Top 5 Trends in Charlotte

 Lauren Tousa

I emailed someone in the public health transition department of Charlotte to find out the top health trends. Natural energy drinks was the first thing on the list. This means drinks from natural juice places, for example. Monsters and other energy drinks that used to be so popular when first coming out have decreased in popularity as more people are finding out the bad side effects they cause. There is more of a green movement that is starting to take place, and people want a healthier way to get energy.

            The second thing was people getting more sleep. There is increasing research showing all the health benefits of getting more sleep. The percentage of people who do not get enough sleep is rather high, but has begun to decrease this year. People have become more aware of the benefits of a good night’s sleep, such as weigh loss, lower anxiety, and thinking more clearly. This also goes hand in hand with the first thing on the list.

            The third thing on the list is something they called a flexitarian. This refers to people who are practicing how to abstain from meat. They aren’t committed to being a vegetarian or a vegan, but they do cut down the amount of meat intake. This can include the practice of meatless Mondays or not consuming red meats. People are realizing the benefits of eating less meat.

            The fourth thing is tobacco use. We are trying to lower the number of smokers by awareness of how bad it actually is for you. The number of smokers has been recently decreasing, especially in this past year. There are many ads on TV that tell of the dangers of smoking and the ads that show people who smoked with lung cancer. In health classes, sometimes they will even bring in someone who smoked and have them say how bad it is.

            The fifth thing is kind of a tie between diabetes and obesity because they really go hand in hand. The number of people with type two diabetes is very alarming. The number is beginning to decrease but is still far to high. There are many do it yourself applications and digital motivating programs to inspire weight loss. It is believed that these have been very helpful in the dropping of obesity rates and diabetes rates.