Wellness Day set for March 15

By DONNA LONGENECKER
Reporter Assistant Editor

Winter blues and holiday gorging got you down? Join your co-workers for a much-needed, spring tune-up on March 15 at the third annual Wellness Day, sponsored by the Professional Staff Senate and the Faculty Senate.

The free event, to be held from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. in the main gym of Alumni Arena, North Campus, will feature health screenings that include blood pressure checks and blood screening, and cooking demonstrations by staff of the Williamsville restaurants Daffodils and Dandelions that promote healthier eating, as well as stress busters, exercise and exercise equipment demonstrations, retirement and financial information and much more. North Campus shuttle service to Alumni Arena will be available from 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. from the Center for Tomorrow parking lot and from the flagpole outside Capen Hall and the Student Union.

H. William Coles III, chair of the PSS and associate director of the Center for Academic Development Services/Educational Opportunity Program, makes the best case for participating in Wellness Day. As a result of last year's blood screening results, he says, several people were found to have elevated glucose levels, with 11 people found to have diabetes. Many also discovered elevated cholesterol/triglyceride levels, with one person recording a level above 600—anything above 200 is considered a problem. About 4.3 percent of the 203 people screened for TSH (thyroid testing) were found to have an under- or over-active thyroid, and about 6 percent of those screened for white blood-cell count showed elevated counts.

On a positive note, Coles says, screenings for PSA levels (prostate antigen for men over 40) all reportedly were normal. Interestingly, he points out, some of the participants, including both men and women, had bone scans that revealed loss of bone mass. "We've been good at taking care of (university) business," he says, "but who's taking care of you? We're not as young and agile as we used to be," he adds.

"We know you don't have time to take care of all of your health needs, you don't have time to keep running to your physician. So we're trying to make your life a little easier."

The Center for Student Health will conduct the extensive regimen of blood testing prior to Wellness Day, says Frank Carnevale, clinical assistant professor at the center, with the results available on the day of the event. Appointments to have blood drawn can be made from 7:30-9:30 a.m. on March 4-5 in 172 Farber Hall, South Campus, and from 7:30-9:30 a.m. March 6, 9 and 11 in 145A Student Union, North Campus. Analysis will be done for cholesterol (HDL/LDL ratio), triglycerides, glucose, TSH (thyroid testing), PSA and anemia, says Carnevale.

"This is an excellent chance to learn more about how to keep yourself healthy in a fun and educational environment—it's a great resource for employees to take advantage of," especially for those who haven't seen their physicians in a while, he adds.

Employees can take the results of the blood screening to their physicians for further discussion or evaluation, he says.

To make an appointment for the pre-event blood testing, call 1-800-234-8888. Representatives of AMBA Wellness Programs will draw the blood and perform the analysis for Wellness Day.