E-cigarettes were first sold in the United States in 2007. These battery-operated devices heat a liquid made of chemicals, including some with high levels of nicotine, to make an aerosol that users inhale into their lungs. This program discusses the numerous health concerns related with e-cigarette usage. Series: "Excerpts" [Health and Medicine] [Show ID: 39593]

UC Berkeley engineers have created a simple and low-cost new arsenic treatment system to help low-income communities access safer water. In many areas throughout California, the groundwater is tainted with dangerous levels of arsenic, a highly carcinogenic element that can seep into the water table from deposits in the soil and bedrock. While cities and larger municipalities can afford to remove arsenic from their water, many people living in small and rural communities are forced to choose...

Alzheimer’s disease is a major health crisis that is projected to become an even larger threat in the coming decades. According to the National Institute on Aging, the number of Americans 65 and older with Alzheimer’s could rise from 5.8 million in 2020 to 13.8 million by 2050. Given the severity of this health crisis and the toll it takes on patients, their families and society, we must be prepared today to address the needs of tomorrow. Dean Frank LaFerla of UC Irvine's School of Biological...

The world has lived through 2+ years of the COVID-19 pandemic, heightening the awareness of the links between health and other aspects of life including education and the economy. Future pandemics are a real risk but there are a number of other threats to human health and well-being as well. These include climate change, the rise of obesity, inverted population pyramids, inter-state conflict, rising inequalities, antimicrobial resistance. Counterbalancing these threats are the opportunities...

The Global Burden of Disease Study (GBD) began in 1991 sponsored by the World Bank and the World Health Organization to fill a critical gap in global health information. It has grown steadily to become an active collaboration of more than 8,000 scientists, researchers and policy-makers from 156 countries working together to quantify health at the national and subnational level. In this program, Christopher J.L. Murray, Professor and Chair of Health Metrics Sciences at the University of...

COVID-19 changed many aspects of our lives, and policymakers at the local, state, and federal level are seeking solutions to help restore the health and well-being of Californians. In this program, Joanne Spetz examines the impact the pandemic has had on healthcare workers, from burnout to physical and mental health impacts, and what leaders can do to resolve the crisis. Series: "Mini Medical School for the Public" [Health and Medicine] [Show ID: 38201]

E-cigarettes were first sold in the United States in 2007. These battery-operated devices heat a liquid made of flavorings and other chemicals, including some with high levels of nicotine, to make an aerosol that users inhale into their lungs. Recent studies show there has been a dramatic increase in their usage – data from 2017 found 1 million American youth aged 14 to 17 years old became new daily tobacco users within the past two years. By 2019, more than three quarters of these youth were...

Across the United States, more than 100 people are killed and more than 200 are injured every day by firearms. As an emergency room doctor, Megan L. Ranney, M.D. M.P.H. F.A.C.E.P., has seen the impacts of this violence first hand. She discusses the basic epidemiology of firearm injury, explains the drivers behind them, and advocates for new, inclusive strategies for prevention. [Health and Medicine] [Show ID: 38251]

The DIY air purifier is the latest project of the Common Humanity Collective, a Bay Area mutual aid organization which was launched in March 2020, near the start of the COVID-19 crisis. UC Berkeley graduate student Abrar Abidi and campus research assistant Yvonne Hao started the project to help make life safer for those most at risk in the pandemic. Series: "UC Berkeley News" [Health and Medicine] [Show ID: 37828]

Most research studies don't consider how different races perceive the stressfulness of stress exposure. This has led to a paradox among mental and physical health outcomes that show whites report more instances of stress and depression, yet people of color have higher rates of stress-related illnesses such as hypertension. Indeed, racial/ethnic minorities have more disabilities, a greater number of chronic conditions, and age faster than other populations. Lauren Brown, PhD, discusses the...

María Marquine, PhD, discusses her recent work looking at the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on well-being and cognition for Latinos and non-Latino Blacks. Series: "Stein Institute for Research on Aging" [Health and Medicine] [Show ID: 37604]

Dr. Annie Luetkemeyer discusses improving outcomes for COVID patients as well as medications such as remdesivir, dexamethasone, and anticoagulation. She also looks at outpatient treatments and a current research study that is looking for new breakthroughs. Series: "Mini Medical School for the Public" [Health and Medicine] [Show ID: 37156]

Dr. Diane Havlir knows it takes a community to end a pandemic. Latinx was particualry hard hit with COVID-19. She talks about what Unidos en Salud did to respond to the virus and where things stand in the race between the virus and the vaccine. Series: "Mini Medical School for the Public" [Health and Medicine] [Show ID: 37137]

Dr. George Rutherford shares what we know about the emergence and spread of SARS-CoV-2, the epidiomiology of COVID-19, and the status of immunizations. He also explores what can still go wrong and what we've learned to better handle future pandemics. Series: "Mini Medical School for the Public" [Health and Medicine] [Show ID: 37136]

In this wide-ranging conversation, Jesse Nodora shares his journey into a career in public health, how COVID-19 has impacted his mindset and practices, how our pandemic routines may impact our post-pandemic health and much more. Series: "Education Channel" [Health and Medicine] [Education] [Show ID: 36941]

Explore the relationship between our climate emergency and ubiquitous exposure to toxic environmental chemicals, regarding their impacts on human reproductive health and fertility. Panelists review current scientific research, and related clinical and public health policy implications, as background for discussing prevention interventions that are being endorsed and promoted by health care providers at the clinical/individual and national/international policy levels. Series: "Mini Medical...

The rise in antibiotic resistance poses one of the greatest challenges to public health and modern medicine. The roots of the dilemma are many - overzealous use of antibiotics clinical and agricultural settings, the departure of major pharmaceutical companies from antibiotic development ,and simple Darwinian evolution of microbes. Can we lift ourselves out of the hole that we have dug? Many ethical dilemmas must be acknowledged and confronted, such as balancing restrictions on individual...

Dr. Tomás Aragón, San Francisco's health officer, is on the front line of the effort to limit the number of infections and deaths caused by the coronavirus in the Bay Area. The early government response is credited with mitigating the spread of infection compared to cities on the East Coast. As we enter another surge in cases, find out the latest. Series: "Mini Medical School for the Public" [Health and Medicine] [Show ID: 36501]

This interview with Dr. Anthony Fauci, one of the leading experts on the American response to COVID-19, explores what the country is doing to control the disease’s spread. Dr. Fauci is the Director of National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), and a current member of the White House Coronavirus Task Force. Dr. Fauci will discuss how the coronavirus could affect the ability of colleges to re-open safely and the broader impact of the virus on our country. Series: "UC Public...

Maria Araneta, Professor of Epidemiology and Family and Preventative Medicine at UC San Diego School of Medicine describes how social inequity has disproportionately effected non-white communities throughout the region and across the country, and actions to address this inequity. Series: "A Deep Look into the Future of Biology" [Health and Medicine] [Science] [Show ID: 36609]

Are humans rational beings guided by facts and information or do our moral views, desires, affiliations and motivations influence our perception of facts? Increasingly distrust in the science of climate change is rooted in different exposure to media/information and tied to political ideology. Dr. Gina Solomon says that the debate on the science is actually a debate on the solution and discusses ways to communicate about climate science. Series: "Mini Medical School for the Public" [Health...

Dr. Jess Mandel, Professor of Medicine and Chief, Division of Pulmonary, Critical Care, and Sleep Medicine at UC San Diego Health details the actions taken by UC San Diego Health to address COVID-19 patient care by UC San Diego Health in San Diego and in our border region. Series: "A Deep Look into the Future of Biology" [Health and Medicine] [Science] [Show ID: 36608]