Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About Oregon daily emerald. (Eugene, Or.) 1920-2012 | View Entire Issue (Jan. 18, 2005)
health rrappemnp EMU’s Health Resource Room Grand opening Monday, February 14 th Blood pressure screening, individualized health assessments, cholesterol screening & more. Across from the Rr Room. Boiling Water 101: A Vegetarian Cooking Workshop Learn to prepare quick, easy and nutritious meals. Workshop fee of $15 includes mixing bowls, skillet, utility knife and other helpful kitchen tools. PLUS you get three weeks of hands on cooking and great meals. Tuesdays 4:00-5:30 January 25, February 1 & 8 Call Kristen Olmos at 346-2794 to register. Relax and Renew Meditation Class Free six-week series to enhance your meditation practice. Wednesdays 4:45-5:45 January 26—March 2 Heritage Hall in the Bowerman Building Call 346-4456 to register. CPR Certification Class TWo year certification from the American Heart Association Mondays 5:00-9:00p.m. February 7 and March 7 UO Health Center Cafeteria $30, call 346-2770 to register. NUT Free Nicotine Replacement Therapy (NRT) including patch and gum is available at the Health Center for students trying to quit tobacco. Come to or call (346-4456) the Peer Health Education Office to schedule an NRT appointment. FPEP The federal grant providing free contraception and family planning services for qualified students has been extended at the Health Center until October 2006. Call 34&2770 or fill out the online application at http:// healthcenter. uoregon. edu to see if you qualify. page 4-Well Now Winter 2005 Getting Over Disordered Eating by Laura Barth The day I was admitted to the hospital for an eating disorder was one of the most important and challenging days of my life. Although I definitely did not see it at the time, I was deeply entrenched in anorexia. As a last resort, my parents turned to a day treatment program aimed at treating physically stable people. Every day I would eat my meals at the hospital and attend classes on nutrition, conflict resolution, and body image. I did manage to overcome my eating disorder, but not % everyone is so lucky. I still have images of the middle aged women in my treatment program who had been in and out of treatment since college with diminishing hopes of overcoming their obsession. Eating disorders are not uncommon on college campuses. The three most familiar eating disorders on campus are anorexia (self starvation), bulimia (bingeing and purging), and binge eating (bingeing with no purging). While these are the official eating disorder classifications, people can have a wide range of disordered eating habits, such as chronic dieting or i occasional purging. University Health and Counseling Centers are equipped to help us now. Kristen Olmos, the Health Center Registered Dietitian, has worked for ten years with students who suffer from disordered eating. Kristen works in conjunction with a counselor and a medical provider to help her patients overcome their struggles with food. Her role in the treatment team i< to educate the patient abou nutrition, to dispel the myths about diet, and to help separate harmful emotions from food. She helps establish food and nutrition goals, which are individualized according to the student’s situation. “I try to challenge their attitudes surrounding food,” Kristen says. The hardest and most important part of treatment is making the decision to recover. Without that decision, treatment is futile and the cycle of going in and out of treatment facilities will continue with no real progress. Recovering from an eating disorder is the greatest challenge I have ever faced, but life without an eating disorder is more than worth all of the difficulties of treatment. The alienation, emptiness, and loss of family and friend support systems are only some of the costs of maintaining an eating disorder. The largest cost is the loss of some of the best years of your life to something as simple as food. If you or a friend has made the decision to get better, remember that it is a difficult journey, but with time and support recovery is possible. To make a nutrition counseling appointment ; with Kristen Olmos call t 346-2794. The Counseling Center is on the second floor of the Health Center. Call 346-3227 to speak with a drop in counselor or make an appointment. Does the Oregon Winter Weather Have You Down? by Marta Williams Does the grey Oregon winter make you want to sleep until spring? Do you have depression-like symptoms that miraculously disappear in the spring but return in the late fall? College students are famous for our irregular sleep patterns, meals on the go, and changing social lives, which can lead to lethargy, depression and emotional problems. The darkness of winter can sometimes make coping even more difficult. Could I be SAD? SAD stands for seasonal affective disorder, and includes regular depression like symptoms during the fall and winter, with full I remission occurring in the spring and summer. SAD and clinical depression share some of the same symptoms such as weight fluctuations, lethargy, and change in sleep or eating habits. However, SAD is characterized by responding to light availability and thus following seasonal patterns. What about my Diet? Many people, especially college students, do not fully appreciate the relationship between dietary intake and mood. Depression, lethargy, and anxiety can certainly result from nutritional imbalances alone. But usually other factors (stress or genetics) also contribute to low mood or depression. “Optimal intake of nutrients is safe and potentially helpful in all circumstances,” states Robert Garrison, Jr., M.A., R.Ph and Elizabeth Somer, M.A., R.D in The Nutrition Desk Reference. The B vitamins in particular all play an essential role in the nervous system, and their deficiency has been linked to depression. One study done at Harvard Medical School and USDA Human Nutritional Research Center stated that, Vitamin B6 deficiency is reported in more than one out of every four depressed patients. Deficiency in vitamin E, vitamin C, iron, calcium, magnesium, selenium, and zinc have also been found to be linked to depression, and can enhance the effects of both SAD and clinical depression. What does the UO Health Center have to offer? If you have been experiencing depression or SAD symptoms, check out the Health Center (346-2770) and Counseling Center (346 3227). Light therapy is available through the Health Center through physician prescription, and can alleviate SAD symptoms. Kristen Olmos, registered dietitian, is happy to consult on improving diets. The Counseling Center has individual and group therapies available, and regular drop in hours weekly. Winter 2005 Contributing Writers and Peer Health Educators Editor: Annie Dochnahl Laura Barth, Jane Cornwell, Andrea Cronin, Stephanie Jackson, Derek Olsen, Tienna Perez-Close, Josh Rose, Sun Saeterun, Ryan Voge, Marta Williams
