WEEK 1 LESSON:

This week is covering the risk factors and what eating poorly and physical inactivity can lead to.
A main public health issue we see in our country is the obesity and diabetes epidemic. In
America we specifically struggle with our diet and physical inactivity, which can be due to many
things like fast food and not having walkable cities or being too drained from work to cook a
healthy at home meal. Diet and exercise are not the only factors that can play a role, but so can
someone’s environment and genetics. Environment and genetics are what we cannot control,
but we can control our healthy behaviors through having good nutrition and staying active! Good
nutrition and keeping a healthy lifestyle does not need to be about losing weight, the focus is
feeding our bodies and taking care of our bodies that help improve overall health and prevent
diseases such as heart disease.

What is upsetting is these unhealthy behaviors can lead to greater risks. The highest
percentage of obesity is in adults aged 40 to 59 years old at 44.3%. The second highest group
was adults 60 years old and older at 41.5%. The risks that come from poor nutrition and lack of
physical activity are heart disease, type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, stroke, and some
cancers. Even though obesity is an issue within our country, I would like to stay away from that
being a focus in this program. This program is not about losing weight, it is about practicing
healthy behaviors to take care of ourselves and be healthy all around because there are true
benefits to nutrition and exercise that are beyond someone’s weight. Especially since weight
does not always dictate how truly healthy someone is. In this program, we want to be kind to our
bodies and ourselves. Nutrition and exercise is a form of healthy behavior in just taking care of
ourselves and hopefully preventing any diseases or even slowing the aging process.

Eating healthy and staying physically active can have benefits in life to improve our overall
wellness. For instance, eating unhealthy foods may trigger symptoms of depression and fatigue,
whereas people eating a healthier diet have better mental health. Eating healthy can also
improve gut health, improve cognitive functions like memory, and improve sleep. Exercise can
help combat health problems like heart disease, stroke, depression, anxiety, and arthritis.
Exercise, just like diet, can improve mood and sleep. In addition, exercise can boost energy
levels!

Since the environment and genetics are things we cannot control, we need to focus on the
things that can impact our health that are within our control. One of my professors believes that
nutrition is the true medicine for the body since it can help prevent many diseases or even
reverse the effects of a disease. The United States is the country with the most use of
medications. We tend to have diseases and just treat them by prescribing medication, instead of
looking at the root cause or things that can improve prevention. In this program, we are learning
about nutrition and exercise as a way to prevent diseases.

Watch this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qUfWOT3ZujY

Sources to look at:

https://www.cdc.gov/chronicdisease/resources/publications/factsheets/physical-activity.htm
https://www.cdc.gov/chronicdisease/resources/publications/factsheets/nutrition.htm
https://www.cdc.gov/nutrition/resources-publications/benefits-of-healthy-eating.html
https://www.cdc.gov/physicalactivity/basics/pa-health/index.htm
https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/fitness/in-depth/exercise/art-20048389

WEEK 1 TASK AND REFLECTION:

Worksheets down below to complete and turn in by the end of the week, Friday at 8pm to the
email: clisowski@pima.edu
WEEK 1 TASK:

Name:

Submit to this email: clisowski@pima.edu

Due: by Friday of this week at 8pm (end of the week for this lesson)

● This week's task is to think about why you joined this program and write out answering
why you decided to. Why did you join this program?

● Find an article on google that relates to nutrition and exercise, it can be about the
benefits or the risks of unhealthy eating and no exercise. What article did you choose?
Paste the link down below. What did you learn from the article?

Paste link here for article:

● A part of your task is to respond in the chat section and share one favorite thing you
learned from the article and paste the link to your article. Look through other people’s
articles and then choose at least one other person to respond to about what you found
interesting from their article or respond to their favorite thing with your favorite thing, did
you agree or have the same thing? This is supposed to be conversational/interactive!
WEEK 1 REFLECTION:

Name:

Submit to this email: clisowski@pima.edu

Due: by Friday of this week at 8pm (end of the week for this lesson)

● Write a one paragraph reflection of what you learned or any insights you had during the
week. This week will be reflecting on are there any healthy behaviors you currently
have? Are there any healthy behaviors you would like to improve on? Why do you want
to improve your nutrition and exercise or improve your healthy behaviors? Please
answer those questions listed down below: