Disorders of energy balance account for a major public health problem. The obesity epidemic is one of the most rapidly evolving public health problems of our day. According to the report of Engineering Approaches to Energy Balance and Obesity: Opportunities for Novel Collaborations and Research, 2/3 of American adults and 1/6 of American children and adolescents are considered either overweight or obese. There is increased risk and increased mortality of cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes, many forms of cancer, gallbladder disease, and osteoarthritis associated with obesity. Obesity is a public health concern
Novel engineering methods and technologies can address a large range of unresolved problems in energy balance, intake, and expenditure related to the basis of obesity. Innovative sensors, devices, imaging technologies, nanotechnologies, biomaterials, technologies and methods can detect biochemical markers of energy balance, and other approaches can be developed, designed, assess and leveraged through multidisciplinary teams and interdisciplinary collaborations as presented in the report of Engineering Approaches to Energy Balance and Obesity: Opportunities for Novel Collaborations and Research. Engineers, physical scientists, and mathematicians have to work with medial and life scientists who possess expertise in obesity and nutrition.
The goal of the NIH RFA Bioengineering Approaches to Energy Balance and Obesity is to encourage collaborative research among engineers, physical scientists, life scientists and medical scientists to develop the needed methods, technologies and tools which will facilitate research and eventually support therapeutic advances and behavioral change related to obesity.
NSF CBET?s BME (5345, Dr. Demir), TTP (1406, Dr. Phelan) and FD (1443, Dr. Schultz) programs will co-fund 9 projects of the Bioengineering Approaches to Energy Balance and Obesity RFA of NIH. These 9 proposals have engineering and physical scientists participating in the research as PI, co-Pi or collaborator.
