Healthy UNH Blogger: Sarah Shaw
Staying Healthy at the Polls There is no disagreeing that this year’s presidential election will be absolutely historic. Between the pandemic, the current direction of our healthcare system, raging wildfires on the west coast; there is a lot at stake. Even though I will not be commenting on any candidate today, or advocating for different voting methods, I will be providing some safety tips to stay healthy at the polls this year if you have decided that you will be voting in-person at the polls... Read More
A Guide to Discussing Mental Health with Kids Since the start of the pandemic in the United States, many people have started to be more open about discussing struggles with mental health. Now, it seems like people are talking about mental health more than ever as the pandemic has impacted all people in many different ways. But, is there someone who is being left out of the conversation? Most youth in the United States are attending school through either a hybrid or fully remote version this... Read More
How to Build a Self-Care Toolbox Since the start of the pandemic, people have been talking about mental health more than ever. Self-care has also been of the frontlines of mainstream media in the past few years. But what is self-care and why is everyone talking about it? Self-care has many different definitions and means different things to different people. I like to think of self-care as simply participating in activities that give you energy, not things that take away from your energy. This... Read More
How November Can Bring Change to the ACA Since the 2010 passing of the Affordable Care Act (ACA), the act has been highly controversial. Though the entire bill enacted many new changes to the face of healthcare in America, one of the biggest controversies of the bill was the tax penalty individual mandate for health insurance. The act mandated that all Americans have some sort of health insurance coverage by the end of the year that the act was passed. If you were found to have no health... Read More
Getting the Family Outside this Fall Many parents all around the country now have kids attending school this fall remotely, via Zoom. Though school days for some may be shortened, there is no denying that screen time has increased significantly for all of the kids out there attending online school. In addition, with shorter school days, kids now have even more time for leisurely screen time like watching TV and playing video games. It also isn’t much help that local parks and businesses have... Read More
Current Recommendations for Physical Activity In 2008, the Department of Health and Human Services released the first edition of the Physical Activity Guidelines for American. Similar to the way the government recommends we get certain amounts of various nutrients, the government also recommends that we get different amounts of physical activity at different stages of life. Today, I will be going over the current recommendations for adults age 18 - 65. Before I get into the recommendations... Read More
How Food Can Boost the Immune System We’ve all been told to drink a glass of orange juice if we feel a cold coming on. Unfortunately though, having this small dose of vitamin C is not enough to give our immune system the boost it needs to wipe any and all diseases from our system. Eating for immune health is more than just this single serving of a vitamin C-rich food every once in a while. It is eating an abundance of immune boosting vitamins and minerals, managing chronic stress, getting... Read More
Understanding your Cholesterol Panel After the age of 20, most people in the United States will have a cholesterol screening once every 5 years. This cholesterol screening can be used as a tool to help predict the risk of development of plaque in blood vessels which lead to Heart Disease (or Cardiovascular Disease). After the simple blood test has been conducted at our physical, we get our results back from the lab, but what do they mean exactly? A cholesterol screening measures the total... Read More
Exercise for Physical and Emotional Wellbeing When you think of yoga, I’m sure you may start to think of crazy poses that seem almost impossible, trying to keep track of your breathing, and wondering if you are even doing the poses correctly. Although there are many known health benefits (physically and emotionally) associated with yoga, this practice can sometimes induce stress for those who are new to the practice. If you are one of those who finds yourself stressed out at the regular yoga... Read More
An Interview with Wellness Counselor/Educator, Shannon Seiferth Recently, I was able to have a sit-down interview via Zoom with Wellness Counselor/Educator, Shannon Seiferth! Shannon is a Living Well Service Staff member of Health & Wellness here at UNH. During the interview I asked Shannon a series of questions regarding how she finds her work/life balance as she is a fully remote employee. On top of working remotely, Shannon is also finding the balance of raising her new son with the help... Read More
Name: Sarah Shaw
Hometown: Springvale, ME
Major: Nutrition and Wellness
Graduation Year: 2021
What do you do to make a healthy UNH: I am involved in a lot of different orgs on campus! In these orgs, I always try to connect with as many people as I can and remind them about the importance of self-care!
Favorite food: This is something that always changes for me, but as of right now, I'm going to say tacos!
Favorite movie: Captain America
Favorite book: The Power of Kindness by Piero Ferrucci
What place in the world do you most want to visit: I would love to go to Colombia! The food looks amazing, it is a country rich in culture, and they have the best coffee in the world.
Favorite dining hall: Stillings all the way. The variety is amazing, and the vegan bar is phenomenal!
What do you love about UNH: I really love the energy of campus. It always feels so energentic and happy all of the time!
As a Healthy UNH intern, what are you most excited about: I am most excited to share my passion for all dimensions of wellness with other students!
