Welcome back to our series, introducing members of the CHARM Participant Advisory Committee (PAC). Today, we’d like you to meet Sandra.

Sandra lives with Crohn’s disease –– a lifelong condition that causes inflammation in the digestive tract and can make it difficult to digest food. Symptoms can come and go, making the disease unpredictable. People with Crohn’s may also experience additional health issues, including difficulty getting enough nutrients and problems affecting their joints, skin or eyes.

Sandra’s experience with Crohn’s is one reason she joined the CHARM PAC.

“I have to manage my Crohn’s disease with careful diet and exercise. It is particularly important to me to have trustworthy information about diet and exercise because I am at higher risk of colon cancer,” said Sandra. “Also, it is personal for me after losing a number of family members to cancer.”

Colorectal cancer affects the colon or rectum. It is the third most common cancer worldwide and the second leading cause of cancer-related deaths. Many factors can affect a person’s risk. For some people with Crohn’s disease, long-term inflammation in the colon can increase that risk.

Sandra’s story offers a glimpse into one of the many factors that can affect cancer risk, and why trustworthy information matters to people living with different health concerns.

Bringing everyday experiences into research

Sandra hopes researchers and decision-makers will consider how difficult it can be to follow health recommendations in daily life.

“Diet and exercise recommendations are often unattainable for a significant part of the population,” she said. “The work isn’t done with just recommendations, but it needs to begin there.”

Sandra knows this tension from her own life. Between working, spending time with family and friends, caring for aging parents and looking after her own health, it can be hard to fit everything into a week.

“The ideal is impossible for most people. I struggle to do all the things I should in a week. There is not enough time and so that means compromise” she said.

As the graphic illustrates, what we eat is often a balancing act shaped by the cost of food, time, access, health needs and other responsibilities. Understanding these everyday realities can help researchers and decision-makers identify the supports people need to put recommendations into practice.

Being a member of the PAC and hopes for CHARM

Sandra joined the CHARM PAC because she values the opportunity to learn from people with different perspectives and experiences while working towards a common shared goal.

 “I have my personal lived experience, and I’m interested to hear from others who have their own. It can deepen my knowledge and understanding, while supporting and strengthening the PAC work,” she said.

Sandra hopes CHARM will help make trustworthy information about food and health available to the people and organizations that can use it.

She would like to see clear findings shared across medicine, education, community organizations, government and the food industry,

For Sandra, making a difference could mean helping behind the scenes to ensure that useful research reaches people who can benefit from it – and the organizations that can help share it.

Follow along over the coming months as we introduce more PAC members and share what motivates them to take part in HEAL and CHARM.