Last modified: Monday, April 2, 2007
Media Advisory: Kenneth Cooper, renowned preventive medicine expert, to speak at IU Bloomington
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 2, 2007
Dr. Kenneth Cooper, M.D., is speaking at Indiana University Bloomington on April 4 and participating in the School of Health, Physical Education and Recreation's "Grow Move Change" research symposium.
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. -- Renowned preventive medicine expert Kenneth Cooper, M.D., an international leader in the health and fitness movement, is giving two public addresses in Bloomington on Wednesday, April 4, and participating in a research symposium hosted by the School of Health, Physical Education and Recreation. The media is welcome to cover all of these events, which are free and open to the public.
- Noon: Cooper will discuss, "The real cost of healthcare: Workplace wellness and your bottom line," at the Bloomington Hospital's Wegmiller Auditorium, 601 W. Second St. Please let Tracy James, 812-855-0084 and traljame@indiana.edu, know if you plan to attend this address. Reporters can park in the parking garage and have their tickets validated. When you leave the parking garage and enter the hospital, the auditorium is to the left, before you arrive at the information desk.
- 2 p.m.: A media availability with Cooper will be held in the State Room West in the Indiana Memorial Union, 900 E. Seventh St.
- 7 p.m.: Cooper will give a public lecture, "Preventive medicine and health promotion: 21st century medicine," in the Whittenberger Auditorium of the Indiana Memorial Union.
- 8:30 a.m.-11 a.m. and 2 p.m.-5 p.m.: "Grow Move Change" HPER research symposium. HPER faculty will discuss research involving healthy aging and obesity during presentations and panel discussions that include question-and-answer opportunities. Cooper will also participate. The symposium will be held in the Frangipani Room of the IMU.
Here is a sampling of the research that will be discussed:
- Kinesiology Professor David Koceja and his research team examine balance mechanisms and how they change as people age. This is critical to aging populations because a fall, particularly one involving broken bones, can dramatically change a person's quality of life. Koceja and his colleagues are studying whether a simple neural test could allow physicians to ID people at risk of falls so they could take specific steps to improve their balance.
- Many people skip breakfast despite its link to a lower body mass index and potential for preventing people from becoming overweight and obese. A study by HPER researchers into beliefs about breakfast found that many respondents thought their employers disapproved of them eating breakfast. Whether or not they actually did, the response is significant because the workplace can provide a good opportunity to encourage healthy breakfast habits, said Susan Middlestadt, associate professor in the Department of Applied Health Science. Many work sites, particularly those involving shift work, include cafeterias.
- Preliminary studies by Marieke Van Puymbroeck, assistant professor in the Department of Recreation, Park and Tourism Studies, found slight stress release benefits to caregivers who practiced yoga or walked regularly. Her research focuses on people who care for adults with chronic disease or disabilities. Around 44 million people in the U.S. are informal caregivers. "If caregivers burn out and are unable to provide care, what happens to the person they are providing care for?" Van Puymbroeck asked. Her studies are challenged by the very nature of caregiving -- caregivers have such little time for leisure activity that it is difficult to recruit them for research studies into how to help them.
Other presentations address dietary choices and arterial health (see: https://newsinfo.iu.edu/news/page/normal/3925.html), national health statistics (see: https://newsinfo.iu.edu/news/page/normal/3763.html), the role of physical activity in healthy aging (see: https://newsinfo.iu.edu/news/page/normal/4030.html) and other topics.
Cooper received his medical degree from the University of Oklahoma School of Medicine and his Masters of Public Health from the Harvard University School of Public Health. His 1968 book Aerobics coined the term and launched a fitness movement. Cooper is president and founder of the Cooper Aerobics Center in Dallas and author of numerous books, including Kid Fitness, Controlling Cholesterol, The Aerobics Program for Total Well-Being and Regaining the Power of Youth at Any Age. For more information about the Cooper Aerobics Center or its Cooper Institute, visit https://www.cooperaerobics.com/default.aspx.
The activities are part of a yearlong celebration of HPER's 60th anniversary. For more information about the symposium, visit https://www.hper.indiana.edu/development/cooper.shtml. For more information about Cooper and the day's activities, read https://newsinfo.iu.edu/news/page/normal/5252.html.
For additional assistance, contact Tracy James, IU Media Relations, 812-855-0084 and traljame@indiana.edu, or Dara Eckart, special events coordinator at HPER, deckart@indiana.edu and 812-855-3686.
