If campus seems bare today it’s because our employees and students have been given a unique and exciting opportunity to volunteer. Over 125 people from the DMU community are in downtown Des Moines at Wells Fargo Arena taking part in the First Lady, Michelle Obama’s, 2^nd anniversary of her ‘Let’s Move’ initiative.

Let’s Move is a campaign started by Mrs. Obama two years ago to promote healthy living amongst our nation’s kids. It is a program that was made to solve the problem of childhood obesity. The Let’s Move campaign has ‘provided children with healthier food and greater opportunities for physical activity in schools and communities, helped get families the information they need to make healthier decisions, supported a healthy start in early childhood, and have worked to ensure more people have access to healthy, affordable food.’

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This year’s Mini Medical School begins this evening and runs for the five consecutive Tuesdays following. (February 7 – March 6, 2012)

The theme this year is all about becoming the healthiest you possible. You will learn how to do this through the five keys to living a happier, healthier life.

1. The 10 Pillars of Healthy Aging
2. Stress Management Techniques
3. Improve Your Physical Health
4. Enhance Your Emotional Well-Being
5. Establish Good Nutrition Habits

Register online or you can just sign up and purchase your tickets tonight before the talk.

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Truth be told, we’ve actually had a rather mild winter here in Iowa this year, but within the last week it has started to look a little more familiar. With more snow in the forecast and lower temps ahead, some of you may start to feel the effects of the winter blues, also known as Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD).

Here are some ways to keep the dark days of winter from dragging you down:

Let there be light! Getting exposure to sunlight can be a powerful way to boost your mood.

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One day as my focus faded from studying, I thought about how much I had been sitting that day, and how many hours I spend sitting every day. After logging in eight hours of sleep (if I am lucky), I am left with 16 waking-hours. On average, I can tally nine of these hours in a chair, whether sitting in class, studying or eating. Even when you size-up my 30-minute workouts and lighter daily activities, the majority of my days are spent motionless. We all experience this excessive sitting, and I challenge you to think about it as more than a necessary act – or lack thereof. As I’ll share below, excessive sitting is now being considered a major risk factor for the development of chronic conditions such as diabetes and cardiovascular disease.

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My teenage kids came home from school recently full of joy over something that made my blood boil: On Nov. 14, Congress released the final version of a spending bill that effectively allows pizza to be considered a vegetable in school lunches. The bill would block a rule proposed by the Obama administration that would mean only a half-cup of tomato paste or more could be counted as a vegetable. The rule change would reduce the amount of pizza allowed as part of government-subsidized school meals, because a serving of pizza has less than that. (School meals are required to include a certain minimum of vegetables.)

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That many popular children’s breakfast cereals are high in sugar is not new news. What’s alarming is that over the years food manufacturers have done little to change that and may in fact be packing even more of the sweet stuff into those kid-alluring, colorful boxes.

A study released last week by the Environmental Working Group (EWG) found that among 84 cereals, at least three that are marketed to children contain more sugar in a one-cup serving than a Hostess Twinkie. An additional 44, the study revealed, serve up more sugar in a cup than three Chips Ahoy! cookies. The three worst offenders: Kellogg’s Honey Smacks, Post Golden Crisp and General Mills Wheaties Fuel. Even more cavity-inducing is my guess that few kids limit themselves to just one cup of cereal per serving.

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