Kalyn Bilger & Katelyn Jackson & Meredith McBurnett
Today, we went back to Jönköping University to listen to Dr. Deborah Finkel. She discussed her research derived from the Swedish Twin Studies. The Swedish Twin Registries is one of the largest in the world that has been vital to studying aging and the effects of genetics and environment on one’s health. One of the findings I took away from the lecture was the cascade of effects that lead to aging: lung function affects motor function which impacts processing speed that can lead to cognitive aging. From this conclusion, she recommends, in order to slow aging, physical activity is highly important as it directly correlates to lung function. As for environmental factors, education level affects the health of an individual. Education provides tools that people utilize to take charge of their health and find solutions.
We took a siesta between lectures and it really saved us. This jet lag has still not subsided!
We went to Qulturum where we met Maggie who started a cancer support group where patients and relatives can meet sometimes to do activities together. The group is called Hjartas Hus and it is growing. She now has a couple places where this group exists.
Also at Qulturum, we met with CEO Göran Henriks where we discussed how the Swedish healthcare system is set up. He described the tax system, the focus of care in the Swedish health system, the similarities of challenges in both our countries, and more about the systems funded by taxes. In Sweden, they have high income tax rates that are used to fund healthcare and education for the population. The health system also focuses on preventive measures and primary care as opposed to the US where we focus on hospitals. He also talked about just the atmosphere of Sweden and how we perceive it. One thing that stuck out was the fact he said Sweden thinks about the collective community first while the US tends to think about the individual first. He suggested we should look towards public health as a way to better overall health and adjusting our education. Sweden has a 16% high school drop out rate and the US has a 20% rate. Both are high, but we can look to improve the rate in the US.
For dinner, some of us went to a cafe style restaurant and all got paninis and some desserts! It was really good and fresh.
We walked around and got some souvenirs and then came back to the hotel to relax and figure out how to watch the Bachelorette! We made a game out of the viewing party which was really fun. It’s my first time watching it so it made it really entertaining!
We prepped for our presentations tomorrow and are excited for our travels to Stockholm tomorrow evening!
