Course Evaluation

At the beginning of this course, being new to the college
experience, I guess I really didn't know what to expect.
I thought, I write, the Professor will tell me what I do
wrong and that would be that. I have an entire new
outlook after taking John Goldfine's Eng101 College Comp.

The first month, I discovered we would read as much
as we write. With only doing prompts and freestyles at
the beginning, I was quite comfortable with the
situation.

After a few weeks, blogs were added to the mix. These
were interesting. At this point I discovered how to
not over think what I was doing. When I opened myself
up and just let it flow from the heart, I seemed to write
better. When I wasn't in the mood or just put too
much thought into it, to put it bluntly, my writing
sucked.

The end of this course, I discovered that through the
hard work of rewriting and rewriting some more...I
really enjoyed this class. I learned that you can not
produce quality work the first time around. And I
learned that John G. is always right there for answers
when you need him.

I really enjoyed taking English Comp from John G.
The online process is not an easy one at times, but
he made it as simple as he could for us. I do wish
that sometime I will have the opportunity to attend
his lectures in person. Thank you John for being
tough, but fair. I truly enjoyed this semester. I
can hardly believe it's over.

PRACTICE EXAM - ANIMALS AND YOU

When we first started our lives together, my husband and I had very few
responsibilities. We had our first home (a trailer), inexpensive vehicles
with no payments and ourselves to take care of. After a couple of years
of marriage I decided to surprise my husband with a puppy. She was this
tiny little cute German Shepard. My husband took one look and fell in love.
She looked just like a little bear cub. So my husband insisted we call her
Bear...yes a female Bear! Who would of thought that an animal could
change our lives as she did. She stole our heart right from the start.

A month after bringing home our little one, I found out I was pregnant.
I don't know if she sensed my pregnancy or just worried about me
because I was sick a lot, but she was always there for me when I needed
a friend to lift my spirits. When I laid on the couch she was on the floor
beside me. When I walked anywhere, she was always one step behind.
She was my true companion.

She affected my husband the same way. She loved to ride with him in
his truck. She'd sit so proud in the seat next to him. When he sat in
his chair at home to watch TV, she became a 100 lb lap dog. Our first
Christmas with her was unbelievable. My husband went overboard
with gifts for her. Her favorite one being a 4 foot bone. What a site
to see her try to get the bone down the hallway. He'd video tape
her while busting a gut as she tried to maneuver a bone too large to
fit between the walls. She seemed proud to make him laugh.

Shortly after Christmas our first child was born. We were concerned
how having a newborn in the house might change her personality. She
was extremely spoiled and now would have to share our attention.
From the first day home with our son, she was amazing. She loved
him from the start. At night time she would lay in front of his crib
and not leave his side. She continued this every night for years. She
became his best friend and protector. She gave him the same love
she gave to us and never asked for much in return.

She's gone now. She passed on around 5 years ago. She's buried in
our field and has a memorial in place. I plant flowers all around it
each Spring and visit her often. We still miss her deeply. She
touched our lives in such a loving way. Her unconditional love
taught us how wonderfully amazing dogs are. We have another
Shepard now, along with two Shelties. They're just as spoiled.
But we still look at Bear's photo album every now and then,
reflecting on the great memories she gave us. She'll always
be in our hearts.

Contrast Essay - REVISED/REWRITTEN

We share the same parents. We had the same upbringing. We're
really not that far apart in age. All grown up now, I can't believe
that two sisters can be so different. How can two people go through
the same childhood and become such different people? My sister
and I are like night and day. We always have been.

Our characteristics and personalities are completely opposite. As
young girls, my sister was the strong, outspoken one and I was the
weak and shy one. If she believed in something that was a different
opinion of someone else, she would argue her case until the other
person gave in to her. Me, I wouldn't argue, I wouldn't fight and
certainly would never stand up for myself. It was easier for me to
let things go. Her voice was loud, while mine was soft. She grew
tall, while I remain short. She has red hair and brown eyes and
I have blond hair and blue eyes. People have always found it
hard to believe when they discovered we were sisters because
of so many differences. Cut from the same clothe, but not two
peas in a pod.

Our differences go even further than looks and personalities.
Our life choices have always been the opposite. She had a wild
side to her for many years. She loved to party. She became an
unwed mother at an early age, and never really settled down
until recently. Now she is forty, married to a wonderfully
stable man and she's the happiest I've ever seen her. My life
settled about twenty years before hers. At the age of fifteen,
shortly after the death of my oldest sister, I became a very
serious person. I got a job doing secretarial work at a mill
while still in high school. Got engaged to my high school
sweetheart at 16 years of age, graduated at 17 and married
at 18. Our first born came when I was twenty-one. I was
definitely serious and focused. I felt I had to set goals and
conquer them just in case I lived a short life like my sister.
I was too serious and finally realized this in my mid-twenties.
Ironically I was too serious and my sister was not serious
enough. Too bad we hadn't met somewhere in the middle.

Another difference between my sister and I is our career
choices. She chose a path as a nurse, helping people hands
on. I chose administration, paper work and more paper work.
She is good with blood and guts and I am good with office
work and numbers. She's tough and I'm spleeny. Night
and day, that is what we are.

So how can sisters turn out to be so different? We must
be born with qualities and trates that belong to no-one
else but ourselves. It is built into us long before the
process of living. But even though we are so different,
we have one great common bond. The bond of sisterly
love. When life becomes a struggle my sister is the first
one there to my rescue.

John-sorry about the first one. I totally misinterpreted
the format. Hopes this ones better.

Comparison Essay

Sitting here with the radio on low, I'm thinking about how
far music has come. Looking at my stereo I remember what it
was like as a kid listening to music.

As a young girl, I loved listening to music. A variety of music could
be heard in our house, and I loved it all. Records and turntables
were our "stereos" back then. Believe it or not, I even had an
8 track player.

Moving forward to ten years or so later I was in my late teens
when the cassettes and boom boxes were the craze. The larger
the box the cooler you were. I remember when I wanted to listen to a
particular song I would have to rewind or fast forward for minutes
that seemed like hours. Most of the time I would go past the song
I wanted and have to go back and forth until it was found. What
a pain in the neck that was.

Flying through the next ten years takes me to the generation of
CD's. Good ole compact disks. Now this is a topic my children
would be able to comprehend. What an amazing sound coming
from these tiny flat disks compared to the cassettes. I have to
admit, it took me a few years after they came out before I would
buy one, out of guilt of owning so many cassettes. I never thought
I'd cross over, but finally did. I was so glad I made the leap. It
was a much improved sound of music.

We have come a long way over the 30 years of my life developing
music devices. Eight tracks, then records, then cassettes and then
compact disks. We're discovering new and improved technology
each and every day. How exciting it will be to see what the future
will bring. But the bottom line is, music is beautiful no matter
what generation your life is in. So enjoy.

Example Essay REVISED

I've really noticed a change in my oldest son, lately. He will turn
15 in a month, and is a freshman in high school.
A year ago he was completely different. He argued about every-
thing. He didn't want to do chores, he talked on the phone when
asked not to, he hated our ground rules about dating. He could
not understand why he couldn't ride around with his 19 year
old cousin and hang out. He certainly hated his curfew and
mouthed off to us for the first time in his life. We thought we'd
never make it past this stage. But now things have turned around.
He's becoming such a remarkable young man. We're amazed at
what we've observed for changes in him.

For instance, he thinks about his future now. A year ago, he
could have cared less about his grades. This year he takes
pride in a job well done and tries very hard at accomplishing
making the honor roll. If he struggles with a subject, he lets
us know so we can help him through it. He talks to his teachers
about his school work and what he can do to improve. We talk
about his goals and what colleges he is interested in attending,
and what it will take to get there. He is really starting to buckle
down and focus.

Another example of the changes we've noticed is the relationship
he has with his girlfriend. In junior high he had girls he called
girlfriends, but they were silly relationships. No real friendship
or depth to what they had. The girlfriend he has now is
treated with such kindness and respect, which goes both ways.
They talk about mature topics and have such an open and
honest relationship. Their friendship is amazing. If it doesn't
work out, they've promised to keep their friendship strong.
They have what most adults don't even have. Even though
their time together is quite restricted, we allow them to visit
each other on the weekends at each others homes, supervised.
A year ago, my son would have argued about the rules we set,
but now he accepts them without saying a word. He finally
understands we set rules out of love.

The final example I have to share with you about the changes
in my son that convinces me he's growing into a fine young
man is that he has begun hugging and telling me he loves
me again. He went through a period where we couldn't share
affection with each other, especially in front of people. To get
him to say "I love you, Mom" for the past couple of years was
a struggle. He would, but without feeling behind it. So we just
kept telling him each and every day that we loved him and
hoped he would come around. Now he says it often, and just
because he wants to. He doesn't have to be prompted. He
even cuddles on the couch to watch TV. When he calls me on
the phone and is with a group of his friends, he doesn't care
who hears him say "I love you, Mom". As a matter of fact,
most of the time, even his friends holler it before he says
goodbye.

So my little boy is changing into a wonderful young man
right before my eyes. I'm proud of who he is and the
choices he makes. I'm proud that he is not afraid to own
his mistakes and learn from them. His examples are
good examples for his younger brother and sister to
observe. I'm proud to be his Mom.

Effect Essay REVISED

The same group of ladies gather at the same time twice a week.
"All right", I say. "Let's get started". We first warm up and then
begin the class. They make fun of me because I smile throughout
the entire hour. I Love to exercise. They complain when I push
them to work harder, but at the end of the workout, they all
gather around and chat with each other about the benefits
they've received from their time here.

They boast about the energy level they have now. Exercising
helps them to feel more energetic than ever before. It's gives
them more stamina to make it through their hectic days.
I love to hear the changes they are developing. Building lean
muscle makes a different in people. The leaner the body, the
more calories burned through your day. It helps create a
steadier metabolism, which in turn gives people more energy.

Another benefit is the cardio endurance level they are
achieving. I overhear how they can't believe how far they've
come since they started. Some say they couldn't even climb
flight of stairs without getting winded. The jump rope class
I teach is my favorite. It is a fun class, but at the same time
is a high level cardio routine. If someone needs to lose
weight, this is a great class for them. It not only burns 1000
calories per hour (and yes, we jump for an hour), but it
also helps strengthen joints, improve balance and gives the
body physique a nice shape. It strengthens the lungs better
than any class I have ever taken. The people in my class
have come to love it, almost as much as I do.

The final benefit I hear them chatting about is how their bodies
have taken on a new beautiful shape. They not only feel great
on the inside, but look great on the outside. Most of them have
struggled with their body shapes and sizes for many years.
The change in body shape when you strength train is a well
defined strong body. Most see a drastic change in their posture.
With strong abdominal muscles it lifts your back and appears
to make you taller. And the best reward of all are the
compliments they are receiving from family and friends. Who
doesn't appreciate compliments? It makes us feel great about
ourselves.

So, even though they mumble and grumble during my workout,
they all have stuck to it and overcome. I always remind the class,
"If it were simple, the whole world would be fit." But beating
this challenge makes it all the more worth the effort. I'm proud
of their hard work and dedication.

Division Essay REVISED

My life has grown to be in repetitive motion. My days are
filled with being a different person to different people. I'm
not sure if it's like this being a man, but I know as a woman,
I have to wear many hats. I wear the same three hats day
after day, week after week.

My first hat starts with my husband. Each day it's the same
routine. I make his morning coffee and breakfast and pack
him a lunch to take to work. I cook supper 98% of the time
and clean up afterwards. I schedule his appointments, take
care of the banking and finances, and at the end of a long
day I finish out my wifely duties, if you know what I mean.
Okay, not every day!!

My second hat that I wear is my Mom hat. this one can be
very challenging at times. I also start the day with cooking
them breakfast and packing their lunches for school. I
remind them to pack their homework, hats, gloves, gym
clothes and whatever else is going on in their day. I always
have to remind them to brush their teeth and to not be late.
I then drive them to school. That is I drive three children
to three different schools and still make it in time to my
work. My main goals as a Mom is to make sure they're fed well,
are warm and feel greatly loved. Being patient and understanding,
yet firm, while juggling my other responsibilities takes a great
deal of energy. Especially when my kiddos don't cooperate.
But this is no doubt my favorite hat I wear. Their unconditional
love is the greatest gift in my life.

My final hat I wear in my routine is the hat of a worker. My job
is very demanding and leaves no room for me to bring my other
two hats to work with me. When I'm at work my concentration
is focused on the task at hand, making through another hectic
day. My day at work starts by unlocking the school, checking
messages and making sure the coffee is ready for when the
teachers and staff arrive. If there are any meetings
taking place, it is my responsibility to make sure food and
coffee is set up for their arrival. When the students start to
arrive I check them in if need be. Throughout my day I am
school secretary to the teachers and students and assistant
to the school's director. I'm pulled in many directions and
multitasking is my middle name. Truth is, I love it. It's
challenging and rewarding. The students are great and the
staff are a great group of people. But when I leave
at the end of the day, my hat comes off and I don't bring it
home. My day wearing my work hat ends when I leave the
building.

So although I may appear to be one person, I am divided into three
ways. the challenge is to keep well balanced and be the best person
I can be for each situation and divisions of my life. My life
is good and I am blessed with being able to provide and take
care of the ones I care about. I love my many hats.

Contrast Essay

We share the same parents. We had the same upbringing.
We're really not that far apart in ages. All grown up now
I can't believe at the different lives we live. How can
three children go through the same childhood and become
such different people.

My sister, Anne Marie, is the oldest. She's tall and slender.
She's loud and pushy, in a loving but still pushy way. She
has two children by two fathers and is on her second
marriage. He's not the father to either of the kids, but
what a great guy to both my sister and her children. She's
finally happy. It took her a long way to get there.
Lot's of drama, lots of tears, and a whole lot of growing up.
She's now forty years old, went back to school to become
a nurse (which she's quite good at) and seems to have
settled down quite nicely.

Middle child is my brother, Rick. He and I are only a year
apart. We are much more similar than me and my sister,
but still....very different. We're the same in that we have
similar looks. Through the years, we lived our lives much
differently. It took him some time to settle down as well.
He's never had kids of his own. Couldn't slow down long
enough, I suppose. He traveled for years as a construction
worker across country. Living the bachelor's dream.
He finally came home and is now married to a woman
who has two children; one in the service and one in high
school. He went from wild boy to now owning a farm
with cows and horses and is a full time fire fighter and
EMT.

Then you have me. The youngest in the family, but since
I can remember, the one who was always the rock. Never
partied, always trying to make my parents proud. Worked
to get good grades. Dated a nice boy in high school, worked
since I was 15, got married and settled down at 18, and
gave birth to our first child at 21. I've always been the
quiet and shy one of the family. I hated attention drawn
to me. Just the opposite of my sister who loved to be heard
and seen at all times. The baby of the family and daddy's
little girl, that's me.

So how can three people turn out to be so different? We
must be born with qualities and trates that belong to
no-one else but ourselves. It's built into to us long before
the things we learn from environment come along. But
even though we are so different, we have one great
common bond. The bond of sibling love is always there,
and when life becomes a struggle, they are always the
first ones to my rescue.

Cause Essay

Driving down the road in my sports car. I hate to say this
out loud, but oh do I love to speed. I've loved this model
since I was little. There's nothing better to me than a Mustang.
Even the name gives me chills. I picture a strong, muscular
horse ready to race. There are a few reasons why I have had a
love of this car. Because of the excitement of the horsepower
under the hood, how you feel in the seat like it was made
to fit your body and because people take notice when you
drive by.

When I put the key in the ignition, I take a deep breath. I
make sure the radio is off and then turn the key. The motor
makes a deep low roar. I put it in gear and step on the gas.
What a feeling to have all that power. This is the first reason
I love mustangs.

Driving down the road and sitting in the bucket seat.
Everything in the car seems to be right where it needs to be
for my body. It all fits as thought it was made specifically
for me. The seat hugs my form. The car and I become one.

The last reason for my love of this car is something I hate
to admit to others. I love to have people stop and look twice
when they see me in my car. It makes me feel special and
maybe a little powerful. People come up to me all the time
a comment on my "wheels". They're almost envious. That
shouldn't make me feel good, but deep down it does.

I miss my car already. It gets parked for the winter. I'm back
in my Mom Mobile now. It's not so exciting to drive. But it has
convinced me that people treat you not by who you are inside,
but rather, what you have. I don't get as many waves. I don't
get double takes anymore. And the first question I get asked
when they see me in my winter vehicle is, "where did the
mustang go". Oh well, I can pretend for a moment it's actually
me they are awing over even if it's really the car that catches
their eye. One can dream..

I-Search Essay - First Draft

Nutrition and Depression:
Is there a connection?
ByDeb McIntyre
Eng101, College Composition
November 16, 2007
Professor John Goldfine



Table of Contents

Summary iii
History.........1
Why I Chose My Research Topic.......2
What I Know........3
The Search.......4
What I Learned.....5
The Future.......6
List of Sources......7




Summary
I chose this topic because it is a subject that is near tomy heart. Depression happens to too many people.Many of my friends and family have battled with thisdisease for as far back as I can remember. I myselfhave battled with it in the past. With changing mylifestyle, I have not battled with it for a very long time.I contribute my health to those changes, but did notunderstand the depth of why it worked until researchingthis paper. I've learned why certain foods trigger depressionand have also learned what to change in order to help sustainthe disease. I hope to pass this knowledge along to those inneed of help.


History
When I was first married, over 17 years ago, I became very close with my
Sister-in-law. She was always a very quiet person, keepingto herself at family gatherings a lot. She and I had that in common.Neither of us liked crowds, but we both married into a very large andnoisy family. Go figure. Our husbands were quite the same. Funny,outgoing, and loved to interact with people. The men in this family couldbe a lot of fun. But on their other side, they were very much controllingin their family life. Most of them thought a woman's place should be homecooking and cleaning. This was the beginning of me observing my brother-in-law putting his wife down and telling her how worthless she was. I foundmy husband to take on some of these qualities once we were married. Bitsand pieces started to come out. The difference between our lives was thatI was brought up to be a strong, independent woman who did not toleratethese behaviors from my husband. At first I did, but as a few months wentalong, I stood up for myself. Funny thing was, my husband didn't realize howhe was treating me until we talked about it. I've never had him treat medisrespectfully again, which is a great accomplishment being raised withthose beliefs. My sister-in-law turned to food when she felt bad about herself.She ate foods high in fat and low in healthy nutrients. Her battle withdepression began. She sought help from therapists, only to be medicated.When that medicine didn't help any more, they increased or switched thedose.We decided to try to shed some pounds together, so we joined WeightWatchers. I will never forget this time in our lives. We had such good times.We started a healthy lifestyle that lasted for a couple of years. EveryWednesday night was girl’s night out. We went to the meetings, sharing storieswith others that were inspirational and celebrating lost pounds throughout theroom. After the meeting we had our "cheat" meal for the week. We walkedtogether every day and enjoyed each others company. I had never seen herso chatty and funny. She and I had lost weight, gained energy and enjoyed life.We then decided to grocery shop together, which helped keep each other in-tactof healthy eating at home. Every other week we made an afternoon of it.We clipped coupons and made our list of meals for the week together. We thentraveled to Bangor, shopped and had lunch together. After a while, herfamily started making it difficult for her to enjoy herself. When I pickedher up for our Wednesday meetings, they made fun of us, calling it ourFat Farm class. When we went grocery shopping, she would have to begher husband for money. It was the same battle every time. An argumentabout how much he would allow her, and then the lecture of bringing excesschange back to him. After a while she gave up going. She gained a lot of weightand became severely depressed, and at many times even suicidal. Her battlehas gone on for a very long time now. Her family all adapted the bad eatinghabits and no physical activity. Her husband and son now take medicationfor depression. When her husband snaps and treats people badly, he blamesit on not having a large enough dosage of medications. He contacts his doctor andgets an increase. The cycle continues.From my own personal experiences, I know how my diet can influence mymoods. When I was in high school I had a bad habit of starving myself. Iwould go days without a proper meal. Mountain Dew, coffee, and peanutm&ms were my diet. I could barely keep my eyes open during classes. Ibecame very thin and weak. A lot of it started when my cheering coachgave us her famous lecture of what we needed to look like to stay on herteam. A friend of mine who was not much larger than me and had muscularlegs was embarrassed in front of everyone when the coach told her she neededto drop weight. My greatest fear was being next. It took me many years torealize no matter how much you starve yourself, your body will not turn intoa model's body just by wishing it. But what I really discovered was thatwithout proper nutrients, I became depressed. Nothing made me happy.I had a hard time dealing with even small situations. But it didn't stop mefrom the yo-yo effect of crash dieting and then gorging myself. I thought aslong as I looked the way others thought I should, then life was good. I playedthis game with myself for years before I completely understood that I canbe fit and eat healthy and not become overweight. It was actually the opposite.When I started eating more calories, but the right calories, my body lookedand felt the best ever. But even better, my mind became stronger and I felta complete happiness I had missed for quite some time. I liked myself again.I know that I feel better with proper diet and exercise. I hope to find concreteanswers and maybe help my friend along the way.

Why I chose my research topic:
My motivation for why I chose this topic is because of the history of myfriend and my own experiences with battling depression and poor eatinghabits that contribute to this disease. I have a desire to help people thatalso have this battle in their lives. I hope to continue researching andstudying in the nutrition field. I feel that there are many diseases outthere that can be helped by changing someone’s bad nutrition habits.My goal for this paper was to answer questions that I've wondered fora while. I know when I changed my eating habits and added exerciseto my lifestyle things changed for me mentally and physically. I chosemy research topic to find out why.


What I Want to Learn:
Questions I would like to find answers to:
Can food cause depression?
What types of foods contribute to depression?
Can depression be reversed if diet is altered?
Does physical activity play a role in helping depression?



What I Know:
Looking back at both situations explained above, I truly believe diet
plays a major role in our lives. Our bodies need certain amounts and
varieties of nutrients in order to function properly. Without good balance,
our bodies are affected in different ways; weight, mood, energy level,
to name a few. I know from personal experience when I eat a well-balanced,
low-fat "clean" diet, my energy level is high, I feel great and I am completely
happy and content with my life even on the worst of days. I also know from
personal experience when I eat a poor diet, I don't have enough energy to
make it through my day, I am very moody and feel like I can't handle even
the smallest amount of stress or chaos that comes my way. I hope to find
more depth to what I already know. I hope to find out what types of foods
and which varieties help promote healthier happier lives. I hope I find that
certain types of depression can be improved with the help of a proper diet
and exercise, and that pills are not the answer for everyone. They are suitable
maybe to jump start someone on the way to recovery, but I feel should not be
an alternative to fixing the real problem.


Search
The task of researching for my I-search topic of Nutrition and Depression
turned out to be informational and challenging. I decided to research my
topic in 3 different ways. I googled the web for information and found it to
be quite helpful. I also read a book that a health professional suggested to
me for this purpose. Lastly, I conducted an experiment on myself changing
my eating and exercise habits.
Googling the web gave me the opportunity to find several websites to choose
pertinent information for my topic. Wording it as Nutrition and Depression
narrowed the search to finding exactly what I was looking for. I was
amazed at how well some of the sites fit my need. With time and patience,
the web can be a great research tool. What I learned the most from the web
was that the depression in people already exists as a chemical imbalance.
Food is a trigger that can set off this imbalance.
I then went to the health store and chatted with the owner about what
I was researching for a topic. We talked about what I knew and what I wanted
to have answered. She recommended the book, "Potatoes Not Prozac" for
me to read. I really enjoyed this book. The information in it was well researched
and put together by a doctor who had gone through her own situation.
Her main goal with this research was to help others in need. This book
was brought about by her wanting to help people dependent with alcohol and
drugs. She found that eating addictions seemed to contribute to relapses with

these other addictions. Once there diet was changed, the success rate for their
alcohol and/or drug dependency was greater. This is an excellent book for
anyone to read that would like to help improve there inner health.
My third research tool was to conduct an experiment. When I began this
research project, my initial attempt was to ask my friend who battles with
depression to allow me to set her upon an eating plan and observe any changes.
Her reaction was one that told me it wouldn't be an easy task to convince her
she needed to change her habits. I felt the battle would not be productive
and I would not be able to complete the experiment.
So, I chose to take an alternate route. I have been eating clean and exercising
on a regular basis for over 6 years now. I don't have bouts of depression and
my moods don't seem to fluctuate like they use to. So I decided to stop exercising
and eat junk for a couple of weeks and monitor my results. I found out that it
affects me more than I had ever realized. It actually became quite serious in
a very short period of time. And yes, I plunged into a nasty depression and
had a very hard time pulling myself back up again. Wow. Did this experiment
open my eyes even wider. I'm even more determined to keep researching
and learning. This topic really hits home for me and someday I hope to help
others who have gone through the same.


What I Learned

Can food cause depression? Yes.
Depression is an imbalance in the level of biochemicals such as glucose
(sugar in your blood), serotonin in your brain and beta-endorphin inyour brain. What I learned was that improper diet triggers depression.It does not actual create the depression, but triggers an imbalanceof glucose, serotonin and beta-endorphins in those individuals whoare susceptible to this imbalance (which in the book I read it's labeledas someone who is "sugar sensitive").

Can the depression be reversed if diet is altered? Yes.
All three chemical imbalances can be corrected by proper diet andexercise. One in balance, depression can be managed.

Does physical activity play a role in depression? Yes.
Physical activity helps your body be more sensitive to insulin. You want to move the sugar from your blood into your muscles to be usedas fuel. When you are overweight, your body does this less efficiently.Exercise also evokes a beta-endorphin response.


THE FUTURE:

This is just the beginning of what I hope to be a long journey for
me. I plan to continue researching and studying nutrition in many
ways, but mostly in such a way that I will be able to help many
people who battle with this ever growing disease. Life is a blessing
and should and can be enjoyed by everyone. Once in a while people
need a helping hand to be lifted up. I hope for my future that this will
be the person that I can be to those in need.


LIST OF SOURCES:

"Causes of Depression-Factors Play a Role in Depression". Google. 23 October 2007. http://findinginnerpeace.net/depression_causes.phpcauses.php
Although this website gave a wide range of depression causes,there was a section that gave more specific information pertaining to chemical imbalances caused by certain foods. The foods are explained to be a trigger of the imbalance that is already there. Which is information necessary for my paper.

"Depression and Nutrition". Google. 23 October 2007.http://www.mnwelldir.org/docs/mental_health/depression.htm
This was an excellent website for gathering nutrition anddepression material. It had a lot of medical informationpertaining to this topic. But even more so, it gave me moresites to branch out to for even more research.Author Kathleen DesMaisons, Ph.D.

"Potatoes Not Prozac".Copyright 1998.
What an interesting book to read. It gave a lot of useful information and answered a lot of questions that I havehad about causes and cures to not only others battleswith depression and eating issues, but hit so close tohome with my own experiences. Things really made senseto me in a deeper way. I've always known that what I eathas an affect on my body and moods, but learned by reading this book why and what foods are the culprit.I look forward to reading more about this subject andfurthering my knowledge.

Annotated Source List / Graf #10

"Causes of Depression-Factors Play a Role in Depression". Google. 23 October 2007. http://findinginnerpeace.net/depression_causes.php Although this website gave a wide range of depression causes, there was a section that gave more specific information pertaining to chemical imbalances caused by certain foods. The foods are explained to be a trigger of the imbalance that is already there. Which is information necessary for my paper. "Depression and Nutrition". Google. 23 October 2007. http://www.mnwelldir.org/docs/mental_health/depression.htm This was an excellent website for gathering nutrition and depression material. It had a lot of medical information pertaining to this topic. But even more so, it gave me more sites to branch out to for even more research. Author Kathleen DesMaisons, Ph.D. "Potatoes Not Prozac". Copyright 1998. What an interesting book to read. It gave a lot of useful information and answered a lot of questions that I have had about causes and cures to not only others battles with depression and eating issues, but hit so close to home with my own experiences. Things really made sense to me in a deeper way. I've always known that what I eat has an affect on my body and moods, but learned by reading this book why and what foods are the culprit. I look forward to reading more about this subject and furthering my knowledge. GRAF #10 Research History The task of researching for my Isearch topic of Nutrition and Depression turned out to be informational and challenging. I decided to research my topic in 3 different ways. I googled the web for information and found it to be quite helpful. I also read a book that a health professional suggested to me for this purpose. Lastly, I conducted an experiment on myself changing my eating and exercise habits. Googling the web gave me the opportunity to find several websites to choose pertinent information for my topic. Wording as Nutrition and Depression narrowed the search to finding exactly what I was looking for. I was amazed at how well some of the sites fit my need. With time and patience, the web can be a great research tool. I then went to the health store and chatted with the owner about what I was researching for a topic. We talked about what I knew and what I wanted to have answered. She recommended the book, "Potatoes Not Prozac" for me to read. I really enjoyed this book. The information in it was well researched and put together by a doctor who had gone through her own situation. Her main goal with this research was to help others in need. This book was brought about by her wanting to help people dependent with alcohol, drugs and food addictions. This is an excellent book for anyone to read that would like to help improve there inner health. My third research tool was to conduct an experiment. When I began this research project, my initial attempt was to ask my friend who battles with depression to allow me to set her up on an eating plan and observe any changes. Her reaction was one that told me it wouldn't be an easy task to convince her she needed to change her habits. I felt the battle would not be productive and would not be able to complete the experiment. So, I chose to take an alternate route. I have been eating clean and exercising on a regular basis for over 6 years now. I don't have bouts of depression and my moods don't seem to fluctuate like they use to. So I decided to stop exercising and eat junk for a couple of weeks and monitor my results. I found out that it affects me more than I had ever realized. It actually became quite serious in a very short period of time. And yes, I hit a nasty depression and had a very hard time pulling myself back up again. Wow. Did this experiment open my eyes even wider. I'm even more determined to keep researching and learning. This topic really hits home for me and someday hope to help others who have gone through the same. I'm well on my way, but still have quite a journey before I have completed this project. I feel I have gathered pertinent information necessary for me to ask and asnwer the questions I have about nutrition and its effects and causes of depression. I look forward to the end result.

I-Search Background

When I was first married, over 17 years ago, I became very close
with my sister-in-law. She was always a very quiet person, keeping
to herself at family gatherings a lot. She and I had that in common.
Neither of us liked crowds, but we both married into a very large
and noisy family. Go figure. Our husbands were quite the same.
Funny, outgoing, and loved to interact with people. The men in
this family could be a lot of fun. But on their other side, they were
very much controlling in their family life. Most of them thought
a woman's place should be home cooking and cleaning. This was
the beginning of me observing my brother-in-law putting his wife
down and telling her how worthless she was. I found my husband
to take on some of these qualities once we were married. Bits
and pieces started to come out. The difference between our
lives was that I was brought up to be a strong, independant
woman who did not tolerate these behaviors from my husband.
At first I did, but as a few months went along, I stood up for
myself. Funny thing was, my husband didn't realize how he
was treating me until we talked about it. I've never had him
treat me disrespectfully again, which is a great accomplishment
being raised with those beliefs.

My sister-in-law turned to food when she felt bad about herself.
She ate foods high in fat and low in healthy nutrients. Her battle
with depression began. She saught help from therapists, only to
be medicated. When that medicine didn't help any more, they
increased or switched the dose.

We decided to try to shed some pounds together, so we joined
Weight Watchers. I will never forget this time in our lives. We
had such good times. We started a healthy lifestyle that lasted
for a couple of years. Every Wednesday night was girls night out.
We went to the meetings, sharing stories with others that were
inspirational and celebrating lost pounds throughout the room.
After the meeting we had our "cheat" meal for the week. We
walked together every day and enjoyed each others company.
I had never seen her so chatty and funny. She and I had lost
weight, gained energy and enjoyed life. We then decided to
grocery shop together, which helped keep each other in tact
of healthy eating at home. Every other week we made an
afternoon of it. We clipped coupons and made our list of meals
for the week together. We then traveled to Bangor, shopped
and had lunch together.

After a while, her family started making it difficult for her to
enjoy herself. When I picked her up for our Wednesday meetings,
they made fun of us, calling it our Fat Farm class. When we
went grocery shopping, she would have to beg her husband for
money. It was the same battle every time. An arguement about
how much he would allow her, and then the lecture of bringing
excess change back to him. After a while she gave up going.
She gained a lot of weight and became severely depressed,
and at many times even suicidal. Her battle has gone on for
a very long time now. Her family all adapted the bad eating
habits and no physical activity. Her husband and son now take
medication for depression. When her husband snaps and treats
people badly, he blames it on not having a large enough dosage
of meds. He contacts his doctor and gets an increase. The cycle
continues.

From my own personal experiences, I know how my diet can
influence my moods. When I was in high school I had a bad
habit of starving myself. I would go days without a proper
meal. Mountain Dew, coffee, and peanut m&ms were my diet.
I could barely keep my eyes open during classes. I became
very thin and weak. A lot of it started when my cheering coach
gave us her famous lecture of what we needed to look like to
stay on her team. A friend of mine who was not much larger
than me and had muscular legs was embarrassed in front of
everyone when the coach told her she needed to drop weight.
My greatest fear was being next. It took me many years to
realize no matter how much you starve yourself, you body
will not turn into a model's body just by wishing it. But what
I really discovered was that without proper nutrients, I became
depressed. Nothing made me happy. I had a hard time dealing
with even small situations. But it didn't stop me from the yo-yo
effect of crash dieting and then gorging myself. I thought as
long as I looked the way others thought I should, then life
was good. I played this game with myself for years before
I completely understood that I can be fit and eat healthy
and not become overweight. It was actually the opposite.
When I started eating more calories, but the right calories,
my body looked and felt the best ever. But even better, my
mind became stronger and I felt a complete happiness I had
missed for quite some time. I liked myself again.

I know that I feel better with proper diet and exercise. I hope
to find concrete answers and maybe help my friend along the
way, which is my motivation for picking this topic.

Process Essay

It was the middle of Spring. The air felt new. The sun
was warm on my face. Winter had finally passed.
The ground was awakening from a long winters nap.
Trees began to stretch and the grass began to peak
through the soil. I found myself standing in my yard
staring at the empty flower beds, trying to decide
how to make it beautiful this year. My plan of attack
is the same each year. First, I clean up the mess from
the previous year. Secondly, a decision to expand the
flower beds or keep them the same as last year has to
be made. Third and final decision, is what flowers
will I be planting.

My first step, cleaning up the yard and flower beds
is my least favorite of the process. Pulling left over
weeds, raking the yard and preparing the soil takes
a bit of time. I suppose it's my least favorite only
because I am so anxious to get started with the new.

Second step of the process is my decision to keep the
scene the same or do I change things around this
year. Most of the time I add to what I already have.
When I decide to expand, my job consists of drawing
what I have in mind. Calculating what and how
much materials will be needed. Gathering or buying
what I have come up with for materials and
putting it all into place.

Once the beds are clean and prepared, my third and
final step is to decide what type of flowers are going
to go into which bed. My hanging pots are usually
quite easy to choose. I always choose an annual that
climbs. My beds that sit on the ground, I carefully
choose size, color and arrangement of how they will
fit together. On the outside of the beds I have space
for perennial flowers and bushes. Each year I try to
add a new perennial. Once all the decisions are made
and I've purchased what I need, I get to work and
start planting.

It's a great deal of work to do this each year. The bugs
are thick. The sun is hot. I'm so sweaty that the dirt
sticks to my skin, and my nails are blackened. But
each year I look forward to the whole process. The
end result is breathe-taking, beautiful and colorful
new life that I've helped get started and nurtured
along it's journey. I love to watch them grow and
blossom throughout the summer. The final outcome
is worth all the hard work and effort put into the
process of gardening.

I Search Why & What

Why I chose my topic:

My topic was chosen for a couple of reasons. A dear friend
of mine has been battling with depression for more than 15
years. It controls every aspect of her life. Her children have
grown up in a house of despair. Now their home is full of
depression. Her husband and son also suffer with the disease.
There eating habits are the same. High fat, processed foods
from a package or fast-food is what they eat most days of
the week. Vegetables and fruits are never seen in their
home. They are overweight and do not exercise. Rather
than work at improving their health, they say they would
rather just take pills on a daily basis.

There was a time in my life when it was hard to focus on the
positive. I was so unhappy, tired and down on life, even
though I had nothing to complain about. My weight was at
an all-time high. I had more health problems than anyone in
there twenties should have. I either starved myself or
over-indulged on high-fat foods. Looking back I realize that
my poor eating habits contributed to a snowball effect of
poor health and poor mental stability. So this topic was
chosen not only because of wanting to help friends and
family who suffer and can be helped, but also because I
know the benefits of a healthy lifestyle change through
my personal experiences.

Questions I would like to find the answers to:

1. Can food cause depression?

• What types of foods cause the symptoms?
• What types of foods help prevent these symptoms?

2. Can the depression be reversed if diet is altered?

3. Does physical inactivity play a role in depression?

• If so, why?

4. Can it help reverse the symptoms if activity is added

to ones daily activities?

What I know about this subject before research:

Looking back at both situations explained above, I truly believe diet plays a major role in our lives. Our bodies need certain amounts and varieties of nutrients in order to function properly. Without good balance, our bodies are affected in different ways; weight, mood, energy level,
to name a few. I know from personal experience when I eat a well-balanced, low-fat "clean" diet, my energy level is high, I feel great and I am completely happy and content with my life even on the worst of days. I also know from personal experience when I eat a poor diet, I don't have enough energy to make it through my day, I am very moody and feel like I can't handle even the smallest amount of stress or chaos that comes my way. I hope to find more depth to what I already know. I hope to find out what types of foods and which varieties help promote healthier happier lives. I hope I find that certain types of depression can be improved with the help of a proper diet and exercise. And that pills are not the answer for everyone. They are suitable maybe to jump start someone on the way to recovery, but I feel should not be an alternative to fixing the real problem.

Classification Essay

Our vegetable garden gave more tomatoes this year than
we know what to do with. Big, beautiful delicious tomatoes.
It's now time to prepare them so we can enjoy them all
winter long. There are many ways to choose how to preserve
tomatoes, but there are only three ways that we enjoy
keeping them.

First batch of tomatoes are the diced tomatoes that we
can. Once we steam the skins off, we then cut them into
little tiny pieces, place them in mason jars and seal them
in the pressure cooker. The diced tomatoes are usually
used to mix with pasta or mix into to soups during the cold
winter days.

The next bunch of tomatoes we then turn into spaghetti
sauce. Once again the skins are steamed off. This time the
tomatoes are cut in four and put into a large cooker and
simmered overnight. The next day I start to add my spices,
onion, green peppers, hot peppers and fresh garlic. Towards
the end of the cooking period, we then add tomato paste to
thicken the sauce. Once the sauce is ready it gets put into
jars and again sealed in the pressure cooker. The sauce is of
course used to make spaghetti suppers or chop suey.

Lastly, we make the salsa. It's quite similar to the sauce,
but not cooked as long and not thickened. I add onion,
peppers, jalapeno, hot peppers, red pepper and spices. The
hotter the sauce, the better the salsa. Once again, the salsa
gets added to jars and sealed with the pressure cooker. Salsa
in our house has one giant purpose that my mother-in-law
spoiled everyone with. A night time favorite in our house,
called chips and cheese. You first place nacho chip onto a
plate, slice cheese onto the chips, then melt. Once the cheese
is melted a spoonful of salsa is placed on each chip. We
usually end up making a few platefuls before it's all said
and done.

Our garden takes a lot of time and care. The hot sun beats
down on us causing us to sweat. The dirt sticks to our skin
and the bugs won't stop biting. But even with the summer
long dirty nails and stained fingertips, in the long run it's
more than worth it to fill our house with vegetables we
grew from our own garden.

Intro 1 & 2 Classifications

Intro #1
Our vegetable garden gave more tomatoes this year than we
know what to do with. Okay, we do this every year. We
plant a lot, give a lot away and than can, can, can. There
are many different ways to keep tomatoes throughout the
winter. But there are three ways that we pack them away.


Intro #2
The tomatoes were plentiful in our garden this year. Big
beautiful, delicious tomatoes. It's now time to prepare
them so we can enjoy them all winter long. There are
many ways to choose how to preserve tomatoes, but
there are only three ways that we enjoy keeping them.

Outro Cause Essay - New

It's a lot of hard work. The bugs are thick, I'm hot, sweaty
and filthy dirty. My nails are black because I refuse to wear
gloves. I love the feel of getting into the soil and planting
new life. The end result is breath-taking, colorful and
beautiful flowers that resemble artwork. To watch it grow
and blossom the entire summer is such a joy.

Intro 1 & 2 Cause Essay - New

Intro #1
It was the middle of Spring. The air felt new and the sun was
warm on my face. Winter had finally passed. I was in my yard,
standing and looking around my empty flower beds trying to
decide how to make it beautiful this year. I always need to have
a plan of attack each year when it's time to spruce up the yard.
My first step is to clean up last years leftovers. Secondly, I need
to decide if I will expand the flower bed or keep it just the same.
Third and final decision, is what flowers will I be planting.

Intro #2
Spring is a beautiful time of year. Everything is so new and fresh.
The ground awakens from a long winters nap. Trees start to stretch
and yawn. The grass peaks through the soil. It's also time to make
colors burst from my flower beds. I have much to decide and
am anxious to get started. My plan of attack beings. What steps do
I need to take to clean up last years leftovers? What will I plant this
year? Is it time to expand the flower beds or do we like them the
way they are?

Graf #9

Meta Graf on Cause Essay

As I was re-writing my Cause Essay my head was spinning. I have such a
headache from being up half the night doing my school work. I'm afraid
my writing isn't as good as it can be. I'm tired and have so much left to
do in all my classes. My topic really hits home at the moment because
my time with my family has been extremely limited lately. When I'm
overtired, I tend to over think, and that's usually when I write poorly.
Now I'm thinking, oh stop your whining and get to it. Suck it up and
get to work. So, back to work I go!

I-Search Brainstorm #1

What I know about my topic of nutrition and the affects of
depression is what I've observed and what little bit I have
studied about nutrition. People connected
to me and even myself seem to have different moods
according to the choices of foods eaten. I watch certain
people in my life who make really poor eating choices.
They complain about not liking they way they feel or look, but
do nothing to improve their well-being. They ask for my
help, but when I give advice they have an excuse to everything
I say. Always having a reason not to try.

In particularly, what I want to find out is how certain foods
affect a person's thinking process, mood, depressive state,
negativity, etc. What foods contribute to the opposite?
It will be a challenge to not take this subject to a broad
range of questions and answers.

I plan to interview and follow individuals diets and physical
activity levels not only in people who are negative, but
also positive to see the differences, if any. I will also
research professional sources to help gather information
regarding this subject. In the end I hope to have some
answers to ways of helping people change, even if only
a little bit, in a better direction with their lives.

I have much to think about and much to do, but this is
the top layer of what I'm hoping to accomplish.