In the News: Kinesiology heats up & Nursing hits the road

Last week, the School of Nursing’s Community Health Mobile Unit hit the road for the very first time! The first stop was in Parlier, which is just the first of many rural areas the unit will visit over the course of the next two years. Nursing faculty and students will be providing free health services to residents in migrant communities where access to health care is not readily available. Local news media were on hand in Parlier to speak with faculty, students and community residents about the services provided. Check out both news features here! You can read more about the mobile unit and find out upcoming dates HERE. Their next stop will be at the Sanger Community Center on October 6th!

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Another heat wave is hitting the Valley! It was the perfect time for KSEE24 to interview Dr. Luke Pryor, the newest assistant professor in Kinesiology. He recently moved here from Connecticut with his wife, Riana, who is a lecturer in the Kinesiology department. They are known nationwide for research they have done on the effects of extreme heat on the body. Through their research, they hope to gain further understanding of heat’s impact on the human body, especially among athletes. In addition to working with athletes here at the University, the Pryors hope to conduct research over the next few years on the effects of heat on laborers, specifically migrant farm workers. Check out the segment below!

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Dr. Scott Sailor, chair in the Department of Kinesiology, was featured in the latest Men’s Journal article discussing the effects of heat on U.S. Open Championships players! It looks like heat is a hot topic right now (pun intended). Here is an excerpt:

Temperatures have been in the high 90s with raging humidity during this Open. Leading up to the main event in New York, many players spend extra time in the United States. But a number of those warm-up events take place in milder climates like Toronto and Palo Alto, California, and acclimatizing can take two to three weeks, even for elite athletes. “When the body doesn’t have time to acclimate to the heat,” says Scott Sailor, president of the National Athletic Trainers’ Association and chair of the Kinesiology department at California State University Fresno, “you rapidly expend a lot of fluids and electrolytes.”

…Avoiding cramps is much easier than trying to deal with them in the moment. That means drinking plenty of water the day before a big workout or competition, monitoring how much you’re drinking, as well as knowing how much you sweat in different climates and conditions. This goes for elites and recreational athletes alike. “Just like these pro athletes, you should follow the same rules,” Sailor says. “Our bodies are incredible, but we have to take care of them properly.”

Read the article in full and hear more from Dr. Sailor HERE.