This is public health.

What is public health? It's everywhere and affects everyone, but ironically, many people don't know what it is.

Enter THIS IS PUBLIC HEALTH, a cool campaign of the Association of Schools of Public Health to educate people about what public health is and how it's woven into their daily lives.

Thinking about working in public health? The campaign also educates about public health careers and how to get into them.

And I can't forget the most fun part! Check out the stickers (above) and the public health stuff people have stuck them to.

Turkey trotting!

This weekend marked another holiday-themed 5K (last month was the Monster Dash) for my public health friends and me -- the Turkey Run!

As could be expected, late November mornings in Minnesota are a little chilly, but we were fine within a couple of minutes. I hope we're that lucky for the Reindeer Run in two weeks and the Polar Dash 10K on New Year's Day!

I've always run in some capacity -- woo! Go Prowlers! (high school track team) -- but I've been doing a lot of it lately. And I find that two things make it more fun and, in turn, make me more motivated: friends and events. It's one thing to go out and pound the pavement alone because it's good for you; it's totally another to head to a fun costume 5K with friends -- and it keeps me running in between.

Now if the snow/below-zero temps could just hold off...

Make the most of your 'break'

Maybe that defeats the purpose of a break, yes, but if you're looking for a leg up on the competition and your career, think about saying goodbye to the couch-TV-potato-chips winter break routine.

Lots of health-related worksites accept -- and love -- volunteers. Call one up, tell them you have a month and see if they can use you. Even though it's a short period, offer to work a lot of hours. A condensed internship at a hospital, clinic, nonprofit organization or government agency is still an internship (read: something that will look sweet on your resume...and, yes, get you some good experience).

Check local volunteer listings on sites like VolunteerMatch.org and Idealist.org. Something interesting might pop up or inspire you, but if not, don't panic: Many places would love to have you volunteer; you just have to offer.

Drumroll, please...

Behold, my partner's and my completed health journalism project!

It's a website about antidepressant medications and how, despite nasty side effects and even some long-term brain changes, they don't work for most people. Yes, it's a shameless plug. But also, it's pretty interesting. Really. Check it out.

This marks the end, more or less, of the my first course of my master's program in Health Journalism and Communication. It was a seminar with 14 students: some hardcore professional journalists, doctors, marketers and advertisers and other communicators, a researcher and a few people just out of undergrad. Really, a great class and fantastic experience.

And I have something to show for it!

'Statin stunner'

That was my favorite of all headlines related to the big health news this week that cholesterol-lowering statins apparently greatly reduce the risk of heart attacks, strokes and death--even in people without high cholesterol. (I was overjoyed to get to use it again.)

Most stories go into an explanation about the culprit, c-reactive protein (CRP), which causes inflammation in the arteries making it more likely for plaque to come loose, etc. etc. etc. Statins lower CRP.

What do you think? People are calling it groundbreaking. It's a big study: 18,000 people in 26 countries. Called off three years early because initial results were so dramatic. Paid for by AstraZeneca, the maker of the statin studied--Crestor.

Does it mean everyone should run to their doctor for a CRP test and, if it's elevated, start taking a statin...for the rest of their life?

Or should we look to more natural inflammation-reducers?

Or do we ignore this for now and wait for more information?

Rock the vote - and get free stuff!

You know it's the right thing to do. But who knew it would get you free stuff?

Go to your local Ben & Jerry's between 5 and 8pm -- they're giving free scoops of ice cream to responsible, voting citizens.

Need a caffeine fix? Tell your barista you voted, and Starbucks will give you a free election-day cup of coffee.

And in case you're still not satisfied, stop by Krispy Kreme for a free "star-shaped doughnut with patriotic sprinkles" to everyone with an 'I voted' sticker.

Sticker peeling? Get a virtual one for your your Facebook profile from Rock the Vote.

Happy voting!

It's about slump time

It's about that time of the semester: six weeks left before finals. The workload is picking up, and the motivation is going down. Fast. I think I'm officially burning out.

Somehow I forgot that this happened to me in college, though I'm sure it did. Now, in grad school, it sort of blind sighted me, but I should have known it was coming. I have absolutely no desire to write a paper on comprehensive sex ed (even though it's interesting), read my epidemiology (even though I have an exam coming up) or edit my video interviews for my health journalism class (even though my final project is due in a week and a half).

I would be perfectly happy spending the next six weeks in sweatpants, snuggled up with my dog on the couch watching HGTV and catching up on Grey's Anatomy (I have class on Thursday nights, which totally ruins my TV schedule). If baked goods were involved, even better.

But alas, my sex ed paper is still due this week. I still have an epi exam. My journalism interviews aren't going to edit themselves. So I'm trying some things that have kicked me into gear (at least a little bit) during the two-thirds semester slump in the past:

To-do lists. I'm a big list person anyway, but when I have a lot going on without the motivation to match, I start The Mega List--absolutely everything that has to happen. Because crossing things off feels so good. And yes, I'll admit to adding things to the list after I've already done them and immediately crossing them off, just for that satisfaction. I bet I'm not the only one who does that.

New activities. School happens in semesters: academics, extra-curriculars, even community stuff, as everything revolves around a class schedule that will change in less than four months. That's standard student mentality. But mixing that can help recharge me. Mid-semester, I got involved with a student-run free clinic and am starting to work on a spring 5K for global malaria awareness and prevention. And planning for this year's Twin Cities World Refugee Day celebration is picking up soon. Sometimes that busy feeling--even if it's from something not school-related--is enough to get me moving on everything.

Run! Literally. When I get stressed or energy-zapped or both, I work out. Hard. Even if I have no desire to do so. But once I'm a mile in, cruising through the park, I'm glad I'm there, not thinking for a second about school and know that by the time I get back, I'll be down a few hundred calories and a lot of stressing out. And up some vitamin D, since it's 73 and sunny in Minnesota in November--that always helps!