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How to lessen eating disorders
Do you have girls in your family? If so, it might be a good idea to make sure they eat with the family on a regular basis. Research has found that teenage girls who sit down to at least five family meals a week are much less likely to use diet pills, laxatives or vomiting to control their weight. Eating disorders do not seem to affect boys so badly.
The research was carried out amid concerns that family meals around a table are giving way to snacks on sofas, in front of the television. One in four homes does not have a dinner table for people to sit round.
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A walk a day can keep your heart going
Walking just a mile and a half a day is enough exercise to help stave off heart disease and diabetes, a study has found. Such moderate exercise for 30 minutes, rather than intense activity, can help people to lose weight, reduce high blood pressure and cut down on blood sugar - all factors linked to the early warning signs.
It means that sedentary, middle-aged adults don't have to go out running four or five days a week; they can get significant health benefits by simply walking around the neighbourhood every night.
The Department of Health recommends that the average person should have at least 30 minutes of exercise five times a week.
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Together, we eat better!
Families who eat meals together are helping their adolescents grow into adults who eat more fruit and vegetables and drink fewer soft drinks, according to recent research.
A survey carried out by the University of Michigan found that youngsters who grow up eating with their parents tend to choose healthier foods when they become adults. It was therefore recommended that families should be encouraged "to share meals as often as practically possible."
Another recent survey found that in the UK, a quarter of parents admit to eating with their children only at the weekends. |
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What are you doing with your food?
How much food do you buy - and then throw away? According to recent research, it is a staggering third of all you buy. Nationally, that means £8 billion-worth of food a year. That comes to about 6.7million tons - imagine filling Wembley Stadium eight times over.
If households could cut out such waste, 15 million tons of carbon dioxide a year would be averted - the same as if we took one in five cars off the road.
It seems we let too much food go off in the fridge and cupboard, and also cook more than we need or can eat - and then throw it away. |
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Getting serious about relationships?
Whether we are in our 20s and 30s or 70s and 80s (or somewhere in between!) God wants us in relationships with others. It is through our relationships that he blesses us. This includes relationships with our families, our church, our community, and of course a close intimate relationship with one other person. Sometimes this last one is the hardest to achieve. But why is this?
It’s easy to think ‘God wants to bless me so I’ll sit back and let him’ but sadly blessings don’t often come that way. Have you heard the phrase ‘God helps those who help themselves?’ It’s so often true! Finding someone to have an intimate committed relationship with is the same. We have to work at it – whatever our age! In fact we have to work as if it all depended on us, while praying as if it all depended on God.
Since 1999, God has been using the organisation friendsfirst to help all types of single Christians meet other Christians for friendship and relationships. With the emphasis on friendship, the organisation provides a great way of meeting new people, who are all Christian and who are also investing seriously in themselves and their future. If you think it’s time you made a difference in your life, or helped God to answer your prayers, then you should contact Katharine Gray at friendsfirst on 0121 427 1286 for more details. You can also find out more about their service from the website www.friends1st.co.uk or write for a brochure to PO BOX 8377, Birmingham, B17 9TE.
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Tough time for teens
During the 1980s an especially large number of teenagers, particularly those aged 15 to 19, stopped attending church on a Sunday. They said they found it "boring" and "not cool". Most of their friends didn't go, and many preferred sleeping in after a late Saturday night to getting up in time for the 10.30am service!
During the nineties teenagers generally continued to stop going to church, but a curious change took place. Young ladies began leaving more than young men. Thus, of the 126,000 teenagers dropping out of church between 1989 and 1998, two-thirds, 71%, were female.
During the early noughties (as the period 2000 to 2009 is being called) more women than men continued to leave, so much so that the proportion of men aged 15 to 19 in church in 2005 was actually greater than the number of women, 51% to 49%. When in earlier times it was the women who stayed in church more than the men, why has this change occurred?
The reason is largely one of life-style, or teenage culture as it is sometimes called. Teenagers, especially young ladies, like to go around in groups, and do things together. Thus if some decide not to go to church, most in their circle will stop also. If some start drinking, or taking drugs, or sleeping around, many of their friends will start doing the same. Another reason might be the 'idol culture'. Girls especially become enraptured with current music stars and other celebrities for whom 'church' is an alien concept.
Friendship and relevant teaching are important keys in keeping young people interested, as well as providing the kinds of activities young people can be involved in such as sport, worship groups, adventure weekends, etc. There also must be a willingness to be able to discuss anything with their leaders! |
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Coping with an untimely death
Any death is hard for relatives to bear, but grieving is a particularly difficult process when a parent loses a young child, or a child is deprived of a parent or sibling. It was to help those who suffer such a blow that the Child Bereavement Trust (CBT) was founded in 1994 by Jenni Thomas, and its philosophy is based on learning from families that have been affected in this way. The charity has a website www.childbereavement.org.uk and a Helpline: 01494 446648
With improved medical knowledge we expect that we, and those close to us, will live well into old age. Sadly this is not always so. Many bereaved people are ignored by others and quickly learn that to hide their feelings is more acceptable in society. However, the CBT believes that to acknowledge the loss and find ways to accept the reality helps the bereaved to express their painful feelings and allows them to grieve for the person who has died.
Grief is solitary -- even when other people are grieving, the parent is alone and normal patterns in a relationship may be disrupted. Couples often experience an inability to communicate their feelings to one another. Mothers and fathers respond to the loss of a child in different ways. “Women naturally tend to be loss-oriented and are often more concerned with their feelings,” says Ann Chalmers, Chief Executive of the CBT. “They frequently need memories and to recall, be reminded of and share the child who has died. “Men are more likely to be restoration-oriented. They want things to be repaired and to return to normal as soon as possible. Traditionally they are not encouraged to express feelings, so they instinctively try to suppress them and to be strong, as society demands. This may be misinterpreted by their partner as not caring, causing resentment.”
So women need help to develop some form of restorative response to enable them to move on, and men need to be helped to allow themselves to share and explore their painful feelings.
. The postal address is Aston House, West Wycombe, High Wycombe, HP14 3AG.
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So you think God can't use you?
The next time you feel like God can't use you, just remember...
Noah was a drunk, Abraham was too old, Isaac was a daydreamer, Jacob was a liar, Leah was ugly, Joseph was abused, Moses had a stuttering problem, Gideon was afraid, Samson had long hair and was a womanizer, Rahab was a prostitute, Jeremiah and Timothy were too young, David had an affair and was a murderer, Elijah was suicidal, Isaiah preached naked, Jonah ran from God, Naomi was a widow, Job went bankrupt, Peter denied Christ, the Disciples fell asleep while praying, Martha worried about everything, the Samaritan woman was divorced (several times), Zacheus was too small, Rav Sha'ul (Paul) was too religious, Timothy had an ulcer..AND - Lazarus was dead!
So - what's your excuse? In truth, God can use you to your full potential whatever your past. Why? Because you aren't the message, you are just the messenger… |
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DEAR GOD
I want to thank you for what you have already done in my life.
I am not going to wait until things in my life look better -
I am not going to wait until people say they are sorry -
I am not going to wait until the pain in my body disappears-
I am not going to wait until my financial situation improves-
I am not going to wait until I get the job-
I am not going to wait until the journey gets easier -
I am not going to wait until I understand every experience in my life that has caused me pain or grief; I am thanking you right now.
I am thanking you because I am alive.
I am thanking you because I made it through the day's difficulties.
I am thanking you because I have walked around the obstacles.
I am thanking you because I have the ability and the opportunity to do more and do better.
Most of all, I'm thanking you, God...because you haven't given up on me.
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Don't let your old address let you down!
Worried about identity theft? Then be very careful about redirecting your post if you move house. One in five people don't think redirecting post is a priority when they move house - but almost half of identity fraud cases occur at a previous address. According to research by Prudential Home Insurance, 23 per cent of households have received bank statements addressed to a previous resident. Almost half of us have received other people's utility bills, polling details, insurance certificates, or even credit card statements. These can be intercepted and used as proof of identity in arranging credit agreements, store cards or even to open a fraudulent bank account.
Here are some simple tips to avoid identity fraud
-Make sure your post follows you by redirecting your mail when moving home. The Royal Mail year-long redirection service allows for any annual reminders to be accounted for.
-Shred any documents containing personal details you aren't taking with you.
-Check your credit file online to see what information is held about you, and inform lenders of any unused credit facilities that can be closed.
-Check for any old credit suppliers or catalogues you have used in the past, and inform them of your new address.
-Ensure that you do not respond to unsolicited emails and keep your internet protection software up to date.
-Consider buying identity theft protection for peace of mind, or check whether you have fraud cover on existing policies.
-Register on the electoral roll at your new address immediately.
-Register free with the Mailing Preference Service. They will ensure your name is removed from direct marketing lists at your previous address.
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