“What do you want to be when you grow up?” Kids are asked that question all the time, and some of them are ready with an answer. A kid with a plan! Of course much can change over the years, but where do they get their ideas? A lot of little girls play with Barbie, the doll who can “Be Anything.” Barbie has been marketed in many different professions- 130, in fact- ranging from presidential candidate to lifeguard to rapper to doctor to artist and almost anything in between. And all, of course, while looking beautiful and glamorous. That beauty and glamour has lots of critics up in arms over the unrealistic body image she presents to young girls and the negative effects that may have. That’s a very interesting discussion and definitely something to get to another time, but not my topic here. For now I want to talk about a study that was recently conducted-  “Boys Can Be Anything: Effect of Barbie Play on Girls’ Career Cognitions.”

I’m not  making this up- it’s for real. Two psychology professors worked with a group of 37 girls, aged 4-7 and had them play with either a Fashion Barbie doll, a Doctor Barbie doll, or Mrs. Potato Head. After five minutes the girls were shown photographs of ten occupations, half of which are traditionally male dominated and half traditionally female dominated. They were each asked which they thought were jobs they could do and which were j0bs for boys. The girls who played with Mrs. Potato Head believed they could be anything; the girls who played with Barbie- either one- saw fewer options for themselves.

I’m not sure I buy it. Do you really believe there is a connection? Girls have been playing with Barbie dolls for the last 55 years and many of those girls have grown up to be successful women in a variety of careers. The purpose of this study was to see how playing with different toys influenced how kids think. Since Barbie has had so many careers, they wanted to see if playing with glamorous Barbie had different effects on girls’ thinking depending on how she was dressed. Mrs. Potato Head was chosen as a contrast because although she has similar color and texture to Barbie, and feminine accessories as well, she is not sexualized the way Barbie is.

I do think this is all very interesting but I don’t think it should be taken at face value. After all, playing dress-up and pretend is part of childhood and I really don’t think it negatively affects the career choices girls make when they grow up. Just because a little girl plays with Barbie or dresses up as a Disney princess, it doesn’t mean that she won’t be a financial analyst or engineer twenty years down the road. On the contrary, I think that playing pretend helps develop healthy imagination and creativity, qualities that will surely serve kids well as they grow up and function in the grown-up world.

I don’t think I will ever understand Daylight Saving Time! It’s just a one hour time change but for some reason, I always feel like I have jet lag for a few days. I am tired or not tired at the wrong times, hungry or not hungry at the wrong times, and in general I just feel a little off balance. The term “Daylight Saving Time” doesn’t even make sense- how do you save daylight, anyway? The number of daylight hours don’t change, they just get shifted around and I’m not convinced they should be. I know some people who say they love getting out of work while the sun is still up, but I would rather have the daylight in the morning. It was just starting to be okay when I wake up and now it feels like November again!

Before I go on, I just want to clarify that the correct term is Daylight Saving Time, though most people add an extra “s” and say “savings.” I just found this out and it sounds a little strange to me, so I thought I’d clear that up in case it looks like a typo or like I don’t know what I’m saying. Now for some DST trivia:  The earliest idea of a Daylight Saving Time came from Benjamin Franklin in 1784. It was first implemented in 1916 by Germany and Austria-Hungary  in order to save fuel for the war effort. In 1918 the United States passed the Standard Time Act and DST was on and off from then until the Uniform Time Act of 1966, when Congress set Daylight Saving Time from the last Sunday in April until the last Sunday in October. The dates changed a few times over the years but since 2007 DST is observed from the second Sunday in March until the first Sunday in November, the goal being a reduction in energy use during days of later daylight hours. States could bypass the time change by passing a local ordinance, but most of the United States goes through the time change, with the exception of Hawaii and most of Arizona. Most countries observe Daylight Saving TIme as well but dates vary.

And how do people feel about Daylight Saving TIme? I bet you can tell I’m not a fan. And I’m not alone; studies show that the transition to DST affects health, mood, and general stress levels. The main problem is sleep deprivation, which can set into motion a whole lot of other problems. In the first three weeks of DST there is a significant increase in heart attacks and suicide rates, which doctors believe might come from the negative effects of sleep deprivation on cardiovascular and mental health. Lack of sleep also contributes to a decrease in work productivity. Farming and other industries that depend on the sun do not benefit from the time change either- chickens don’t know you changed the clock and it can take weeks for them to reset their internal time clocks and animals get hungry when they expect to be fed. I can tell you that parents don’t appreciate their babies being thrown off schedule either.

For those of us who don’t like Daylight Savings Time, it doesn’t look like there is much we can do to change things right now, although some years I’m tempted to just ignore DST and see what happens. There are some small things we can try, though, to make the transition easier and healthier. Exercising  stimulates serotonin release which can help adjust our internal time clocks. So can about an hour of daily exposure to bright natural light. If you can’t spend an hour outdoors (and since it’s still early March it’s still too cold for many of us to do that) you can use a light box. Avoiding caffeine and alcohol later in the day will  help you fall asleep sooner, which will make it less painful to get up an hour earlier in the dark. And remember- when you change your clocks it’s also a good time to change the batteries in your smoke and carbon monoxide detectors

So, my friend Sam came to visit the other night. Sam drops by from time to time to hang out- we gossip, we try to solve the world’s problems- you know, just friends hanging out. Sam is clean and well put together, which is good because I am terrified of germs, always worrying about the billions of bacteria lurking on every surface, just waiting to make me sick. As I said, Sam’s a neat and clean guy, but the other night he showed up with a red, gooey eye. Oh the terrible possibilities! Conjunctivitis! Viral eye infection! Cold! Flu! It could be anything… “What’s wrong with your eye?” I asked Sam. “Oh, I don’t know- probably just lack of sleep,” he answered, unconcerned. “Does it hurt, does it itch?” I continued. “Yes, actually, it does,” Sam said. My germ phobia kicked in at full speed.  “You should get that checked out tomorrow- you might need to treat it,” I told him. “Good idea.” I told him to be careful not to touch anything around the house just in case he had something contagious. Sam said he’d leave. I’m afraid I may have made him feel unwelcome so I told him he didn’t really have to go; he could wash his hands well with hot water and soap, dry with disposable paper towels, and then do a quick rub with Purell just to be safe.

I love hand sanitizer! I have it in my house, my car, my handbag, my office- anywhere I feel threatened by germs. I know that sometimes, despite your best efforts, you get sick. But if you do what you can to avoid germs, I’m sure you can prevent that from happening at least some of the time. One day a coughing, sneezing woman sat down next to me on the bus. It was crowded and I couldn’t get up and  move somewhere else, so in addition to being grossed out, I was also worried about catching what she had. I must not be the only one who worries about those kinds of things because she immediately turned to me and reassured me that she wasn’t sick, she was suffering from allergies. Still gross but at least not dangerous.

I know it’s already March which means Spring officially begins in a few weeks, but it still feels like winter and it’s still cold and flu season. I don’t know if it’s too late to get a flu shot, and even if you already got one there are still precautions to take to make sure and stay healthy. First of all, stay away from people who are coughing and sneezing or look sick. Washing your hands is the best way to prevent getting sick- always wash your hands well with soap and hot water and use hand sanitizer if you can’t clean right away. Don’t touch your eyes, nose or  mouth because that is how germs can enter your body. And you can also do your part to avoid getting others sick; if you don’t feel well- stay home!

“Let it Go” is the Oscar nominated song from “Frozen,” Disney’s latest animated film, which is itself in the running for Best Animated Feature. Those Disney movies always  have such great songs. “Let it Go” is playing all over the place, so of course it’s stuck in my head, but I like it so I don’t really mind. I’m actually inspired by the concept of letting go.

Like everyone, I can get angry. If you messed with me two years ago, or even two decades ago, I might still be holding a grudge. I know I should let it go. Holding on to stress from the past can be bad for your physical and emotional health. Studies show that people who forgive have lower rates of heart disease and depression and are, in general, happier and more satisfied with their lives. It’s hard, but it’s important to forgive and move on. “Forgive and forget” is one of those sayings that gets thrown around- easier said than done. Forgetting is not easy but you can work on not staying bitter about things that angered or upset you. Letting go of old wounds is not like giving in and losing; it’s actually the opposite. It’s a decision you make to take control of your own feelings and it is liberating and empowering to get rid of old baggage.

Most of us also worry too much. Like anger, worrying can have the same harmful effects on health, so letting go of worries is important too. Worry does little more than provide a false sense of control when we feel helpless. Of course we can take precautions to prevent minor and  major disasters but  there are many things we really cannot control. To let go and realize that you can’t always manage everything will allow you to relax and accept reality. You might be surprised to find strengths you didn’t know you had when you are no longer crippled by worry.

In the words of Princess Elsa: “Let it go, let it go!”   

It feels like I am constantly battling with the ice cream in my freezer and the running shoes in my closet!  Know what I’m talking about? I just read about the newest winner of “The Biggest Loser.”   Twenty-four year old Rachel Frederickson went from 260 to 105 pounds, for a total loss of 155.  I am impressed by that kind of determination and perseverence, but also concerned- at five feet, five inches tall, this puts her body mass index (BMI) at 17.5, which is considered underweight. Going from dangerously overweight to underweight is quite a swing and it has me thinking- why are so many Americans at unhealthy weights? Why do so many of us struggle with body image issues? Why are there so many extremes- why is a healthy balance so difficult to achieve and maintain? Is it healthier to be overweight or underweight? I could go on and on. There are so many interesting comments on the articles reporting this story: some commentators applaud her accomplishment, others say she isn’t healthier this way and most certainly could not have achieved this weight loss in a healthy way. One commentator speculates that she lost all the weight to win the money and will probably gain back some of those pounds once the hype wears off.

Health is one of the hottest topics these days! With results of new studies being published everyday- often with different conclusions- just to mess with out heads, I think, with Obamacare causing a stir (a topic for another day), and with people living longer than ever before, there really is a lot of ground to cover! Beauty is a hot topic too and one that means something different to everyone, so who can say what is right ?

I think there has to be a lesson in this story and the fact that I now have a great need to eat a piece of chocolate has to be a part of that lesson. What that means, I guess, is that moderation is always important. So is feeling good about yourself, and taking care of your body and feeling positive about that is a great way to get there. If you need to lose 10 pounds, or even 100, do it in five pound increments and congratulate yourself for each accomplishment. If you can’t work out for an hour and a half every day like Frederickson says she now does, don’t beat up on yourself- take a five-minute walk around the block and feel good that you did that. And if you do eat that chocolate- make sure you enjoy it!