Category Archives: health

Which One Deserves To Die? – Hepatitis B Ad

Which One Deserves To Die? - Hepatitis B Ad

Hepatitis B isn’t often discussed by Asian Americans, but this ad will get you talking. San Francisco Hep B Free launched “Which One Deserves To Die?,” a provocative ad campaign alerting the Asian American community that 1 in 10 Asian Americans is chronically infected with hepatitis B compared to 1 in 1,000 in the general population. This in your face ad shows why we as Asian Americans need to be tested for hepatitis B. This million dollar ad campaign will appear in ethnic and local newspapers, billboards, bus shelters for the month of May. TV commercials were also produced and will be shown on cable, broadcast and Asian television.

also check out the B HERE campaign that ran last year.

Which One Deserves To Die? – Beauty Pagaent

Hepatitis B commercial in the local news

Which One Deserves To Die? – Chinese Family

Hope for Natalie – bone marrow donor needed

This is such a sad story and reinforces the need for Asian Americans to be bone marrow donors. (Also see Project Michelle, 1,000 Cranes for Hope, and Nick Glasgow.) Watch this heartbreaking video from Natalie’s younger sister’s perspective.

Natalie is 8yrs old and was diagnosed with an aggressive form of leukemia. (AML – acute myeloid leukemia) After 5 rounds of chemo, Natalie was in remission, but as of 1/19/10 her cancer returned. Her only chance for survival is a bone marrow transplant. Please register to donate. You could be the one to save her life. Go to dkmsamericas.org or hopefornatalie.com

The current odds for an ethnic minority patient, like Natalie to find a matching unrelated donor may be close to 1 in a million. This is the reason they are trying so hard to reach as many people in the Asian population as possible. The more Asians we get swabbed, the more likely Natalie will find her “Needle In A Hay-Stack” match. Please spread the word to get people interested in the fight to SAVE Natalie’s life.

Recently, Alyssa Milano sent a twitter message out about Natalie. See it here.

Hope for Natalie

Getting Stress Free with Dr. Deepak Chopra on the iPhone




Get Deepak in your pocket.



Deepak Chopra introduces the new Stress Free iPhone application. It’s the first in a series of iPhone applications from Deepak Chopra. Learn about the 6 keys to being stress free and their daily practice, and explore the world of Deepak Chopra, all from your iPhone / iPod Touch. If you want to check it out, go here
.

Dr. Deepak Chopra talking about his new iPhone app


Preview of Stress Free iPhone application

H1N1 vaccine report on 60 Minutes

The H1N1 virus is pretty much widespread across the US now and there’s not enough H1N1 vaccine for everyone trying to get it. 60 Minutes explores why by reporting on the manufacture, distribution and safety of the H1N1 flu vaccine. Five companies are making vaccine, but only one in America. 60 Minutes visits that facility and talks to Sam Lee, director of manufacturing technology at French drug company Sanofi Pasteur.

In the plant as clean as a hospital operating room, Sam Lee talks about the vaccine manufacturing process using eggs in a temperature and humidity controlled environment. The whole process takes about three months. Sanofi Pasteur has a federal contract to make 75 million doses. They will go through millions of eggs. Apparently, there are secret egg farms in the US as part of a $7 billion project launched five years ago by the Bush administration to build factories and infrastructure to make vaccine in case of a pandemic. (Hope the egg usage doesn’t affect other food supply and prices like ethanol gas did just a couple years ago.)

BTW – if you’re going to see a health professional about a flu shot, we suggest you also asked to be tested for hepatitis B, which affects 1 in 10 Asian Americans.

H1N1 vaccine report on 60 Minutes (Check Sam Lee at the 3:40 mark)

Someday by May Ling

Here’s an interesting way to combat domestic violence. A music video. In an effort to raise awareness of domestic violence, the New York Asian Women’s Center (NYAWC) collaborated with artist May Ling to produced a music video “Someday,” a song about a woman’s experience in an abusive home.



Singer/songwriter May Ling stated that

“Music has the special ability to communicate issues that people normally do not want to discuss. In the 70’s, many popular songs were about changing the world for the better. In the last three decades, popular musicians seem to be increasingly sticking to lighter topics. My hope is that Someday will inspire social dialogue and positive change. I could not be more thankful for the many talented actors and crew members who felt similarly and donated their time to make this happen.”

The music and clips from ‘Someday’ will be featured in a new public service announcement for NYAWC in New York. The group has also completed a Chinese PSA and is currently working to find stations interested in donating air time. They also hope to translate the PSA into other languages and make it available in other regions to help spread the word.

In the future, May Ling hopes to do more songs that will motivate public activism. She collaborating on other songs that deal with child trafficking, the Khmer Rouge, and victims of the Sichuan Earthquake.

Someday by May Ling

During their life time, 100,000 Asian women in New York City will be abused by their partner – emotionally, financially, physically, or sexually. NYAWC helps victims overcome violence and govern their own lives, free of abuse. The Center works to raise public awareness about domestic violence, advocates for the rights of battered women, and creates an agenda for social change. The group’s 24 hour, multi-lingual help line provides assistance in 11 different languages and can be reached at 1-888-888-7702. For more information on the NYAWC, visit www.nyawc.org. Feel free to contact them or your local domesic violence center if you or someone you know is being abused.

Health Care – In Critial Condition by Lisa Ling

With all the discussions about healthcare, here’s an interesting piece by Lisa Ling. Did you know young people (ages of 18-35) make up the largest group of Americans without health insurance?

Young people graduating from college and moving into the workforce lose the health insurance they got through their parents or their school, and not replacing it. In many cases, it’s because employers don’t offer insurance or young workers opt out of employer-sponsored plans because they perceive them as being too expensive. Many young people think of themselves as healthy, and unlikely to require much in the way of medical attention.

Health Care – In Critial Condition by Lisa Ling