The purpose of this Mentored Research Scientist Development Award (K01) is to provide the candidate, a newly graduated medical sociologist, with additional training and research experience that will enable her to pursue an academic career in aging with a focus on eating behaviors in homebound older adults. In order to fully understand and investigate the many factors that influence eating behaviors and health outcomes, and to design appropriate interventions to improve nutritional status in frail, homebound older adults, the candidate will need to acquire specialized knowledge and skills. She proposes a career development plan that consists of coursework, training, and research experiences with a mentoring/ consulting team of senior faculty and external mentors with expertise in the areas of nutrition, public health, and advanced statistics. The research program consists of a pilot study using a longitudinal design with consecutive waves of data collection. The first goal of the study is to examine the maintenance or modification of eating behaviors in older homebound adults who are experiencing an acute illness or chronic medical conditions, and factors associated with the maintenance or modification of those eating behaviors. The second goal of the study is to examine the direct and mediating effects of these eating behaviors on nutrition-related patient-based health outcomes. This research focuses on self-care eating behaviors adopted by frail older persons who are homebound because of acute or chronic health conditions, the stability and change of these behaviors over time, and the impact of these eating behaviors on health outcomes. This study will provide information that can be used to develop interventions and the preliminary data needed to design a larger-scale clinical intervention trial to test the effects of these interventions for improving the nutritional health of older homebound adults.

Agency
National Institute of Health (NIH)
Institute
National Institute on Aging (NIA)
Type
Research Scientist Development Award - Research & Training (K01)
Project #
5K01AG000994-04
Application #
6783356
Study Section
National Institute on Aging Initial Review Group (NIA)
Program Officer
Stahl, Sidney M
Project Start
2001-09-15
Project End
2006-08-31
Budget Start
2004-09-01
Budget End
2005-08-31
Support Year
4
Fiscal Year
2004
Total Cost
$102,973
Indirect Cost
Name
University of Alabama Birmingham
Department
Internal Medicine/Medicine
Type
Schools of Medicine
DUNS #
063690705
City
Birmingham
State
AL
Country
United States
Zip Code
35294
Yang, Yongbin; Buys, David R; Judd, Suzanne E et al. (2013) Favorite foods of older adults living in the Black Belt Region of the United States. Influences of ethnicity, gender, and education. Appetite 63:18-23
Yang, Yongbin; Brown, Cynthia J; Burgio, Kathryn L et al. (2011) Undernutrition at baseline and health services utilization and mortality over a 1-year period in older adults receiving Medicare home health services. J Am Med Dir Assoc 12:287-94
Locher, Julie L; Robinson, Caroline O; Bailey, F Amos et al. (2010) Disruptions in the organization of meal preparation and consumption among older cancer patients and their family caregivers. Psychooncology 19:967-74
Sun, Yanhui; Roth, David L; Ritchie, Christine S et al. (2010) Reliability and predictive validity of energy intake measures from the 24-hour dietary recalls of homebound older adults. J Am Diet Assoc 110:773-8
Locher, J L; Ritchie, C S; Roth, D L et al. (2009) Food choice among homebound older adults: motivations and perceived barriers. J Nutr Health Aging 13:659-64
Locher, Julie L; Robinson, Caroline O; Bailey, F Amos et al. (2009) The contribution of social factors to undereating in older adults with cancer. J Support Oncol 7:168-73
Locher, Julie L; Ritchie, Christine S; Robinson, Caroline O et al. (2008) A multidimensional approach to understanding under-eating in homebound older adults: the importance of social factors. Gerontologist 48:223-34
Locher, Julie L; Roth, David L; Ritchie, Christine S et al. (2007) Body mass index, weight loss, and mortality in community-dwelling older adults. J Gerontol A Biol Sci Med Sci 62:1389-92
Locher, Julie L; Bronstein, Janet; Robinson, Caroline O et al. (2006) Ethical issues involving research conducted with homebound older adults. Gerontologist 46:160-4
Locher, Julie L; Ritchie, Christine S; Roth, David L et al. (2005) Social isolation, support, and capital and nutritional risk in an older sample: ethnic and gender differences. Soc Sci Med 60:747-61

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