If you are looking into Bariatric Surgery as an option, you MUST consider Nassau University Medical Center...A Bariatric Surgery Center of Excellence!

With all the new and improved time-saving packaged foods catching your attention in the grocery aisle, it can be hard to resist loading your cart with processed foods. Thankfully, during the growing months of April, May, June, July, August and September, eating fresh and buying local is affordable and easy to do.

On the whole, farmers who sell directly to local consumers harvest their crops when they are at their peak freshness, which delivers the highest nutritional benefits. Perfectly picked fruits and vegetables taste better too.Eating locally grown foods not only helps to support local growers and provide job opportunities, it's beneficial to your health and the environment. Small farms on the whole practice less aggressive growing methods and therefore use fewer chemicals on their plants. According to the Center for a New American Dream (CNAD), even non-organic small farms are less likely to rely on dangerous pesticides and herbicides to bring their crop to market.

Chances are you've begun to notice an entirely new distinction in the produce aisles beyond natural and organic -- announcing non-GMO (genetically modified) fruits and produce. On the whole, large Agra-growers are more concerned with packing, shipping and extending the shelf life of their products. And some have gone as far as to 'engineer' new strains of fruits and vegetables that are insect and weed resistant or provide higher levels of vitamins, altering the genetic 'blueprint' of our natural crop base.

According to a recent posting by Whole Foods, "the percentage of genetically engineered crops grown in the United States has increased to 25 percent, including 35 percent of all corn, 55 percent of all soybeans, and nearly half of all the cotton." The folks at Whole Foods go on to claim, "Through this technology, scientists have created tomatoes with a longer shelf life by adding flounder genes, soybeans that are resistant to weed killers, potatoes that produce their own pesticides, and potatoes with jellyfish genes that glow in the dark when they need water."

A sure-fire easy way to avoid consuming these genetically modified fruits and vegetables is to shop the way your great grandmother did - Buy Fresh, Eat Local.

Small farms are more likely to grow a wide variety of crops, which protects biodiversity and preserves a larger agricultural gene pool. If you need another good reason to Buy Fresh, Eat Local, think of the carbon footprint created when food is transported great distances. Local foods are defined as products grown within a 100 to 200 mile radius of where they are delivered. Non- local grocery produce travels very long distances by truck and plane to sit in warehouses before gracing your produce aisles and eventually hitting your plate.

The days are getting longer and warmer and if you're like most of us, you're eager to get outdoors and shake off the weariness of winter. Before you hit the pavement and kick your exercise routine into high gear, be sure to warm up your muscles and stretch yourself into shape.

Spring injuries are easy to come by and common among the overly zealous eager to tear up the basketball or tennis court once the sun warms the great outdoors. They fail to ease their way into shape and end up pulling a hamstring the first day out. No matter how limber you were last Fall, chances are the winter months have whittled away a good portion of that and you've got to rebuild your stamina, endurance and flexibility.

Ask any fitness trainer and they will tell you to not scrimp on your stretching. But before you hit the mats, you need to warm up your muscles to avoid unnecessary injury to your ligaments or tendons. The best way to do that is to take a five to 10 minute walk, pumping your arms as you go.

Ease into your stretching routine slowly and remember to take deep breaths through your nose and exhale through your mouth. Ample oxygen flow will keep you from getting dizzy and feed oxygen to your bloodstream. Let your muscles lengthen slowly and hold each stretch at least 20-30 seconds. As a rule, a pulling sensation and mild discomfort that eases as you stretch is normal. Don't force your muscles if you feel strain. Stop if you feel pain. Overextending your joints can cause injury and won't help with flexibility.

Remember, stretching is a form of passive exercise and like all exercise, it's important to keep your body properly hydrated. Be sure to stretch all your muscle groups in balance from left to right and back to front - if you stretch the front of your thighs (quadriceps), take time to stretch the back of the thighs (hamstrings) as well. Stretch your whole body, your arms, back, neck, and torso, not just your legs. Avoid the temptation to bounce a stretch - it shortens your muscles instead of lengthening them and is less effective. Maintain good posture and, when you can, set your shoulders back and head straight.

You may already know the benefits of stretching prior to your workout but a lesser known technique is to stretch once again after a workout to warm down and release the tension in your muscles that build up during your workout.

And lastly, stretching while in the shower is also a great way to limber up. As long as you are careful to watch your footing, you can stretch your neck, bend over and slowly touch your toes, and one by one bend your knees. As your body temperature warms from the shower, your muscles become more pliable and you can stretch with the aid of therapeutic warm water.

The benefits of stretching are tenfold. You'll be more flexible, increase your range of motion, promote circulation, and prevent those pesky joint strains that keep you watching your favorite sports from the sidelines - so be smart and stretch.

Two John Jay College students visited the Nassau University Medical Center to meet with support services staff and tour the hospital. The met in the Emergency Operations Center for most of the day, discussing topics of interest to them: fire response, fire alarm systems, training, security protocols, security safeguards, safety, hazardous materials,  generators, incident command operations, drills, events, decontamination, lock down, response and planning for Hurricane Sandy and all issues related to the surge of patients.

At last, a public employee union that understands it must keep the golden goose alive.