News and Events
MRC Epidemiology Unit hosts Hertfordshire Physical Activity Trial public meeting
19th November 2008
The MRC Epidemiology Unit in Cambridge hosted a public meeting on the 19th November 2008 to present results from the Hertfordshire Physical Activity Trial. The event was attended by nearly 200 members of the public including most of the 100 volunteers that took part in the study.
The afternoon consisted of presentations by staff from the MRC Epidemiology Unit and the MRC Epidemiology Resource Centre in Southampton. There was also an opportunity for the volunteers to pick the brains of the study team in a question and answer session. The main talk of the afternoon by Dr Francis Finucane presented the early findings from analysis of the study data. There were also talks from Professor Nick Wareham and Dr Simon Griffin from the MRC Epidemiology Unit.
The Hertfordshire Physical Activity Trial is investigating whether birth weight affects how an individual responds to exercise in later life. Previous studies have shown that people that had a low birth weight have a greater risk of developing diabetes and cardiovascular disease in adulthood. In contrast, exercise has been shown to have beneficial effects on the body and its sensitivity to insulin.
The study consisted of a group of volunteers born in the 1930s who had an accurate weight measurement taken when they were born. During this study they had very detailed measurements taken including scans to measure body and tissue fat content, a glucose tolerance test and a muscle biopsy to examine the effects of exercise on muscle cells. Half of these volunteers were randomly assigned to a fully supervised 12-week aerobic exercise programme involving three one-hour sessions per week. The other half continued with their usual level of weekly physical activity. All of the study measurements were then repeated after the 12 week period.
The volunteers from the Hertfordshire Physical Activity Trial and staff of the MRC Epidemiology Unit and MRC Epidemiology Resource Centre
More photographs from this event.
Photography by Stuart Key
