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Study Centre Overview

Your visit to the Study Centre will take about one hour, depending whether you completed questionnaires at home or whether we will ask you to complete them during your appointment. When you arrive at the Study Centre, a Tomorrow Project staff member will receive you in the waiting room. As the first step, we will review the consent form with you and answer any questions you may have. After you’ve signed the consent form, there are three more steps involved in your Study Centre visit:

Note:

1) Information on Visit Preparation

2) Information on Physical Measurements

We will take a number of physical measurements during your Study Centre visit. These measurements provide us with a baseline, so we can monitor changes that occur over time. They also give us some specific information about you.

	We will take your blood pressure and heart rate, which are important indicators of the health of your heart and blood vessels.
	We will also measure your standing height. We will ask you to take off your shoes, stand as tall as possible and look straight ahead. This will give the most accurate measurement.
	Grip strength gives a very general indication of your overall health and well-being. We measure grip strength by asking you to squeeze a device called a dynamometer as hard as you can.
	Body fat will be estimated using a technique known as bioelectrical impedance analysis. The equipment looks like a standard bathroom scale. We will ask you to stand on the scale in your bare feet. The scale then passes a very small electrical current through your body. The speed of the current is used to estimate the amount of fat and water in your body. The current cannot be felt, and is harmless. If you are wearing a pacemaker or if you are pregnant, this measurement will not be made. We will also record your weight using this piece of equipment.
	Hip and waist circumferences are measured using a metal measuring tape. We will ask to measure your waist by passing the tape measure around the top of your hip bones. We will also ask to measure your hips by passing the tape around your bottom. Both measurements will be made over your clothing.

Please note: We will record this information for research purposes only. We are not a health clinic, and cannot provide medical advice or diagnosis. None of the information that we collect will be put in your medical records.

However, at the end of your Study Centre visit, we will offer you a printed summary of the measurements we've taken. These are compared to standard ranges for your age and sex in order to give context to the information. This is for information purposes only and is not intended as a medical check, although you may want to share the results with your doctor.

For more information about physical measurements, please refer to the Physical Measurements Brochure or to watch a video click here.

3) Biological Samples

4) Study Centre Locations