Volume 7, Issue 1
Student Health Services
Health Resource Center
RM 268
BE SANE !
Sleep
Alcohol
Nutrition
Exercise
August/September 2005
Health Beat
CSULB Division of Student Services
Student Health Services
Health Resource Center
Sleep: Avoiding Deprivation
By Kimberlee Morrison
Inside this issue:
Sleep: Avoiding Deprivation
1, 3
Alcohol: Dry Campus
101
1, 2
Nutrition: Food For
Thought
2, 3
Exercise : Work up a
Good Sweat
3, 4
Health Resource Center
Programs
•
Sexual Health
Awareness
Workshops (SHAW)
offered Mondays &
Tuesdays 2-4 pm,
starting September 6.
•
Free, individual Nutrition Counseling sessions begin on
October 3.
•
Free & confidential
HIV testing. Call for
an appointment.
(562) 985-4609.
Sleeping is probably one of
the most important things we
can do to keep ourselves healthy
and alert. This is especially important if you are a student and
want to perform to your full
academic potential. According
to a 2001 study at Brown University, college students are the
most sleep-deprived group in
the country.1 The problem with
this is that being a student is
often more taxing than any
other job or career a person will
take on in their lifetime. However, we are constantly pushing
our bodies to function without
adequate sleep to sustain activity.
It seems that sleep depri-
vation is so widespread in our
society that people have begun to
think the constant fatigue they
feel is normal. However, there are
very real consequences for not
getting enough sleep, including
decreased ability to function during the day and a weakened immune system. Losing sleep over
an extended period of time can
also cause mental health problems
such as depression, confusion,
memory loss and anxiety. Drowsy
driving is considered to be as
dangerous as drunk driving and
results in approximately 100,000
traffic accidents and 1,500 deaths
a year, according to the National
Institute for Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS).2
Depriving your body of much
needed sleep can cause depression,
memory loss and anxiety
So what can you do to start
and maintain healthy sleep patterns? First, you must purge yourself or any myths you may have
about sleeping, the most common
being that the older you get, the
less sleep you need. This is absolutely not true. In fact, experts
recommend seven to nine hours of
sleep, no matter your age. When
you get less sleep than your body
needs, you create a “sleep debt,”
and your body does not adjust to
(Continued on page 3)
Alcohol: Dry Campus 101
By Arianne Stamps
Welcome back 49ers and a very
special welcome to all new students!
You’ve made it to a brand new year
at, The Beach. With any fresh start
comes a world of new opportunities,
both positive and negative, as well as
increased responsibilities. As young
adults, it’s up to you to make informed and beneficial choices to
increase your success as a college
student. Yet, making the right
choices all the time can sometimes
get complicated due to social pressures and other distractions.
One of those distractions not
uncommon at the beginning of the
year is drinking. Whether it’s to
celebrate the reuniting of old friends,
or the new freedoms of moving out
on your own, including alcohol in
your plans can prove to be detrimental, especially when brought on campus.
CSULB is a “Dry Campus;”
meaning that there are very strict
policies in regards to alcohol consumption on campus. Not only must
students and employees follow federal and state regulation, but campus
mandated policies as well. According
to CSULB Regulations for Campus
Activities, Regulation XI, “Alcoholic
beverages generally may not be consumed on campus except at sponsored events.”1
These policies are even more
strenuous if you live or visit someone that resides in any of the university’s housing communities.
“Possession and/or consumption of
alcoholic beverages are prohibited
in and around the residence halls.”1
To make it simple, even if you’re
just visiting a friend in the dorms
and there is an emptied alcoholic
container in the trash, you will be
in violation of the university policy
and face actions of reprimand.
Those actions can range from citations to expulsion from the university.2
For freshmen, there is an
increased danger with alcohol because of binge drinking, which can
easily lead to alcohol poisoning.
“With the freshmen there is less
experience with the [party] setting…” according to a 2005 Stanford Review article. “...Freshmen
(Continued on page 2)
Page 2
Health Beat
Volume 7, Issue 1
Health Resource Center
Student Health Services
RM 268
Continued from Page 1...Dry Campus 101
There are strict guidelines
for consumption of alcoholic
beverages on campus.
“...Freshmen are more likely
to get alcohol poisoning than
upper classmen because of the
newfound freedom from
parental control and a desire
for experimentation…”
Whole grain foods are rich in fiber
and provide the body with essential
nutrients...
are more likely to get alcohol poisoning than upper classmen because
of the newfound freedom from
parental control and a desire for
experimentation combined with
being in the ‘social environment’
where people are encouraging them
to do crazy things.”3
Don’t think that you can decrease your chance of getting into
trouble by irresponsibly drinking off
campus with a fraudulent ID. “Any
person under the age of 21 who
presents or offers fraudulent identification for the purpose of obtaining
alcoholic beverages is guilty of a
misdemeanor (California Business
and Professional Code 25661).3 Any
person under the age of 21 who
purchases or consumes alcoholic
beverages is also guilty of a misdemeanor (California Business and
Professional Code 25658).”3
divisions/students2/
judicial_affairs/regs8-14.htm.
The Alcohol, Tobacco and
Accessed 7.15.05.
other Drugs (ATOD) office, located in Student Health Services
2. CSULB Student Health Services:
(SHS), provides resources and
Alcohol and Drugs. http://
information on making responsible
www.csulb.edu/divisions/
choices. ATOD also conducts AA
students2/departments/atod/
meetings as well as fun party alterpolicy_alcohol.htm. Accessed
natives on their website
7.18.05
(www.csulb.edu/atod). No one
3. Weaver, C. “College Freshmen:
says that college isn’t supposed to
Most Susceptible to Binge Drinkbe fun. But with so much at stake,
ing.” (2005) The Stanford Review.
why jeopardize our future with
http://www.stanfordreview.org/
irresponsible drinking. What you
Archive/Volume_XXXIII/
do now will affect your future, so
Issue_4/News/News3.shtml.
make the right choices. Good luck
Accessed 7.20.05
on your new beginning!
References:
1. CSULB Regulations for Campus
Activities, Student Organizations
and the University Community.
http://www.csulb.edu/
Nutrition: Food For Thought
By Christina Goldpaint
Nutritious eating is something
that can often be overlooked by
college students. Between late night
munchies, super-sizing, and fast
food restaurants on every corner, it
can be difficult to stay on the right
path. The majority of fast food is
full of saturated and trans fat, sugar,
and sodium, and will not give you
the energy you need to stay focused
and succeed. These foods can also
lead to health complications such as
Type II diabetes, heart disease, and
stroke.
Best Foods For Your Body:
do for your body. Some of the
same benefits without the fat.
best sources of vegetables include • Water helps lessen the chance
romaine lettuce, spinach, brocof kidney stones and the severcoli, and cauliflower.2 Good
ity of colds and flu.4 It is imsources of fruits include citrus
portant to drink between six
fruits such as oranges, lemons,
and eight cups of water per day
and grapefruit.2
to keep the body well hydrated.
• Fish, Poultry, Eggs, Nuts,
Foods to avoid:
and Beans are all good sources • Processed Foods such as
of protein. Lean cuts of chicken
packaged cookies, cakes,
and turkey are healthy alternatives
donuts, and muffins tend to be
to red meats that contain large
extremely high in saturated and
amounts of fat such as hamtrans fat.
burger patties or steak. Almonds,
• Canned Fruits that are satupeanuts, and pistachios also conrated in syrup. Instead, try to
• Whole Grain Foods are richer in tain protein and healthy fats.
eat fresh fruit as often as you
fiber and provide the body with • Calcium is one of the most
can.
essential nutrients that are often important minerals for your
•
Saturated Fats raise LDL, the
lacking processed carbohydrate
body. Although milk is a good
bad cholesterol, and lower
foods. They also decrease your
source of calcium it can also be
HDL, the good cholesterol.
risk of certain types of cancer.
full of saturated fat. For example,
They are mostly found in aniSome examples of whole grain
three glasses of whole milk conmal
products such as meat,
foods include brown rice and
tains as much saturated fat as 13
butter,
cheese, and whole milk.
whole wheat bread.
strips of bacon.3 If you chose to
• Trans Fats have the same
incorporate dairy in your diet,
• Vegetables and Fruits lower
effects as saturated fats, and
blood pressure and help protect make sure it is low fat (1%) or
are found in fried foods,
non-fat. As an alternative to
against certain types of cancer.
Eating fresh vegetables and fruits dairy, try adding calcium supple(Continued on page 3)
is one of the best things you can ments to your diet; they have the
Health Beat
Volume 7, Issue 1
Health Resource Center
Student Health Services
RM 268
Page 3
Continued from page 1...Sleep
accommodate this lack of sleep.2
Instead, your body begins to
demand the sleep that it has lost
by manifesting the symptoms
mentioned above.
After re-educating yourself
about the importance of sleep,
begin a regular sleep schedule,
including weekends. This is important because not only is adequate sleep essential, but the
regularity of that sleep as well.
The National Sleep Foundation
recommends starting a relaxing
routine before bed, in order to
achieve restful sleep.3 Here are
some more tips for getting a
good nights sleep:
• Relax
• Exercise, but avoid doing so
within three hours before planning to sleep as it may increase
brain activity.3
• Try to go to sleep and wake up
at the same time every day.2
• Make sure the temperature in
your room is comfortable. Extreme temperatures can be a
sleep disturbance.1
References:
1. “Sleep.” Retrieved 7.12.05 from
the Brown University Health
Education Website. http:/
www.brown.edu/
Student_Services/
Health_Services/
Health_Education/gene
2. “Brain Basics: Understanding
Sleep.” (2005). Retrieved
7.12.05 from the National Institute of Neurological Disorders
and Stroke website. http://
www.ninds.nih.gov/disorders/
brain_basics/
understanding_sleep.htm
3. “Healthy Sleep Tips.” Retrieved
7.12.05 from the National Sleep
Foundation website: http://
www.sleepfoundation.org/
hottopics/index.php?
Adequate sleep will help you
achieve your full academic
potential.
Continued from page 2...Food for Thought
donuts, cookies, pie crusts,
shortening, processed foods,
and margarines.
• Sugars raise blood glucose
levels rapidly, which can cause
insulin resistance and lead to
Type II Diabetes. Sugar is
found in almost all packaged
and processed foods. It can
also be disguised on the ingredient list; aside from sugar,
look for sucrose, glucose, fructose, high fructose corn syrup,
honey, sugar alcohols, lactose,
maltose, and dextrose.
Conclusion: The choices we
make today will impact us for the
rest of our lives. If we eat healthy
School of Public Health Website.
and exercise regularly, we will
http://www.hsph.harvard.edu/
have a much better quality of life.
nutritionsource/pyramids.html
You are the most important per4.
“The Benefits of Water.” (2004).
son in your life. Treat yourself
Retrieved
7.12.05 from the Cleveright!
References
1. “Heart Disease: Heart Healthy
Diet.” (2004). Retrieved 7.12.05
from Web M.D. http://
my.webmd.com/content/
pages/9/1675_57841.htm
2. “Fruits and Vegetables.” (2004).
Retrieved 7.12.05 from the Harvard School of Public Health
Website. http://
www.hsph.harvard.edu/
nutritionsource/fruits.html
3. “Food Pyramids.” (2004). Retrieved 7.12.05 from the Harvard
land Clinic website. http://
www.clevelandclinic.org/health/
health-info/docs/2700/2731.asp?
index=7250
When you get less sleep
than your body needs, you
create a “sleep debt,” and
your body does not adjust
to accommodate this lack
of sleep.
Exercise: Work up a Good Sweat
By Dannie Allen
Coming back to college in
the fall, or coming as a new freshman, produces feelings of having
your slate wiped clean and embarking on a new semester that
has not mistakes...yet. And who
doesn’t want to “pull all A’s” this
semester? Focusing on school
and studying hard is great, but
not if it is to the detriment of
your physical health. One of the
toughest lessons to learn in college
is to “balance,” and it is a hard act
to juggle. All too often, students
get wrapped up in the study or
party aspect of college, and let
their physical health fall by the
wayside.
The good news is that if you
take care of your body and give it
the exercise it needs, it will take
care of you. According to FamilyDoctor.org devoting time to exercise will help reduce the risk of
heart disease, high blood pressure,
osteoporosis, and diabetes. It will
also help you to decompress from
the pressure and stress of school.
Exercise will help you sleep bet(Continued on page 4)
“...The biggest hurdle to getting adequate exercise is that
there is not enough time.”
August/September 2005
CALIFORNIA STATE UNIVERSITY,
LONG BEACH
STUDENT HEALTH SERVICES – HEALTH RESOURCE CENTER
1250 BELLFLOWER BLVD
LONG BEACH, CA 90840-0201
(562) 985-4771 (562) 985-8404 FAX
W E’RE ON THE WEB!
W W W . C S U L B . E D U / H RC
The HEALTH BEAT Newsletter is published by California State University, Long Beach, Division of Student Services, 1250 Bellflower Blvd., Long Beach, CA 90840. Printed in the USA. Copyright 2005
by the Student Health Services. All rights reserved. Contact CSULB, Division of Student Services, Health Resource Center for a free subscription at (562) 985-4609.
Editorial Policies
The Health Resource Center does not except responsibility for views expressed in articles, reviews and other contributions that appear in its pages. The purpose of the HEALTH BEAT newsletter is to
serve college students and related professionals with health-related information, which may help understand a diagnosis or treatment, yet cannot serve as a replacement for the services of a licensed health
care practitioner. The information and opinions present in the HEALTH BEAT newsletter reflect the views of the authors.
Continued from page 3...Exercise
“If people shift their
interests, they would
have more time for
physical activity.”
ter, keep “Freshmen 15” at bay, maintain your
mental well-being, and give you more energy.
For all of the benefits, how can you not find
30 minutes a day for working up a good sweat?
According to the United States Department of
Health and Human Services, busy people say that
the biggest hurdle to getting adequate exercise is
that “there is not enough time.” However, a study
by Meghan Warren, at the University of Minnesota, says, “If people shift their interests, they
would have more time for physical activity.” So
maybe instead of channel surfing or playing computer games you can put your energy towards
something that actually pays off, such as increasing your heart rate with physical exercise.
To help you shift from mind-numbing activities to heart healthy physical ones, try trading in
old TV reruns or computer games. Another way
to sneak in exercise for students who want to
exercise, is to sign up for a physical education
class. The schedule of classes offers everything
from jogging, surfing, swimming, soccer, volleyball, weight training and conditioning, to badminton! By engaging in fun activities such as these,
the time will fly by and you’ll be surprised to learn
that you’ve actually been exercising.
With all of this information, consider yourself well informed and don’t make excuses for
not taking care of your body this semester. So
stop procrastinating with exercise
(procrastination is for your classes). Suit up and
get out there. Remember, if you take care of
your body, it will take care of you.
References:
1. American Heart Association. (2005). “Attention
Full-time Workers: Get off the Computer and
Out to Exercise in Your Free Time!” Retrieved
7.14.05 from http://www.americanheart.org/
presenter.jhtml?idenetifier=3030493
2. American Academy of Family Physicians. (2005).
“Exercise: A Healthy Habit to Start and Keep.”
Retrieved 7.14.05, from http://
familydoctor.org/059.xml