health

Let’s have a show of hands: How many of you have added a little color this spring? It could be anything – a few brushes of bronzer? A quick trip to a tanning studio? An application of sunless tanning lotion, either at home or in carwash style? Or even the “real” way, on a beach somewhere?

OK, I’m putting down my hand so I can keep typing. All winter I resolve to be fine with my natural skin tone, but when it’s time to break out the shorts and sleeveless shirts, I can’t bring myself to keep it.

Not only would my skin be healthier in the long term if I could bring myself to stay out of the sun, I feel a twinge of guilt for contributing – in however small a way, because I never get very tan! – to the societal preference for a “healthy” glow.  When I read articles like the one in last week’s Post-Dispatch about young women who have gotten skin cancer from tanning beds, I feel that twinge a little more strongly.

The St. Louis Kids Magazine Spring/Summer issue is out, and while it’s full of good info and articles, one in particular resonated with me. The topic is one that probably makes most of us flinch, especially parents of tweens: puberty.

I’m not going to give all of writer Amy Burger’s excellent info away – you’ll have to pick up a copy or check it out online on page 24 of our digital edition – but she makes a great point about the importance of communication between girls and their female relatives.

Guys, this is your cue to make a guilt-free exit, unless you’re particularly interested in menstruation.

Since I first read about the 13-month-old Canadian child named Joseph who recently came to St. Louis for a life-extending treatment, I’ve been thinking about my older sister. The one who I never knew because she died when she was only a month old.

It’s a gorgeous day outside, but my kids are at a hockey tournament so instead of being out and about, I’m using the opportunity to sit at my computer. The upside is that I’ll get to bed earlier tonight (sleep = good!). The downside is that I spend most of my waking, non-mom hours at computers (sitting = bad!).

If you work a desk job like I do, you’re probably in the same boat. Researchers are starting to notice that it doesn’t really matter if a person leaves her desk and heads straight to the gym every night — you can be totally fit, but if your day is spent on your butt, you will still have a higher risk of heart disease and other health problems. For details, check out this Men’s Health article.

Realistically, most of us leave our desks and head straight to the car to spend a couple of hours chauffeuring kids to events and practices after school. More sitting.

Ideally, researchers say

I ran into a friend last night at 6:30 p.m. on her way home from work. While we were standing on the sidewalk chatting, her husband called to find out when she would be home and — the million-dollar question — what was for supper. My friend sighed as she hung up and admitted that she had been full of good intentions of putting a roast in the Crockpot that morning, but …

Then she asked, “Do you plan your meals ahead of time?” Ah, yes, one of those things that we all know we’re supposed to do (like reading to our kids 20 minutes a day and washing our hands for a full rendition of Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star). But life just seems to get in the way.

When I got home half an hour later, I discovered that the National Public Radio show Tell Me More was featuring this very topic. (Checking out the transcript or audio file is 15 minutes well spent). The key line for me was from Aviva Goldfarb, author of The Six O’Clock Scramble, who said, “[T]he hardest thing for people about cooking dinner really isn't the actual cooking, it's the deciding.” Amen, sister.