The HEAL Study.

Could a greener city mean a healthier you?

We invite people who are between the ages of 25 to 70 in six South Louisville neighborhoods to participate in the HEAL Study. This study is part of Green Heart and investigates how neighborhood air pollution and greenness impact heart health of the people in these communities.

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What’s involved in participation?

When you sign up to be a part of the HEAL Study, we will assess your baseline health (measure your height, weight, etc.), ask you to fill out surveys about your overall health, stress levels, lifestyle, and medical history, and collect samples (blood and urine) in order to assess your exposure to pollution and disease risk. We will repeat these measures over the years to track changes to health and disease risk over time.

Email envirome@louisville.edu to learn more about all our health study opportunities.

Why Louisville?

Right now, the greenness of our city is definitely not what it could be.

  • Louisville has received an F from the American Lung Association for annual ozone days since 2012
  • Our air quality ranks among the worst in Kentucky
  • Our tree canopy loses about 54,000 trees per year

But we view this as an opportunity. Your participation in this study could provide new information on the links between nature and health. This information could identify new ways to help prevent heart disease, diabetes, and obesity without the use of medications. The HEAL Study is also an opportunity to improve your neighborhood and potentially develop a scientifically backed “greenprint” for creating healthy cities. We hope you’ll decide to join us.

Get Involved