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NingXia Red

Sep 29
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Back to School Tips: Soda, Kids’ Health and Behavioral Problems

By | Essential Oils, Kids, Mommy Tips, NingXia Red, Total Wellness, Total Wellness Mom | No Comments

Back to School Tips: Soda, Kids’ Health and Behavioral Problems

“If you want kids to be less violent, stop giving them this,” said the headline on Twitter. To find out more, I clicked on the link and found an article titled “Soda drinking tied to violent behavior in kids” by the Daily News.

The news said that children consuming four or more servings of soda per day are likely to display bad behavior. Studies show that these kids may have withdrawal and attention problems, destroy other people’s belongings and get into fights and physical attacks.
 
Here are six more problems related to drinking soda and sugar drinks:
 
Sugar overload
A 20 oz. Mountain Dew contains 77g. of sugar and a 7 Eleven 64 oz. Double Gulp Coke contains 186g of sugar. Dr. Mercola has an article on What Happens to Your Body Within an Hour of Drinking a Coke.

He said within the first 10 minutes, you get 10 teaspoons of sugar in your system, within 20 minutes your blood sugar spikes and your liver responds and turns the sugar overload into fat. By 40 minutes, your blood pressure rises and your liver dumps more sugar into your bloodstream. After an hour you’ll start to have a sugar crash. (Read more here.)

Read:
The Truth about Sugar Addiction
The nine benefits of drinking water

Additives and artificial color
A question, “Do you use additives in Coca-Cola?” was posted on Coca Cola Britain’s site. The answer was “We do use additives in some of our drinks, including Coca Cola.”

What are the additives found in your soda drink and why are they harmful? The Consumer Report said caramel color is added to many soft drinks to turn them brown and some of these contain carcinogenic chemical called 4-methylimidazole (4-MeI). They tested the 12-ounce samples of Pepsi One and Malta Goya to have 29 micrograms per can or bottle of 4-MeI. They tested on 81 cans and bottles of popular soda brands from five manufacturers.

Read more about 4-MeI on FDA’s website.

Bad for the teeth
PubMed’s report on “Dental erosion and severe tooth decay related to soft drinks: a case report and literature review” said that the acids and sugars in soft drinks have both acidogenic and cariogenic potential. In layman’s term, it will result in potential tooth decay and enamel erosion.

The publication said sugar-free soft drinks have the same erosive potential as sugar-containing soft drinks. So those with artificial sweeteners will pose the same problems.

Dehydration
We may have come to the assumption that any form of liquid will help hydrate our body. Soda and sugar water may give us an immediate quench of thirst but the reality is the sugar and caffeine inside will speed up dehydration.

Dehydration will then lead to tiredness and mood swings.

Increase obesity and diabetes
“If a child drinks just one soda a day, it will lead to 15.6 pounds of weight a year,” said UCSF. These are empty calories loaded with sugar, additives and caffeine. If a child drinks one soda and two glasses of Kool-Aid each day, he or she would have consumed 390 calories a day.

One pound of fat is 3,500 calories. If the child drinks that amount every day, he or she would potentially increase 40 pounds of weight from drinking soda and sugar drink.

Are sugary drinks the major contributor to obesity in America?

To Harvard School of Public Health the answer is YES. The study is poignant and here are some highlights of why sugary drinks including soda are dangerous to our children’s health:

1. The standard size soft drinks before 1950s was 6.5 ounces.
2. By the 1960s 12-ounce cans were introduced.
3. Early 1990s, 20-ounce plastic bottles were normal.
4. 2011 the 1.25-liter (42-ounce) bottle was introduced.
5. In the 1970s, sugary drinks made up about 4% of US daily calorie intake
6. 2001 risen to 9% and by 1999 to 2004 the average was 224 calories (11% of daily calorie intake) per day from sugary drinks.

Kids ages 6 to 11 consume 130 to 209 calories per day by 2008. (Source: Harvard School of Public Health)

It is not surprising when I saw the chart on CDC showing:

Between 1976-1980 and 2007-2008 obesity among children ages 6 to 11 rose from 6.5% to 19.6%.

Bad behavior
The Journal of Pediatrics reported on August 16, 2013 “Soft drinks and behavioral problems in young children.” In the study, the journal finds that aggression, attention problems, and withdrawal behavior are all associated with soft drink consumption in young children.

This study assessed about 3,000 5-year-old children from 20 large U.S. cities, and 43% of children consumed at least one serving of soft drinks per day, 4% consumed four or more.

Poor diet, obesity, bad behavior, dental problems, type 2 diabetes and poor health have been linked to sugar drinks and soda.

Are your kids drinking soda or sugar drinks?
 
What are the alternatives to soda and sugar drinks for your kids as they are heading back to school?

Surprisingly more soda and sugar drinks are being consumed at home than outside.  I found a Math Project by an elementary school in Waikele Hawaii. The Math Project showed on average the 464 families consumed four cans of soda per family per day. A total of 1,856 per day, 12,992 per week, 55,680 per month and 668,160 per year.

The average cost per can of soda was 31 cents. The 464 families spent $575.36 per day, $4,027.52 per week, $17,260.80 per month and $207,129.60 per year. That’s almost a quarter of a million dollars on soda for an average size elementary school with 464 families.

That’s just one case study. How about your kids’ school?

What would happen if they drank pure water, added a drop or two of pure 100% therapeutic grade
·  Lemon
·  Orange
·  Tangerine
·  Slique
·  Peppermint essential oils to the pure water or

NingXia Red to the water?
 
I would love to hear your thoughts. Please leave me a comment below.

 

Disclaimer: This information is not meant to diagnose, prescribe, treat or cure any illness or disease. It’s strictly for informational, educational, or entertainment purposes ONLY. The products I talk about are not meant to diagnose, prescribe, treat or cure any illness or disease. Any information I give you about them is for informational or entertainment purposes only. They have not been evaluated or approved by the FDA. Please seek the qualified health professional of your choice when making health decisions for yourself, your family and your pets.

Sep 09
0

Parenting My NingXia Teenage Son: His Vision His Passion His Goals

By | NingXia Red, Total Wellness, Total Wellness Mom | One Comment

Parenting My NingXia Teenage Son: His Vision His Passion His Goals

By: Claudia Looi

I like to think he was the cutest when he was little even with snot coming out from his nose. My son was always getting sick when he was little. His life as a toddler evolved around going to the doctor, emergency rooms, bruises and runny noses.

He had gone through an emergency hernia operation, scratched eye emergency observations, high fever emergency visits and many more. But he was a happy child.

When he was five, we realized he couldn’t speak well. The teachers couldn’t understand him and his voice was low. After some testing we found out he had a little speech problem, too little that the school would not pay for therapy sessions. My husband and I bartered with a friend to work with him on his voice and speech. And I gave her son free piano lessons.

It worked out well. Both boys are great teens today. My son speaks clearly and with great intonation and her son is a great musician and I believe both boys who had been great friends since five are going to impact the world.

When he was in fourth grade, his English teacher gave him a 2 out of 6 for writing in the beginning of the school year. That meant he would fail writing, his most important subject in fourth grade. We immediately hired a writing coach and got him to work hard. That hard work turned his writing into a 4 and 5 out of 6.

Today he is an excellent writer. He is a straight A student in his virtual school. You can explore his writing at The Travel Gear Reviews (his website). He is also my graphic designer and Google Adsense guy. He knows a lot about WordPress and builds and designs his own website.

Being a parent is not easy…every stage poses a set of challenges but none can compare with the challenges of raising a teen. Time and time again, I’ve seen teens getting into trouble because of one thing. Can you guess what it is?

Boredom!

Boredom in school, at home or just plain bored. If a child say, “I’m bored!” there must be a reason to that complaint. It could be school is too easy, too difficult or he or she is just trying to find an excuse. Boredom in teens can lead to mediocrity, passiveness, uninspired work or trouble.

Boredom is a real thing. My son was totally bored when he was in public school. His boredom and complaints about being bored stems from three things: his giftedness, fast pace work and excuses. When he was in middle school we had to deal with these constant complaints. So we placed him in virtual high school from home. Did he complain?

Yes, initially. Not now after he saw the benefits. He is only human.

Here are three observations and steps my husband and I took to raise a purpose-driven, focus and sensible teen. Remember we are not perfect and are not there yet. He is still learning and growing.

One: We are his mentors: lead by example
We have no credibility with our teens if we are not willing to do the things expected of them. Many times I have to check my own attitude, words, work ethic and teachable spirit before I could point my finger to my son. Nothing warms my heart more than to hear my son said the other day, “Wow, mom you are so coachable!”

My husband and I don’t know everything. When the time is right we will be looking for a mentor for him to increase his skills in areas that we lack. I have to admit that in order to raise teens that are purpose-driven and focused, we have to be walking in that path too.

Many times I make mistake and have very bad attitude and I fall short regularly. My son has the freedom to tell me so.

Two: Give opportunities to explore and make mistakes
My son likes online shopping and loves to ‘beat the system’ as he calls it. About a year ago he watched and bid for a Wii game for days. He was so excited when he finally out bid everyone else. When the package came, he realized the CD was broken probably due to shipping.

He was crushed. Although he is not a spender, he is one who gets disappointed easily when things don’t turn out as expected. When he was 12 he wanted a game so badly. He begged me for the game for days and I warned him it might not be the same as he anticipated. Sure enough, he was totally disappointed with the purchase.

These are just two examples of the disappointments and ‘mistakes’ he had. If we didn’t allow him to explore he may never have known the outcome. However during our travels here in South America there are many dangerous paths that he wanted to take. We had to stop him from doing so and not let him risk his life. One example would be our trekking trip. Jonathan can jump high and climb fast even in high altitudes. When he gets excited he forgets the dangers.

We have to sit him down and tell him the reasons. He is one who will not take ‘no’ for an answer easily.

Three: Honoring our words and freedom to express himself
Jonathan loves sports, especially soccer. His favorite team is an English team called Chelsea FC. One of the reasons we are going to England next year is because we have promised Jonathan since he was 12 that we would bring him to a live Chelsea game in England if he agrees to cutting the cable (which means no more watching TV).

It is not convenient to bring Jonathan to England and we have been to England two times already but a promise is a promise. It takes money and time to bring a promise to past.

In other words we have to mean what we say and stick to our promises. Jonathan is given freedom to do the things he likes to do. We have also invested money and time so he could pursue his interest and passion.

Raising kids just like building a business requires time and money investment. There is no free ride. If we want the best for our children, we have to invest time, money and energy into them including their health. Jonathan is a NingXia Red teen. For nutritional guides, we used Dr. Mary’s article Teen Boy’s Nutritional Guide. It is crucial that we pay attention to their health and teach them to take care of their body.

We have to invest into ourselves too, to be the best that we are called to be, not perfect but the best.

I’m not a perfect mom, my teens will tell you that instantly. They are who they are today because of their faith in God and their parents. The Bible says, train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it (Proverbs 22:6).

Jonathan is 15 and a sophomore in Florida Virtual School and is scheduled to graduate one and half years earlier than his peers. He splits his time between schoolwork, working on his website, watching soccer and traveling with his parents and sister. He creates widgets, Facebook and WordPress headers and other website graphic design work. You can find him at www.thetravelgearreviews.com. You can find Claudia Looi at www.travelwritingpro.com.

 

Disclaimer: This information is not meant to diagnose, prescribe, treat or cure any illness or disease. It’s strictly for informational, educational, or entertainment purposes ONLY. The products I talk about are not meant to diagnose, prescribe, treat or cure any illness or disease. Any information I give you about them is for informational or entertainment purposes only. They have not been evaluated or approved by the FDA. Please seek the qualified health professional of your choice when making health decisions for yourself, your family and your pets.