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A fresh take on lessons for a healthy life.
Avoiding Substances Outline
Craving Review- It Starts in the Brain
Craving is introduced in the Nutrition + Fitness course. With that knowledge, we take students to the next level to understand how our brain chemicals are impacted by substance use.
Substances: What is this stuff anyway? (Defines alcohol, tobacco, illegal and prescription drugs.)
What makes a substance illegal? And if something is defined as a medicine, isn't it OK? Choose Health answers these questions and defines what alcohol, tobacco, illegal and prescription drugs are.
Culture's Impact: Negative and Positive
Students are bombarded through entertainment and social media to give into an indulgence culture. This section creates awareness of the common risk factors, and the protective factors to avoid substance use and addiction.
Consequences: Physical, Emotional and Social
Controlled substances are destructive to the body, but they can be equally as damaging to the mind and emotions. Students will recognize that the consequences are far reaching and impact life in more than ways than physical health; like relationships and finances.
Tools to Avoid Risky Behaviors
To learn a thing is to know a thing. But put some tools into practice so you can own a thing! Students need hands on projects and goal setting to successfully avoid risky behaviors.
Final Project and Sources
The in depth projects help students retain what they learned through the coursework. And the sources for further research will equip students to dig in and challenge themselves in areas of interest.
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Sample Lesson
The Normalizing Culture
“Oh, everyone tries vaping or beer at a party. It’s normal, it’s no big deal!” Our culture delivers a lot of messages about things being ‘normal’. Oftentimes, the truth is that the choices are common, but not normal. Over the generations we have also heard that picking on kids (bullying), obesity (mental and physical health concerns), or racism (hate) is ‘normal’. The list could go on. While these choices might be common, we can agree that they all lead to destruction.
Strawberry shortcake, sour melon or milk and churros cereal flavor. Who’s drooling? The tobacco industry is counting on it. While craving the sweet and tart flavors might be normal, the severe damage of the nicotine and other chemicals added are absolutely NOT normal. Many of the companies add nicotine salts to aid in quicker absorption, and that leads to better chances to get hooked. Friends might tell you vaping is ‘better’ than cigarettes for your health. It sure is a better chance for addiction! All nicotine products are linked to cancer, heart disease and breathing issues. And all the vaping hospitalizations are proving that the lung damage can be permanent. As mentioned in the lesson on tobacco, it is common to add THC oil, or marijuana concentrate to vape pens. The majority of people hospitalized for vape related health issues admit to using THC products. People in their teens and 20’s getting hospitalized for every cold and sniffle is not normal.
Getting drunk and alcohol poisoning leading to violent behavior, vomiting, breathing issues, brain damage and even death: there is nothing normal about that. The teenage brain is still developing, and alcohol consumption, especially binge drinking causes learning difficulty and impaired judgment. Those who start drinking as teens are 4x more likely to become addicted.
Truth Culture
Every year, over 4,300 students die from alcohol related deaths. Car crashes, homicides, alcohol poisoning, falls, burns, drowning and suicides take their lives. A life cut short is not normal.
Thankfully we have another culture emerging: Truth Culture. More and more youth today are hungry for the facts. Just as they have enough intelligence to recognize that situations like bullying or hate are not normal, even if they might be common. They also have the smarts to learn the stats on addiction and believe that ‘just trying it’ is not normal either.