Evaluation and Implementation of Lifestyle Habits and Life's Simple 7 in Northwest Indiana

Abstract

The CDC’s Social Vulnerability Index (SVI) provides insight into many factors that contribute to the lack of health equity, such as poverty, lack of transportation, and crowded housing. Purdue University Northwest (PNW) has campuses located in Hammond, IN (Lake County) and in Westville, IN (LaPorte County). Because of the high SVI near the Hammond (i.e., 0.9615) and Westville (i.e., 0.8816) campuses, PNW is uniquely positioned to help address the health issues and challenges associated with high SVI. The purpose of this ongoing project is to evaluate and implement lifestyle changes suggested by the American Heart Association’s Life’s Simple 7™ in at least 60 local residents. To accomplish this goal, the PNW Integrative Physiology and Health Sciences (IPHS) Center offers free seminars on each of the Life’s Simple 7™ topics as well as free health screenings to reduce barriers to preventive care among students and community members. To-date, 48 (21 male; 27 female) unique individuals have attended a seminar and / or utilized the free health screening services. The seminar topics include, 1) How to Manage Blood Pressure, 2) How to Control Cholesterol, 3) How to Eat Better, 4) How to Stop Smoking, 5) How to Manage Weight, 6) How to Be More Active, and 7) How to Reduce Blood Sugar. Students and community members that attend lectures in person or virtually also receive take-home educational materials related to improving and maintaining cardiovascular health as well as giveaways including blood pressure monitors, pulse oximeters, pedometers, resistance band kits, and at-home A1C testing kits. The health screenings include blood pressure, body composition, cholesterol, blood sugar, triglycerides, and hemoglobin A1C, as well as healthy eating information, dietary surveys, and physical activity surveys. This project will continue through June 30, 2023. The Indiana Department of Health (Health Issues and Challenges Grant) This is the full abstract presented at the American Physiology Summit 2023 meeting and is only available in HTML format. There are no additional versions or additional content available for this abstract. Physiology was not involved in the peer review process.