Program aims to get girls on a path to a healthy life

Sharing, bonding and fun are in store for mothers and daughters.
By LINDA M. LINONIS
VINDICATOR STAFF WRITER
NILES -- Karen Conklin, chief operating officer of Girl Scouts Lake to River Council, shared a startling statistic with her staff: The number of obese Americans has tripled since 1970.
That unsettling information motivated the group to put together a program geared to mothers and daughters that will address a healthful lifestyle. "Uniquely Me," a celebration of mothers and daughters, is planned for May 13 at Kilcawley Center at Youngstown State University.
"Obesity is an issue but is related to health conditions of hypertension, diabetes and emotional problems," said Lori Shandor, development/marketing specialist with Lake to River Council. "Our staff wanted to do something relating to mothers and daughters ... information they could take back home and put to use. And they wanted to do something focusing on being female and what that means."
Mom-and-daughter time
Though the underlying reason for the program is serious, girls will have fun during a day of sharing and bonding and aptly timed just before Mother's Day, May 14. Sessions are geared to mothers and their daughters who range in age from 11 to 14 and are in sixth through eighth grades.
"They are still young enough to want a close relationship with their mothers. Sometimes as you get older, being close to mom isn't a 'cool thing.' But a good relationship with their mothers helps girls get through difficult years," Shandor said.
"We hope to attract 200 mothers and daughters," Shandor said. That number will be divided into three groups, rotating from session to session. Participants also will receive goodie bags containing pedometers, brochures, coupons and bath items.
"We thought about the issues facing that age group of girls," Shandor said. "They have changing bodies and are dealing with peer pressure."
Emotional issues such as self-esteem and self-image will be addressed in various ways, Shandor explained, but there also will be practical and useful advice on body types and getting the best fit in jeans and bras.
"Everyone wears jeans, but it's hard to find a good fit," Shandor said. "We wanted to include that.
"A statistic shows that 60 percent of women are wearing the wrong-size bra. We'll have consultants there to fit mothers and daughters or they can set up something for a later time," Shandor explained. "But it's starting a habit now of getting the right fit that will carry them through life. As the girls change and grow, it's especially important."
Difficult subject
Mothers may be concerned about dieting and eating disorders, but are not sure how to broach the subject. "It will be a round-table discussion and offer an opportunity to ask questions," Shandor said. "We'll have a registered nurse who speaks on this problem and has a lot of knowledge about it."
Healthful eating also will be on the program. "We'll be talking about offering healthy choices of fruit and vegetables as snacks and cutting out the chips," Shandor said.
One of the displays planned, Shandor said, will be 32.6 pounds of sugar -- the amount of sugar ingested if a girl drinks just one can of pop per day over a year's time. "This will be a visual on what this means -- and more if girls are drinking five or six cans a day," Shandor said.
With so many girls now participating in sports of all kinds, Shandor said another important segment will be "Jock Talk," with three players from the YSU women's basketball team. "We want to talk about the pressures of being an athlete -- staying fit and healthy -- and dealing with pressure of studying and playing sports."
Lunchtime will feature Karen Vadino of Youngstown, a motivational speaker, whose topic will be "Laughing for the Health of It."