U of M News Wire
December 11, 2008
U of M’s One-of-a-kind Tucker Center promotes research around females in sport
By Rick Moore
U of M News Wire
Women and girls are competing in organized sports in unprecedented numbers, from youth sports all the way to the Olympics. And they often — though not always equally — share the stage and the newspaper pages with their male counterparts.
But that's not to say that females don't face scores of issues and inequities, both in organized sport and in achieving a healthy degree of physical activity. Those issues are the focal points for the University of Minnesota's Tucker Center for Research on Girls & Women in Sport.
Started in 1993 (through the vision and generosity of namesake Dorothy McNeill Tucker), the Tucker Center is unique in the nation. It is devoted to "sponsoring, promoting and disseminating scholarly activity on how sport impacts the lives of girls and women" — in other words, doing research and outreach that matters.
If tangible and meaningful research findings are the goal, the Tucker Center is delivering. In 1997 it released the report "Physical Activity and Sport in the Lives of Girls: Physical and Mental Health Dimensions from an Interdisciplinary Approach," which essentially highlighted the benefits — physical, social, psychological and cultural — that girls receive from physical activity, as well as the environments in which they most thrive.
Approximately 10,000 of those reports and 15,000 executive summaries were distributed worldwide.
This spring, a decade after the first report, the Tucker Center released a new report with updated findings entitled "Developing Physically Active Girls: An Evidence-based Multidisciplinary Approach."
It revealed that while girls are participating in organized sports in historic numbers, many girls are failing to meet minimal standards of physical activity necessary for health benefits or, worse yet, they are completely sedentary. Further, there are systematic barriers in place, such as poverty, that greatly hinder girls' access to and participation in physical activity.
The report is not meant to be all doom and gloom; instead, it's designed to be a road map toward equal opportunity in sport and physical activity.
"The United States as a whole, from parents and coaches to school administrators and community leaders to policy makers, needs to make a commitment to eliminating the barriers girls in this nation face when it comes to engaging in sports and physical activity," said Mary Jo Kane, director of the center. "Physical activity is not an ‘add-on,' but rather a core value and principle for healthy and effective living."
Nicole LaVoi, the associate director of the Tucker Center, notes that the task at hand is complicated, but critical.
"I think the key take-home for me was that getting girls to be physically active is a very complex undertaking," she said. "You have layers of barriers, whether they're individual barriers, family barriers, community barriers or societal barriers.”
LaVoi said their outreach work involves talking to groups of girls of color and girls of low socio-economic status to hear directly from them about what they like, what they don't like and what makes it easy or difficult for them to be physically active.
The bottom line for the Tucker Center is to make a difference in the lives of girls and women in sport.
"I want the Tucker Center to be the go-to place, so if you have a question about girls and women in sport, you go to the Tucker Center first,” LaVoi said. “And if we don't know the answer, then we'll probably be able to guide you in the direction where you can find the answer.”
----------
Health Talk & You: Minnesotans at greater risk of seasonal depression
By Dr. David Adson, M.D.
U of M News Wire
For many people with depression, winter may be an especially challenging time of year. Those suffering from major depression or bipolar disorder may have worsening symptoms as exposure to daylight shortens and temperatures drop.
With short winter days, residents of northern states such as Minnesota are at greater risk for seasonal changes in depression symptoms. These seasonal mood patterns are referred to as Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) and women are about twice as likely to suffer from this and other mood disorders.
Although the exact cause of SAD is not known, research has shown that melatonin (a hormone affected by light) and brain serotonin levels are lower in the winter and spring.
SAD is a recurring depression with a clear seasonal pattern that occurs in about two to three percent of the general population. However, less severe mood changes with the seasons are more common and may not meet the full criteria for SAD.
A primary symptom of SAD and seasonal mood changes is an increased craving for foods high in carbohydrates such as bread and pasta and foods high in sugar. Irritability, fatigue and social withdrawal are also common symptoms.
The tendency to withdraw from social situations can create additional stress during the holidays when there is additional pressure to attend parties and gatherings. Holiday parties also expose us to foods high in carbohydrates that we may usually avoid, such as cookies and other desserts. Overindulgence in carbohydrates may result in weight gain, which can worsen other depression symptoms.
In addition to the changes in weather and light exposure, women often bear the brunt of holiday stress. Family gatherings and kids at home during winter vacation can result in overworking and increased fatigue. The pressure to shop for holiday gifts may also create additional financial burden for many families. Since women are more susceptible to depression and other moods disorders, the winter holidays and weather may be an especially challenging time of year.
Decreasing stress is an important strategy in treating and preventing SAD, especially for women. Maintaining a healthy lifestyle with adequate sleep, balanced diet, regular exercise and moderate use of alcohol may reduce the symptoms of SAD. When additional help is needed, research has shown that light therapy can successfully treat symptoms. Light therapy usually entails at least a half-hour of daily exposure to a light box that provides intense, full spectrum light — much stronger than common light bulbs.
For individuals who work at a desk, a desktop light may be helpful. Antidepressant medications such as selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRI) may also be effective in relieving symptoms and can be prescribed by family physicians. In severe cases of SAD, health care providers may recommend both light and medication therapy.
----------
David E. Adson, M.D. is associate professor of psychiatry at the University of Minnesota Medical School. He is also associated with the University’s Women’s Health Center of Excellence.
----------
Connect @ Home
Helping you connect the challenges you face at home with solutions
Create a family tradition this year
By Kathleen Olson
Whether cooking special dishes, decorating a Christmas tree or watching a holiday movie together, establishing holiday traditions are important to building strong families.
In a time of tough economics, developing rituals around the holidays are critical to creating a sense of belonging among family members and to create a time for sharing and strengthening relationships. Individuals in families, especially children, need to feel that they have a set of common values with one another beyond gift giving.
My husband and I started the tradition of making a duck dinner on Christmas Eve on our first Christmas together, which we still do 35 years later. We always say we should make it other times of the year, but we never do, and it is a tradition that we have come to value as a couple.
Even if your current holiday season lacks traditions, it's never too late to create one.
To create new family traditions, families can get together and discuss what is most important to them, what they would like to do together and how they can make this happen. By involving the whole family, you create a sense of inclusion in the tradition.
A huge bonus to tradition building is that oftentimes it is inexpensive or free of cost. Activities such as playing board games, watching a holiday TV program or movie, making homemade decorations or gifts, or driving around town to look at holiday decorations are low cost options that are flexible enough for any family.
You should also consider traditions that involve your family’s values. Volunteer activities, such as donating toys to a charity, helping serve a community dinner or helping an elderly neighbor or relative with gift-wrapping is rewarding for everyone involved.
Look to the past for things that your parents and grandparents did at holiday time and re-establish these rituals in a new way for your family.
Family traditions are important because of the recurring, planned time with family members. They also give children, parents and relatives a sense of connectedness that is becoming more difficult as families become increasingly separated in today’s society.
-----
Kathleen Olson has spent her career focusing on parenting issues and believes that most issues we face in life go back to parenting. She is an Extension Educator in Family Relations for the University of Minnesota and has two children of her own.
