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Time for New Year's Resolutions - Again!?!

12/30/2014

According to Statistic Brain, 45% of Americans usually make a New Year's Resolution, yet only 46% are successful after 6 months (and quite frankly, that sounds surprisingly high to us).

Then why bother - doesn't it sound like a losing battle?

Photo courtesy of AnswerHub

There's at least one really good reason - people who explicitly make resolutions are 10 times more likely to attain their goals than people who don’t explicitly make resolutions.

So, if you're someone who takes pride in personal accomplishments, then this New Year's Resolution/Goal-Setting thing may be worthwhile. Jeff Boss, a contributor to Forbes offers 7 tips to help you get and stay motivated to succeed with this year's resolutions:
Use imagery
Take a selfie
Use post-it notes
Make a “me” list
Make a “motivation list”
Appoint an accountability partner
Find a mentor or coach

For the details, read the full article by clicking on Forbes:

For more fun statistics on New Year's Resolutions click here.

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Do the Holidays Have you Stressing Out?

12/22/2014

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Where's the "Holiday" in the Holidays?!!!

While the Holidays can bring so much joy, they bring a lot more than that to many! A post by the Cleveland Clinic really hits the mark on the frustrations and anxieties that this time of year bring.

That fact that stress is bad for our health is a message we have heard for a long time, and that fact is now backed by research. And at the same time, stress in our lives has gone up exponentially. Knowing this makes it all the more important to recognize and manage. To do so, first we need to recognize what may be contributing to it. Stress is inherent to the holidays and there are many factors that contribute to it. Within the article are listed many of the stressors that might quickly come to mind - such as finding the perfect gift, shopping hassles, time demands and not eating well. In addition, are things that are more deeply rooted - such as unresolved family issues, and unrealistic expectations of yourself and others. Take a few minutes to check in with yourself to see which of these might pertain to you, and take steps to make this holiday season a little more jolly!

Managing Holiday Stress
In Great Britain the word "holiday" has the same meaning as vacation. Many Americans would find this comparison laughable. For most of us, the holidays come with our own "to-do" lists.

Too often we take holiday stress for granted. What's worse, we often have higher expectations for this season than for any other time of the year. Planning for the holidays can leave us feeling impatient, cranky, and — in some cases — depressed. When the realities of day-to-day life conflict with our efforts to make the holiday season perfect, stress results.

Pulling in the reins on holiday stress. Are your expectations for the holidays realistic? Asking yourself this question is the first step to managing holiday stress. List on a piece of paper what you expect from yourself and your family during the holidays. Hidden within these expectations you might find your potential holiday stressors — the things particular to you that can cause stress.

Under each item in the list, write down what changes you can make to prevent or defuse stress. Adopt changes that will be most helpful to you. Avoid holding on to unrealistic goals, such as creating the most enchanting holiday atmosphere. Remember to include your own needs. Click the link to the full article for examples and more tips:
http://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/healthy_living/hic_Stress_Management_and_Emotional_Health/hic_Managing_Holiday_Stress

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Holiday Toys - Make them Safe as Well as Fun

12/16/2014

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It's that time of year! With Christmas comes toys! Let's make those toys safe as well as fun!

There are so many choices - you're inundated with options and it can be difficult to know how to choose wisely. So, here we're giving you a few tips to make safe toy shopping a little easier.

1. FUN and CREATIVE!
Of course - the most important thing is that you want the toy to be FUN! What use is there in giving a toy that the child doesn't want to play with?! Knowing the child's interests helps. Have you noticed the child is particularly responsive to music or likes a particular animal? Then choose a toy with that theme. Toys that are experiential, that stimulate creativity are best. Not only will the child be more compelled to play with it, but will build essential development.

2. AGE-APPROPRIATE
On the subject of development, it's important to choose wisely. While we know the children you're buying for are advanced for their age (aren't they all?!), trust that the toy makers know the appropriate age ranges. Check out this link from the National Association for the Education of Young Children for some great tips on toy choices by age range: http://www.naeyc.org/toys

3. SAFE
Three things to watch for:

Quality - Choose a toy that is durable and will hold up with typical kid rough-housing. Make sure it's well constructed, and without risk of breaking into pieces - especially with young children who may ingest a fragment.
Chemical Safety - Check labels and the toy maker's site for information. The toy should clearly be noted as lead, phthalate and BPA free
Materials - Select natural materials such as wood (a gold standard), with few, if any, finishes or varnishes. Paper is a great choice as well - we're primarily talking about books - which easily fit all the criteria.

Some brands with wonderful toys that are safe as well as fun and creative are listed here. All are available on Amazon.

These all have strong safety statements:
GreenTones - http://www.gogreentones.com/about-us/
Grimms - http://www.grimms.eu/index.php/en/what-we-stand-for
Haba - http://www.habausa.com/safety/
Hape - http://www.hapetoys.com/us/en/cop/company-profile
Hohner - www.hohnerkids.com/safetyfirst.html

For those on a budget, another good choice is Melissa and Doug. Not as strong a safety statement, but a good alternative. http://www.melissaanddoug.com/toysafety

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Holiday Shopping, Hand Sanitizer and Receipts

12/8/2014

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Holiday Shopping, Hand Sanitizer and Receipts - those are word you wouldn't expect to see together in a headline. But have you heard about the danger lurking while shopping? Consider this familiar story:

So you're out shopping. There are so many people (and some are coughing and sniffling), you're touching so many things, and you think "I better use some hand sanitizer just in case!" You breathe a sigh of relief and think you've just done something positive for yourself. And then you go into a store - maybe buying gifts or groceries for a holiday meal and take the receipt. Guess what? You may have just picked up a little something extra - BPA, the endocrine disrupting chemical found in the thermal paper used for receipts. Studies have linked BPA to a number of disturbing health effects, including the risk of developing serious diseases, Hand sanitizers (as well as other products like hand lotion) contain chemicals that make your skin more permeable to some substances, including BPA. Very concerning in the study was the fact that significant quantities of BPA can be absorbed this way. With repeated exposure, of course the risks rise.

The good news: you do have options, including: Avoid hand sanitizers - use plain soap and water, don't take receipts if you don't need them and opt for emailed receipts (more and more stores offer this option), and if you do take receipts, handle them as briefly as possible and again - wash with soap and water.

For full details in the PLOS ONE Journal, click here:
http://www.plosone.org/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1371%2Fjournal.pone.0110509

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Time for New Year's Resolutions - Again!?!

Do the Holidays Have you Stressing Out?

Holiday Toys - Make them Safe as Well as Fun

Holiday Shopping, Hand Sanitizer and Receipts

Dr. Jasleen Goel and Karen Cianciolo

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