Visitors to the Cambridge Science Festival 2014 at the Corn Exchange were able to measure their grip strength and help build a Lego® graph of the results to demonstrate the distribution within the Science Festival population. Balanced diets were explored on the giant EPIC plate and visitors could experience for themselves some of the eye conditions studied, using glasses that simulated certain eye condition symptoms, such as hazy or tunnel vision.
Professor Kay-Tee Khaw (EPIC Principal Investigator) gave an interactive lecture: Guess How and Guess Who, focusing on key concepts in epidemiology and explaining the impact of combined health behaviours on survival.
Closer to home, EPIC took activities to the inaugural Cambridge Biomedical Campus event, including the EPIC supermarket dash to identify food high in calcium and vitamin C. Visitors also pitted themselves against the Leaning Tower of Pizza, increasing their knowledge of epidemiological concepts.
The EPIC- Norfolk Study started as part of a 10 country study of over half a million people to examine the links between diet and cancer.
EPIC-Norfolk broadened THIS to look at links between lifestyle and diseases such as heart disease, diabetes, obesity-related diseases and aspects of healthy ageing such as cognition and eye health. At 20 years old, the study is now inviting people to a fourth health check to examine links between physical activity and body fat composition.
Stephanie Moore, senior research assistant says:
“For 20 years we have been asking people about their lifestyle and diet, making measurements and recording disease and over 25,000 people have come to see us and filled in questionnaires. Our participants have contributed to over 400 research publications. We are immensely grateful to them.”
