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Events for April

Cancer Control Month

The American Cancer Society has designated April as Cancer Control Month. What does this mean to you? It means early detection is the keep to successful treatment. As women you should make sure to get your annual well check-ups which should Pap smear and mammogram, depending on your age and health history. Beware of other early warnings sign such as any unusual lumps, especially during monthly breast exams, or unexplained bleeding or unusual molds. You know your body better than anyone else and should be the strongest advocate. Check out National Breast and Cervical Cancer Early Detection Program and National Comprehensive Cancer Control Program (NCCCP).

Prepare for your Herb Garden

April is an excellence time to get prepared to plant your herb garden and enjoy the spring weather and get in some exercise while doing so. You can either plant the garden indoors or outside. While outside preparing your perfect spot for this garden, you will be outside enjoying the fresh air, burning calories and getting ready to plant some fresh herbs to use for those healthy recipes. The recommendation is to plant herbs in early or mid-May. You can plan on planting Basil, Borage, Chervil, Sesame, and Savory. Herb gardens are fun and tasty. You can also plant your herb garden on your patio or porch. One suggestion is to use 5 gal plastic buckets. Go to Backyard Gardener.

Featured in This Issue

Sweet Potato Recipes
Embracing Change
Children Growing Up

Track weight, exercise and calorie intake

Use a tracker/log to plot and monitor your progress over time. You can track your weight but you should also track your exercise and food intake. Take the time to write down everything you eat each day for a week. Go back and anaylze exactly each item on your list for their nutritional/health benefit.

Remember the following when it comes to starting a routine:

Change your life by changing your thoughts.
Try to work out the same time of the day every day.
It takes about 21 days to break a bad habit.
Not exercising is a bad habit.
It takes 21 days t to develop a good habit such as going to the gym or walking.
Be consistent with your routine for a month and it will become a good habit for you.

Fitness/Exercise Information

The intensity of your workout is not as important as starting some type of exercise routine. The media tend to overdo everything and remember companies advertise to make money. However, the need to exercise cannot be overstated. The main purpose is to obtain, improve and maintain good health. The media tend to focus on weight lose. Controlling and maintaining a healthy weight is important. However, exercise alone is not the answer. You need to exercise and make wise choices when eating.

Let's look at simple exercises to get started with such as walking/marching in place, side stepping from one end of the room to the next. You can start with lunges from one end of the room to the next. You can start with 15 minutes per day and gradually increase your time and add to your routine. The goal is to work up to at least 30 minutes of aerobic exercise (exercise to raise your heart rate) per day. You can add hand weights to your lunges for weight training. Don't let the media mis-lead you regarding intensity and the purpose of your workout. There's nothing wrong with starting slow.

The key is to commit to a routine you can stick with your and make changes to continue on your journey for a healthier you. You can start today and countdown until the first day of summer. Log your progress toward a healthy you, not just weight loss but also the changes you have made along the way. Share your progress with the readers through contact us.

Nutrition/Wellness Information

Sweet potatoes can be found year round. They are excellent baked with the skin on. Sweet potatoes provide vitamin A, vitamin C, manganese, vitamin B-6, potassium and iron. One potato is only 70 calories.

I have been dealing with gum problems. I found out that a healthy diet plays a key role in having healthy gums. Vitamin C helps to have healthy tissue which helps in keeping teeth in the socket. One way to identify Vitamin C deficiency is gingivitis. Folic acid, B Vitamin is also important because the tissue in the mouth use folic acid to stay healthy, especially soft tissue. A healthy diet focusing on the right nutrients benefits your body in many ways.

WFFN - Women Friendly Family News

Children Growing Up

Do we expect perfection from our children? We know that no one is perfect and as parents we don't really expect perfection, what we do want is for our children to fully develop or mature in a very healthy manner. We want our children to learn from their mistakes but also benefit from our wisdom and knowledge. However, we need to make sure not to stifle their maturity by not supporting their desire to go in new directions, move away from the familiar, and embrace new ideas and new friends. Change is not always bad neither is it a sign that something is going totally wrong. Sometimes it's a sign that they realize it's time to look outward instead of inward. Oh my, they're growing up, maturing into amazing young adults.

Editor's Corner

by Lynne

You may be wondering why I featured sweet potatoes recipes this time of the year. Normally these are most popular around Thanksgiving and Christmas. I am always looking for healthier substitutes for the family to eat. I have successfully replaced french fries with sweet potato wedges. Instead of crescents or dinner rolls, sweet potato biscuits are an excellent substitute. It seems like such a small step but every little bit counts.

I started a new habit after New Years. I decided to stop eating sweets that I didn't make. I have kept this up for more than 21 days and now it's second nature. I don't tell myself I can't eat the items, I have chose not to eat those sugary items.

Let me know how you are progressing on your journey. I love to hear from our readers, from you. You can always contact us.

If you enjoy this newsletter, please share it with a friend. Next month look for some

strengthening exercises to try
some fresh spring/summer salad recipes
fun summer activities
healthy skin

Spiritual Growth

Embracing Change

Sometimes we are afraid to move from the familiar and embrace change. When we start to look outward and look at the needs of others, we can start to grow and mature spiritual. We are told in Isaiah 58:10 (NIV) "Feed the hungry, and help those in trouble. Then your light will shine out from the darkness, and the darkness around you will be as bright as noon."

When you make the decision to follow Christ you move away from the worldly things and rejoice in new experiences, rejoice in new friends, rejoice in new directions, and rejoice in being a new bright light for others. You can be a light of encouragement, a light of hope, a light that will shine bright outward and illuminate in a new way for all to see.

You may start to move away from friends that are not willing to accept the change you are going through. However, you don't have to move away from those friends, you can be an encouragement and through your actions, you can show Christ's love. Once we become Christians we become spokesman for Christ. Change is not always easy and it's not easy to watch people drift away that have been a part of your life, a part of you. But we are told in 2 Corinthians 5:17 (NIV) "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!"

Women N.E.W.S.