Healthy Lifestyles

As part of a district-wide initiative, we are starting a Healthy Lifestyles committee at FPMS.

The goal of the Healthy Lifestyles committee is to help parents better understand teen behavior and help students develop and maintain healthy choices for leading healthy lifestyles in high school, during their young adult years, and beyond.

The Healthy Lifestyles Committee needs you! We are currently looking for a Chairperson for this committee.

Below are some valuable resources we’d like to share.

LISD Resources:

• LISD Counseling Services
• LISD's SHAC (School Health Advisory Committee)

Bullying:

• Stomp Out Bullying - a wonderful website/non-profit on a mission to end hate, racism and discrimination.

Adolescent Depression & Anxiety:

• The Headspace app to help teach meditation and mindfulness.
• John's Hopkins ADAP (Adolescent Depression Awareness Program)
• Youth Suicides Chart 2007 vs. 2016 from the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention
• Mental Health Texas: Website that provides information, resources, and direction to Texas residents who may have mental health-related needs or who want to support someone who does.
• The National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) - The NIMH website has information on various mental health disorders, as well as where to go for help.

Substance Abuse and Addiction:

• "I Can't Stop" – Schools Struggle with Vaping Explosion.
• 5 Things to Know about E – Cigarettes for Marijuana
• Teenagers Embrace JUUL – An e-cigarette that can vanish into a closed fist.
• Are Your Kids JUULING in School? – What looks like a flash drive plugged into a USB port may not be. Find out how kids are accessing these to vape marijuana.
• SPECT – Images of brains that show the effects of drug and alcohol abuse.
• Operation Prevention Virtual Field Trip – The Science Behind Opioid Addiction Virtual Field Trip explores the science of addiction to help middle and high school students understand how prescription drugs and heroin affect the brain and body.
https://www.criminalattorneycolumbus.com/blog/2021/01/the-dangers-of-binge-drinking/ - Dangers of Binge Drinking

Where to go for help:
• Drugfree.org – A wealth of information, tool, and opportunities to help prevent and get help for drug and alcohol abuse by teens and young adults.
• Find Treatment – The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Service Administration's (SAMHSA) online searchable directory of alcohol and drug abuse programs located around the country.
• Get Smart About Drugs – This DEA website offers information for parents, including how to prevent and identify drug use and where to go for help.
• National Alcohol and Substance Abuse Information Center – Maintains a comprehensive database of the leading drug and alcohol treatment centers both internationally and in the United States for every level of treatment option from affordable to luxury.
• Consumer Affairs – Offers reviews of Drug and Alcohol Rehab Centers

For more information:

• College Drinking – This NIAAA website aims to prevent college drinking by offering information and materials about college drinking for parents, students, college presidents, and high school administrators.
• National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) – This website contains research– based information about drugs, drug abuse, and addiction. The site also offers downloadable publications that are free of charge.
• National Institute on Drug Abuse NIDA) for Teens – This NIDA interactive website is geared specifically for teens, with age– appropriate facts on drugs. This website also provides parents and teachers with activities to help educate children about drugs.
• Drug Rehab – A substance abuse guide for parents.
• Just Think Twice – This DEA website offers information for teens and parents, including drug facts, false information about drugs, consequences of drug use, and a place where teens can have their questions about drugs answered by other teens.

Healthy Eating & Wellness:

• ChooseMyPlate.gov – US Department of Agriculture site on nutrition resources and online tools.
• ItsTimeTexas.org – Helping Texans lead healthier lives and build healthier communities.
• Parents for Healthy Schools – CDC site for parents and school nutrition, physical activities and creating a healthy Youth Physical Activity Guidelines.
• Go Noodle – Site that utilizes movement and mindfulness to help kids concentrate better at school and at home.
• Let's Move – Archive of programs and quick tips for parents to get moving with their kids.
• Choosy Kids – Time– tested and effective information on how to get your picky eaters to expand their palette.
• Food Allergy & Anaphylaxis Connection Team (FAACT) – Reliable source for parents who have children with food allergies.

The Web and Social Media:

• What Parents Need to Know about Teens, Drugs and the Dark Web – Explains how teens are finding ways via the dark web to access and purchase drugs.
• What is Dark Web and How to Insure Your Kids Against It – Know the difference between the Deep Web and the Dark Web and what is accessible on each.
• Parents: You follow your kid on Instagram, but do you know about Finsta? – An overview of Finsta, a new online platform to create your own PR campaign and profile.
• Not Just Snapchat: 6 More Dangerous Apps Parents Need to Know About

Sex, Relationships & Porn:

• The Sex Talk Is Not Enough – How parents can teach teens about healthy relationships.
• Fight the New Drug – A non-profit, non-religious or politically affiliated organization dedicated to raising awareness about the harmful effects of pornography on the brain, relationships and society in general.
• What Teenagers are Learning from Online Porn – NY Times article about how online porn is shaping the views of adolescents around intimacy and relationships.

Sleep Resources:

• Insufficient Sleep in Adolescents and Young Adults – American Academy of Pediatrics articles on causes and consequences.
• Adolescents and Sleep – Summary of what researchers know about teenagers' need for sleep and why asleep affects memory and learning.
• Bedtime Calculator