitness Plans Got a minute? That’s about the only amount of time left in today’s fitness world that is not attached to any workout. From coast to coast in advertisements on television to the Internet, fitness centers and home DVD companies are offering a myriad of exercise programs that are getting…
Bone-up to avoid osteoporosis

Helping women (and men) maintain healthy bones Many people have heard about osteoporosis. However, experts say most people are undereducated about this common affliction. “The most negatively impactful myth is that osteoporosis is a disease that afflicts very elderly women and that it is an inevitable effect of aging,” says Thomas W. Oates, MD, a…

Editor’s Dose: Tips for minimizing back-to-school stress

IF YOU ARE LIKE ME, then come early July you were already thinking about preparations for the new school year. Parents and children in the community this year are getting ready extra early because Polk County public schools moved up their calendar by one week — day one of school is August 15.
Making the choice to breastfeed

THE FLORIDA DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH in Polk County (DOH-Polk) and the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) recognize August as Breastfeeding Awareness Month. This is a wonderful time of year to promote breastfeeding as a vital health activity and discuss the health benefits breastfeeding provides. Although every woman has their own…
Editor’s Dose: Keeping kids’ bodies and minds active this summer

WHEN I FIRST had the twins, my mom would say, “Have a schedule for them, or they’ll have a schedule for you.” Basically, she was cautioning that I’d better keep those little minds and bodies active, or chaos would inevitably ensue. Being a mother of eight children, I think she was speaking from personal experience.…