71: Extreme Environments & Our Human Bodies with Dr. Sarah Imam

Dr. Sarah Imam teaches advanced physiology and environmental physiology at the Citadel. She helps describe for us on the podcast what our human body has to endure in extreme environments, including microgravity environments like the astronauts work and live in. Our future in space requires our full understanding of the space environment, and the effects it will have on us as humans. While Sarah's perspective is optimistic, the space environment is not looking like a favorable one for our human bodies.

Here's are some interesting questions Dr. Sarah and I ponder together:

• When you go into these extreme environments (like space), there are so many detrimental effects on our human body, so understanding the impacts of microgravity is going to be more important as we humans continue explore space. Or, are we just not intended to be space travelers?

• Sarah asks me what I'm likely to do when I fall into the icy cold water… and the answer is the complete opposite what I would have thought…

• Is it possible to mind over matter our bodies into health?

"When your body is aware that it will be exposed to a different environment, it helps you to be better prepared."-Dr. Sarah Wallace from Casual Space Podcast

About Dr. Sarah: Sarah A. Imam M.D.

www.citidel.edu (Health and Human Performance)

Sarah is an Assistant Professor of Health and Human Performance at The Citadel, Military College of South Carolina. She teaches physiology-based classes, including graduate-level Environmental Physiology, which incorporates physiology of microgravity. Her training is in neurology and the neurosciences, and her current research involves the study of physical impact and activity upon the brain. She currently works on glioblastoma research at MUSC and has numerous student-based research projects.

Sarah is an advisor of the health professions and has introduced and designed programs to maximize the applicant's chances of admission. She has developed a pre-health app (patent pending), and she runs one of the top healthcare study abroad program's in the nation. She will be co-presenting her study abroad work with the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) at the National Association of Advisors for the Health Professions (NAAHP) conference in June 2020. Sarah started the Citadel Health Career's Society, which organizes student volunteering in the community. Sarah was recognized for her work by being the recipient of the 2019 Algernon Sydney Sullivan Award, an award for excellence of character and service to humanity.

Sarah is a board member of the Southern Association of Advisors for the Health Professions (SAAHP) and a member of The Committee for Diversity and Inclusion (CDI) in the NAAHP. Sarah is a member of several associations and has numerous leadership roles.