Guest Blog Post #4: Dr. Haney on Getting Outdoors

Kaiser Permanente is the title sponsor of the 2012 Centennial Celebration Event Series and Kaiser Permanente physician Dr. Sean Haney will be sharing his thoughts as an official CMC guest blogger this year about the outdoors, medicine, wellness, and whatever else inspires him.

With fall definitely here, we are reminded of the fact that we live in a state with four seasons.  Coming from California, I grew up in a place with two seasons, one wet and one dry season.  Of course, there is some temperature variation but large parts of that state do not have anything like the seasonal variation that Colorado does.  The seasons in this great state offer unique and varied recreational opportunities for us “locals” and anyone who wants to come here.

Winter, spring, summer, or fall, all you need to do is….. get up, get out and enjoy this great state! Blessed as we are with the geography and climate of this state, we have a plethora of recreational activities available to us.  Let’s consider a short list: hiking, skiing, (including snowboarding, cross country) rafting, biking, climbing, snowshoeing, etc. It goes without saying that these sports are not specific to a single season, e.g. spring skiing.  We have pretty easy access here to a ton of recreational activities.

Recreational activities offer many benefits, both tangible and intangible.  The benefits of recreational activities include: 1) they are really fun, 2) help maintain a healthy weight, 3) maintain and promote balanced mental health, and 4) are a great help to our economy.  In fact, they are a very important part of the economy of this state.  

Recreational activities help generate a lot of economic activity.  The ski industry alone generated over $2.6 billion in economic activity to this state.   That is a lot of jobs and tax revenue that supports a wide variety of essential government functions.  It is not just for skiing, folks also come to our parks to hike and climb 14’ers.    We benefit economically as well as through the aforementioned ways from our many Colorado recreational opportunities.

So, perhaps we need to savior the moments when we are having fun outdoors and remember to support programs and initiatives to keep them vibrant and sustainable. Oh, we should also thank that tourist for dropping some money into our economy and make sure they taste a Colorado craft beer (in moderation, of course).

Donny Roth - Come Join Our Bash!

Donny Roth

I am honored to be the host for the Colorado Mountain Club’s Backcountry Bash happening the evening of November 3^rd.  This is the 20^th Anniversary of the Bash, and will be a celebration equal to the excitement of the soon-to-come winter.  I am inviting you to spend an evening with a group of people passionate about human-powered skiing.  Come for the gear give-aways, the auctions, the films, the food and beer, but most of all come ready to party with four hundred passionate skiers!

The Bash is a fund-raiser for the club’s Backcountry Snowsports Initiative, which is dedicated to protect winter recreation opportunities for those whom pursue human-powered activities.  In short, they help protect the places we play!  This is our opportunity to give back to our favorite playgrounds.  Your bids and donations directly benefit your winter – don’t be shy!

Your role doesn’t end at the Bash however.  This winter, just as we’ve invited you to come party and play with a group of like-minded skiers, I hope you’ll invite someone new to the party and to the playground.  If we really want to protect our favorite places, we need to bring more people into them in a quiet, respectful manner.  I know this can be in opposition of the tendency to protect our powder stashes.  I am not asking anyone to give away his or her favorite tree line.  I am asking you to share your passion.  Share your energy.  Share the sport.  

You don’t have to wait until the powder’s deep.  Start this November 3^rd at the Bash!  Bring your stoke, your cash, and as many friends as possible!  Let’s start the season in grand style.  See you there. Get your tickets at www.cmc.org/bash today!

Cheers!

Donny

Donny Roth is passionate about sharing the human-powered ski experience, which is he does feverishly throughout the year.  He invites you to check out his website, www.independent-descents.com, and hopes you’ll cross tracks soon.  

Guest Blog: Dr. Haney on Childhood Obesity

Kaiser Permanente is the title sponsor of the 2012 Centennial Celebration Event Series and Kaiser Permanente physician Dr. Sean Haney will be sharing his thoughts as an official CMC guest blogger this year about the outdoors, medicine, wellness, and whatever else inspires him.

 We are currently experiencing an epidemic of childhood obesity.   Childhood obesity has more than tripled in the last 30 years in the US.   In fact in 2008, more than one third of children and adolescents in our country were either overweight or obese.   Obesity in youth can lead to obesity in adulthood and costs a lot of money.  Based on 2006 figures, the cost of obesity to the US health care system in direct and indirect terms has been estimated at $147 billion (Yes, that’s $147 billion).  

There are immediate and long-term negative implications for youth obesity.  The immediate consequences include high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and Type 2 diabetes.  The long-term effects of obesity include osteoarthritis, heart disease, and cancer.   Not only are there physical effects of obesity, there are serious psychological consequences associated with obesity such as poor self-esteem.

Exercise and healthy eating are important ways of combating this epidemic.   There are many ways to positively influence youth behavior as well.  These include school-based exercise programs, interventions from medical providers, products and pricing from the food and beverage industry, media coverage of the topic, and more.

We need to change the direction we are going.  This may mean rethinking school lunch and physical education programs; that is to say putting effort and resources into these areas. How about families (guided by parents) making better food choices and even exercising together? How about bike night?  Or how about taking a stroll after dinner?

As a nation, we rose to the challenge Sputnik presented.  We can’t give up on our kids or our country.  We can’t afford to.

Guest Blog #2 Dr. Sean Haney on Nature Deficiency Syndrome

Guest Blog #2 Dr. Sean Haney, Kaiser Permanente

Richard Louv popularized the concept of the “nature deficiency syndrome” in his 2006 book, Last Child in the Woods.  His concept is essentially that children are no longer experiencing nature as they once had. This in turn has contributed to the increase in childhood obesity and attention deficit disorder.  The concept is interesting and thought provoking.

I am no expert on this specific research field but knowing a fair amount about how research is done, I suspect that this might be difficult to prove.  From anecdotal evidence (that is a fancy way of saying “in my experience”), children do not seem to experience nature as they once did.  By “nature” I don’t mean Yosemite or Rocky Mountain National Park.  Families took vacations to these wonderful parks and still do.   The nature which kids are not exploring as they once did is actually the nearby open field, creek or hillside.  I remember growing up in an area where the hills had not yet been built upon.  We used the trails, peaks, gulches as our exploration ground, physically and imaginatively.  We rode our bikes, fought dragons, rescued maidens and killed monsters.

The reason for the loss of this connection to nature maybe loss of environment, safety concerns for the children and alternative choices regarding use of free time.

So, instead of being outside exploring and experience the outdoors or parks, our children are spending a lot more time in front of electronic screens and in organized play dates and not free exploration of hillsides and open fields.

The effect of the nature deficit disorder per Lovu is an increase in attention deficit disorder (ADD), mood disorders and obesity.  ADD and mood disorders may be more prevalent because we have more sensitive screening tools now and not necessarily for other reasons.  An increase in childhood obesity is well documented. Causation is difficult to prove.

Will reconnecting with nature diminish the effects of the purported nature deficiency syndrome?  I don’t know.  I believe that reconnecting our children to nature is important for many reasons.   They may enjoy the experience tremendously and it may get them out from the screens that take so much of their time.  One day they will grow up and vote (hopefully) and if they think back fondly on their experiences outdoors in out parks or open fields, hill sides and creeks, they may wish to protect these spaces for their own children.  If getting kids outside helps prevent nature deficiency syndrome and all that accompanies it, then great.  Regardless, kids should be discovering trails and bugs while slaying dragons and rescuing fair damsels from evil knights.

Guest Blog Post #1: Dr. Sean Haney Introduction

Kaiser Permanente is the title sponsor of the 2012 Centennial Celebration Event Series and Kaiser Permanente physician Dr. Sean Haney will be sharing his thoughts as an official CMC guest blogger this year about the outdoors, medicine, wellness, and whatever else inspires him.

 

Wow, my first Blog. Thanks to Colorado Mountain Club, I now have an audience, or…? Just cause an organization gives some fool a forum to blog is not enough to keep folks reading. Given that our attention spans have shortened with the coming of the internet, a writer has to quickly establish a connection with his or her audience. A writer or blogger has to inform, educate, and even entertain to keep his or her audience.  I’m not sure about entertaining, but I’m pretty certain I can inform and educate.  If any entertainment occurs along the way, I’ll consider it a lucky coincidence.   However, before I go into “blogging”, you might want to know who I am.

My name is Sean Haney and I am an outdoor and exercise addict.  Perhaps, enthusiast is a better way of phrasing it.  I’ve kicked my other addictions though my wife might say that I’m still a workaholic.  I am a primary care sports medicine physician working for Kaiser Permanente.   I am 47 years old and seven years into my mid life review (no crisis here, just ongoing review).  I’m blessed with  a wonderful wife and three strong-willed kids that never cease to be a challenge.

Over the last few years, a number of people who have been important in my life have died (this is not the entertaining part of the blog).  The shortness of our journeys really hit home to me with the passing of these individuals.  In addition, working in health care one is also constantly reminded of what can and does happen to people.   So, what do you do about it? Well, while you can take advantage of your health and opportunities to enjoy this wonderful world.  For me, this has been a return to a passion of an earlier life, and that is the outdoors.

Beauty in nature is everywhere.  If you are lucky enough to live in Colorado, it is really close.  It might be easier to say that we have everything but an ocean in Colorado than listing all the natural wonders of this great state.  So why not get out and enjoy the natural beauty of this place?  This is certainly preaching to the choir for CMC members.

My rediscovery of my passion for the outdoors was not just from the realization of my own mortality. There are two other important reasons for me to dive back into the outdoors and to blog about it.   As a father, I want to introduce my kids our wonderful natural environments and as a conservationist, I want folks to enjoy wilderness and the outdoors so we can raise awareness about environmental issues, promote sustainability and preserve nature for future generations’ pleasure.

That is a little about me.  What about what I’ll cover through this blog?.   The topics I’ll cover will be related to:  1) Childhood obesity.  2) The importance of stewardship. 3)  Preparing to climb. 4) Nutrition.  5) Whatever else that may be appealing and relevant as the due date for this blog approaches.

Until next time, remember; exercise, eat right and climb a mountain.   Back in 2 months.