^ The average American con
sumes two times the
amount of protein that he
or she needs.
Excess protein consump
tion has been linked with
Osteoporosis, kidney dis
ease, and some forms of
cancer.
The HIV virus replicates
from between 1 billion and
10 billion times within a
single human host.
An estimated 10 million
people are infected with
genital warts in the U.S.
i/ 6.53 % of College and Uni
versity athletic depart
ments use massage as a
care and prevention prac
tice .
%/ It isn't dangerous to swal
low chewing gum. Gum is
made of a fiber that can't
be digested - it simply pass
es through your body un
changed.
%/ Since 1980 there has been a
steady decline in births on
Saturdays and Sundays.
Peak day is Tuesday. The
decrease in weekend births
can be partly explained by
the growing proportion of
induced births.
l/9.83% of pet owners say
they would risk their life for
their pet.
%/ 11 is how many minutes
taken off your life by each
cigarette you smoke.
l/ Trampoline related in
juries were the cause for
83,400 emergency room
visits last year.
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Building spiritual muscles
fortifying a healthy mind and body
The word 'spirituality' might make some un
comfortable, but stripped of its social stig
ma, we can come to understand it as the
most familiar thing inside of us.
Morgan Silrr
Well-being means more than a fit body and
sound mind. As the gap between Eastern and
Western philosophy narrows, health is broadening
its horizons to include the mind, body and spirit.
Nevertheless, we often neglect what it means and
what we can do to be spiritually fit.
Intuitively we may comprehend the necessity
for the mind, body, and spirit to be in balance, but
as a society we shy away from talking about spiri
tual well being, as if it were something esoteric, or
nonsensical. The reality is that although our socie
ty may be empty of spirituality, as individuals we
are not.
What matters is not how one defines ‘spirit,’ or
even if an explanation of it can be made, for spiri
tuality is not limited to one religion, one practice,
or one way of life. In the broadest sense spirit ties
together the mind and the body and gives meaning
to our pursuit of good health. Happiness is the end
and the means. We all recognize that there is more
to physical exercise than what it does for our phys
ical appearance and more to nutrition than what it
does for our bones, but there are different views of
what that something is. For some it might be the
thrill of mountain biking, the solitude of hiking,
the ecstasy of running, the joy of dancing, the en
ergy of soccer, or the challenge of rock climbing.
For others it maybe watching the sunrise, singing
the psalms on Sunday, meditating, practicing Yoga,
or writing alone in one’s room. It may be praying;
it may be knitting; it may be anything at all that
makes one feel peaceful and inspired to be alive.
But like the body and the mind, the spirit too must
be exercised. And there are enormous health bene
fits for doing so.
Research conducted at several American and
European universities has determined that people
who consider themselves spiritual often recover
faster from illness than their peers and often have
lower rates of depression and stress. Various stud
ies cited in medical journals have linked prayer
and religious belief to faster recovery from surgery,
substance abuse prevention and control, a lower
incidence of Alzheimer’s disease, as well as a de
crease in emphysema, suicide, heart disease, high
blood pressure, and cirrhosis of the liver. And the
most important note about these findings is that
the “spirituality” in these studies does not mean
belonging to any particular religion or using a spe
cific form of prayer. It simply means having a belief
system that recognizes some power that made life
feel meaningful. Generally, people considered to be
religious or spiritual go through life feeling more
peaceful and content even in times of suffering
than their “non-spiritual” peers.
So, the message we can use from this research
is that it does not matter how you exercise your
spirit, it just matters that you do! Go out there and
do what you love, allow time each day for the activ
ity that makes you happiest. And if you are inter
ested in learning more about yourself, and perhaps
discovering something new that makes your spirit
feel great, by all means get to it! Explore medita
tion, try yoga, check out Christian, Jewish, or Is
lamic student groups on campus, come to a friend
ship night at the Bahai center, read, ask questions,
take a walk, sit silently alone, climb Spencer’s
Butte, volunteer, walk barefoot through the grass,
or smile at a stranger.
There are so many things we can do to build
our spiritual muscles and improve our well being.
Health means body, mind, and spirit. As much
time as we all spend worried about having a fit
body and a sound mind, what would happen if we
invested some of that energy into spirituality! Re
search suggests, and intuition confirms, that physi
cal and mental well being will naturally follow. If
you are interested on learning more about this top
ic, the Health Education office at the Health Cen
ter has several books available to lend. The website
www.beliefnet.com is also a great place to start.
Avoiding unwanted pregnancies
Family Planning Expansion Program reaches out to students
While many unintended pregnancies result in happy children support
ed by healthy families, as many as 30% of such pregnancies end in
abortion.
Bj) Molly Fischer
The
Institute of Medicine’s 1995 report, The Best Intention, brought na
tional attention to the fact that nearly 60 % of all pregnancies in
the U.S. are unintended at the time of conception. What re
sulted is known as the FPEP (Family Planning Expansion
Project). Injuly 2000, the Health Center began participating
in the project providing free contraceptive services to eligible
students at the university.
The goal of the FPEP grant is to reduce teen pregnan
cy rate, decrease second births among teens, increase the
number of women and men receiving family planning
services, and to heighten the use of more effective con
traceptive methods by clients who receive services
from family planning clinics.
This is not a program solely geared towards women in their teens, but to
wards both females and males. The focus is on contraceptive services includ
ing: contraceptive management and counseling, annual women’s gynecologi
cal exam, pregnancy testing, pap smear follow-up, birth control supplies (oral
contraceptives, Depo Provera, cervical cap, diaphragm, Lunelle, condoms,
Norplant and IUD), emergency contraception and sexually transmitted infec
tions screening combine with contraceptive management.
The program also provides services for students who chose abstinence as
their choice of contraceptive management. The FPEP program does not cover
direct treatment services or medications for treating reproductive system in
fections.
Who benefits? Any student that is eligible to use the Health Center and
who meets the FPEP eligibility requirements can qualify for free birth control
services and supplies.
Your eligibility remains effective for 12 months from date of initial deter
mination. Many students have already qualified. Please stop by the Health
Center, check out http://healthcenter.uoregon.edu to get on-line application
or call 346-2770 to determine if you qualify.