Tips to keep off that 'Freshman 15' when going to college

kidshealth.org

While most college freshmen don't gain the fabled "Freshman 15," they do gain an average of about 7 pounds their first year, and then continue gaining gradually throughout their college experience. But with careful planning, they don't have to, says a University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences news release.

Fast food, late-night pizza, dining halls filled with calorie-laden foods and unlimited desserts, limited transportation to grocery stores, lack of exercise, demanding schedules and stress all contribute to this likely weight gain. Experts say it's important to avoid the gain because poor eating habits in college can last a lifetime.

The news release says the share of people aged 12 to 19 who were obese increased from 5 percent to nearly 21 percent from 1980 to 2012, according to the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; almost 19 percent of Kentucky's high-school students are considered obese.

Here are some tips to keep those pounds off:

• Keep fruits,vegetables and high-protein snacks, like nuts and yogurt, on hand for snacking.
• Aim for at least three different food groups on your plate at each meal.
• Fill half of your plate with fruits and vegetables, then add the entrée.
• Plan ahead, think about where your best food options are each day.
• Load up on protein at each meal.
• Invest in a lunch box that fits in your backpack for busy days.
• Learn how to make a few simple, healthy meals.
• Avoid eating when stressed, while studying or while watching TV
• Eat slowly.
• Choose lower-fat options when possible.
• Pay attention to portion size.
• Avoid going back for additional servings.
• Replace empty-calorie soft drinks, alcohol, energy drinks, and high-fat, sugary coffee drinks with water. 
• Exercise at least three days a week.
• Sleep an average of seven to eight hours each night.

Vaccinations aren't just for children; coalition encourages shots for college students

Photo from southtexasmed.com

By Danielle Ray
Kentucky Health News

"Getting your shots" is part of starting to school, but it's also supposed to be part of the drill at the University of Kentucky, the University of Louisville and Kentucky State University.

The Kentucky Immunization Coalition, a public-private partnership, has mounted an effort to make sure students at those and other schools get immunized.

U of L began requiring all incoming freshmen to be vaccinated for diseases including hepatitis B, tuberculosis and meningitis in 2014.

UK requires only the meningitis vaccine for incoming freshmen living in campus housing. However, university health officials strongly recommend all other routine childhood vaccines, including those that protect against illnesses such as measles, mumps, rubella, chicken pox, polio, diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis, hepatitis B, hepatitis A and human papillomavirus.

Students in health-profession colleges at UK who train and work in hospital settings must have additional vaccinations, including those that protect against hepatitis B, chicken pox and season flu.

Phillip Bressoud, executive director of campus health services at U of L, said the ultimate goal is effective outbreak management.

"Over several years, we'd had situations where we'd had either an outbreak of tuberculosis or chicken pox, and when that happens it's really difficult to assess who is vaccinated or unvaccinated, and who we need to notify," Bressoud told Lisa Gillespie, of WFPL in Louisville.

Bressoud says managing an outbreak includes telling unvaccinated students what to avoid in order to keep it contained.

Potentially toxic ingredients from formaldehyde to aluminum can produce adverse effects in vaccines, especially if a person is allergic to an ingredient used in the vaccine. Any vaccine can cause side effects. For the most part, though, side effects are minor, such as a sore arm or low-grade fever, and they typically go away within a few days, according to the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Study shows talking with college students about binge drinking makes them think about it

College students who hear warnings about binge drinking from family or friends are more likely to be concerned about their own alcohol use, compared to those who don't hear this advice, a new study indicates.

The study found that students who were not distressed about their binge drinking had not heard concern expressed to them about their alcohol consumption.

“On the other hand, when a friend or family member expressed concerns to a student about her or his excessive drinking, it can help the student reflect on their alcohol consumption and begin to take steps to reduce it,” said lead researcher Jeffrey Hayes, professor of counseling psychology in Penn State's College of Education, in a news release.

Despite the negative consequences of binge drinking, about 80 percent of college students drink alcohol, and about half of those who drink engage in binge drinking, says the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism. Hayes said more than half of college students who sought counseling reported drinking alcohol at a level considered to be “hazardous” by the World Health Organization.

As a psychologist, Hayes often hears about the negative effects of binge drinking on students' academic performance and emotional and physical well-being. "I am aware of and concerned about the ingrained culture of binge drinking among adolescents," he said in the release.

Results of this study can help inform professionals who work with college students to encourage student engagement through outreach programs, and it also raises awareness for family and friends of those who may abuse alcohol, said Hayes. (Read more)

Smoke-free campuses are a growing trend; UK volunteers taking action to get compliance with ban enacted nearly two years ago

This summer, Tobacco-free Take Action! volunteers at the University of Kentucky have been circling campus, asking students to put out their cigarettes while on school property. UK is one of about 530 U.S. colleges that have enacted smoke-free policies. (Photo from University of Michigan)

Most of the bans are considered comprehensive, with smoking prohibited on all grounds, including athletic facilities, restaurants and parking lots, reports CNN's Stephanie Steinberg. That is the case at UK, which enacted its ban in November 2009. Then, just 300 college campuses had similar bans in effect. Within the past year, 120 campuses were added to the smoke-free list nationwide. Today, in addition to UK, Bellarmine University, Kentucky Wesleyan College, Morehead State University, Pikeville College, Spalding University, St. Catharine College, Union College and University of Louisville are smoke-free, according to the American Nonsmokers' Rights Foundation.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports about 46 million Americans age 18 and older smoke cigarettes. A 2010 American College Health Association report found 4.4. percent of the more than 30,000 students surveyed had smoked every day in the past 30 days. In Kentucky, about 26 percent of adult Kentuckians smoke.

Since UK enacted its ban in 2009, a growing number of people have gotten help to quit smoking at the university. "After the policy's first year, enrollment rose to 146 people," up from 33 the year before, Steinberg reports. "The number of nicotine replacement coupons redeemed by students and faculty also increased from 124 to 470 in the same period."

One of the keys to changing mindsets is to avoid being too heavy-handed, Steinberg reports. "We certainly don't have smoking police," said Ellen Hahn, director of UK's Tobacco Policy Research Program. Instead student volunteers gently remind others of the policy while offering smoking cessation information.

Ty Patterson, former vice president of student affairs at Ozarks Technical Community College in Missouri, predicts that in 10 years almost all college campuses in the country will be smoke-free. "We've gone from pushing smoking out of the building . . . to now trying to push smoking totally off campus," said Laura Talbott Forbes, chairwoman of the 2010 American College Health Association's Alcohol, Tobacco and Other Drugs Coalition. (Read more)