March FCS Updates

How are we already in the third month of the year?!?

Many exciting things happen in the month of March. Spring officially comes back around, March Madness gets everyone in a spirited mood, Daylight Savings Time brings those lighter evening hours we all love, and we celebrate the luck o' the Irish with St. Patrick's Day.

In addition to everything mentioned above, March also brings awareness to nutrition, women, and reading. I hope you find this month's information to be fun, useful, and informative.

March is National Nutrition Month!

Each year in March, the American Dietetic Association sponsors this annual nutrition campaign. National Nutrition Month® is designed to bring attention and public awareness to the importance of making informed food choices and developing sound eating and physical activity habits.

This year celebrates the 50th year of the campaign, and there are TONS of materials for you to utilize! If you're looking for new recipes, food safety information, food security ideas, nutrition education, general health and wellness, or physical activity, check out the wealth of information on the eatright.org website. Content is sorted by topic, age, and gender.

Health is a lot more than how one looks and feels.

Conversations about health should include all eight dimensions or areas of wellness—that is mental, social, emotional, spiritual, financial, occupational, environmental, and intellectual.

That’s the focus of Living Well Month, a national event in March promoting overall wellness and the education provided by Family and Consumer Sciences professionals to improve the lives of people, families, and communities. “The NC Cooperative Extension Association of Family and Consumer Sciences works to offer all kinds of information that will help families achieve a positive, healthy lifestyle. Whether you are trying to manage your diabetes through meal planning and exercise, make decisions about health care and insurance, or get tips on effective parenting techniques, Extension probably has a research-based answer.

A Notable Moment in Women's History - Extension Edition
In 1911, a quiet revolution took place in North Carolina: a revolution that improved the lives of families and strengthened communities. It was the home demonstration program for rural women and girls. This program was propelled forward by the Farmers Institute and farm girls who envied the corn clubs their brothers belonged to. They wanted to know why they weren't given similar opportunities.

Efforts had been taking place since 1902 to bring research to farmers that would improve crop yields. Farmers were invited to attend institutes that were offered in different counties throughout the state. Four years later, institute planners began adding sessions for the farmers' wives. Women gathered to hear programs on health, home sanitation, child training, home gardening, cooking, and the country woman and her relations to the home and community. The success of these events led to hiring the first state home demonstration agent, Jane McKimmon.

McKimmon worked with women across the state who were employed by the county as the result of a demand for services during canning seasons. To reach faraway counties, she traveled on the "agricultural" train, composed of baggage cars for preparing demonstration materials and more. Mountain agents had things a bit harder, and many rode into the coves and hollers with canners tied to their saddles.

This desire to empower women in rural areas progressed over the years and evolved into what is currently known as a Family and Consumer Science Agent. Although lots of things have changed, our work is still rooted in those foundations laid in the early 1900's. Without women like Jane McKimmon paving the way, Extension would look much different than it does today.

A-a-a-a-a-allergies!
This is the main thing I dread about Spring - the blooms, the pollen, the mold spores, dust from the dreaded spring cleaning. It seems like the end of February through July is spent with tissues close by, and after the 10,000th time you sneeze in a month, anything to bring relief is welcome.

Many folks turn to nasal irrigation devices like neti pots, bulb syringes, and other "flushing" products to get relief. Due to some recent spotlight on these devices in the news, I felt it was important to send this health reminder before the season kicks into high gear. These products are usually safe and effective when used and cleaned properly. How do you use and clean nasal irrigation devices properly?

These devices rely on water to be effective. DO NOT USE TAP WATER! First, rinse only with distilled, sterile or previously boiled water. Tap water isn’t safe for use as a nasal rinse because it’s not adequately filtered or treated. Tap water is safe for drinking because the existing acids in our stomachs can destroy organisms that our nasal passages can't.

MED Instead of Meds - Recipe Feature!

Our MED Instead of Meds class is going very well, and we're hoping to finish at end of the month. We have a solid group of ten participants who are actively taking the first (and hardest) step needed to live a healthier lifestyle - changing their eating habits. During each of our meetings, we do some sort of taste-test like sampling olive oils, new ways to enjoy snacks that can get repetitive and boring, and one pan dinner ideas. The class favorite by far has been the sheet pan balsamic chicken with roasted veggies, so I wanted to share the [easy] recipe with you!

SPOTLIGHT ON SUCCESS: Tackling an Emerging Health Crisis
I love Family & Consumer Sciences because the focus on health and wellness is very broad. For almost a year, we've been working with several other community advocates in a vaping subcommittee. This group focuses on bringing awareness to the vaping trends in our county - especially when it comes to youth. In a series of recent meetings partners have had within their agencies, vaping has been a topic of interest - especially with students claiming they were getting access to vape products at the Roller Rink in town.

Our group took action and approached the owner to see if she was aware of the statements, and she was. She quickly expressed concerns and immediately asked for help with signage and providing information to the public. At our next meeting, we gathered resources from trusted, research/evidence-based sources dealing with prevention, cessation, and policy, and put them together in a folder for her to review. She chose several options - some for posting in restrooms, common hangout areas, and others for handing out to parents with signs and symptoms of vaping on them.

This same folder of materials was presented to the Yancey County School Board and Mrs. Amos, the school superintendent. After the meeting, she requested that we provide a folder to each of the schools in the county. Those folders were delivered to the central office this week, and will hopefully reach the school counselors very soon. They will be responsible for choosing the signage they feel would be most appropriate for their environment.

Our hope is to get information in front of youth as often as possible. Several of the campaigns we pulled signage from, like CATCH My Breath and Truth, have catchy designs and slogans that we hope will catch the attention of Yancey County youth. Others were designed by middle and high school students from across the country and hopefully they'll find something relatable about those pieces.

Spring Cleaning!

National Cleaning Week begins the fourth Sunday in March. To be honest, I never knew this existed until I was researching things that happen in the month of March for this particular newsletter.

When I was younger, I always dreaded the arrival of Spring because it meant my allergies were about to kick things into high gear, and mom would soon be recruiting my brother and I for some massive cleaning projects. Mom didn't just sweep, mop, and dust. We took window screens out and washed them, loaded bathtubs up with mini-blinds to get the dust off of them, and everything,
literally EVERYTHING,
was removed from a room and organized, scrubbed, and put back together. Of course, years ago, I thought she was losing her marbles when she went through this process. However, now that I'm a homeowner and a parent, I get it. Nothing beats that feeling of settling down after sunset in a clean house. Turns out, there's scientific research to back this up!

The Anxiety and Depression Association of America indicates that the physical activity of cleaning coupled with the end result of a cleaner home helps reduce stress, feelings of anxiety, and depressive symptoms. Cleaning can also reduce fatigue and improve concentration.