A Community of Caregivers – In Times of Need, Family Members and Agencies Provide Welcome Support

caregiving

Often called the “silent population,” the number of seniors, as well as those with Alzheimer’s disease, is rapidly increasing. According to the Alzheimer’s Association, the numbers of Asian Pacific Islanders with the disease, a kind of dementia that is associated with memory loss, will almost triple between 2009-2030, from about 72,075 to 194,266. In the [...]

Taking Heart: Japanese American Medical Student Develops iPhone Application to Study Heart Murmurs

STOCKTON NATIVE — Michael “Fuj” Fujinaka, a third-year medical student at the UC San Diego School of Medicine, has created iMurmur. With a reported 10,000 downloads thus far, the iPhone application has become one of the most popular medical applications ever created for the iPhone. photo courtesy of Christie Fujinaka

When Michael “Fuj” Fujinaka started medical school two years ago he received a stethoscope. But he was not taught how to use it until his third year of school. “Basically every medical student uses a stethoscope. But you don’t learn how to use it until your third year,” said the Stockton, Calif. native, who is [...]

Breast Cancer Survivor – A Symbol of Hope

Kathy Matsui, photo courtesy of Kathy Matsui

As Goldman Sachs Japan Co. managing director, Kathy Matsui tries to “give good advice to investors regarding Japan’s stock market economy — where it’s going and where to invest.” While Matsui is an expert in her field, having been voted top strategist by Institutional Investor in 2000, 2001, and 2006, her road to success was [...]

Working Out the Right Way: Fitness Tips for Seniors

KEEPING FIT — David McGuire, a personal fitness trainer, teaches a senior how to exercise. photo courtesy of Pacific Heights Health Club

No one has found the Fountain of Youth for senior citizens yet but there is an alternative for those trying to turn back the clock: exercise. Medical study after medical study after medical study have found that a regular exercise program can stave off the risk of a variety of ailments — from diabetes to [...]

Hibakusha Victims Express Gratitude Following Japanese Doctors’ Biennial Visit

HORRORS OF A HIBAKUSHA — Jack Dairiki with a drawing he did in 1950 of the bombing of Hiroshima. photo by Shiina Morimoto/Nichi Bei Weekly

It has been 32 years since the Hiroshima Prefectural Medical Association began sending a team of physicians to the United States every two years to conduct medical examinations on those of Japanese and Korean descent who survived the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagaski in 1945. More than 200,000 people died in the atomic bombings [...]

APIS LIVING WITH HIV: Suffering, Stigma and Survival

SURVIVORS — HIV-positive APIs Mark Agtane (L) and “Miss E.” photos by Shiina Morimoto/Nichi Bei Weekly

In the Tenderloin district of San Francisco, “Miss E” talks about being an HIV-positive Asian American. “I was at death’s door when I was diagnosed. Of course it’s devastating to find out you have AIDS,” she said. Miss E has the kind of remarkable life you could base a movie on. Her Japanese mother died [...]

MORE THAN A HILL OF BEANS: Hodo Soy Beanery Opens New Factory in West Oakland

TASTY TOFU — An employee (above left) checks sheets of yuba, which is formed as a skin on the surface of warmed soy milk. The skins are hung to dry on racks much like pasta. Hodo Soy Beanery founder Minh Tsai (above right) holds re-hydrated organic soybeans, which come from a farming co-op in the Midwest. photos by Vivien Kim Thorp/Nichi Bei Weekly

OAKLAND — Dressed in a bright yellow plastic apron and blue-striped engineer’s cap, Minh Tsai, the founder of Hodo Soy Beanery, is leading a tour of his company’s new West Oakland factory. With one hand, he presents a palmful of re-hydrated organic soybeans, and with the other he gestures enthusiastically to the large silver soymilk [...]

Health and Fitness Classes

Los Angeles East San Gabriel Valley Japanese Community Center Ballroom Dance — Fridays at 7:30 p.m., Social Hall. All ages. Hula Dance — Tuesdays at 7:30 p.m., Rm. 3 & 4. All ages. 1203 West Puente Ave., West Covina, CA. (626) 960-2566 Hollywood Japanese Cultural Institute Warabi Kai Exercise — Wednesdays, 9-11 a.m. Open to [...]

A-Bomb Survivors in America Examined by Hiroshima Doctors

Makoto Matsumura being examined by a doctor SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA HIBAKUSHA EXAMINED — Makoto Matsumura, a physician of the Hiroshima Prefecture Medical Association, examines Eiko Fukushima, a 78-year-old atomic-bomb survivor from Hiroshima, now living in Los Angeles, at a suburban Los Angeles hospital on Sept. 19, 2009 Kyodo News photo

LOS ANGELES (Kyodo) — Atomic-bomb survivors from Hiroshima and Nagasaki, now living in North America, received health checks from a group of Japanese doctors Sept. 19 at a suburban Los Angeles hospital. The medical delegation, consisting of physicians and administrative personnel commissioned by the Japanese government and Hiroshima prefectural government, conducted medical exams including interviews, [...]