APPROACHES FOR WELLNESS ENHANCEMENT THROUGH INTEGRATED RESEARCH ON FOOD, NUTRITION, AND HEALTH

Goal 1: Determine effects of storage and processing on nutrient value and oxidation of novel food products and nutrient supplements.This work will determine the effects of processing and storage on the nutrient content and oxidation of various food products and compare them to other similar available products. The goal is to provide information to producers and processors with specific recommendations for processing and storage of various novel food products/supplements for maximum nutrient retention and prevention of oxidation. It will also result in information for consumers regarding specific nutrient values of the products/supplements.Objective 1: Utilization of sea moss in breakfast smoothies and its impact on reaction time and cognition of African American College students. This is a student lead research project with a Registered Dietitian as mentor.Objective 2: Measurement of nutritional value of hemp products which have undergone various processing and storage protocols.Goal 2: Develop new or enhance existing intervention strategies for chronic disease or disorder-related symptoms, utilizing exercise protocols.Use of exercise as a method of decreasing symptoms such as fatigue and balance issues in multiple sclerosis patients. The goal is to provide individuals, the research community and health practitioners with evidence-based protocols to help those living with chronic diseases to decrease symptoms and lead healthier lives with fewer comorbidity risks.Objective 1: Determine the effect of quantity and quality of sleep on reaction times and cognition of college aged African American individuals. This is a student led study under the mentorship of an exercise physiologist.Objective 2: Determine the effect of mindfulness training on Multiple Sclerosis related symptoms.This project will add to the knowledge base of appropriate exercise interventions for individuals with Multiple Sclerosis. Once this project is complete it will be expanded to include other chronic neuromuscular diseases such as Parkinson's disease.Objective 3: Develop a program for individuals with disabilities which will be held on CSU campus. Fitness assessments will be done periodically to determine effectiveness of the exercises programs. As this project advances, nutritional education will be added to the offerings.Objective 4: Compare efficacy of various body composition assessment techniques in different minority/underserved populations. This work will examine various health/fitness assessment and body assessment methods in different minority populations. The long term goal is to increase the body of knowledge to provide the most efficacious health interventions, strategies and recommendations. Providing evidence for improved analytical methods will increase our ability to assess healthy lifestyles and recommend appropriate strategies.Objective 5: Use of exercise to decrease aberrant behaviors/symptoms which affect quality of life in individuals with disabilities. The first project under this objective will be utilizing virtual reality glasses to aid in decreasing aberrant behaviors in children with autism.Objective 6: Compare efficacy of various nutrient/natural product supplementation in reducing anxiety-related symptoms. We will be investigating several promising interventions over the length of the project. The research project will have a multi-disciplinary team and will likely collaborate with health professionals outside of the institution.Goal 3: Compare modalities of physical activities and nutrition in underserved populations to develop best practices in changing health behavior.Underserved populations typically have multiple diagnoses of chronic diseases related to the lack of understanding of healthy eating and exercise recommendations. This project will aim at determining the most appropriate modalities of nutrition and fitness education that will lead to effective changes in an individual's health behaviors with reference to fire-fighters.Objective 1: Determine the nutritional knowledge, dietary intake and baseline risk of metabolic syndrome and cardiovascular disease of fire fighters in regional low socioeconomic communities. This study aims to parse out the specific needs and risk factors of our regional low-income firefighters. The data gathered will be used to develop intervention strategies that our research and extension branches can use to increase wellness in regional first responders.Objective 2: Provide individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IWIDD) with various modes of exercise instruction.Objective 3: Determine whether providing parents, coaches or teachers of local youth with nutrition information will impact nutrition knowledge and dietary intake of youth. Target audiences will include, but not be limited to, Special Olympics teams, and youth sports in low socioeconomic areas.Objective 4: Determine whether goal setting, and use of the self-determination theory will affect the intake of sugared beverages in children in rural areas.Goal 4: Development of individual and group nutritional interventions which promote healthy food intake and improve healthy lifestyles.The prevalence of obesity among adults in the U.S., as recorded in 2015-1/1/2016.8% and has affected about 93.3 million adults. In the state of Ohio, the reported obesity and overweight in 2017 is 30-35% according to the CDC.Objective 1: Prevention of obesity and diabetes type II through application of personalized nutrition and lifestyle interventions among minority and under-served populations. The personalized interventions may include nutritional obesity genetic markers analysis done by genetic testing.Objective 2: Studying evidence based lifestyle management on various interventions, such as healthy eating programs, emphasizing fruits, whole grain vegetarian selections, cooking demos, relaxation, and exercise classes, in preventing obesity.Objective 3: Effect of using plants and natural herbs red sanders, cinnamon, fenugreek, bitter melon in controlling and managing diabetes type II. This study will be conducted in db/db mouse model system of type II diabetes. C-peptide produced similar to insulin but excreted in urine and glucose level will be studied apart from proteomic analysis for other protein identified in treated and untreated mice with various herb treatment for diabetes type II.Objective 4: Development of an assessment tool to rate the quality of sleep and identify if there is any co-relation in onset of diabetes and will it improve if the sleep pattern and quality is corrected and restored. The subject population will include persons different walks of life who have patterns of lack of sleep.Objective 5: Determination of sugar content in commonly consumed food and drinks using refractometer. This unit analyses a beam of light passed through the liquid, take the refraction angle, then correlates to standard refractive index and evaluates the concentration of sugar content.Objective 6: Application of BIA technology to create new standard in complete segmental body composition analysis: comprehensive evaluation of fat mass and abdominal obesity assessment in adults.Objective 7: Determining the nutritional value of the food served in the student cafeteria. Provide nutrition education and healthy choices handouts to students to improve nutritional intake.Goal 5: Develop regional nexus for wellness assessment and solutions.The long term goal is to create healthier communities by improving access to fitness testing and advice, especially those populations who have limited financial access to high quality exercise physiology and nutrition assessment laboratories.Objective: Gather pilot data and stakeholder input from various regional communities to determine existing nutrition and wellness needs to develop a strategic plan for the nexus,