EARTH (Education and Research Towards Health)

The Education And Research Towards Health (EARTH) study is a 5-year prospective study of American Indians and Alaska Natives to determine how diet, physical activity, and other lifestyle and cultural factors relate to the development and progression of chronic diseases such as cancer, cardiovascular disease, stroke, Type 2 diabetes, chronic lung and respiratory diseases, and related mortality from these diseases.

The study is funded by the National Cancer Institute of the National Institutes of Health. The Black Hills Center for American Indian Health (BHCAIH) has worked with local communities to develop site specific culturally appropriate questionnaires that will accurately capture dietary intake, physical activity patterns, lifestyle and cultural habits, and have developed relationships with local health providers and the Indian Health Service to establish ways to access relevant study-related data from medical records.

BHCAIH has recently finished recruitment at its sites in South Dakota and Arizona. In all, BHCAIH examined 5,212 American Indians from two reservations in western South Dakota and one in the Southwest. Participants completed a computerized, touchscreen questionnaire, had physiological measurements, and had medical history information obtained from IHS records as necessary. Referrals to local health care providers were made for follow-up of identified medical problems. Study data will be used to assess health status and identify groups of the population at risk for various health conditions. Longitudinal data will be used to identify factors that contribute to health and prevent disease.

Although the existing proposal is a five-year study that enrolls 20,000 participants, we hope to expand the study (through a competing continuation) so that 80,000+ American Indians and Alaska Natives will ultimately be enrolled into a cohort that can be followed long-term. This will be accomplished by including additional participants from tribes enrolled in Phase II and expanding to other tribes. Information from the cohort will help document the health status of American Indians and Alaska Natives, determine prevalence of risk factors, and identify ways to improve the health of American Indians and Alaska Natives.

For more information about Education And Research Towards Health (EARTH) E-Mail: Dr. Jeff Henderson at jhenderson@bhcaih.org.