Fix this text
UNIKEN
Fix this textTHE UNIVERSITY OF NEW SOUTH WALES
Fix this textNo. 233 (No. 13 of 1987)
Fix this textPublished fortnightly by the Public Affairs Unit
Fix this textRegistered by Australia Post Publication No. NBF 4388
Fix this text28 August 1987
Fix this textWeight loss lowers blood
Fix this textpressure more than drugs:
Fix this textUNSW
Fix this textreport
Fix this textA recent UNSW report,
Fix this textpublished in The Lancet (UK) and
Fix this textThe New England Journal of Med-
Fix this texticine (USA) claims that young
Fix this textpeople who are overweight and
Fix this textsuffering from high blood pressure
Fix this textcan lower their blood pressure more
Fix this textby losing weight than by taking
Fix this textdrugs.
Fix this textThe study, jointly undertaken
Fix this textby Associate Professor Graham
Fix this textMacdonald, Dr Stephen MacMahon
Fix this textand Mrs Leah Bernstein of the
Fix this textSchool of Medicine, and Associate
Fix this textProfessor Gavin Andrews of the
Fix this textSchool of Psychiatry, UNSW, also
Fix this textshows that weight loss can reduce
Fix this textthe thickening of the heart’s left
Fix this textventricle (its major pumping ven-
Fix this texttricle.)
Fix this textProfessor Macdonald says that
Fix this textwhile a number of studies have
Fix this textshown a connection between
Fix this textweight loss and blood pressure,
Fix this textnone till now had compared the
Fix this textefficacy of drugs with weight loss.
Fix this textA comparison of the two treat-
Fix this textments has been urged by the
Fix this textNational Heart Foundation in an
Fix this texteffort to discover alternatives to
Fix this textpharmacological treatment for the
Fix this textgrowing numbers of patients suffer-
Fix this texting from hypertension.
Fix this textThree groups of patients were
Fix this textselected from a community blood
Fix this textpressure screening program.
Fix this text‘There were 20 in each group.
Fix this textAll between the ages of 20 and 55,
Fix this textall about 20 per cent overweight
Fix this textobese, you could say. One group
Fix this textlost weight, one took metroprolol
Fix this textand one group got a placebo’, says
Fix this textProfessor Macdonald. [Seediagram.]
Fix this textHigh blood pressure
Fix this text‘High blood pressure damages
Fix this textthe heart and the arteries. Hyper-
Fix this texttension sufferers ultimately die of
Fix this textstroke, heart failure or kidney
Fix this textfailure. So we measured the size
Fix this textof the heart among other things.’
Fix this textAt the end of six months,
Fix this textaccording to Professor Macdonald,
Fix this textsubjects in the weight loss group
Fix this texthad in general, reduced their body
Fix this textweight by less than 10 per cent
Fix this text(about 7.5 kilos) - yet half the
Fix this textgroup showed normal blood
Fix this textpressure readings. Not only that,
Fix this textthe ventricular walls of their hearts
Fix this texthad returned to normal. Their
Fix this textcholesterol and triglyceride readings
Fix this texthad also dropped.
Fix this textOn the other hand, those who
Fix this texttook metroprolol, while showing an
Fix this textinitial improvement in their blood
Fix this textpressure readings, by the end of the
Fix this textsix-month period, were no more
Fix this textimproved than those given the
Fix this textplacebo. And their cholesterol
Fix this textlevels had risen.
Fix this text‘lt seems, therefore,’ says Profes-
Fix this textsor Macdonald, ‘that weight loss
Fix this textstrategy for younger overweight
Fix this textpatients with hypertension works
Fix this textbetter than standard drug treat-
Fix this textment provided, of course, people
Fix this textstick to their diets.’
Fix this textSome subjects had been unable
Fix this textto do this. ‘About 70 per cent
Fix this textmanaged it’, Professor Macdonald
Fix this textsays. ‘So it’s not a strategy for
Fix this texteveryone.’
Fix this textNow the team has to determine
Fix this textwhether changes in , weight and
Fix this textblood pressure can be maintained
Fix this textover longer periods.
Fix this textUNSW team contests
Fix this textUniversity Challenge
Fix this textA team of quiz contestants from
Fix this textUNSW has just returned from
Fix this textHobart where they competed in the
Fix this textfirst Australian University Challenge
Fix this textseries to be screened on ABC-TV.
Fix this textThe 19-week series will be
Fix this textscreened from 9.30 pm on Tuesday
Fix this text1 September, with the final to be
Fix this textshown on 5 January 1988.
Fix this textUniversity Challenge researcher,
Fix this textMr Keith Halliwell, says the series is
Fix this textbased on similar successful shows in
Fix this textEngland and New Zealand. ‘Univer-
Fix this textsity Challenge has been running on
Fix this textGranada TV in England for 25
Fix this textyears and on NZTV for the last
Fix this text10 years’, he says.
Fix this text‘Depending on the success of the
Fix this textinitial Australian series we might
Fix this textwell consider an international series
Fix this textin the future.’
Fix this textThe UNSW team was made up
Fix this textof Ralph Ilchef (Medicine IV), Tim
Fix this textNelson (Arts/Law III), Antony
Fix this textSachs (Arts/Law III) and Rena
Fix this textSofroniou (Arts/Law IV), along
Fix this textwith team manager and reserve,
Fix this textRhonda Daniels (Applied Science
Fix this textI). (Antony Sachs was recently
Fix this textelected as a student member of the
Fix this textUniversity Council, making him
Fix this textprobably the first member of
Fix this textCouncil to appear as a quiz contes-
Fix this texttant on TV.)
Fix this textThey have been in Hobart for
Fix this textthe last fortnight recording the
Fix this textseries which brought together teams
Fix this textfrom 16 Australian universities. The
Fix this textuniversities were divided into two
Fix this textgroups of eight with the leading
Fix this textpointscorers from each group con-
Fix this texttesting the final.
Fix this textUniversity Challenge provides
Fix this textquestions for teams and individuals
Fix this textand related bonus questions for
Fix this textcorrect answers. According to Mr
Fix this textHalliwell the questions are of
Fix this textuniversity standard. ‘They cover a
Fix this textwide range of topics including
Fix this textliterature, general knowledge,
Fix this textscience and sport with a leaning
Fix this texttowards Australian-based questions’,
Fix this texthe says.
Fix this textUNSW’s other involvement in
Fix this textthe series was provided by Mr Bill
Fix this textCole, a tutor in the School of
Fix this textPsychiatry, who prepared the ques-
Fix this texttions and acted as adjudicator for
Fix this textthe series.
Fix this textRhonda Daniels says the UNSW
Fix this textteam was chosen after the Debating
Fix this textSociety had been approached to
Fix this textorganize a team. ‘The Debating
Fix this textSociety organized a se'ection night
Fix this textwhere Trivial Pursuit questions
Fix this textwere asked and a short-list of
Fix this textplayers was prepared’, she says.
Fix this text‘On the second selection night
Fix this textABC-TV provided a questioner and
Fix this texta team was selected.’
Fix this textTeams stayed at the Jane
Fix this textFranklin College at the University
Fix this textof Tasmania during the two weeks
Fix this textof filming.
Fix this textAs to how the UNSW team fared
Fix this textin the inaugural University Chal-
Fix this textlenge; well that won’t be known
Fix this textuntil January 1988.
Fix this textVice-Chancellor appoints Working
Fix this textParty to formulate Code for
Fix this textlinks with commerce and industry
Fix this textUNSW Vice-Chancellor, Profes-
Fix this textsor Michael Birt, has established a
Fix this textWorking Party to formulate a
Fix this textCode of Practice to assist the
Fix this textUniversity in developing its inter-
Fix this textactions with industry, commerce,
Fix this textthe professions and the community
Fix this textgenerally.
Fix this textIn a recent report to the Univer-
Fix this textsity, Professor Birt said such a step
Fix this textfollowed the encouragement by the
Fix this textCommonwealth Government for
Fix this textAustralian universities to expand
Fix this texttheir opportunities for outside
Fix this textfunding to develop new teaching
Fix this textand research activities.
Fix this text‘Experience of universities
Fix this textaround the world has shown that
Fix this textsuch initiatives can raise various
Fix this textdifficulties’, he said.
Fix this text‘However, the establishment of a
Fix this textCode of Practice would enable the
Fix this textUniversity to better manage its
Fix this textexternal relations and strengthen
Fix this texteven further its interactions with
Fix this textgroups beyond the campus.’
Fix this textProfessor Birt said the Code could
Fix this textoffer a documentary affirmation of
Fix this textthe University’s commitment to
Fix this textcollaborative arrangements with
Fix this textcommerce, industry and the general
Fix this textcommunity.
Fix this textHe said it would give promi-
Fix this textnence to the University’s recogni-
Fix this texttion that in the latter part of this
Fix this textcentury, universities would be
Fix this textexpected, and indeed required, to
Fix this textaugment public sector funding.
Fix this textProfessor Birt said the Code
Fix this textwould allow the University to
Fix this text‘make it clear that, in seeking out-
Fix this textside funding, we wish to enhance
Fix this textrather than compromise the essen-
Fix this texttial integrity of the University’s
Fix this textwork, by formulating for the
Fix this textvarious units within the University
Fix this textthe standards which are to be
Fix this textContinued on page 3
Fix this textAssociate Professor Graham Macdonald who has been involved in a study of weight
Fix this textloss and its effect on blood pressure.
Fix this textUNSW's team which contested the University Challenge in Hobart was (from left):
Fix this textRalph llchef, Rhonda Daniels, Antony Sachs, Rena Sofroniou and Tim Nelson.
Fix this textSystolic blood pressure (top) and diastolic blood pressure (bottom) from
Fix this textweeks 4 to 25 in the three study groups. An example from the above
Fix this textgraphs shows that a person on the weight reduction program say, after
Fix this text16 weeks, would have a blood pressure reading of about 138 (systolic)
Fix this textover 93 (diastolic).
Fix this textPublic Affairs Unit
Fix this textPublic Affairs Unit
Fix this textIt's easy and takes two shakes of a lamb's tail!
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University of New South Wales. Public Affairs Unit & University of New South Wales, issuing body. (1975). Uniken Retrieved June 8, 2025, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.obj-252107216
University of New South Wales. Public Affairs Unit and University of New South Wales, issuing body. Uniken Kensington, N.S.W: University of New South Wales, 1975. Web. 8 June 2025 <http://nla.gov.au/nla.obj-252107216>
University of New South Wales. Public Affairs Unit & University of New South Wales, issuing body. 1975, Uniken University of New South Wales, Kensington, N.S.W viewed 8 June 2025 http://nla.gov.au/nla.obj-252107216
{{Citation
| author1=University of New South Wales. Public Affairs Unit.
| author2=University of New South Wales, issuing body.
| title=Uniken.
| year=1975
| section=volumes : illustrations ; 30-43 cm.
| issn=0312-7877
| issue=1987, no. 13 (28 Aug., 1987)
| location=Kensington, N.S.W
| publisher=University of New South Wales
| url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.obj-252107216
| id=nla.obj-252107216
| access-date=8 June 2025
| via=Trove
}}
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