Health and Wealth Lecture Draws Many in Chinese Community

More than 250 people flooded the auditorium of the Chinese Culture Center of San Francisco to attend a lecture organized by UCSF's Asian Heart and Vascular Center. Part of the Health & Wealth Lecture Series, the Feb. 24 event commemorated the seventh day of the Lunar New Year of the Boar, which is known to many in the Chinese community as "everybody's birthday." "Customarily, the first two weeks of the Lunar New Year are usually filled with blissful family visiting, food and celebration events for Chinese American immigrants," says Diana Lau, RN, MS, CNS, administrative director of the Asian Heart and Vascular Center. "It was a really nice surprise that we had such a great turnout in support of a health educational event, which is a rather untraditional ritual in the Lunar New Year customs." The idea for offering a health and wealth combination lecture series came from a basic understanding of the community's common desires for both health and wealth. "We cannot fully enjoy our wealth without good health, an often taken-for-granted entity for baby boomers and X generationers," Lau points out.

TV personality Yalek Huynh welcomes participants to the second part of the Health & Wealth Lecture Series.

During this lecture, Chuk Wing Kwan, MD, clinical professor of UCSF's School of Medicine, gave a "Heart-to-Heart Talk" to emphasize important healthy heart information during the National Heart Awareness Month (February). Kwan gave tips on how to live a heart-healthy life, advising participants on the many risk factors of heart disease and how to cook, avoiding foods that are high in cholesterol. Making up about one-third (32.6 percent) of San Francisco's population, Asians are one of the Bay Area's fastest growing minority groups, and heart disease is their leading killer. Kwan also highlighted the national crisis of hypertension, and the importance of getting high blood pressure under control, a topic that Gordon Fung, MD, director of the Asian Heart and Vascular Center, will be elaborating more on in the upcoming third and last lecture in the Health & Wealth Lecture Series. The second part of the lecture, the wealth part, featured Eric Tong, a CPA who has been a regular finance and tax advice commentator on Chinese radio since its inception. In his presentation, titled "An Early and Comfortable Retirement," Tong advised that with long-term solvency of the US Social Security System in question, people should save more and spend less early on in their work life.

Chuk Wing Kwan, MD, gives tips for a healthy heart.

The educational event also featured Yalek Huynh from KTSF-TV Channel 26's Evening News, who served as emcee, a presentation on the Lunar New Year and prize drawings. Every participant received a lucky red envelope with a small token prize upon departure. Asked how he perceived the class, one of the participants said, "I came because my wife told me to, and I am glad I listened to her! This was a great class, and I wish there were more quality classes such as this one to benefit the Chinese community!" The third and last part of the Health & Wealth Lecture Series will focus on hypertension and estate planning, and is scheduled for Friday, March 16, from 5 to 7:30 p.m. at the Chinese Culture Center, on the third floor of the Hilton Hotel, 750 Kearny St., San Francisco. Fung, who just returned from attending the National Clinical Hypertension Review Course of the American Society of Hypertension, will share the latest news on high blood pressure control, while Eric Tong, CPA, will speak about estate planning techniques to minimize estate taxes. To register for the class, call the 415/885-3678. The Health & Wealth Lecture Series was a collaborative effort among many community organizations: Chinese Culture Foundation, Northern California Chinese Media Association, Vitasoy USA, Inc., Prince of Peace Enterprises, Inc., Garden Company, Chinatown Public Health Center, Asian Healthcare Institute, Inc., as well as UCSF's own Women's Health Center, which is part of the UCSF Center of Excellence in Women's Health. Related Links: UCSF Opens First Asian Heart and Vascular Center in the United States
UCSF Today, May 15, 2006 UCSF Asian Heart and Vascular Center