Teens are not eating healthy

By Jenny Mejia

Teens are not active enough and eat poorly, which is why too many are overweight.

  Escondido High School health teacher, Dave Johansen said, ” I think it’s a serious problem for students that are eating unhealthy. The biggest problem is that most students are not active.”

  I know this is a problem because I am one of those  people.

 I spend most of my time in front of computer monitors and playing video games instead of doing physical activities outdoors.  I feel that not enough teens, including me, have an active life. That’s why some start to gain weight by eating unhealthy food without any exercise after.

  I know that America has the biggest population of fast food restaurants. According to the National Institutes of Health, nearly 50,000,000 people eat at fast food restaurants. Not only is it faster, but also low in price , and tastes great. It’s not bad if you eat once a month but you should be careful how many calories the food has.

According to the National Institutes of Health, “ It’s a high risk to get heart disease, high blood pressure and type two diabetes.”

  Many teens that eat poorly gain weight, which can lower self esteem . Did you know that nearly two-thirds of adult Americans are overweight or obese ? Most teens look up to their elders in life and the choices they make, such as how they eat or what they do to maintain their diet.

   I think the best way to control weight is to watch your diet and do some fun activities that you enjoy doing.Spend an hour every day doing some kind of physical activity. Ride a bike. Go for a walk . Go jogging. Play basketball or baseball. Learn to eat healthy foods. It’s best to get used to good habits early in age so that you won’t struggle in life with your diet later on.

Exclusion is bullying

By Hayley Stevenson

At least 160,000 children in the United States per day miss school due to bullying, according to education.com.

   However, one form of bullying that goes on everywhere, including in groups at Escondido High School, is often overlooked but equally damaging to kids and teens. This way of bullying is exclusion from peers.

  It is likely common knowledge that every day at school there are groups that students hangout in, and in some ways that is a good thing since it may give adolescents a sense of belonging and people they know they can go outside of class. However, this may lead to certain individuals being rejected, whether it is after an argument or disagreement with another one in the group, or simply because they do not “fit in”, or act socially correct, in the eyes of the other teens.

   I find it disgusting that anyone would purposely make someone else feel worthless or inferior. In my opinion it is cruel just as other ways of being needlessly mean to others because it can lead to further issues in the victims’ lives.

  According to education.com, it is often the physically, emotionally, or behaviorally different adolescents who are rejected socially. Such rejection over time takes a lasting emotional and possibly physical toll on the victims.

  Sociology instructor Shane Morey stresses the importance of making everyone feel that they matter.

  “I think it’s important for all people to feel like they belong,” Morey said.

  It does not bother Morey that there are separate groups, but rather that the individuals in them sometimes give others who are not included negative labels. Rivalry or conflict between groups or individuals can cause stress to everyone involved.

  Although it is doubtful that this issue will ever be completely resolved, there are a few things that can be done at Escondido High School as well as other schools.

  One possibility might be for teachers and other staff to create awareness about how harming this seemingly subtle form of bullying is. It may help for people at EHS to get involved in clubs like Link Crew and Best Buddies, which promote friendship and positive relationships with others. Another option might be for students to introduce themselves and be friendly to teens sitting by themselves. Also the problem may not be as common as it is if more people did not follow the crowd, so that if some people don’t want a certain person around, it does not automatically make peers think the same of the excluded person.

  I would ask students at Escondido High School to treat everyone with equal respect. There is never a good reason to keep someone away from their friends or to deliberately make others dislike the person. If someone is hanging around just to harass or harm anyone, however, a staff member should be made aware immediately. Otherwise be respectful and do not purposely ignore people or choose who they can and cannot hang out with at school. Our school can be a better place if everyone attending knows that they matter.

Suicide is not a solution

 

By Anna Chanthaphavong

Almost about 3,000 people die a year from suicide, and about 750,000 people attempt suicide, according to Kevin Caruso, excutive director of http://www.suicide.org/suicide-faqs.html. An average of one person dies by suicide every 16.2 minutes. According to, http://health.india.com it’s the third leading cause of death for those whose age is 15-44 However, suicide isn’t only happening to only teenagers. Some children under the age of 10 have committed suicide.  One of the many leading causes of suicide is depression or if the person has a mental illness.

Depression is usually caused by; relationships, bullying, low self-esteem, abuse, illness, death of a love one and many other reasons. Bully victims are 2 to 9 times more likely to commit suicide, including those who are cyberbullied, emotionally or physically bullied. And many of the people w

ho try to commit suicide either cut, suffocate, hang, jumping from height or drown themselves. Most of the people who are suicidal don’t get the help they need and don’t tell anyone about their feelings because they feel that no one understands them. Those people who feel that no one understands them usually have small little problems. But just because their problems aren’t as big as others doesn’t mean it’s not any less important.

I get a little frustrated when I offer my help, but they refuse it. Those people who are suicidal just need to accept the help their friends are trying to give. It isn’t easy for the friends either; they want to help their friend from killing themselves, but they don’t want to push them to the point where they’re annoyed or angry at them. And they don’t want to leave them alone with their problems and let them think that no one cares about them.

The people who are suicidal usually think that killing them

selves is the only way to solve their problems. And people who cut think that it’s the only way to help their pain

. But there are people they can talk to, such as; counselors, friends, parents, and therapists. They think that no one understands them, and most of the time that’s true, but there are people who care for them, and even though they don’t know what they are dealing with, they still want to help them get through it. The people who understand them, just let them go through the problem by themselves, not even doing anything about it. Most of the times, the people who understand usually go through the same problems, and usually don’t help because the problem is still bugging them, or they’re focus on themselves. While the people who care about them, are willing to help them and want them to get better. They might not know what’s going on, but they want to help and try to understand what they go through .And at least 80 percent of suicidal people who get treatment, are treated successfully (www.save.org)

However, if people notice their friends cutting or getting depressed, they should try to help them. Even if they refuse the help they have to at least try to reach out for them. If the person who’s cutting themselves is still doing it, tell someone about it. A counselor will be happy to help them with their problems. But this is not only the friend’s responsibility, the person who is  suicidal also needs to get help. If anybody has even the slightest thoughts of killing themselves, they immediately have to go tell someone about it. If you are having thoughts about killing yourself or know someone who does, call 1-800-SUICIDE (1-800-784-2433) or 1-800-273-TALK (1-800-273-8255). Suicide isn’t the answer for a problem that could be fixed.

Pregnancy takes high school’s by storm

By Leslie Gomez

Teens listen up! Don’t feel that sex is the only way to show your love for your partner. Not only can it affect your physical health, but also your emotional and social health.

There are many ways to show your love for someone. Some teens might feel like their partner will leave them if they do not have sex. I say that you should wait until you are sure that your “loved one” is the one you want to marry and share your life with.

 

However, if a teen does decide to have sex with their partner, the consequences of becoming pregnant can affect a teenager emotionally. In the article “Emotional effects of Teenage Pregnancy”, Bettsnirvana describes three key effects from becoming pregnant: “Depression,  frustration, fear, and other emotional problems are some of the emotions that may experience when they are facing unplanned pregnancy”. An unplanned pregnancy may worry a teen since she is not prepared to have a baby causing much fear within her. This may also lead to her becoming frustrated since she now has to put her baby first before herself.

 

For example, being abstinent is the only way it is 100 percent effective of a teenager not becoming pregnant.  In the article “M.S. Shook Student Health Service”, they argue that being abstinent is also a great way to avoid some diseases: “Clinical abstinence is the most effective way to prevent pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections”. Not only is it beneficial to remain abstinent to prevent unplanned pregnancy, but also will one be in no danger of developing any sexually transmitted disease. Thus, a teen may be more healthy, and not have to worry about having a baby or any health issues.

Even though there are many other solutions a teen might think will protect her from becoming pregnant (such as condoms and birth control pills), these are not always 100 percent effective, and there is a possibility a teen can still become pregnant. For example, my aunt had a baby when she used a condom. She said that the condom broke inside of her and did not think twice about what can happen. If you do not use birth control pills correctly there is a good possibility that you could get pregnant. Be careful in what you decide to do. Think about the consequences. I’m positive that teens do not want to have to struggle with having a baby at a young age and would have to work hard to be able to support their baby.

 

However, if a teen feels pressured into having sexual intercourse, then she should become aware of all the consequences that can occur by making this rushed decision. Evidently, teen pregnancy can be avoided, if one takes the right precautions and makes good decisions.                                                                                                                                                                    Photo By profanitymagazine.com

Excessive Homework

Most students go to school and work for seven hours a day, five days a week. Then they get home from seven hours of school work and have to spend a couple more hours of their own time doing homework and studying. This leaves only a short amount of time, if any, for students to spend doing what they would like to do. That is, if they don’t have other things they have to do at home, for a sports team, or at work (if they have a job).

Constantly having an excessive amount of work that needs to be done in a short amount of time can be extremely stressful and cause students to lose sleep, which then can cause the students’ grades to drop because they are becoming less focused on each individual class. Too much homework can also result in students cheating to get the work done, and cheating results in a whole new range of problems.

Many other people believe this too. There are well-known books and articles on this subject. Alfie Kohn wrote Rethinking Homework where he states the negative effects of homework: “They include children’s frustration and exhaustion, lack of time for other activities, and possible loss of interest in learning”. Another good example of this is The Case Against Homework, by Sara Bennett and Nancy Kalish.

Some teachers don’t understand that students have a life outside of school, other classes that give out more homework, and other responsibilities. But if we can make them aware that they are not helping students by giving out so much homework, then maybe they will change. Students would be better off with smaller portions of homework daily, or at least more time to complete it.

Teachers should have a meeting about this and talk about how they can give out less homework and still make sure the students are learning everything they need to learn. Group projects are a good way to learn. Personally, I learn more from doing projects and having to research information and put it all together than I do from the normal homework that consists of writing papers, doing vocab, answering questions, etc.

So while homework can help students to remember the things they learn in class and retain the information, too much homework can have a negative effect on students, doing the opposite of its purpose.

Customer Service

 By Leyna Vo

We’ve all experienced terrible service. From moody waitresses to apathetic servers, the behavior exhibited by these types of employees ultimately influence our experience at businesses in a way that could make us potentially refuse to set foot into that particular establishment again.

 

Some employees, however, go beyond the types script that outlines the essentials to customer service, “Hi my name is so-and-so. How can I help you?” These employees are passionate about their work and care about representing their business well. You can immediately distinguish these kinds of individuals through body language, facial expression and speech.

 

Quality customer service is key in any business, and it can begin with teenagers. Teens searching for a job or already have a job should aim for providing service that is helpful, inviting, and memorable for customers. A minimum-waged job can be a valuable experience for young adults as it will teach them how to improve interactions with others and give them a chance to act in a professional setting.

 

Imagine what effects can arise from someone who is unprofessional in manners and speech to a customer. Your average, apathetic employee who goes through the motions to get that paycheck every other Wednesday will most likely be the reason for customers’ reluctance to come back to such bland service.

 

As a hostess at a local breakfast restaurant, the type of customer service I offer is important, as regulars run in and out of the restaurant’s door every weekend. I have learned through observation and experience that if I present myself confidently through posture and speech, customers will be more inviting towards me and reciprocate the friendliness that I put forth to them.

 

Some tips to offering efficient customer service is to always ask your clients, “Is there anything else I can do for you?” This allows your customer to trust you in your ability to do any special request for them, which creates a personal experience for each customer. Body language is also something any worker should be aware of, as straight posture reflects professionalism. Most importantly, remember to always have a smile on your face and pep up your talk, no one enjoys a monotone server.