Watching the big game can be grueling when you’ve got a super-sized buffet to celebrate.

But you can approach kickoff with a solid game plan to help you avoid getting sacked by too many fatty barbecue wings or ill-advised slices of calorie-laden pie:

1. Before you start the bash, have a small, healthy snack such as an apple, yogurt or a handful of nuts. If you’re hungry when you start the game day snacks, your willpower will go ‘wide right.’
2. Set up a salad bar for a super-sized bowl of produce and more. The possibilities are endless and include mixed greens, cucumbers, tomatoes, celery, carrots, red onions, broccoli, mini peppers, radishes, chick peas, cooked marinated chicken, roasted vegetables, sunflower seeds, dried cranberries, orange slices and feta cheese. Make a salad dressing with olive oil and your favorite vinegar. Experiment with spices such as oregano, crushed red pepper, turmeric and curry powder.
3. For something different make a cauliflower “steak” or “wings”. Roast chickpeas or kale for a crunchy, fun food.
4. Baked tortilla chips make just as good a base for nachos as their greasy fried counterparts. Stack them high with shredded lettuce, beans, fresh avocado, diced tomatoes, jalapenos and cilantro. If you’re adding ground beef, use the kind labeled “90 percent lean,” and be sure to drain away the fat.
5. Looking for a healthy, but sweet snack? Try cookie dough hummus. I promise – it’s tasty! The sweetness of the peanut butter, maple syrup, and chocolate chips hides the fact that this is a bean dip! Click on the video below for the recipe.
6. Another tip is to first take a 30-second food time out to assess all the choices on the game day spread before deciding on what you really want to nibble on. Then, move away from the table or walk around. If you stay next to the food, you’re more likely to overeat.

By being aware of what you are eating and focusing on portion size, you’ll be able to make it to the presentation of the trophy feeling like a winner.

Grateful to work for a company that gives employees one paid volunteer day per year, I was straining to find a virtual opportunity that was meaningful to me before the year ended and the generosity was lost.

I had almost given up hope when I stumbled on a topic that I value – history! The Smithsonian Transcription Center depends on volunteers to make their collections more accessible. Transcription turns handwritten, typed, and audio recorded materials into searchable and readable resources.

If you like history, treasure hunting, or learning something new, working with The Smithsonian Transcription Center may be a fun virtual volunteer opportunity for you too!

Smithsonian Transcription Center website

The Day Begins

Most of the historical documents are written in cursive and are faded, which makes reading them difficult. Transcribing them makes them discoverable online and readable for anyone, including individuals who depend on technology for text-to-speech conversion.

So, on Friday, December 11, I created an account with the Smithsonian to begin my volunteer work. I spent the first hour reading all the training materials and transcription requirements. There is no expectation to completely transcribe an entire document alone; volunteers can transcribe a new document or continue the work another volunteer has started. Once the document is finished, it’s submitted for review before it’s published.

A Chance To Leave My Mark on History

I got to work reading about the various projects I could select from, and then chose to begin with the Freedmen’s Bureau. As the Civil War was ending, President Abraham Lincoln and members of Congress wanted to help formerly enslaved individuals make the transition to freedom and citizenship. As a result, in March of 1865, The Freedmen Bureau was formed. Transcribing these records is important to me because it makes them accessible for anyone researching their family history and expands our knowledge of the experience of Black Americans during the post-Civil War era.

The Report of Schools for Freedmen document

The time passed quickly, and it was nighttime before I knew it. I checked my activity history to see how much I’d done. In seven hours, I had supported three projects by transcribing ten pages.

Transcribing rows and columns of the was the most tedious task, but deciphering the 19^th century handwritten letters took a lot of patience and problem solving. Even though President Andrew Johnson had the nicest penmanship of all the documents I worked with, I couldn’t quite distinguish between his capital “I” and “J.” Thankfully it’s a collaborative process and another volunteer helped to decode the text.

Deciphering a document from President Andrew Johnson

Discovery of a Local Hidden Treasure

One of the most exciting discoveries recently completed by The Smithsonian Transcription Center was an antislavery newspaper, The North Star, published in Rochester, N.Y. by Frederick Douglass. Included in the 1848 issue is a letter from Douglass to his former enslaver titled, “To My Old Master,” in which he explains his intentions as a runaway, recounts his life in freedom, and signs off “I am your fellow man but not your slave.”

The Frederick Douglass discovery!

Success For the Project … and My Soul

While the main goal of this volunteer opportunity is to transcribe a document, half the fun comes from learning and the excitement of overcoming small challenges as I develop my skills. Aside from being the first person to read forgotten documents and getting that feeling of finding hidden treasure, making my discoveries accessible to others is even more rewarding.

My new virtual volunteer experience has become a hobby and I hope one day I too will contribute to a famous discovery.

To see more discoveries by The Smithsonian Transcription Center, follow them on Twitter @TranscribeSI.

Our expert:  Dr. William Zugner has been a clinical peer review consultant for Excellus BlueCross BlueShield for more than six years. He is a past president of New York State’s 7 District Dental Society. He is a Fellow in the American College of Dentists and the International College of Dentists as well as a Member of the Pierre Fauchard Academy. Dr Zugner maintains a private practice in Webster, N.Y. and has for 20 years.

How has the pandemic been impacting the health of our teeth?

(Dr. Zugner) Since the start of the pandemic, one issue within my own practice that I have seen a concerning increase in has been patients presenting with jaw and muscle pain and tooth sensitivity/pain from clenching and grinding due to increased stress.

If left untreated, damage such as fractured/cracked teeth and musculoskeletal disorders can occur. The sooner treatment is initiated, the easier it is to break the habit.  As always, I recommend to my patients to continue taking good care of your teeth at home and to follow through with all recommended treatments by your dentist.

How have precautions at the dentist’s office changed?

It is true that since the start of the pandemic, the administering of dental care has changed, but not as much as you think. Dentistry has always followed certain precautions that other parts of healthcare haven’t, because historically, the exposure in dentistry has always been high. Universal precautions, like wearing a mask and gloves, were introduced by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in 1985, mostly in response to the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) epidemic. The profession has adhered to these requirements, and to this day the dental operatory is one of the safest places where healthcare is administered.

For example, between each patient, every surface is wiped and sterilized. Additionally, all instruments are immediately removed, cleaned and sterilized. Anything which is deemed single patient use is disposed of and replaced. Moreover, operatories are not set up or prepped for the next patient until right before the appointment. The doctor and all staff change PPE between each patient, and whenever soiled. These are all standard protocols and have not changed in recent times, thus securing a safe environment for both patients and clinicians.

Where might patients notice a difference when visiting the dentist now?

The changes that have occurred in response to the pandemic include enhanced patient and clinician screenings prior to and upon entering the office. Masks are always being worn by everyone in the office, excluding the patient during treatment. All patients and employees are encouraged to stay home if they feel ill. Also, during certain procedures, specialized masks are being worn by those who provide the treatment and are at a higher risk of exposure.

What would you tell a patient who is weighing the decision to visit the dentist during the pandemic?

One must consider the harm that is caused when treatment is delayed. On routine appointments, dentists screen for not only issues with the teeth, but also thoroughly examine supporting structures and assess for any pathology of the head and neck. Routine care is essential in the proper maintenance of one’s health and to allow for early diagnosis of problems.

The COVID-19 pandemic is shedding new light on telehealth. Telehealth is when a patient and a provider communicate by audio, video or text messaging. The number of telehealth visits soared in 2020 as a result of the pandemic. According to a review of claims data from Excellus BlueCross BlueShield, the insurer processed 2.2 million telehealth claims in 2020. In 2019, the insurer processed 28,529 telehealth claims.

More Upstate New Yorkers Are Using Telehealth

Most adults in upstate New York (77 percent) have heard of or used telemedicine, according to a recent survey by Excellus BCBS. Of those adults who reported using telehealth, 90 percent did so since the outbreak of COVID-19. According to the survey, the most important features of telehealth were the ability to get prescriptions, the ability to avoid in-person visits and the cost of the visit.

New Government Action Expands Access to Care

In addition to helping people avoid in-person visits and get prescriptions, telehealth also increases access to care for people who may not have otherwise had it. Expanding access to care through telehealth was an area of focus in New York state Governor Andrew Cuomo’s 11th State of the State Address. “The COVID-19 pandemic laid bare the inequities in our healthcare system and showed that telehealth is a critical tool to expand access and lower costs for low-income communities, especially for behavioral health support,” said Cuomo, as he took executive action to expand access to remote care.

“When seeing a health care provider in person isn’t possible, or preferable, telehealth offers an effective alternative,” said Stephen H. Cohen, M.D., senior vice president and chief medical officer at Excellus BlueCross BlueShield. “Telehealth is here to stay, and our health plan will continue develop and support ways to increase access to this innovative way to get care.”

To learn more about your options for telehealth, talk with your doctor or visit ExcellusBCBS.com/Find-a-doctor/Telemedicine.