The Pick Two to Stick To Habit Development Intervention

Metabolic syndrome (MetS) is a leading risk factor for chronic disease among African American/Black populations. Fostering habit development offers a promising new approach to improving the effectiveness of lifestyle programs for people with MetS, yet this approach remains understudied. The long-term goal of this line of research is to test and disseminate an affordable and effective intervention for reducing MetS. The objective of the proposed project is to evaluate the feasibility of a novel, occupational therapist-delivered habit-development intervention targeting dietary and physical activity habits in up to 100 African American/Blacks with MetS ages 40+ recruited from an emergency department in Detroit, MI. The specific aims are to (a) evaluate intervention feasibility and acceptability and (b) estimate intervention effect sizes for primary outcome measures of habit development and weight loss and secondary outcomes of blood pressure, BMI, and waist circumference. Through the 8-week intervention, indicators of intervention feasibility (e.g., time, effort, costs, participant recruitment and retention, satisfaction) will be tracked. Measures of habit development will be taken biweekly over the 8-week active intervention period and anthropometry measures will be collected at baseline and week 20.