Research Team: Dr. Larry Frank, Dr. Michael Brauer, Dr. Hugh Davies, and Dr. Jennifer Black.
Funding: Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada, Canadian Institutes of Health Research, Real Estate Foundation of BC.
Are you moving? Would you like to take part in this study? Click here.
The CHANGE (Changes in Health, Activity, and Nutrition Across Geographic Environments) study is currently recruiting participants!
CHANGE will document and evaluate changes in travel patterns, physical activity levels, eating, and built environment factors related to health before and after families move within Metro Vancouver. Leaders in the evaluation of built environment relationships with physical activity, food choice, and environmental exposure have been assembled to work to answer the important question of how moving to a new address can change individual behaviour.
This study seeks to evaluate the presence of a causal relationship between physical features of community design, physical activity, and food choice as predictors of BMI and built environment features related to cardio-vascular disease, stroke, and respiratory function. Exposure to air pollution is also evaluated. The proposed study builds upon and leverages data and methods from the Border Air Quality Study which provides environmental exposure data and the multi-region SHIFT study funded by Robert Wood Johnson Foundation to evaluate movers. Project AIMS include:
- Measurement of changes in perceived and objectively measured built environment features in pre and post move locations;
- Assessment of differences in self-reported travel, food choice, social interaction and body weight and objectively measured physical activity and sedentary behavior in pre and post move locations;
- Evaluation of differences in exposure to traffic-related air pollution and noise in pre and post move locations; and
- Assessment of built environment impacts (causal) on health related outcomes across differing income groups when adjusting for preferences and attitudinal predisposition.
