Course Goals

(As provided by American University course HLTH 570 Strategies in Weight Management)

• Provide students with an understanding of the role of energy metabolism in weight maintenance.

• Develop an understanding of how the brain, gut, fat cells, and genetics interact to regulate weight.

• Expand upon the importance of and recommendations for diet and physical activity in weight management, evaluating the role of each independently.

• Provide students with the ability to identify both fad diets and supplements to understand the physiologic reasons these diets should be avoided.

• Help students understand the role of both weight loss drugs and surgeries.

• Develop the understanding of why weight management is important through exploration of the dangers of both ends of the weight spectrum, and how to institute weight management in a meaningful fashion.

 

Artifacts

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Case Study on Eating Disorders

 

 

Discussion-Physiology and Physical Activity

 

 

 

Reflection

This reflection was based on the following from our professor: Consider your own personal cultural influences on health and weight perceptions. Additionally, think about the social norms related to food that you experience on a daily basis. How have these factors influenced your perceptions and impact your daily food and activity habits. How would different cultural experiences impact those you might work with in your community?

Some of my deepest-rooted influences on health and weight were when I was growing up. In an earlier post in the course, I mentioned how I grew up in a very “Italian” cultured home, everything revolved around food and dinnertime was sacred, always shared as a family.  This ritual in itself brings back pleasant memories of meals and food, as they were shared with my mom, dad, bother, sister and whatever friends or other family were around at the time; everyone would have to stay for dinner if they were there, it was never an option, but more of an insult to my parents if you didn’t.  My mom was a stay-at-home mom and my dad was a blue color worker, my family was not wealthy by any means, but my parents did whatever they could to provide us with the essentials.  Looking back now, I see the value of family dinners, eating food only at the table, and appreciating my mom doing her best to provide “balanced” meals. I would sometimes help prepare meals, especially during the holiday seasons, but in all honesty, cooking has never been my thing, even to this day. I still share many of those ideals with my family today, especially eating meals together.  As far as making people stay and eat or “clearing your plate”, I offer what I can and respect when they are done, just as I am very mindful about doing with my own children.

 Growing up I was surrounded by all different sized people, overweight, obese, normal weight.  I was fortunately, one that was normal weight.  My mother was overweight or obese throughout her life, and I have watched her struggle through many diets and she opted to have bariatric surgery several years ago. These experiences with her have allowed me the opportunity to see that being overweight or obese entails so much more than the “lazy” stereotype it has been given; it makes me so angry when I hear others say things about obese people, I wish they could see what I see and feel how I feel about my mom.

Social norms can be broken down into 12 characteristics, which are sex/gender, age/life stage, race/ethnicity, employment, occupation, income, education, household size, region, marital status, parenthood, and residential density (Sobal, J. 2001).  Focusing on recent life, parenthood, occupation and marital status are three areas that impact my overall health and weight the most.  As a teacher, I am fortunate that I walk, a lot.  I attribute most of my daily activity to being at work and walking in the halls, around my classroom, and the lunchroom when I have lunch duty.  With my job though, there is not a lot of time to eat, so I tend to snack and eat a little at lunch while I answer emails or plan.  Parenthood, with demands of keeping everyone on the same page, healthy and alive, leaves little time to exercise for myself, and time to meal plan is not always prioritized, which I know needs to be a priority, but sleep can trump a lot when you are tired.  Lastly is being married, in my case a positive thing.  Yes over the years we have gained weight, but age does play a role in that; more importantly we support one another, with pretty much everything, reducing stress that could lead to further weight gain from a physiological standpoint or as a coping mechanism.

The 12 characteristics of social norms along with cultural fluency, I feel, is a base for working with anyone, in any community, anywhere.  I live in an area that is highly diverse, and being open minded would allow me to work with individuals for who they are, what beliefs and ideals they have.  Cultural differences could create a barrier, but listening to people, really listening and building a relationship, will allow opportunities to  “walk in their shoes”, connecting with them and begin the journey of change.

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Reference

Sobal, J. (2001).  Social and cultural influences on obesity. In P. Bjorntorp (Ed.), International Textbook on Obesity (pp. 305-322). Ithaca, N.Y: Cornell University.