Originally published in SF Chronicle. By Drew Joseph March 24, 2013 Hervy Luster's blood pressure flashed 133/86. The top figure had been above 150 a few weeks prior. "That's awesome," said Dr. Dave Moskowitz. "The garlic is working," Luster, 59, said with a laugh, explaining he had eaten lots of garlic lately. "Not [...]

Originally published in SFGate. By Victoria Colliver March 12, 2013 Gloria Romaine has advanced, inoperable cancer, but hospice was never a consideration for the 61-year-old San Leandro woman. Romaine is not ready for an end-of-life strategy. She's actively fighting her cancer and wants help managing her pain. When her doctors at Oakland's Highland Hospital mentioned [...]

Originally published in SFGate. By Victoria Colliver July 25, 2012 Henrietta Petty has taken a few tumbles in her home but never had to be hospitalized for injuries related to those mishaps - and the 70-year-old Oakland woman intends to keep it that way. Petty, on the advice of her primary-care physician, attended a [...]

Originally published in SFGate. By Victoria Colliver February 22, 2012 Dr. Robert Savio gave 10-year-old Yazmin Peña and her 7-year-old sister, Esmeralda, high-fives as he shared results of the girls' test results from a pilot project on pediatric obesity at Alameda County's Highland General Hospital in Oakland. Yazmin's triglycerides, a type of fat found in the blood, [...]