A6 Thursday, June 5, 2014
LOCAL
New study supports benefits of active video games
(Editor’s Note: “The Final Frontier normally appears on Sunday in the Roswell Daily Record.)
I have touched on the plethora of benefits that come from video games that are often over-looked by the stigma that violent video games and child obesity brings to the table. But now it seems that the latter of those two issues could be on the mend.
A study performed by UnitedHealth Group had participants, ages 8 to 12, enroll in a pediatric weightmanagement program called
JOHN LEE
THE FINAL FRONTIER
JOIN for ME.
First, a little bit about JOIN for ME. According to the UnitedHealth Group website, JOIN for ME is a first-of-its-kind, whole-family program to fight childhood obesity that engages
kids who struggle with extra weight, along with their parents, in a series of group sessions to achieve healthier weights through healthier family food choices, increased activity, and lifestyle improvement tracking. Each session is built on the framework of group support, learning practical strategies and implementing change in a family’s everyday life.
Roswell Daily Record
with Kinect, with an active video game at their first session and a second game halfway through the program. Both groups received the same instruction, which means the second group didn’t receive additional instructions on how to use the games or how long to play each day.
However, providing participants with an active gaming console and a game resulted in a significantly greater reduction in relative weight and body mass index (BMI) percentile. These results more than doubled the impact of the program. So what does this mean? Active video games in moderation can be constructive for children. A specific child, 12-year-old Ravyn Hill, lost nearly eight pounds over the four-month program.
help a child lose weight, but the fact of the matter is weight loss, as we all know, is a very tricky subject. Diet, frequency of exercise and even the lifestyle of a person affect body weight.
This study brings optimism to an industry that has long had fingers pointed in its direction as the cause of child obesity.
Now back to the study. The first half of the group enrolled in the program just as it is, while the other half received Xbox 360 consoles
The results, according to Mashable.com, were all children, regardless of study group, exhibited significant and clinically meaningful reductions in weight, consistent with the original JOIN for ME research.
It would be easy to just make a blanket statement that active video games can
Self-proclaimed nerd John Lee is the editor of The Pampa News in Texas. He can be reached at jclee@thepampanews.com. Follow him on Twitter @jcl1987.
mixture of clay, silt and sand. Sand is the coarsest mineral component and gives the grainy feel to soil. Silt is finer and feels like talcum powder or flour, and clay is composed of even smaller particles. The clay is small, flat plates that, when wet, slide over each other and give clay the slippery characteristics. When dry, the clay particles bind together strongly. The small gaps between the clay particles give clay its excellent water and nutrient holding characteristics. Organic matter is not a mineral component
of soil, but its ef fect on clay makes the clay behave like loam. Organic matter can also cause sandy soil to behave like a loam soil, holding more water and nutrients. However, organic matter continues to oxidize over time, turning into carbon dioxide and water. It must be replaced periodically. As many New Mexico gar deners have experienced, the clay soils, when dry, are more like concrete than soil. Digging and rototilling dry soils can be a major challenge. Even our sandy soils may have enough clay to bind the sand grains together and make the soil difficult to work. Adobe is formed by mixing clay and sand. In spring and summer, the best source of organic matter is compost (potting soil will work for this). In the autumn, manure may
be used to supply organic matter. The problem with adding manure to the soil during the growing season is that the high level of salt in manure can burn plants. Well-composted manure, fr om which salts have leached, or manur e applied in the fall and exposed to winter precipitation will add less salt to the r oot zone of gar den plants. The material collected from anthills may be useful or har mful. If the material excavated by the ants is very coarse, like large sand, it can help add porosity to the clay soil. If it is very find sand, it can turn the clay into adobe and may do mor e har m than good in your garden. You said you live on a sandstone mesa, so the important consideration is the size of the material
excavated by the ants. Organic matter, compost, is the best material to add to improve your garden soil. However, I do collect coarse, granular material from harvester anthills to use in potting soil for plants like cacti that require excellent drainage and good aeration around their roots. Send your gardening questions to Yard and Garden, Attn: Dr. Curtis Smith, NMSU Agricultural Science Center, 1036 Miller Road SW, Los Lunas, NM 87031. You may also send to cwsmith@nmsu.edu or leave a message at facebook.com/NMSUExtExpStn Pubs. Curtis W. Smith, Ph.D., is an extension horticulture specialist emeritus with New Mexico State UniCooperative versity’s Extension Service. NMSU and the U.S. Department of Agriculture cooperating.
Organic matter added to clay makes good gardening soil Q u e s ti o n : I live on a ranch about 15 miles from Fence Lake, atop a sandstone mesa and surrounded by heavy clay soils. My question has to do with modifying the clay soil to make it suitable for vegetable growing. I am constructing a raised bed 16-foot by 4foot and intend to backfill it with a layer of clean straw, topped with a mixture of purchased potting soil and some native soils as well. As I was looking for possible sites on the ranch that might have sand, I wonder ed if the material excavated from the large anthills might be useful material. Do you know what this material is and whether it has horticultural value? Or is it simply more clay? A n s w e r : The key to modifying clay soil to make it a better garden
soil is organic matter. Organic matter causes the very small clay particles to bind together into grains or clumps that cr eate channels for air and water. The clay still retains its characteristic to hold nutrients and water. The organic matter also helps hold nutrients to r elease to plants. The improved structure of the soil caused by the organic matter causing the formation of the grains makes it easier to dig and till the soil. Clay soil modified with organic matter performs more like loam soil, the preferred garden soil. T rue loam is a proper
UNM Carrie Tingley Hospital Clinic to visit Roswell on June 13 Children and young adults up to the age of 21 with chronic physical problems or difficulty with bones, joints and/or muscles, may
Get Classified
be scheduled appointments.
for
Doctors and rehabilitation therapists specializing in seating needs and orthotists specializing in support
braces will evaluate and treat patients.
Medicaid and insurance are accepted for payment. Written preauthorizations and referrals from the
patient’s primary care physician are necessary. For appointments, call 1-800-472option 2. 3235, Advance scheduling is requested.
SUPPORT ROSWELL
RECYCLE
3
rd
6 7
12:00 pm 3:00 - 6:00 pm
friday
4:30 - 6:00 pm 6:00 pm
Vendors open Fiddler check-in/late registration BBQ'ers check-in/late registration Set up of equipment will be allowed after 3:00pm Juke Box Band (MainStage) Fiddle, Fun and Frolic
6:00 - 7:00 pm 8:00 - 10:30 pm
Site and Meat Inspection Bakersfield Twang & street dance
7:00 am
You don't need to be a registered contestant to participate. Join us on stage for this relaxed and informal show for any fiddler (or accompanist) to share their musical skills. Show us your talent and may even win a prize! Let's open the Festival with some great fun entertainment.
BBQ B BQ COMPETITION COMP ETITION PIONEER PIONEER PLAZA STREET DANCE AREA
MAIN STREET
COURTTHOUSE COURTHOUSE SSTAGE TAGE A
HOSPITALITY HOSPITALITY TENT
5 TH STREET 5TH
Grayzone
Roswell.
ENTERTAINMENT ENTE RTAINMENT A SSTAGE TAGE
Physicians from Car-
rie Tingley Hospital at the University of New Mexico Health Sciences Center will examine patients at Children’s Medical Services, 200 E. Chisum St., in
4TH STREET 4
Children in the Roswell area with orthopaedic problems can be scheduled for an outreach clinic on Friday, June 13.
7:00 - 8:30am 7:00 - 9:00am 8:30am 9:00am 12:00 - 1:30pm 1:00pm 1:30pm 2:00pm 3:00pm 4:00pm 5:00 - 6:30pm 6:00pm 6:30pm 8:00 - 10:30pm
saturday
BBQ Judge meeting w/ Team Captains (required) team members may attend To be held at Pioneer Plaza. Fiddle check-in/late registration Site and Meat Inspection Fiddle Contestants and Judges meeting National Anthem and Kickoff followed by Fiddle Competition (Court House Stage) Juke Box Band (Court House Stage) Side Dish Judging Fiddle Competition resumes Chicken Judging Pork Ribs Judging Beef Brisket Judging Jason Perry Family Entertainment (Main Stage) BBQ Awards (Main Stage) Fiddler Championship rounds begin followed by Fiddler Awards (Main Stage) Longhorn Dance Band featuring Russell Burris, Champion Fiddler & street dance (Main Stage)
Please note: the location of the events willeither will either be on the EntertainmentStage determined or the Courthouse Stage. This will be de etermined by the weather and heat.