Aloha mai kākou

Sponsored by the HMSA Foundation and Kamehameha Schools, the study from the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa and MA‘O Organic Farms will collect data to capture the relationship between ‘āina (land/environment) and ola (health/life) within social networks from individuals living in Wai‘anae. This information includes demographics, health, behaviors and social networks. We invite you to be co-researchers in our community study to help us better understand how changes in health, such as blood sugar control, weight loss or gut microbiome composition might be modified by MA‘O’s community-based program focused on restoring our connection to ‘āina. Your participation is greatly needed to help our community reduce the risk of chronic diseases. We ask for your kokua, which will take approximately 30 minutes of your time. Your participation is voluntary. The study includes a 90-question survey (20 minutes), some health measurements (5 minutes), and a take-home stool collection kit (5 minutes). Should you decide to enroll, you will receive up to $40 for your participation: $15 for your participation after completion of the questionnaire and $25 after completion of the health measures and stool sample. You will also be eligible for a follow-up study, where you may receive up to another $40 for participating.

Many thanks to everyone who participated in the study. Our recruitment is currently closed for new participant.  If you participated last year, please contact us to schedule a follow-up: mauliolanetwork@gmail.com or by phone to the Mauli Ola Team: 808-304-7609 (Justin) and 808-989-2043 (Lesley).

Some preliminary results of our study are posted in the results section. The full report of this study will be mailed to all participants by May 2019, stay tuned!

Some recent news and press:

Some press: KITV, UH-News, Civil beat, HMSA, Hawaii Public Radio, UH and Star-Advertiser. See more at our Press Section.

Join the study

You can join the first study in Hawai’i relating social networks and health by attending one of the recruiting events. You can also join online and will be redirected to the University of Hawai’i, where any information that you share will be safely stored.