Sidra Sarfaraz

Program

2019 Graduate – Human Health & Nutritional Sciences, MSc

Why I Chose Guelph… 

I had already built connections here at Guelph and loved the lab as well. We also collaborated with other cardiovascular researchers from the OVC and universities like McMaster, U of Toronto, and Dalhousie.

About My Advisor… 

I met my advisor, Dr. Jeremy Simpson, when I took a cardio-respiratory physiology course in the 4th year of my Human Kinetics undergrad here at Guelph. I LOVED the course and thought all the topics we learned in class were AMAZING- I was basically on the edge of my seat every lecture. Because I really enjoyed the class, I asked Jeremy a lot of questions after class regularly, and he was kind enough to stay half an hour to an hour after class and answer them. The class made me realize all the gaps in research, especially regarding heart failure. Jeremy and I discussed potential research projects. I loved the size of our lab- it's a big lab and everyone's research fits into everyone else's so that we were able to get a bigger picture of heart failure and its associated pathologies. Jeremy is also a great mentor and cares a lot about making sure his students will succeed in achieving all their goals.

What Makes U of G Unique?

The gym, the size of it, the campus and the people who are all sooo nice!

How Will Your Research Improve Life?

The Simpson lab is fantastic because we focused on research that related directly to the clinic. We were assessing the effects of certain drugs on heart failure and its associated pathologies. The drugs are already being prescribed to patients, so our research findings will hopefully clarify what drugs are best for the many aspects of heart failure. That's all I can say without giving away the details! I love that we have the chance to improve the life of patients living with heart failure. As of 2016, there are 500, 000 Canadians living with this condition, and an additional 50, 000 will be diagnosed every year. Not to mention the people with risk factors for other cardiovascular diseases, which could then go on to culminate in heart failure. It's definitely a major problem our healthcare system is dealing with, so it's honestly super exciting to be in this line of research!