Mark's Intro...

[Guest guest]

Dear SF-Bay Veg's,

 

 

 

I was thrilled to find out about this network. Here's a little about me

and my work. If any of this interests you, I'd love to hear from you.

 

 

 

I'm a recent transplant from the other coast. I grew up in Canada and

have been vegan for 12 years, initially because of an interest in health

and the prevention of disease, but now also because of a love of animals

and concern for the environment. I was very influenced by John Robbin's

work when I was 15, interned at EarthSave Int. in college and have run a

few similar groups along the way. Most recently, I've been trying to

launch a veg network for medical students. We call it DREAMS - the

Dietary Research & Education Alliance of Medical Students. Sadly, life

as a fourth year med student does not afford a lot of time for this kind

of work, but we try.

 

 

 

So now I've taken the year off med school to do a research fellowship

that allows me to pursue my veg interests, breathe a little, and get to

know this wonderful city of San Francisco. The research involves

designing an educational program that will expose obese individuals to

the environmental, ethical, social and health benefits of a plant-based

diet. The main aim of the study is to see whether eco-ethical education

can influence a change in dietary pattern, which in turn might afford

weight loss or the maintenance of weight loss. While it is quite clear

that these motivators have changed many individuals (such as ourselves)

eating patterns, we don't know whether we can use these motivators in a

medical setting. Naturally, I think we should, and that's one of the

reasons for doing the research.

 

 

 

I'm looking forward to meeting some of you during my brief stay here. If

you think you might want to contribute some of your skills and energy to

these projects, do get in touch! My info is below. Of course, if you

just want to say hi, that's cool too.

 

 

 

Best wishes,

 

Mark

 

 

 

Mark Berman

 

Preventive Medicine Research Institute, Intern

 

C: 415-205-6202

 

H: 415-681-3456

 

E: mark.berman

 

W: 415-332-2525 x 290