Approved Research

Impact of daily activity pattern on healthy and unhealthy years in life

Lay summary

Previous research has shown that individual lifestyle modifications can reduce the incidence and mortality of a range of chronic conditions, including cardiovascular disease, cancer, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and diabetes. A healthy lifestyle also appears to reduce the risk of a range of mental disorders, including depression and anxiety. Hence, it is of great interest to develop lifestyle interventions for disease prevention and management. However, many interventions thus far have focused on individual behaviors. The main aim of the proposed research is to understand the collective impact of lifestyle, including physical activity and sedentary behavior, diet, and sleep, and obesity, along with their interactions with genetic risks, on common chronic diseases and mental disorders.

The project is expected to be completed in 36 months.

Physical activity, sedentary behavior, dietary behavior and sleep form a 24-hour pattern. Also, these behaviors interact with obesity to influence human metabolism, which is a central driver of many chronic diseases. Hence, a holistic approach by examining lifestyle behaviors, genetic risk and obesity, and their interactions, will provide an in-depth understanding of the interplay between lifestyle, disease genetic risk, obesity on chronic disease outcomes, by which individualized, more effective behavioral interventions can be devised.