Modern Day Sex Ed: Google

I have not written anything on my blog in a few months. Life has been extremely busy (and on the not-so-busy days, I have opted to just take my down time to rest up). Big changes are coming my way! I am starting a Masters in Public Health at UC Berkeley in about one week, as part of the "Health and Social Behavior" cohort. I am both excited and nervous as I prepare for this next journey! And I am ready to get back at it with the writing!

One topic I have had on my mind lately is internet boundaries for youth. I wrote a few posts that were somewhat tangential to this issue a while back, such as the one about cyber bullying and the one about limiting the content I access personally.

Recently, however, I feel like the topic of sexuality and sexual education via the internet has been swirling all around me. Just a few days ago, I read a very important blog post titled, "Three Things You Don't Know About Your Children and Sex," by Ann Marie Miller. (Note that this post is so popular that you may get an error if you are trying to access it at pique times.) The main point I gleaned from the article is that today, when kids don't know what a word means at school, they simply Google it. And guess what that exposes them to? Pornography. Maybe even pornography showing types of sex you and I have never heard of.

Source: http://www.techaddiction.ca/children-and-technology.html

I remember being in 5th grade many years ago when my friends were cracking jokes about "sixty-nine-ing." I pretended like I knew what they were talking about and laughed along. Later, I privately asked a friend what it meant, and she just said, "Think about it. 69. Get it?" My guess is that she did not know either.

But it was not just among my friends where this sort of perplexing situation happened. In 7th grade health class, we were learning about sexually transmitted diseases and other topics of "safe sex." The teacher said in class that "one possible consequence of anal sex is a ripped anus." At that age, I was embarrassed that I did not know what an anus was (note for those wondering - it's your butt), and I never asked a soul. I just made something up in my mind about what it might be (incorrectly) and moved along. Somewhere between then and probably 9th grade, I heard the real meaning in passing, but I know I went quite a while not knowing.

Now imagine if this had happened to me today. Imagine that as a 5th grader I searched for the meanings of those words on the internet. What would almost certainly come up first would be pornography depicting these acts, and I would be exposed to graphic content by no intent of my own. Hopefully, you get the picture.

Am I saying that anal sex or the 69 sex position are inherently wrong or "dirty?" Absolutely not! I believe that in the context of a consensual adult relationship, two people can discuss between themselves what is safe, respectful, and pleasurable, and no two relationships will look exactly the same on that front. What I do think is wrong, however, is a child searching the internet with little other context in which to discuss or understand sex, and coming to believe that various sex acts or attitudes they encounter are the norm for all couples. Or a child becoming addicted to the online images they see, such that they become desensitized to real future partners. Especially during the extremely formative developmental years, children may come to believe that they should "expect" certain acts, responses, grooming habits, etc. from future partners, and that can be extremely damaging to real life relationships, where very rarely does a partner fulfill every imaginable fantasy on demand.

I want to preface the rest of this post by saying that I am aware that many of the opinions expressed in this post are informed by my faith as an evangelical Christian and by my identity as a woman, through which I have come to believe that pornography is damaging to the sexual and emotional health of any person, regardless of age. I am also aware that intelligent, loving people may disagree with me when it comes to adult consumption of adult content. However, I hope that we can put aside our differences about the more controversial topic of adult viewership and still agree that consumption of adult content by young children is of actual consequence to their social, emotional, sexual, mental, and physical well-being. Young brains and bodies are just not at the same stages of development as those of an adult.

Although any type of pornography can be scary, confusing, or damaging to a child, I think it is worthwhile to point out that pornography today may be different than what you thought of twenty years ago when you came across your friend's dad's magazine in his basement. Some of the main differences are (1) an endless and constantly available supply, (2) an ability to search for any type of pornography until a person finds exactly what he/she is looking for, (3) the anonymity of viewing internet pornography (versus purchasing it in a store), and (4) perhaps most importantly, the content available and popular today, which often includes violent or fetishist acts. Although there have not been many studies to date directly addressing childhood pornography viewing, many psychologists will talk about their own clinical experiences of the types of damage done to their young clients, as discussed in this article from ABCnews. Additional information can be found on this page by ProtectKids.com, this fact sheet by the Coalition to Prevent Child Sexual Abuse and Exploitation, and many other informative sites that you will encounter with a simple Google search of "Damage of Pornography to Kids." Among the short-term and long-term concerns listed are impairment in developing real-life friendships and romantic relationships, unrealistic depictions of sex in a real relationship, unrealistic views of body image, violent images leading to violent in-person gender relations, a psychological separation of sex from emotional intimacy, expectations of fetishist acts from real life future partners, a sense of pressure to perform sexual acts that are uncomfortable or unwanted, addiction, acting out sexual acts on other children or generally engaging in sexualized behavior at a young age, normalizing sexually abusive scenarios, and normalizing adult/child sexual relations (if a child stumbles across pornography involving minors), among many other possible negative outcomes.

So how do we protect our children?

My mom did have a few sex talks with me, and my parents tried to be open and available for me when I needed them. I really believe that I grew up in a great household with wonderful, loving, supportive parents. But even so, my young mind thought I should be afraid to ask them what terms like "69" and "anal sex" meant (and maybe they would not have even known themselves about some of the terms I heard floating around the halls of school.) In her post, Ann Marie Miller talks about how children and parents need to have an ongoing dialogue about sex, not just a single moment of discussion. (Unfortunately, many parents do not even have that one talk.) There is no guarantee that your child will open up to you, of course, but starting those discussions early, as children become aware of their sexuality over time, raises the chances that if something does happen, be it around them, to them, or by them, they are more likely to feel safe confiding in you (or talking with another trusted adult), should they feel they need to.

Ann Marie Miller also points out that many parents think their child is the exception, but Miller says that parents just need to get that out of their heads. You may have great internet controls at home, and you may not provide internet access without parental involvement yourself, but chances are, some (maybe a large) proportion of your child's friends have smart phones, tablets, etc. that they carry around without those same protections. Even when I was growing up without any of that technology around, I had heard a surprisingly wide array of sexual information on the elementary playground, often completely unsolicited. Any child, of any age, of any race, of any socioeconomic background, of any religious upbringing can hear confusing words at school, can be exposed to pornography, can be molested by a trusted adult or stranger, can end up with deep sexual secrets that they are afraid to tell you or that may affect them for years to come.

Source: http://adage.com/article/adagestat/25-toddlers-a-smartphone/229082/

A few months ago, I read a book about pornography addiction called, "The Porn Trap: The Essential Guide to Overcoming Problems Caused by Pornography," by Larry and Wendy Maltz. The book is very educational and talks about the personal damage, relational havoc, professional embarrassment, and other trials that pornography can escort into our lives. It also talks about steps to seek help and to get out of the addiction. I wanted to read about the topic, because I personally know a LOT of people (mostly Christians who have confided in me), both male and female, who have struggled with secret pornography obsessions at one point or another. I myself had viewed it for a period of several months in college, at a time which I would describe as the last step in a series of escalating issues I was handling poorly. I would say my own experiences were addictive to some extent, as it is difficult not to get addicted to something that releases so many pleasurable hormones into your system. At the height of my viewership habit, I found myself actually getting annoyed with good friends when our social plans interfered with my desire to view pornography. As it turns out, this is a very common experience! Yet thankfully, I believe God intervened when I had a life-changing moment during which I decided to put it away forever and never turned back. Sometimes I wonder how deeply I would be entrenched today if that change never happened. In reading the Maltzs' book, I wanted to understand more about the psychological underpinnings of pornography addiction and the best ways to respond to and support the recovery of my friends who are in the middle of it right now.

Does everyone who views pornography get addicted? No. But it is still a very real concern. Consider this: According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, of those who use heroine, it is estimated that 23% become dependent. That means 77% of people who try heroine have no problem with addiction, yet I would never recommend it to anyone I know. One might consider pornography in a similar light. The risk of addiction is real, and the relational risks, even apart from addiction, are also very real. Will everyone who looks at porn experience negative consequences? Maybe not. But do you want to leave that to chance with young children, who are particularly vulnerable? According to many surveys, children ages 11-17 are the biggest viewers of pornography, and about 70% of people say their pornography viewing is a secret. For more specific information about how pornography can actually be not just psychologically, but actually physiologically (body chemistry) addicting, check out this video series about the brain on pornography.

One of the most interesting (and scary) things I learned from "The Porn Trap" is that most people who do develop pornography addictions had their first exposure in elementary school, often times accidentally. And the exact age of first exposure is getting younger and younger with the widespread availability of internet access.

Couple this with the evidence presented in "Cinderella Ate My Daughter," by Peggy Orenstein, that we live in a culture which is sexualizing children in advertising all around us (for a recent example, read about the controversy over Victoria's Secret tween advertising), and you have a recipe for a generation of children experiencing sexuality in ways that you and I hardly had to worry about until our teen years or adulthood.

I highly recommend that you read Ann Marie Miller's entire post about the "Three Things You Don't Know About Your Children and Sex," as you may be surprised by what you read. Personally, I believe that even those of us without children need to be aware of what youth face today, as we may find ourselves mentoring youth who want to talk to us, or we may even know people in our adult lives who have had some of these experiences and need help to deal with them.

We definitely need to protect children from things that their young minds were not meant to process, so I am in no way saying that we should intentionally introduce our children to words or acts that are beyond their years. But no matter how hard we try, we simply cannot protect them from everything and everyone out there. They are highly susceptible to seeing, hearing, or personally experiencing something that you would never have wanted them to know at their age. The question is, to whom will they be ready to turn when this happens? Personally speaking, I would rather a child ask me what "anal sex" is than be so afraid of my reaction that they believe an internet search is their only option. For many children, if a loving and non-condemning adult does not listen and/or answer their questions, someone or something will, and it may be a frightening or inappropriate experience for them. In an age when more kids know how to use a smart phone than know how to tie their shoes, let's commit to being as educated and as open as possible, so that when youth do have questions or confusing experiences, they know that we (as parents, grandparents, friends, mentors, pastors, teachers, counselors, etc.) are there to listen and to help.

Cyber Bullying: Beyond the Edges of the Computer Screen

I mentioned cyber bullying briefly in my last post on teen dating violence. Coincidentally, I have seen a number of articles on bullying since then, so I want to add my thoughts with a bit more depth to the bullying conversation.

One of the particularly challenging aspects of bullying today is cyber-bullying, in part because it was not even around when many of the parents of today attended school. For the sake of this discussion, I will more broadly define cyber bullying as harassment or humiliation involving the use of modern technologies, such as cell phones (including text messages, photos, or phone calls) or computers (including email, websites, or social media).

In particular, I want to address one of the main themes I have seen in the comments after the bullying articles I have read lately. Many adults have responded to this outcry against bullying with comments about America "going soft." These posters say things like, "students need to hit bullies back," and simply "shut off the computer." One poster, who called himself or herself "Pork Earmarks" went so far as to respond to someone's personal testimony about cyber bullying by saying, "You can't be cyberbullied. Period." This skeptical individual continued to explain that comments made on facebook are not worth anything, because they are not verbal and may not even be sent directly to the individual being insulted; therefore, in this person's opinion, they are not part of "real life."

Image source: http://cyberbullying.us/2007_charts/cyberbullying_how_victims_felt_2007.JPG

There are so many things that immediately jump out at me when I read comments like this. Here are a few:

• The first is that I believe responses like this one are most likely to be made by those who did not grow up with the pervasive influence of technology in their childhoods and who do not understand how far-reaching its effects can be. A lot has changed in the last twenty years. The online world becomes increasingly intertwined with "the real world" with every day that passes. As you may know from previous posts, I do advocate for keeping oneself away from sites that trigger negativity (and I practice this personally). But when it comes to bullying, many individuals, both child and adult, who have experienced cyber-harassment will know that simply turning off the machine will not fix everything. This can be true even if the bully is a complete stranger and may be even more true if the cyber bully is a person also known personally outside of the cyber experience.
• Secondly, comments like the one above perpetuate the myth that verbal and emotional abuse are not truly hurtful. This person erroneously assumes that because someone is not being physically assaulted, there is no damage done. Remarks made in writing or online, as well as those delivered in person, can cut to the heart emotionally, elicit genuine fear in the victim, and leave a lasting psychological imprint. Get with the times and acknowledge that verbal abuse is real abuse.
• Thirdly, for those who advocate physical retaliation against bullies, even though I am not a proponent of violence, I am not going to say that there is categorically no instance where that can work. But at the very least, I can name many situations where it is not effective. First of all, if the identity of the online harasser is unknown, there is no one to attack. Furthermore, bullies often prey on those who they perceive as weaker and therefore unable to fight back (or they may work in packs). Additionally, even if further cyber activity is halted by punching a bully in the school hallways, the genius of the internet is that once something is put out there, it usually cannot be taken back. If an embarrassing photo is circulating the internet, for example, even if the original photo is taken down, copies of that image can continue multiplying through cyberspace and are nearly impossible to track and remove. Once the damage is done, it can continue indefinitely. Furthermore, as stated in point two, physically assaulting a bully to prevent future attacks does not remove the ongoing psychological effects of past verbal abuse or rumors circulating the school.
• Additionally, the social experiences of children and teens are extremely important and formative, and young brains are simply not wired to handle pressures the same way as adult brains. Asking a twelve year old to respond to bullying as if their sense of self was as developed as that of a forty-two year old simply does not make sense or align with the real experiences of that child.
• Beyond that, even adults handle social challenges in a variety of ways, depending on personality and life experience. I know that I personally would love to shrug off every naysayer I meet, and I have worked hard to develop a thicker skin over the years, but even so, I have had tremendously damaging and emotional interactions with people who took hurtful comments too far (both in person and through email). In general, I think that suggesting every single person should be able to "ignore" harassment in the same way one person does shows a profound lack of empathy for those who experience the world differently than the individual prescribing this course of action.

2010

Image source: http://cyberbullying.us/2010_charts/cyberbullying_gender_2010.jpg

2008

Image source: http://cyberbullying.us/2007_charts/cyberbullying_gender_victimization_2007.JPG

Even as an adult, I notice that I encounter negative and what I would call "bullying" remarks in the comment threads of reputable news organizations on a near daily basis. This tells me that bullying behavior is a pervasive part of our online culture. Luckily, I have a more mature hold on my feelings and greater security in my relationships than I did when I was 14, and perhaps more importantly, I don't have to go to school the next day with the posters of these insulting remarks. But especially for children and teens who have to face their online tormentors in person, the bullying doesn't stop at the edge of the computer screen.

I remember in high school (ten+ years ago), one of my best friends received an email containing song lyrics from another girl, with really mean words and phrases highlighted in bold. Sure, my friend was able to delete the email, but those words were etched in her mind, and she still had to see the sender every day in class and on her sports team. I also dated an extremely nice guy who was called a "fag" on internet message boards by "popular" people he barely knew. Of course, he was confident that his friends all loved him, and he generally did not have to hang out with the jerks around school, but it was still emotionally hurtful and personally shocking to know that those messages were being broadcast about him. I myself was the subject of speculation about my sexual experiences as a freshman in high school, because, as one person put it, "What else would you be doing when you go to someone's house after school?" I was also criticized behind my back for being open about my Christian faith throughout high school. Sure, those things didn't change the reality of who I was or what I did, but they still hurt. And truth be told, my twelve year old self probably made some comments through AOL instant messenger that were more hurtful than I ever would have said in person.

As prevalent as these behaviors were when the internet was just gaining popularity in my teen years, unfortunately, these types of experiences are becoming even more common today. My family got our first home computer when I was in middle school; flip phones were the new cool thing to get when I started driving as a teenager (yep, my first cell phone at 16); and facebook only came out during my senior year of high school and required a college email address to join at that time. Students today have smart phones, internet access, social media profiles, etc. available to them nearly all the time and from a very young age. Even if your child doesn't have those things, chances are, a number of their peers do. The below chart of teen technology usage is based on a 2010 study of over 4000 teenagers in the southern United States. A 2011 Pew Research study showed that 95% of teenagers use the internet and a full 80% of those online participated in social media sites. These numbers continue to rise rapidly, as has the switch in the last two years from standard cell phones to smart phones, which provide 24/7 internet access (with more than half of cell phones in the U.S. being smart phones as of May 2012). All that is to say, these 2010 numbers are a good guide post and show the prevalent use of technology among teens, but keep in mind that almost all of the below values are undoubtedly markedly higher today in 2013.

Image source: http://www.cyberbullying.us/2010_charts/teen_tech_use_2010.jpg

In many of the articles I have seen this week, students tell stories of other students creating fake profile pages on social media sites, where they use the pages to spread lies or make malicious comments. This is a completely new form of bullying that very few parents today would have experienced. In these instances, the victim does not even have to be involved with an online presence at all, yet rumors and negativity can follow the student to school in ways beyond their control. Telling the victim of this type of bullying to simply "keep away from the computer" is like telling your child to just "cover their ears" when a bully is insulting them in person. Sure, the sound will be a lot quieter, but it doesn't change the child's internal knowledge that someone is hurling insults his or her way and that other peers are well aware of what is being said.

Image source: http://www.callnerds.com/what-is-cyber-bullying/

As you can see from the above charts, studies differ on the exact frequency of cyber bullying experiences. Yet all paint the picture that cyber bullying is all too common. The growth of cyber bullying has added many new layers to the childhood social experience, enabling attackers to spread gossip, inappropriate pictures, and threats to a much wider audience than in past. Cyber bullying can also help attackers maintain a level of anonymity not previously available, and even when not anonymous, technology can provide a certain "distance" from the comments being made (since the bully doesn't have to directly confront the victim to his or her face.) The psychological scars of cyber harassment are just as real as those that come from being slammed against a locker, and I am truly alarmed by the lack of understanding around the effects of verbal/emotional abuse in our culture.

Let's start a conversation about bullying where we come to the table acknowledging that our childhood experiences were different than those of children today. Let's listen and show empathy for the experiences of those who have been victimized and those who have bullied others (often the same children). Then we may have a real chance at understanding what cyber bullying is doing in our schools today.

For more information on teen internet usage, check out the Pew Research Center. For more information on cyber bullying, visit the websites of the Cyber Bullying Research Center or STOP Cyberbullying.

Final (Belated) Cambodia Update

Letter co-written by Matthew & Kristen Campbell

Dear Friends,

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year from the Bay Area! We wanted to (finally) write to give an update about our trip to Cambodia this past summer. We really appreciate your prayers and support and want to let you know about how God is working in Cambodia and in us.

Our experiences on this twelve-day trip included some light-hearted ones in which we experienced some interesting aspects of Cambodian culture, and others which broke our hearts as we learned about some of Cambodia’s violent history.  On a lighter cultural note, we both tried fried tarantula (Matthew popped a whole spider in his mouth just like the picture of our friend Mark to the left!), and we each had a bite of durian cake, which is made from a notoriously stinky fruit. We also learned how silk is made by hand!

Perhaps the deepest impressions, however, were left by our visits to the Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum and the killing fields, as we learned that around 25%-35% of the population of Cambodia was killed during the Khmer Rouge regime of the 1970’s. At the start of the regime, all of the cities were evacuated, with people being told they could return home in a few days. In reality, families were forced into years of agricultural labor in the countryside, with the hope of developing a Communist agrarian society. Intellectuals, doctors, teachers, monks, even those who wore glasses (which were believed to represent education, wealth, or elitism), as well as anyone who opposed the regime leader (Pol Pot), were killed as enemies of the state. At Tuol Sleng prison (a former school), people were interrogated and tortured, sometimes by soldiers as young as twelve years old, and then taken to the countryside to be brutally murdered and left in mass graves (which are known as the killing fields). Out of nearly 20,000 people that went through Tuol Sleng, there were only seven survivors. Moreover, Tuol Sleng is just one of many interrogation prisons that were located throughout the country. Many other Cambodians who were not killed directly died of disease or starvation due to harsh working and living conditions in the countryside. The individuals who lived through this experience are now the parents and grandparents of today, and we learned that this historical backdrop is an important part of understanding the problem of human trafficking in Cambodia.

So what did we actually do in Cambodia? We primarily partnered with Agape International Missions (AIM) to run “Kids’ Club” at the Rahab’s House community center in a town called Svay Pak.  This town is known to be a “destination location” for pedophiles. At Kid’s Club, we sang songs, danced, told Bible stories with puppets, and did arts and crafts with the children. We were told that five years ago, nearly every one of the of the children in Svay Pak was being trafficked (sold for prostitution).  The very community center where we were holding Kid’s Club was a former brothel of underage prostitution that AIM and International Justice Mission (IJM) helped to shut down. Today, due to the work of a variety of nonprofit organizations, children in this town are much less likely to be abused; however, more work is left to be done.  The pastor at a new church in this village knew for certain that 17 girls in attendance at Kids’ Club were being trafficked. This represents tremendous progress, yet it was still heart-breaking to know that some of the six to twelve-year-old girls sitting in front of us were being forced to have sex with adult men (many of them “sex tourists” from the West) on a nightly basis.

In addition to Kids’ Club, we had time each day to use our individual gifts to assist AIM in a variety of ways. AIM recognizes that child sex trafficking is a complex issue requiring a multi-faceted solution, so they have a wide variety of ministries attacking the problem. For example, AIM runs a gym where pimps and traffickers can mingle with aid workers. As a result, some of these pimps and traffickers have renounced their former ways and are helping to turn other perpetrators around. Some of the men from our team got to spend time at the gym with the traffickers and have conversations with them.

Another important aspect of AIM’s ministry is the development of fair trade factories that provide formerly trafficked women (once they are sixteen years or older) with training in a trade.  One of the problems with child sex trafficking is that those who are rescued may feel that they have no skills besides prostitution, and ultimately believe they have no choice but to return to sex work for “good pay” or find work in a sweat shop for insufficient income. AIM is providing an alternative by opening factories that pay fair wages and provide a work environment which is much safer than most alternatives. These factories provide a living wage, family-style lunch, free child care, and one hour of education to workers each day. So far AIM has opened one factory and is aiming to have ten factories running within two years. Many members of our team had the opportunity to visit the first factory, and some members of our team used their experience in fashion design to consult on the clothing patterns being used, the methods of sewing being employed, the quality check processes, and the layout/design ideas. We also feel hopeful that over time, through both national economic change and through the education AIM is providing to the rescued women and to the children of Svay Pak, young people may have (and create) an even wider variety of economic opportunities in future. Perhaps some of the children we met will fill the vast gaps left by the Khmer Rouge regime's systematic extermination of the nation's professionals decades ago.

AIM also runs a school for grades K-12 and pays for the most promising students to attend local private schools after grade six. The students and teachers were eager to learn, and this is where we were able to help! It is a special treat for the students to attend arts classes between all of their academic study time. Matthew taught guitar classes every day for several hours, and Kristen taught a liturgical dance class. The Sunday before we left, one student played a guitar song during church, and the dance class (equal parts male and female) performed a worship dance in the Sunday service.

In between the Kids’ Club activities each day at AIM, our team also drove to several factories in the area, which manufacture bricks, to distribute clothing we had collected for the children. Some of these kids take a van to Kids’ Club every day, and they are easily identified by their extremely dirty clothing and their penchant to fall asleep, even during loud singing. These children live in one-room shacks and squalor, and many help their families make bricks in dangerous working conditions. Their joy at receiving the packages of clothing was tremendous, yet our hearts were heavy to know that their needs remain great each and every day.

Towards the end of our time in Cambodia, we had the opportunity to visit Agape Restoration Center, a home run by AIM for rescued victims of child sex trafficking. We planned a luau-themed party for the girls there, including a lunch together, nail and face painting, games, and more. It was a lot of fun, and it was very special getting to see how resilient these young women are!

Throughout the week, we also dropped in on some other organizations that are fighting trafficking in Cambodia, including Hagar International, International Justice Mission, and Bloom Asia (a cake business in Phnom Pehn—the capital city—employing formerly trafficked women). They explained some of the ongoing challenges, such as underage prostitution moving “underground” in recent years as a result of the success in shutting down child brothels. While the brothel closings show progress is being made, the underground activity is much more difficult to prosecute, and corruption remains rampant in Cambodia’s law enforcement. Despite these difficulties, we also felt encouraged as they shared about how each of their organizations is uniquely contributing to end child sex trafficking.

Overall, we feel that God showed us a lot about what He is doing in Cambodia and how much is left to be done. After returning home and pushing through traveler’s sicknesses, we have had more time to process; indeed the experience was very inspiring and eye-opening. We feel confident that God is calling us to serve abroad for about two years when Matthew finishes his graduate school program, although at this point we are still not sure in what part of the world that might be.  As part of our discerning process, our plan is to make a short-term trip to another country this coming summer. Perhaps God will ultimately point us to a new place for our longer term service, or He may send us back to Cambodia!

Our team also shared responsibilities for keeping a group blog throughout the trip, which details our daily events: http://www.mppcmission.org/trips/cambodia/2012aug/index.htm Please feel free to contact us with any questions you may have, and thank you again for your prayers and support!

In Christ,

Kristen & Matthew Campbell

Marketing Veggies to Kids: X-Ray Vision Carrots and Dinosaur Tree Broccoli

It's been a while since I have written something new for the blog. Alas, I have been extremely busy. I do have some ideas bubbling in my brain that I plan to get on the page sooner or later. But today I read two short articles that deserve a quick mention, so I felt I had to write!

Researchers wondered whether the same marketing strategies that make kids enthusiastic about junk foods could also work for health foods. Based on a small scale study, it looks like the answer is a resounding yes!

In five local elementary schools, researchers David Just and Brian Wansink added carrots to the school menu for three consecutive days. On the first and third days, the carrots went unnamed on the lunch line. On the second day, however, researchers named the carrots "X-Ray vision carrots" at some locations and "food of the day" at others. The names did not change how many carrots were purchased, but they did have a tremendous impact on how many of those carrots actually got eaten.

When carrots were unnamed, 35% were eaten. When named "Food of the Day," 32% were eaten. When named "X-Ray vision carrots," 66% were eaten. The carrots with the fun name had nearly double the consumption rate of the unnamed carrots!

Another experiment compared two nearby New York City schools. For one month, both schools had vegetables with no names. In the second month, one school gave fun titles to carrots, green beans, and broccoli, while the other continued without naming the foods. In the school with the titles, vegetable sales nearly doubled (+99%), and in the school without the names, veggie sales actually decreased 16%.

As I have said before, correlation doesn't mean causation, and these were pretty small studies. At the same time, my intuition has me convinced already. It's pretty amazing that a no-cost method of advertising may have such a profound influence on kids. This also has potential implications for how parents may "market" nutritious foods in the home. The CNN article, for example, mentions a child whose parents encouraged him to pretend he was a dinosaur eating trees, and that helped him to eat more broccoli!

It remains to be seen whether this tactic would work longer term (once the initial excitement of a new vegetable name wears off). And of course, X-ray vision may not offer the same appeal to older children. But marketing tactics are used every day in other ads targeting a wide range of age groups, and brands are constantly reshaping their images for new and exciting advertising. I don't see why these methods could not be cleverly applied to vegetables, as well. Advertising professionals and shrewd parents - I see a new place you can make an impact for the good!


Article Sources:

• http://foodpsychology.cornell.edu/outreach/whatname.html
• http://thechart.blogs.cnn.com/2012/09/28/want-kids-to-eat-veggies-try-a-good-marketing-plan/?hpt=he_c2

Further Reading:

• http://foodpsychology.cornell.edu/pdf/pre-prints/Restaurants-2005.pdf

Photo credit:

• http://roastedcarrots.net/

Cambodia Trip Update #3

We leave tonight for the airport and depart at 1:40am on our way to Cambodia. We are very excited! If you would like to follow our progress throughout the trip, you can read our team blog here: http://www.mppcmission.org/trips/cambodia/2012aug/index.htm

Also, for anyone still interested in supporting our trip financially, Matthew and I are fully funded. However, one of the members of our team, Kasey Van Ostrand, is still raising support. She is a recent graduate still looking for work, so I know that any financial support raised will be very helpful for her. To support her, go to this link and click "donate here." Then select her name from the drop-down. http://www.mppc.org/calendar/cambodia-mission-trip

Thank you all for your prayers and support!

Cambodia Trip Update #2

It is hard to believe that Matthew and I have about one month left until our trip to Cambodia. Needless to say, we are getting tremendously excited!

We were very encouraged at our Cambodia team retreat by the relationships being formed, the information we learned, and the planning for our service to the community. There is still a lot of work to be done, as some of our members prepare original child-geared lesson plans, games, crafts, and skits for the week of kids' club. Matthew and our friend Joyce So are also leading the musical worship, so they are in the midst of choosing songs and learning them. (I am getting annoyingly familiar with the YouTube versions of a number of child songs as Matthew picks them out on his guitar nightly.)  Personally, I am part of the team that is planning a party for rescued girls at the rehabilitation house and have been put in charge of decorations. (I would love suggestions for how to play up our Hawaiian Luau theme!) Once we get to Cambodia, all team members will participate in the various activities, but these are just the groups that have been assigned to do the preparation work. We got a good start on planning activities during the team retreat, but we all have to step up our game to make sure everything is ready before we go!

Please pray for continued team unity, effectiveness in planning and ministry, full financial funding for all of our team members, and growing hearts for the people of Cambodia.

We were also recently blessed by our bible study small group when one of our members/friends organized a get-together to share our hearts, discuss the details of the trip, and gain additional supporters. Our friends asked a lot of good questions and prayed over us in a meaningful and special way. We also had a lot of fun sharing a delicious potluck dinner and just hanging out with the people we have come to love in the Bay Area.

And in other news....Praise God! Shortly after the dinner with our friends, Matthew and I got word that we are fully funded at $5,800! Thank you so much for making this mission trip possible with your generosity and prayers!

For anyone who is still interested in partnering with us, please let me know, and I can add you to our list of prayer partners. Additionally, any extra funds raised by us above and beyond our personal fundraising goal will go to other members of our team who do not meet their respective fundraising goals.

We also have a dear friend, Joyce So, who is going on the trip with us, and she is still raising support. (She is the friend I mentioned above who is in charge of the music with Matthew. She is also a former teacher and is largely heading up the curriculum design for the kids' club.) If you had been thinking about donating but missed the boat before we were fully funded, please prayerfully consider directing funds her way! If you would like to make a contribution online, you can do so through our church's website. (Go to this red link, select "Donate Here," and choose Joyce So from the drop-down names.) Alternatively, if you would like to mail a check, please send it to MPPC Mission Dept. / Cambodia STM Trip / 950 Santa Cruz Ave. / Menlo Park, CA 94025 with a note indicating that it applies to Joyce So.

We have our vaccines done, our funds raised, and our detail planning in process. Now, we are just getting very excited to be on the ground in Cambodia! Thank you all so much for your prayers, encouragement, and financial partnership. And thank you for continuing to support us; we could not do this without you!

Cambodia Trip Update

Hello Friends!

Matthew and I wanted to provide an update on our progress toward the Cambodia Mission Trip, which I wrote about in more detail in a previous blog post. To summarize, we will be traveling to Cambodia August 15-17 to work with Agape International Missions around the issue of child sex trafficking in Svay Pak.

This weekend we are meeting with our team for a retreat to plan out activities for the trip and to spend time in prayer. As we pull away to prepare this weekend, you can be praying for us. Please pray that we would be productive in terms of planning, that the Lord would soften our hearts for the people we will be serving in Cambodia, and also that He would build a spirit of unity among the members of our team.

As far as support raising goes, thanks to generous donations from friends and family, we are funded at 27% of our $5,800 total goal, and we have a little over one month left to go. If you are considering partnering with us financially but have questions or concerns, please reach out to us. We are trusting the Lord to raise up a team of individuals who are passionate about justice and who long to see God's love reach all corners of this world.

Just to repeat some earlier information, our deadline for contributions is July 31. If you would like to make a contribution online, you can do so through our church’s website (go to this red link and then select “Donate Here”). Alternatively, if you would like to mail a check, please send to MPPC Mission Dept. / Cambodia STM Trip / 950 Santa Cruz Ave. / Menlo Park, CA 94025 with a note indicating that it applies to Matthew and Kristen Campbell.

Thanks again for your partnership and continued prayers!

Sincerely,
Matthew and Kristen Campbell

Cambodia Mission Trip

Dear Friends,

I am writing to tell you about an incredible opportunity my husband and I have to go to Cambodia this summer.

After Matthew has completed his degree (likely 2014), we believe that God is calling us to spend a couple of years serving abroad in missions. In the meantime, we are hoping to learn more about various parts of the world that interest us and to explore important issues that move our hearts, so that we can discern where God wants us to go and what He wants us to do when the time comes.

From August 15 - 27, we are thrilled to be taking a break from our typical routine to go on a short term mission trip to Svay Pak, Cambodia with a group from Menlo Park Presbyterian Church. We will be partnering with Agape International Mission in Svay Pak, a humanitarian organization founded in 1989 that focuses on preventing child sex trafficking and restoring hope to its victims. This is done through a holistic strategy of preventing the problem, rescuing the enslaved, restoring the broken, and equipping the Church so that sex-trafficking can be eliminated forever. You can learn more about the organization at http://agapewebsite.org. 

As you may know from previous blog posts, I believe that human trafficking is linked to human health in a profound way, affecting both the physical and emotional well being of its victims, particularly if those exploited are children. Svay Pak, the village where we will spend most of our time, is considered a notorious brothel district and a "destination location" for pedophiles, located a short drive outside the capital of Cambodia. Over the last five years, the government of Cambodia, assisted by a number of NGO's (such as International Justice Mission), has successfully shut down some of the brothels in the area that exploit children as young as five years old. Yet much is left to be done to eliminate this practice and to restore the community. It is believed that approximately one third of the prostitutes in Svay Pak are under age 18 and that as many as half are infected with HIV. Our friends who have gone to Svay Pak in past years have reported that pimps could sometimes be seen openly waiting outside the kids' club for the songs and games to be over in order to pick up the girls they traffick.

Our group will work with Agape to put on a daily kids’ club for the children of Svay Pak (where kids can just be kids), to plan a celebration at Agape’s safe house for recovering victims, to teach computer or other skills with which we have been gifted, to encourage those who are ministering in Svay Pak already, and to otherwise meet any needs of the community as we are able during our stay. And of course, we will be traveling not just to give to the community, but also to learn from the community - to build relationships, learn about the culture, understand their struggles, celebrate their strengths.

In order for us to go to Cambodia, we need to find a faithful group of people committed to praying for us before, during, and after the trip, in addition to raising approximately $2,900 each ($5,800 total) to pay for travel, lodging, and other ministry expenses. We would be honored if you would consider partnering with us on this mission to fight against human trafficking.

Would you be willing to join our prayer team and/or to support us financially? Donations are tax deductible, and any amount you are able to contribute is significant in helping us reach our fundraising goal. Donations can be made online at www.mppc.org/calendar/cambodia-mission-trip, or checks can be made out to Menlo Park Presbyterian Church and mailed to:

Menlo Park Presbyterian Church

Cambodia Missions Trip

950 Santa Cruz Ave.

Menlo Park, CA  94025

For checks, please include a separate note in the envelope indicating that it should be designated towards Matthew & Kristen Campbell for the Cambodia mission trip. All donations are non-refundable and must be received by the church before July 31, 2012 to go towards our trip. Any donations received after that date will not go towards our trip and will instead be used for other mission endeavors at the church.

Please do not hesitate to contact me with any questions you may have.

Sincerely,

Kristen Campbell




Photo credit: http://renewalfellowship.presbyterian.ca/channels/r10061-1.html

Court Appointed Special Advocates

Image Credit:
www.casaofsanmateo.org

If you have a heart for helping those in need, consider becoming a Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA) for a child in your area. In most regions, you may work with children who are either dependents of the court (abused/neglected) or delinquents (have broken the law). Many children fall under both categories.

What is a CASA? This is an adult who has been trained regarding the particular needs of children who have been abused or who have broken the law. The adult befriends a child and meets with him or her weekly to hang out, mentor, play, talk, or spend time in whatever capacity will benefit the child. This adult also has access to the child's full set of records (court, school, doctor, etc.); may discuss concerns with the other adults in the child's life (parents, foster parents, social workers, therapists, teachers, etc.); and advocates for the child in court by making recommendations in court reports and answering questions the judge may have during hearings.

Your investment in the life of a child can have a lasting impact on his or her current experience and future choices. In many cases, CASA's are one of the few consistent adults in the life of a child who has been let down countless times.

Check out the CASA program in your community! Click here for more information on becoming a CASA in the Bay Area. And feel free to contact me with any questions you may have.

Unanswered Questions: Baca Ortiz

What is the best thing for an under-funded hospital to do with the little money it receives? This was the question I first asked in 2007, when I was studying abroad in Quito, Ecuador. And I still do not feel that I have a suitable answer. This post is more of a description of my despairing feelings than an offer of solutions. I know that many readers do not like such a lament. But I truly don't have an answer. My hope is that this will at least cause others to ask the same questions, and perhaps it may even inspire a spark of innovation to find an answer.

During the fall of 2007, I had the chance to visit Baca Ortiz Children's Hospital in Quito, the premier children's hospital in the country. It is very difficult to find specific information about the hospital, so I have scraped up what little I could locate to provide a general picture. According to "Volunteers Abroad," Baca Ortiz was founded July 14, 1948. Approximately 140,000 children are treated at the hospital annually. Families come from around the country to the facility, because it offers specialized treatment that is not available in other regions.

The hospital has a paid staff of doctors and nurses, as well as a number of volunteers with a range of skills, from medical professionals, to individuals who visit with the children, to those who help fund raise for the most needy families.

Although Baca Ortiz receives funds from the government, it is significantly under-funded, and families are therefore required to pay for the treatment they receive at the facility.

Based on the accounts of my friend who volunteered at Baca Ortiz regularly and based on the information I received during my time there, the facility itself has so few resources that it cannot stock basic supplies, such as soap, toilet paper, bandages, or medicine to keep on-hand, unless these happen to have been recently donated. If a child is admitted to the facility, his or her family is responsible for providing soap, toilet paper, and other supplies for the child's room. If the child requires any sort of treatment, the family has to go to a local pharmacy and purchase bandages, sterilized surgical instruments, oxygen tubes, anesthetics, sanitizing agents, antibiotics, etc. There is no surplus to have these items readily available.

For many families, this simply means going without sufficient treatment. According to the CIA World Factbook, 33.1% of Ecuadorians live below the poverty line. Many more make enough to be deemed above the line, but are underemployed and still struggle to provide for their families on a daily basis. Additionally, income disparities are extremely pronounced between various regions of the country and between different racial groups.

Families are also provided meal tickets to eat in the hospital's cafeteria a certain number of times per week. For some, these are the only meals they will eat at all due to general poverty or due to the costs of traveling to the hospital and paying for treatment. However, my friend who volunteered handing out meal tickets told me that she frequently ran out before every family had received their share, as the hospital was extremely over-crowded (see the image of children being treated in the hallway on the right due to room shortages) and had a very limited budget to prepare a certain number of meals per week.

Some families have little hope of paying for treatment once they have received a diagnosis, and they go home without assistance. Others may gain funding through organizations that donate specifically for their treatment, such as The Mashi Foundation, which used social workers to identify ten children of highest priority and funded the surgeries for those children in 2010. Assuming that 33.1% of the 140,000 children who visit the hospital in a given year are impoverished, as is the case with the general population, that would be 46,000 impoverished children who come through the doors. Ten funded surgeries is an amazing thing, but it is astonishing to realize that the figure represents only 0.02% of children who are likely too poor to afford treatment at Baca Ortiz. My understanding is that such donated funding is sporadic, at best. Since the need for this type of financial intervention is so overwhelming, the situation is quite desperate and the poorest may never obtain the assistance they need.

After visiting Baca Ortiz, I felt disheartened and confused. Where should the hospital direct its scarce resources? Medicine for those who cannot otherwise purchase it, without which children will suffer from pain or parasites, possibly die from cancer or even treatable infections? Soap to prevent the spread of infection throughout the facility? (It was hard for me to imagine how a hospital functions without having medical supplies on hand, never mind free access to soap? The basic act of washing one's hands is crucial to the prevention of infection, yet some families have to choose between sanitation and medication.) What about meals for those who would not be able to afford a stay without the provision of this sustenance? Without the meal tickets, many families would not only be unable to afford treatment, but could not visit at all due to the extreme hardship it would pose.

I would be interested to hear if you know have ideas about how the hospital can best use its funds. What are ways this conundrum is being addressed in other nations? What has been proven to work? Do you have any novel ideas yourself?



Photo Credits:

• http://www.panoramio.com/photo/48910858
• http://www.trhf.org/Default.aspx?pageId=443933
• http://www.lahora.com.ec/index.php/noticias/show/1101273997/-1/M%C3%A9dicos_despedidos__a%C3%BAn_sin_reemplazos.html
• http://www.ecuavisa.com/index.php?Itemid=96&id=12943&option=com_content

Food Insecurity and Obesity in Children

After my posts on Jamie Oliver and McDonald's, a doctor I know asked me why so many of her young patients from lower income families are obese. "Many of these families struggle to provide three square meals a day," she said, "so where are the calories coming from?"

According to a 2010 Los Angeles Times article, which summarized a study from the journal Health Affairs, nearly one in three children currently has a body mass index above what is considered healthy. The study also found significant discrepancies between children of different racial groups, socioeconomic groups, and regions of the country. According to the article, these factors are not necessarily independent. For example, the article says, "In Alaska, poor children were only 1.2 times more likely to be overweight or obese than better-off children. But in Arizona, the difference in rates was 3.8. Why would it be different to be poor in Alaska than Arizona? That's basically what it amounts to - it's not the same being poor in one state as it is in another."

According to the Food and Research Action Center's (FRAC) page on poverty and obesity, "obesity rates increased ten percent for all U.S. Children ten to seventeen years old between 2003 and 2007, but by twenty-three percent during the same time period for low-income children."

One thing that is important to note is that the stereotype that virtually all low-income people are obese is not true. The Food and Research Action Center (FRAC) also shows that the link between income and obesity has actually been weakening over the past few decades. But the question still remains, why do the statistics show a link at all?

For answers, I turned to the FRAC page on food insecurity and obesity. Most of the information I am going to mention below is from this website, and the authors of the studies are specifically mentioned there. For me to put a citation after every sentence would make this post very long, so please refer to the FRAC food insecurity and obesity link for the authors of the studies and facts mentioned.

One of my friends, Sara, commented on my McDonald's post that many families live in "food deserts," which is actually one of the main points FRAC makes, as well. According to multiple studies, low-income neighborhoods often lack a full service grocery store where families can purchase fresh produce, whole grains, and low-fat dairy. Instead, many residents rely on small convenience stores, which do not carry the variety of healthy and low-fat options available in larger establishments. Low income communities, especially areas near schools, are also more likely to have fast food restaurants. Frequently eating fast food has been linked to high-calorie, low-nutrition diets, which may lead to weight gain.

According to other studies cited by FRAC, fruits and vegetables in low income neighborhoods are often of poorer quality, thus making it less likely that residents will be prone to purchase them. Furthermore, healthy food, such as fresh produce, whole grains, and low-fat options are often more expensive compared to more processed fats and sugars. Many families trying to stave off hunger look to purchase the maximum calories per dollar by buying energy-dense foods, which provide the calories a family needs, but not necessarily the other nutritional components of a healthy diet. "Feeling full" may be the priority for a family who is unsure when the next meal will be available, especially when it comes to preventing feelings of hunger in children. Carbonated beverages, such as soda, for example, will make a child "feel full," even if they do not provide any other nutritional value.

In addition, chronic ups and downs in the availability of food may encourage people to eat more when it is available. This can lead to general over-consumption or even metabolic changes that affect fat retention.

According to FRAC, the problem is not just about food consumption. Low income communities also have fewer resources for physical activity, such as parks and recreation centers. Even in communities that do have open space areas, they may be less attractive due to trash, noise, traffic, and criminal activity. It makes sense that parents would not want their children to play at the park in a particularly dirty or high-crime neighborhood. This puts children at a higher risk for staying indoors and living a sedentary lifestyle. According to other studies, lower income children are less likely to participate in organized sports or to have access to/participate in physical education classes and recess.

Additionally, the financial and emotional pressures of poverty may have a serious impact on both adults and children. Stress can contribute to unhealthful eating behaviors, hormonal/metabolic changes, and even chronic anxiety or depression, which have all been associated with adult and childhood obesity.

Many low income families also lack access to quality, affordable health care. Chronic illnesses that are related to obesity may not be diagnosed. Furthermore, families may not realize their child is overweight. For example, according to Strong4Life, an organization fighting childhood obesity in Georgia, 75% of parents of overweight or obese children in the state did not believe their child had a problem. I recently read an article saying that even among families who do have access to health care, less than 25% of parents of overweight or obese children recall a doctor telling them their child is overweight. If even medical professionals are unwilling to confront or acknowledge the issue, how can we expect households who have less access to health education and basic health care to recognize obesity and take action steps to prevent or correct it?

To me, the fact that obesity is inversely related to income is further support that the socioeconomic disparity in our society is not just a matter of money, but is linked to a complex set of dynamics that affect all aspects of life.

So what can be done to stave off the obesity epidemic in lower income communities in particular? I would suggest communities can start with the specific issues mentioned above, by bringing farmers markets to lower income neighborhoods, investing in community recreational centers and low/no-cost sports leagues, requiring schools to provide more hours of physical education, providing free health education for parents and kids, offering free classes on how to manage a tight food budget, focusing efforts on preventive health services (including attention given to decreasing stress), among other actions.

I have tried to lay out some of the reasons for the weight disparity, but I think it will take a lot of people with a lot of brain power to improve the health future of all our nation's children. If you have other ideas, please share!

Photo credits:

• http://www.knowabouthealth.com/common-cold-virus-ad-36-may-make-kids-fat/6527/
• http://lawblog.legalmatch.com/2011/08/04/3540/