Sex, Health and YOU! 2008-2010

Read on to learn more about our exciting new study!

We are currently recruiting 200, 18-25 year old Caucasian men and women in heterosexual, romantic relationships, to participate in “Sex, Health and YOU!” The main purpose of this project is to investigate the links between body composition (how much body fat you have), body image (how you feel about your body), overall health (including physical activity and nutrition) and sexual functioning. We are also investigating whether any links between body composition and sexual functioning are influenced by your relationship satisfaction with your partner.

If you are eligible to participate, we would ask you to visit the lab for about 1 hour, to have your body composition measured by DXA, and to complete a series of questionnaires.

Once you have completed the study, you will be given a $10 gift card to one of a number of different Guelph businesses, such as coffee shops.

Interested? Please contact Emily Opperman, study coordinator, at eopperma@uoguelph.ca to see whether you are eligible and to learn more about “Sex, Health and YOU!”

Nutritional Assessment Study

This study is currently looking for fourth year undergraduate students in the Applied Human Nutrition program at the University of Guelph.

The purpose of the study is to determine body composition (specifically bone mineral density) of nutrition undergraduates.  You will be put into a group with one or two other AHN classmates.  Your group will be asked to come to the lab for approximately 2 to 2.5 hours.  Each person in the group will undergo tests to measure body composition and how much energy your body burns at rest. 

You will start by having your height measured using a wall mounted stadiometer.  You will have your weight and body density assessed using a BOD POD™, which uses the displacement of air inside the chamber to determine your body volume. The whole test takes approximately 10 minutes, but of these 10 minutes, you will sit in the BOD POD™ for only approximately 5 minutes.  From the air displacement measurements, whole-body density is determined and body fat is calculated. The procedure is simple and painless and results are obtained in minutes. 

You will have your resting metabolic rate analyzed using an indirect calorimeter.  You will be asked to lie on a bed with a ventilated plastic hood placed over your head and neck.  It is large, see-through and lightweight and you will be able to watch a movie during the test.  You are required to fast for 12 hours prior to this test.  This test will last approximately 30 to 40  minutes.  We will provide you with refreshments after this test so that you do not feel hungry. 

You will also have your bone mineral density analyzed using a DXA.  You will lie on a scanning bed for approximately 5 to 7 minutes, during which x-rays will be emitted from below your body and measured above by a moving “arm”.  This test will be done by a Medical Radiation Technologist.

Please contact the Graduate Student Investigator, Carolyn Snowdon, if you are interested in participating, at bodycomp@uoguelph.ca

IMPACt Study 2007-2008

The IMPACt (Inflammation, Metabolic syndrome,
Polyunsaturated fat in Adult Canadians) study is currently looking for middle-aged men who:

1. have Metabolic syndrome (high waist circumference and/or high blood pressure and/or high blood sugar and/or high blood cholesterol)
2. have no diagnosis of cancer
3. whose weight is stable (within ±5 lbs for the past 3 months)
4. live in or close to Guelph

The purpose of the IMPACt study is to determine the effects of dietary omega-3 fats on your body’s use of calories, your abdominal fat and the levels of inflammatory markers in your blood. Omega-3 fats are a type of dietary fat which are found naturally in a few foods like fatty fish.  Omega-3 fats are also increasingly being added to foods commonly available in grocery stores, such as eggs, milk, juice, etc. 

This study is made up of two interventions combined with various body composition measures and simple medical procedures.  The short-term intervention involves consuming a breakfast of omega-3 rich foods; the short-term intervention is done twice, two weeks apart, and requires you to visit the lab for two, 8-hour sessions.  The long-term intervention involves substituting staple foods in your everyday diet with ones enriched with omega-3 fats, for two weeks.  The foods used in the study are found in local grocery stores and will be provided to you free of charge.

Please contact the lab if you have any questions or are interested in participating.

bodycomp@uoguelph.ca