Tag: health

Once a 300-pound weakling, now champion of fitness and health

Once 300 pounds, now fitness expert

April 23, 2013:

When Devin Wicks is on the job, helping people get healthy, lose weight and shape up, he’s got a special kind of credibility: He’s been there. Once a 300-pound heavyweight, he got active, shed 100 pounds — and now is a familiar blur of action around the Recreational Sports Facility as director of fitness and health operations for UC Berkeley.

Flame retardants linked to lower birthweight babies

August 30, 2011:

A new study led by UC Berkeley researchers links prenatal exposure to flame retardant chemicals commonly found in homes to lower birthweight babies. For every tenfold increase in levels of PBDEs in a mother’s blood during pregnancy, there was a corresponding drop of 115 grams in her baby’s birthweight, the study found.

Forum on breaking the cycle of violence to draw experts, producer of “The Interrupters” documentary film

August 22, 2011:

New ways to prevent or reduce community violence will be the topic of a Tuesday, Sept. 6 public forum with University of California, Berkeley, experts in education, public health and social welfare joining local leaders and the producer of a critically acclaimed documentary about breaking the cycle of violence.

Berkeley public health projects part of UC initiative to address critical state issues

August 4, 2011:

Researchers from UC Berkeley’s School of Public Health are studying the conditions of low-wage workers in Chinatown as well as the impact on health from the use of greener cleaning products as part of a new UC-funded multi-campus research program. The Center for Collaborative Research for an Equitable California is one of three dozen UC multi-campus programs focusing on critical issues in the state.

Pain reliever safety: Some red flags

July 18, 2011:

Pain relievers can be wonder drugs for many people, but they all have potential risks. The latest UC Berkeley Wellness Letter reports on recent studies that have amplified the concerns.

Latino communities have higher nitrate levels in drinking water

June 23, 2011:

San Joaquin Valley communities with large Latino populations are exposed to disproportionately high levels of the agricultural chemical nitrate through their drinking water, according to a UC Berkeley study. When ingested via drinking water, nitrate can lead to numerous health problems, particularly among women and young children.

UC Berkeley launches groundbreaking disability research initiative

May 11, 2011:

UC Berkeley on May 11 announced a new research initiative that will make it a worldwide leader in disability studies. It includes two new faculty positions and multidiscipinary research projects related to disability that involve 10 faculty members from eight campus units. The effort will be housed in the Haas Diversity Research Center.

MBA students, Haas School faculty win sustainability research grants

April 22, 2011:

The Haas School of Business’s Center for Responsible Business made an Earth Day announcement today (Friday, April 22) that several MBA students and Haas School faculty have won research grants to work on innovative sustainability projects dealing with reinforcing friends’ healthy habits to green supply chains and clean water.

Look to overweight, not overseas, for source of U.S. health problems, says surgeon general

March 17, 2011:

U.S. Surgeon General Regina Benjamin came to Berkeley’s Alumni House Thursday to deliver her “vision of a healthy and fit nation.” But the day’s most burning health question, at least in the minds of the news media gathered at her subsequent press conference, was this: Should people be worried about radiation from Japan’s ongoing nuclear crisis? Her answer: “No.”

Quake-related stress tips, radiation monitoring news…

March 14, 2011:

News reports and vivid images of the death and destruction wrought by Friday’s 8.9-magnitude earthquake-driven tsunami in eastern Japan have triggered stress and anxiety worldwide. To help UC Berkeley’s campus community cope with post-quake shock and excessive worry, among other things, University Health Services has compiled a resource list that includes tips and services available to the campus community, including contact information for making donations to the American Red Cross.

‘D’ is for debate: Controversy over vitamin supplements sows confusion

March 9, 2011:

Experts have long complained that the 1997 Institute of Medicine guidelines on vitamin D intake were too low. Copious research since then on vitamin D, much of it encouraging, have sent sales of the vitamin skyrocketing. A new report will probably slow that trend, says the UC Berkeley Wellness Letter.

Tang Center offers health assessments

March 2, 2011:

University Health Services offers online tools for members of the campus community to assess their health status — and programs to take action to stay well and fit.

Meditation beats dance for harmonizing body and mind

February 23, 2011:

The body is a dancer’s instrument, but is it attuned to the mind? A new study from UC Berkeley suggests that professional ballet and modern dancers are not as emotionally in sync with their bodies as are people who regularly practice Vipassana or mindfulness meditation.

Using religion to address health needs in underserved communities

February 18, 2011:

In Alameda Country, researchers from the School of Public Health and Kaiser Permanente are reaching out, through local churches, to offer health screening and education to two groups — African Americans and Afghan refugee women.

Chinks in the brain circuitry make some more vulnerable to anxiety

February 9, 2011:

Why do some people fret over the most trivial matters while others remain calm in the face of calamity? UC Berkeley researchers have identified two different chinks in our brain circuitry that explain why some of us are more prone to anxiety.

Researchers turn Salmonella into anti-viral gene therapy agent

February 7, 2011:

UC Berkeley researchers have converted Salmonella bacteria from a foodborne pathogen into a safe delivery vehicle for anti-viral agents. They inserted virus-stopping ribozymes into Salmonella that had their ability to cause disease disabled, and then used the bacteria to effectively treat mice infected with cytomegalovirus. It is the first time bacteria have been successfully engineered to treat a viral infection.

The incredible, edible, unsafe egg?

December 9, 2010:

In the recent food-safety crisis involving Salmonella infection from eggs, more than 1,600 people fell ill and more than half a billion eggs were recalled. Editors of the UC Berkeley Wellness Letter review what went wrong at the henhouse — and what you need to know to eat eggs safely.

Pioneering UC Berkeley Wellness Letter celebrates its silver anniversary

November 16, 2010:

For more than a generation, people looking for plain-spoken, science-based guidance on healthy living have turned to a short-on-frills, long-on-substance, monthly known as the UC Berkeley Wellness Letter.

‘Real food’ collective opens for business next to campus

November 15, 2010:

A year and a half after keeping Panda Express off campus, the Berkeley Student Food Collective delivered on its alternative and opened a food market that brims with fresh produce, staples for home cooking and quick lunch fare — all sustainably produced.