Fast Food Consumption

This Chicago Tribune article entitled "Adults cut back fast food, but U.S. kids still eat too much fat: CDC" reveals that although adults have cut down somewhat on calories from fast food, children have not. Overall, Americans still consume more calories than any other country in the world, and are sedentary. How can we help children learn more about healthy eating? What strategies will be effective?

Long-Term Impact of Bullying

This NY Times article entitled "Effects of Bullying Last Into Adulthood, Study Finds"reveals that adults who were bullied as children report significantly higher levels of anxiety disorders and depression. Individuals who were bullies (but never bullied themselves) had higher rates of anti-social personality disorders. How can parents, educators and psychologists intervene in youth to change this type of outcome?

Praise for Children

This Chicago Tribune article entitled "In Praise of  A Child's Effort" discusses research that shows the way that parents praise children can impact their problem-solving skills. Praising children for effort is correlated to later beliefs that success results from hard work, rather than luck. The way that parents praise children seems to also differ by gender, with boys receiving more effort-based praise. How could this research be used to help children be more independent and successful? What are the flaws in this study?

Lack of Counseling by Doctors for Obese

This Chicago Tribune article entitled "Doctors Often Don't Counsel the Obese" reveals that despite the increases in obesity rates in our country, doctors often avoided the topic all together in their visits with patients and did not counselor about the impact of weight. There are numerous reasons that the study speculated this could occur. What are ways that doctors could be sensitive to the weight of their patients while counseling about weight-related health issues? How do you think motivational interviewing, a technique discussed by the article, can assist with approaching sensitive issues?

Growing Through Grief

This Chicago Tribune article entitled "Growing Through Grief" discusses recent research on bereavement. The article reveals that individuals who lose a spouse are more resilient than researchers previously believed, and often can cope well after an initial grieving period. The article also discusses complicated grief. How do you think cultural expectations impact the experience of grief? Does gender play a role?

The Drug-Dose Gender Gap

This NY Times Well Blog Article entitled "The Drug-Dose Gender Gap" reveals that there are significant differences between the genders -- in regards to dosage, side effects, and metabolism. Much research is done on young, Caucasian males and women are eliminated from research studies for various reasons. How might new research on how gender, ethnicity, age, etc. and drug dosages change the future of healthcare?