June discussion to focus on eating disorders

Eating disorders are characterized by disturbing eating behaviors and are generally accompanied by a preoccupation with food and body image or shape. They include anorexia, bulimia and binge eating disorders.

One of the most common eating disorders is anorexia nervosa. Anorexia nervosa is an emotional “weight loss” disorder characterized by physical, social and psychological symptoms. Weight loss is achieved by a variety of obsessive behaviors. Most individuals with this disorder strongly deny it. A feeling of control is gained by severely restricting the amount of food eaten, and the ability to do without food is viewed as success in attempting to cope with life’s stresses.

Bulimia is an emotional “weight control” disorder characterized by episodes of binge eating followed by some form of purging or restriction. Binges are the secretive periods of rapid consumption of high-caloric food over a discrete period of time. Most bulimics follow bingeing with self-induced vomiting. However, the purging may take the form of laxative, emetic or diuretic abuse, excessive exercising or fasting. The binge-purge cycle is normally accompanied by self-deprecating thought, depression and an awareness that the eating disorder is abnormal and out of control. Because most bulimics are within a normal weight range, the illness may go undetected by others for years.

Binge eating is a disorder characterized by episodes of uncontrolled eating. Most binge eaters are obese and have a history of weight fluctuations. Co-occurring psychiatric illness is also common, especially depression. Binge eating disorders involve compulsive, uncontrolled eating and bingeing.

Every eating disorder can result in death; therefore, it should not be taken lightly. If you know or even suspect that a relative or friend has an eating disorder, you can help them overcome it. For a better understanding of the different types of eating disorders and how harmful they can be, I will be discussing what to look for and how you can help someone with an eating disorder.

The discussion will take place on June 6 from 6-7:15 p.m. at the Monmouth County Library Headquarters, Symmes Drive, Manalapan. Please call the Alliance at (732) 446-1417 to reserve a seat.

Lisa Harmon

Manalapan

Village would give residents a place to shop

I still can’t figure out why some people are against The Village at Manalapan planned for Route 33. I have lived in southern Manalapan for 27 years and have been hoping for a project just as this. The Village at Manalapan is something this town sorely needs. There is really no local place for people to go, other than to spend their days in strip malls on Route 9.

People are spending a lot of money to live in Manalapan. I think we all need to have a place to go that has a small-town character and gives us the ability to shop locally.

I think such a project is a financial benefit for Manalapan. Besides the revenue the town would get in property taxes and for road improvements, I think that people would be willing to pay a premium to live near that village. That means higher home values.

I urge people to learn more about this project as I have done and to consider the many benefits it can create for Manalapan.

Mary Richman

Manalapan

Thanks to Girl Scout troops for flowers

Upper Freehold Township’s Clean Communities would like to thank the Girl Scout Daisy Troops 422 and 1343 who planted flowers and two red maple trees donated by Princeton Nurseries at Byron Johnson Park for their community service hours on Earth Day (April 22).

Thank you to John Swanekamp from Kube Pack for donating the flowers to the park.

The girls were real troupers and planted the flowers despite the rainy weather. Also, we are grateful to the deputy mayor [William Miscoski] for coming out and encouraging the girls in this event.

Debbie Sopronyi

Upper Freehold Township

American Wetlands Month is being celebrated around the country

Lost among other spring events, the 15th annual American Wetlands Month is being celebrated with events around the country. If you don’t consider yourself an environmentalist (and maybe even a few of you who do) you may be tempted to roll your eyes. But as this year’s theme reminds us, “It Pays to Save Wetlands!”

When you hear “wetlands,” you may think of swampland. And you are correct … but wetlands include marshes, wet meadows, swamps, bogs and vernal habitats – each with their own distinct water and soil characteristics.

You can find wetlands all over New Jersey. As New Jersey gets closer to “build out,” protecting our remaining wetlands becomes even more important. Here’s why.

Wetlands protect and enhance our water quality. Wetlands filter pollution like sediments, toxins and excess nutrients. A similar filtration system built by humans would cost New Jersey millions of dollars … and we’d produce additional pollution!

Wetlands are irreplaceable as natural protection against flooding and storm damage. We have to look no further than this year’s floods to see the value of keeping these natural sponges intact!

As far back as 1980, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers estimated that over $13 million per year would be saved in flood damage by purchasing 13,000 acres of wetlands in the Passaic River basin.

Wetlands provide essential habitat for fish and wildlife. This is important for environmental stewardship, but we have learned over the years that even more is at stake. In 1991, the “dockside value” of fish landed in the United States was $3.3 billion. This formed the basis of a $26.8 billion fishery industry, employing hundreds of thousands of people. An estimated 71 percent of this value comes from fish that depend directly or indirectly on coastal wetlands at some point in their life cycle.

Wetlands also provide recreation for people. In New Jersey, the director of N.J. Audubon Society’s Cape May Bird Observatory, Dr. Paul Kerlinger, estimates that bird watchers spent well over $6 million in 1988 in Cape May County alone. Many of these birds depend on wetlands for food, shelter and nesting.

These are just a few of the benefits of wetlands that can be quantified. Many other benefits are harder to quantify.

For example, what’s the value of educational opportunities wetlands provide our children? Or how do we measure the worth of the medicinal elements in wetlands plants?

No matter how you look at it, the more we learn about them, the more it pays to save them.

Michele S. Byers

executive director

New Jersey Conservation Foundation

Far Hills

EMTs motivated by desire to help neighbors

Among the indelible images of Sept. 11, 2001, is the continuous throng of dazed, disheveled, soot-covered people streaming from Manhattan. Often forgotten are the thousands of emergency medical first responders who made their way to ground zero or remained stationed on this side of the Hudson River to receive the masses as they escaped the island by whatever means possible. Scores of New Jersey volunteer emergency medical technicians (EMTs) were among those who dropped whatever they were doing that day and raced toward New York City.

The nationwide observance of Emergency Medical Services (EMS) Week, May 15-21, offers a timely reminder opportunity that volunteer EMTs provide an invaluable service to the Garden State community in terms of lives and tax money saved, and are always needed in greater numbers.

The New Jersey State First Aid Council (NJSFAC), which celebrated its 75th anniversary in 2004, represents more than 15,000 volunteer EMTs affiliated with hundreds of first aid and rescue squads throughout the state. As volunteer rolls continue to shrink, the council regularly steps up recruitment and retention efforts. Given New Jersey’s demonstrated importance in mass-casualty incident responses and our nation’s heightened state of alert, having an established, reliable volunteer EMT base in place is more critical now than ever.

Potential terrorism aside, consider the aging baby boom population, as well as everyday accidents and illnesses that require emergency medical response. As needs grow, municipalities often are forced to increase tax burdens to ensure at least basic emergency services are covered. Not only do volunteer emergency responders help alleviate some of the financial burden, they also provide communities with much-needed, capable, dependable medical assistance around the clock. In 2002, NJSFAC-affiliated EMTs dedicated almost 3 million hours responding to nearly 400,000 calls. Over the years, volunteer EMS efforts have saved New Jersey taxpayers hundreds of millions of dollars in taxes they would have paid to hire responders.

Although becoming and remaining a state-certified EMT requires an extensive time commitment, those who pursue the certification year after year, sometimes decade after decade, consider it time well spent. In addition to passing the initial 120-hour course, EMTs also must accumulate 48 continuing education hours, which includes passing a 24-hour refresher course every three years. Add to that countless hours answering calls day and night, in any weather; ongoing training, drills and meetings; standing by during community and athletic events; and raising funds to keep equipment stocked and the squad building’s lights on. Volunteer EMTs do all of this without pay, often in addition to working full time, going to school and raising families. Why? Their reasons might be as diverse as New Jersey’s population, but core motivations almost certainly include the desire to help neighbors and the reward of personal satisfaction. If asked, most volunteer EMTs likely would say they can’t imagine not helping their communities in this way.

As they do with so many issues, New Jerseyans pay little attention to the subject of emergency medical response unless or until it affects them personally. They rarely think about who will answer their 911 call when the time comes, as long as someone shows up when needed. Often they’re unaware that volunteers staff their local first aid squad, and if they do know it, many have little concept of the responsibility that entails.

Most people agree that firefighters and police maintain a much more visible presence than EMS throughout the state. Those groups certainly are better funded. However, New Jersey’s EMS community — particularly its volunteer base — is the third side of the first-responder triangle. Without it, the other sides can’t function properly.

We hope the approach of EMS Week will stimulate interest in volunteer emergency response throughout New Jersey. Our goal is to move volunteer EMT service from being the state’s best-kept secret to one of its best-known assets.

Frederick L. Steinkopf

president, New Jersey State First Aid Council Inc.

Sayreville

U.F. resident supports Masserini candidacy

As a resident of Upper Freehold Township for approximately six years, I would like everyone to think long and hard about whom they will be supporting in the upcoming Upper Freehold Township Committee primary election on June 7. One candidate, John Masserini, is completely deserving of your support. Let me tell you why.

The father of two children, John Masserini has been my neighbor since I moved here. He has been active in numerous educational and recreational activities and has proven his ability to lead others through his past involvement as president of the Allentown Upper Freehold Little League and, most recently, by forming the Allentown Upper Freehold Athletic Association.

Always giving his “all,” John strives to make our community better for children and adults alike. John’s ideas include developing our existing, local industries and identifying new commercial prospects, pursuing a master plan that includes zoning, education and recreation, rebuilding relationships between various community groups and leaders, and developing creative ways to fund the expansion of the township’s recreational programs. However, it is not just what John has done and wants to continue to do for this community, but the manner in which he accomplishes his goals.

Simply put, John is a man of integrity. He possesses the highest quality of personal, ethical and moral standards. While many people have complained about situations they do not like, or have tried to use these situations for their own political agendas, John has not and will never do that. He truly cares about preserving the rural quality of Upper Freehold, limiting development, increasing recreational facilities, working with landowners and farmers, and keeping property taxes down. He will work ethically and responsibly for all members of Upper Freehold. Please, show him your support on June 7. Thank you.

Rich Frisbie

Upper Freehold