Boomerang - Fall 2020, Edition

BoomeranG AT H O M E E D I T I O N

YOUR PLACE FOR FUN, GAMES & MORE.

MAKING HEALTH POSSIBLE KIDS EXPLAIN CORONAVIRUS WATCH THE VIDEOS

ISSUE #6 • Sept 2020

BOOMERANG | ISSUE #4 | ©2020 | PUBLISHED BY HANCOCK HEALTH

IN THIS ISSUE 4

Your Muscles

7

Your Teeth

10

Why Exercise is Wise

12

Cucumber Sandwiches

13

Senses Experiment

14

7 Cool Facts About the Body

15 16

Be a Fit Kid

Did you know you have more than 600 muscles in your body!

There are more to the teeth than meets the eye.

Make your heart happy!

Try out this recipe of the month.

Can you guess which is heavier?

Five simple ways to stay fit!

Games, Puzzles & Jokes

what’s more

fabulous than fall?

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your MUSCLES Reviewed by: KidsHealth Medical Experts Nemours Note: information on KidsHealth® is for educational purposes only.

For specific medical advice, diagnoses, and treatment, consult your doctor. © 1995-2020 The Nemours Foundation. All rights reserved.

Did you know you have more than

600 MUSCLES in your body?

T

hey do everything from pumping blood throughout your body to helping you lift your heavy backpack. You control some of your muscles, while others — like your heart — do their jobs without you thinking about them at all.

Muscles are all made of the same material, a type of elastic tissue (sort of like the material in a rubber band). Thousands, or even tens of thousands, of small fibers make up each muscle.

You have three different types of muscles in your body: smooth muscle, cardiac (say: KAR-dee-ak) muscle, and skeletal (say: SKEL-uh-tul) muscle.

Smooth Muscles Smooth muscles — sometimes also called involuntary muscles — are usually in sheets, or layers, with one layer of muscle behind the other. You can’t control this type of muscle. Your brain and body tell these muscles what to do without you even thinking about it. You can’t use your smooth muscles to make a muscle in your arm or jump into the air.

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But smooth muscles are at work all over your body. In your stomach and digestive system, they contract (tighten up) and relax to allow food to make its journey through the body. Your smooth muscles come in handy if you’re sick and you need to throw up. The muscles push the food back out of the stomach so it comes up through the esophagus (say: ih-SAH-fuh-gus) and out of the mouth.

Smooth muscles are also found in your bladder. When they’re relaxed, they allow you to hold in urine (pee) until you can get to the bathroom. Then they contract so that you can push the urine out. These muscles are also in a woman’s uterus, which is where a baby develops. There they help to push the baby out of the mother’s body when it’s time to be born.

Smooth Muscles Sometimes also called involuntary muscles — are usually in sheets, or layers, with one layer of muscle behind the other.

Major Muscles Because there are so many skeletal muscles in your body, we can't list them all here. But here are a few of the major ones:

You’ll find smooth muscles at work behind the scenes in your eyes, too. These muscles keep the eyes focused.

Major Muscles Because there are so many skeletal muscles in your body, we can’t list them all here. But here are a few of the major ones: •

In each of your shoulders is a deltoid (say: DEL-toyd) muscle. Your deltoid muscles help you move your shoulders every which way — from swinging a softball bat to shrugging your shoulders when you’re not sure of an answer.

•

The pectoralis (say: pek-tuh-RAH-lus) muscles are found on each side of your upper chest. These are usually called pectorals (say: PEK-tuh-rulz), or pecs, for short.

When many boys hit puberty, their pectoral muscles become larger. Many athletes and bodybuilders have large pecs, too.

a look

INSIDE Deltoid Pectoralis Biceps

Rectus Abdominus (abdominal)

Quadriceps

Tendons

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•

Below these pectorals, down under your ribcage, are your rectus abdominus (say: REK-tus ab-DAHM-uh-nus) muscles, or abdominals (say: ab-DAHM-uh-nulz).

They’re often called abs for short.

•

When you make a muscle in your arm, you tense your biceps (say: BYE-seps) muscle.

When you contract your biceps muscle, you can actually see it push up under your skin.

•

Your quadriceps (say: KWAD-ruh-seps), or quads, are the muscles on the front of your thighs. Many people who run, bike, or play sports develop large, strong quads.

•

tul) system — the combination of your muscles and your skeleton, or bones.

Together, the skeletal muscles work with your bones to give your body power and strength. In most cases, a skeletal muscle is attached to one end of a bone. It stretches all the way across a joint (the place where two bones meet) and then attaches again to another bone.

Skeletal muscles are held to the bones with the help of tendons (say: TEN-dunz). Tendons are cords made of tough tissue, and they work as special connector pieces between bone and muscle. The tendons are attached so well that when you contract one of your muscles, the tendon and bone move along with it.

And when it’s time for you to take a seat?

You’ll be sitting on your gluteus maximus (say: GLOOT-ee-us MAK-suh-mus), the Skeletal muscles come in many different sizes and muscle that’s under the skin and fat in shapes to allow them to do many types of jobs. your behind!

Some of the biggest and most powerful muscles are your calf and thigh muscles. They give your A Hearty Muscle body the power it needs to lift and push things.

The muscle that makes up the heart is Muscles in your neck and the top part of your called cardiac muscle. It is also known as the myocardium (say: my-uh-KAR-dee-um). The thick back aren’t as large, but they are capable of some pretty amazing things: Try rotating your head muscles of the heart contract to pump blood out around, back and forth, and up and down to feel and then relax to let blood back in after it has the power of the muscles in your neck. These circulated through the body. muscles also hold your head high Just like smooth muscle, cardiac muscle works all by itself with no help from you. A special group of Face Muscles cells within the heart are known as the pacemaker You may not think of it as a muscular body part, but your face has plenty of muscles. You can of the heart because it controls the heartbeat. check them out next time you look in the mirror.

Facial muscles don’t all attach directly to bone Skeletal Muscle Now, let’s talk about the kind of muscle you think like they do in the rest of the body. Instead, many of them attach under the skin. This allows you to of when we say “muscle” — the ones that show contract your facial muscles just a tiny bit and how strong you are and let you boot a soccer ball make dozens of different kinds of faces. Even the into the goal. These are your skeletal muscles — smallest movement can turn a smile into a frown. sometimes called striated (say: STRY-ay-tud) You can raise your eyebrow to look surprised or muscle because the light and dark parts of the muscle fibers make them look striped (striated is a wiggle your nose. fancy word meaning striped).

And while you’re looking at your face, don’t pass over your tongue — a muscle that’s attached only Skeletal muscles are voluntary muscles, which at one end! Your tongue is actually made of a means you can control what they do. Your leg group of muscles that work together to allow you won’t bend to kick the soccer ball unless you to talk and help you chew food. Stick out your want it to. These muscles help to make up the tongue and wiggle it around to see those muscles musculoskeletal (say: mus-kyuh-low-SKEL-uhat work.

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your TEETH Y

ou bite into an apple and then try to start talking to your friend about yesterday’s math homework. Suddenly something feels funny — one of your baby teeth has

fallen out! It’s been loose forever, and now there it is, right in your hand. And you have an empty space in your mouth big enough to poke a drinking straw through.

Before you put that tooth under your pillow, did you know that there is much more to that tooth than meets the eye? A single tooth has many different parts that make it work. And teeth play an important role in your daily life. They not only let you eat stuff like apples, they also help you talk. So let’s talk teeth!

Reviewed by: KidsHealth Medical Experts Nemours Note: All information on KidsHealth® is for educational purposes only.

For specific medical advice, diagnoses, and treatment, consult your doctor. © 1995-2020 The Nemours Foundation. All rights reserved.

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Tiny Teeth Unlike your heart or brain, your teeth weren’t ready to work from the day you were born.

Although babies have the beginnings of their first teeth even before they are born, teeth don’t become visible until babies are about 6 to 12 months old.

After that first tooth breaks through, more and more teeth begin to appear. Most kids have their first set of teeth by the time they are 3 years old.

These are called the primary teeth, baby teeth, or milk teeth and there are 20 in all. When a child gets to age 5 or 6, these teeth start falling out, one by one.

A primary tooth falls out because it is being pushed out of the way by the permanent tooth that is behind it. Slowly, the permanent teeth grow in and take the place of the primary teeth. By about age 12 or 13, most kids have lost all of their baby teeth and have a full set of permanent teeth.

There are 32 permanent teeth in all — 12 more than the original set of baby teeth. Most people have four teeth (called wisdom teeth) grow in at the back of the mouth when they’re between 17 and 25 years old. These complete the adult set of 32 teeth.

Tooth Tour Let’s take a tour of your teeth. Look in the mirror at your own teeth or check out a friend’s smile.

The part of the tooth you can see, which is not covered by the gum (your gums are the pink, fleshy part), is called the crown. The crown of each tooth is covered with enamel (say: ih-NAMul), which is very hard and often shiny. Enamel is a very tough substance and it acts as a tooth’s personal bodyguard. Enamel works as a barrier, protecting the inside parts of the tooth.

If you were able to peel away the enamel, you would find dentin (say: DEN-tin). Dentin makes up the largest part of the tooth. Although it is not as tough as enamel, it is also very hard.

Dentin protects the innermost part of the tooth, called the pulp. The pulp is where each tooth’s nerve endings and blood supply are found. When you eat hot soup, bite into a super-cold scoop of ice cream, fall and hurt a tooth, or get a cavity, it’s your pulp that hurts. The nerve endings inside 8

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the pulp send messages to the brain about what’s going on (“That ice cream is too cold!”). The pulp also contains the tooth’s blood vessels, which feed the tooth and keep it alive and healthy.

The pulp goes all the way down into the root of the tooth, which is under the gum. Cementum (say: sih-MEN-tum) makes up the root of the tooth, which is anchored to the jawbone.

Enamel Crown

Dentin Pulp Gum

Root Bone Cementum

Tooth Types You’ve probably noticed that you have different types of permanent teeth in your mouth. Each one has its own function.

Your two front teeth and the teeth on either side of them are incisors (say: in-SY-zurs). There are four on the top and four on bottom.

Incisors are shaped like tiny chisels, with flat ends that are somewhat sharp. These teeth are used for cutting and chopping food. Think back to that apple you ate: You used your incisors to crunch into the skin of the apple.

The pointy teeth beside your incisors are called canine (say: KAY-nine) teeth. There are four of them, two on top and two on bottom. Because these teeth are pointy and also sharp, they help tear food.

Next to your canine teeth are your premolars (say: PREE-mo-lurs), which are also called bicuspid teeth. You have eight premolars in all, four on top and four on the bottom. You’ll need to open a bit wider to see these teeth, but when you do, you’ll notice that their shape is

Canine

Molars

Premolars Incisors

completely different from both incisors and canines. Premolars are bigger, stronger, and have ridges, which make them perfect for crushing and grinding food.

If you open your mouth really wide, you’ll see your molars (say: MO-lurs). You have eight of these, four on the top and four on the bottom.

Sometimes these are called your 6-year molars and your 12-year molars because that is around the time when they come in.

Tooth Talk Your teeth are great for chewing, but you also need them to talk. Different teeth work with your tongue and lips to help you form sounds. Try saying the word “tooth” slowly and notice how your tongue first hits the inside of your incisors to produce the hard “t” sound and then goes in between your upper and lower teeth to make the “th” sound.

And if you love to sing “la la la la la,” you can thank those teeth every time you sing a song.

Pay attention to what happens to your teeth and tongue every time you make the “l” sound.

Treating Teeth Kindly Brushing your teeth with fluoride toothpaste is your best bet when it comes to keeping your teeth in tip-top shape. Try to brush after eating or at least twice a day. It’s especially important to brush before bedtime.

The best way to brush your teeth is in little circles — go around and around until you have covered every surface of every tooth. Brush up and down, rather than side to side. You’ll also want to clean between your teeth with dental floss (a special string for cleaning your teeth) at least once a Molars are the toughest of the bunch. They are day. That removes food and plaque (sticky stuff even wider and stronger than premolars, and that can cause cavities or gum disease) that get they have more ridges. Molars work closely with stuck in between your teeth. You can also brush your tongue to help you swallow food. How? The your tongue to help keep your breath fresh! Your tongue sweeps chewed-up food to the back of your dentist may suggest that you use an alcohol-free mouth, where the molars grind it until it’s mashed mouth rinse. up and ready to be swallowed.

It’s also important to visit your favorite tooth experts — your dentist and dental hygienist.

As we mentioned earlier, the last teeth a person During your appointment, they’ll look out for gets are wisdom teeth. These are also called third any problems and clean and polish your teeth. molars. They are all the way in the back of the Sometimes the dentist will take X-rays to get a mouth, one in each corner. better picture of what is going on in your mouth.

You also might get a fluoride treatment while Wisdom teeth may have to be removed because you’re there. they can cause problems in a person’s mouth.

Some people believe that wisdom teeth may have In between dentist visits, you can prevent been used by people millions of years ago when problems by eating fewer sugary snacks and humans had larger jaws and ate food that needed sugary drinks, such as soda. Sugar can hurt your a lot of chewing. It’s believed that they’re called teeth and cause tooth decay, or cavities. But if you wisdom teeth because they come in later in life, when a young person is becoming older and wiser. take care of your teeth now, you’ll be chewing like a champ for the rest of your life!

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why exercise

IS WISE

Reviewed by: Mary L. Gavin, MD Date reviewed: January 2018 Nemours Note: All information on KidsHealthŽ is for educational purposes only. For specific medical advice, diagnoses, and treatment, consult your doctor. Š 1995-2020 The Nemours Foundation.

All rights reserved.

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You exercise all the time without even thinking of it. When you run around outside or play kickball at school, you are exercising. What else counts as exercise? Playing sports, dancing, and doing pushups. Even reaching down to touch your toes!

When you exercise, you make your body stronger.

So be active every day. Your body will thank you!

Make Your Heart Happy!

Your heart is a muscle. It works hard, pumping blood every day. Help your heart get stronger by doing aerobic (say: air-OH-bik) exercise.

Aerobic means “with air.” When you do aerobic exercise, you breathe faster so you take in more air. Your heart beats harder too. This gives your heart a workout. It will get even better at its main job — taking oxygen from the air you breathe in and giving it to all your body parts.

What Type of Exercise Is Good for Me? Lots of exercises can get your heart pumping.

Try these: • Swimming • Basketball • Hockey • Running or Walking • Skating • Soccer • Cross-Country Skiing • Riding your Bike • Jumping Rope

How Can I Be More Flexible?

Being flexible means you can stretch your body easily. Exercises that build flexibility feel really good, like when you take a big stretch in the morning after waking up. It’s easy to find things that help you stretch: • Gymnastics • Yoga • Dancing • Karate • Bending, Twisting, and Reaching Exercise Feels Good It feels good to have a strong, flexible body that can do all the things you enjoy — like running, jumping, and playing with your friends. It’s also fun to be good at something, like making a basket, hitting a home run, or dancing.

Exercising can also put you in a better mood.

When you exercise, your brain releases chemicals that make you feel happier. It’s just another reason why exercise is a good idea!

How Can I Get Stronger Muscles?

Did you ever swing across the monkey bars at the playground or play a game of tag? They can make your leg and arm muscles stronger. Here are other ways to build strong muscles: • Push-Ups • Pull-Ups • Tug-of-War • Rowing • Running • Jumping • Bike Riding

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Cream Cheesy Cucumber Sandwiches

Note: You’ll want to keep these sandwiches refrigerated.

They’ll keep for 8 hours, tightly wrapped.

Prep time: 5–10 minutes WHAT YOU NEED: • 3/4 cup light cream cheese, slightly softened • half a large cucumber, thinly sliced • 8 slices of whole-wheat bread EQUIPMENT AND SUPPLIES: • Large knife • Cutting board • Plastic wrap (optional) WHAT TO DO: 1. Spread each slice of bread with cream cheese (about 3 tablespoons per sandwich).

2. Place about 4 cucumber slices on 4 of the slices of bread and top with remaining bread slices.

3. Cut into quarters and serve immediately or wrap sandwiches and save for later.

Nutritional Analysis (per serving): • 250 calories • 10g protein • 10g fat • 6g sat. fat • 30g carbohydrate • 4g fiber • 20mg cholesterol • 520mg sodium • 6g sugars Serves: 4 Serving size: 1 sandwich Note: Nutritional analysis may vary depending on ingredient brands used.

Reviewed by: Mary L. Gavin, MD Nemours Note: All information on KidsHealth® is for educational purposes only.

For specific medical advice, diagnoses, and treatment, consult your doctor. © 1995-2020 The Nemours Foundation. All rights reserved.

senses experiment:

WHICH ONE'S HEAVIER?

How information is sent from the muscles to the brain. Your muscles are pretty good, but they can't detect small differences. This experiment shows "threshold detection" — a fancy name for the point at which your muscles can detect a enough of a weight difference to say to the brain: "Hey, this one is heavier!"

• • • • •

A friend A blindfold Two large cups (16 oz. or greater) A marker Enough marbles, beans, or rice to fill both cups

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Label one cup "A" and one cup "B." Fill each cup exactly halfway.

Blindfold your friend.

Have your friend hold one cup in each hand. They should feel of equal weight.

Take the cups back and add a small amount of marbles, beans, or rice to cup A. ("A" for add!)

Return the cups to your friend's hands. Ask which weighs more.

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8.

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If your friend says one is heavier, ask which one. Is your friend right?

If your friend says they weigh the same, take the cups back again and add a little more to cup A. Keep taking the cups back and adding to cup A until your friend notices a difference. When he or she does, how much extra weight was needed for the muscles to send that message to the brain?

Reviewed by: Eric H. Chudler, PhD Nemours Note: All information on KidsHealth® is for educational purposes only. For specific medical advice, diagnoses, and treatment, consult your doctor. © 1995-2020 The Nemours Foundation. All rights reserved.

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7 COOL FACTS about the

HUMAN BODY 1

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Not only does everyone have unique fingerprints, humans also have unique tounge-prints!

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One quarter of your bones are in your feet.

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The average brain weighs about three pounds.

A newborn brain weight about 3/4 of a pound.

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Human teeth are as strong as shark teeth!

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Your nose and ears never stop growing.

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Your blood is as salty as the ocean.

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The nose can detect a trillion smells!

be a FIT KID There’s a lot of talk these days about fit kids. People who care (parents, doctors, teachers, and others) want to know how to help kids be more fit. Being fit is a way of saying a person eats well, gets a lot of physical activity (exercise), and has a healthy weight. If you’re fit, your body works well, feels good, and can do all the things you want to do, like run around with your friends.

Some parts of this are up to parents — such as serving healthy meals or deciding to take the family on a nature hike. But kids can take charge too when it comes to their health. Here are five rules to live by, if you’re a kid who wants to be fit. The trick is to follow these rules most of the time, knowing that some days (like your birthday) might call for cake and ice cream.

1. Eat a Variety of Foods You may have a favorite food, but the best choice is to eat a variety.

If you eat different foods, you’re more likely to get the nutrients your body needs. Taste new foods and old ones you haven’t tried for a while. Some foods, such as green veggies, may taste better the older you get. Shoot for at least five servings of fruits and vegetables a day — two fruits and three vegetables.

Here’s one combination that might work for you: • at breakfast: ½ cup

(about 4 large) strawberries

on your cereal • with lunch: 6 baby carrots • for a snack: an apple • with dinner: ½ cup broccoli

(about 2 big spears) and

one cup of salad

Reviewed by: Mary L. Gavin, MD Date reviewed: June 2018 Nemours Note: All information on KidsHealth® is for educational purposes only. For specific medical advice, diagnoses, and treatment, consult your doctor.© 1995-2020 The Nemours Foundation. All rights reserved.

2. Drink Water & Milk When you’re really thirsty, cold water is the best thirst-quencher.

And there’s a reason your school cafeteria offers cartons of milk.

Kids need calcium to build strong bones, and milk is a great source of this mineral. How much do kids need? If you are 4 to 8 years old, drink 2½ cups of milk a day, or its equivalent. If you’re 9 or older, aim for 3 cups of milk per day, or its equivalent. You can mix it up by having milk and some other calcium-rich dairy foods.

4. Limit Screen Time What’s screen time? It’s the amount of time you spend watching TV or DVDs, playing video games (console systems or handheld games), and using a smart phone, tablet, or computer. The more time you spend on these sitting-down activities, the less time you have for active stuff, like basketball, bike riding, and swimming. Try to spend no more than 2 hours a day on screen time, not counting computer use related to school and educational activities.

Here’s one combination: • 2 cups (about half a liter)

of low-fat or nonfat milk • 1 slice cheddar cheese • ½ cup (small container)

of yogurt

5. Be Active One job you have as a kid — and it’s a fun one — is that you get to figure out which activities you like best. Not everyone loves baseball or soccer. Maybe your passion is karate, or kickball, or dancing. Ask your parents to help you do your favorite activities regularly. Find ways to be active every day. You might even write down a list of fun stuff to do, so you can use it when your mom or dad says it’s time to stop watching TV or playing computer games!

If you want something other than milk or water once in a while, it’s OK to have 100% juice. But try to limit juice to no more than 1 serving (6 to 8 ounces) a day. Avoid sugary drinks, like sodas, juice cocktails, and fruit punches. They contain a lot of added sugar. Sugar just adds calories, not important nutrients.

3. Listen to Your Body What does it feel like to be full?

When you’re eating, notice how your body feels and when your stomach feels comfortably full.

Sometimes, people eat too much because they don’t notice when they need to stop eating. Eating too much can make you feel uncomfortable and can lead to unhealthy weight gain.

Speaking of parents, they can be a big help if you want to be a fit kid. For instance, they can stock the house with healthy foods and plan physical activities for the family.

Tell your parents about these five steps you want to take and maybe you can teach them a thing or two.

If you’re a fit kid, why shouldn’t you have a fit mom and a fit dad?

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HUMAN

BODY PARTS Find all the words from the word list (ignore spaces and dashes, if any) This is a zigzag word search puzzle. Words go left, right, up, down, not diagnally, and can bend at a right angle.

There are no unused letters in the grid. Every letter is used only once.

What did the limestone say to the geologist?

Don’t take me for granite!

What do you call a duck that gets all A’s?

A wise quacker.

Why does a seagull fly over the sea?

Because if it flew over the bay, it would be a baygull.

What kind of water cannot freeze?

Hot water.

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Arm Body Brow Cheek Ear Elbow Eye

What kind of tree fits in your hand?

A palm tree!

AUTUMN

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CROSSWORD PUZZLE

DOWN 1. Carved pumpkin 3. Leaves on trees 4 5. Used to gather leaves 7. Horn of plenty 12. Month preceding December 13. They change color in fall 15. Fruit of the oak tree

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ACROSS 2. Holiday for giving thanks 4. In astronomy, the first day of autumn is called the autumnal ___________ 6. Month preceding November 8. Holiday on October 31 9. Traditional Thanksgiving bird 10. To gather; to reap 11. Grows on tall stalks 14. Latin American holiday on November 1st

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Finger Foot Forehead Hair Head Knee Leg

Lip Mouth Neck Nose Palm Shoulder Stomach Teeth