Project Number: 5450-51530-010-08
Project Type: Specific Cooperative Agreement

Start Date: Sep 19, 2006
End Date: Aug 31, 2011

Objective:
The broad objective of this cooperative research is to develop information useful in promoting health through improved nutrition and lifestyles. The specific objectives are to: 1. Develop understanding of the relationships of diet, lifestyle, and the prevalence of chronic diseases, particularly obesity, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease in American Indian peoples; 2. Identify health needs, and the barriers to and facilitators of meeting those needs in American Indian communities; 3. Determine the efficacy of community-based, health-promoting, intervention strategies in American Indian communities; and, 4. Increase research cooperation between American Indian colleges and USDA-ARS.

Approach:
Identification and characterization of barriers to and facilitators of eating healthy diets and engaging in healthy lifestyles will be accomplished through a series of focus groups in American Indian communities. Focus groups will be designed to also identify and prioritize community needs as potential mediating factors. Subsequently, health-promoting intervention strategies will be developed and evaluated based on identified barriers and facilitators in the context of community needs and priorities. A research involving human subjects will be conducted with appropriate review and approval by the respective institutional review boards used by Cankdeska Cikana Community College and ARS.