The Behavioral Assessment and Intervention Unit supports UAB investigators by providing comprehensive diet assessment, physical activity assessment and behavioral intervention services. The Behavioral Assessment and Intervention Unit also houses the Metabolic Kitchen, which provides metabolic research meals and food provision for nutrition interventions.
- Metabolic Kitchen: Provision of clinically controlled research meals, metabolic unit foods, mixed meal tolerance tests, cooking class/demos, and precise menu and recipe design with NDSR and ProNutra, and custom nutrition intervention design and implementation.
- Behavior Theory and Design Consultation: Consultation with core faculty to identify appropriate behavior theories and conceptual frameworks, as well as guidance on the selection of appropriate measures and intervention strategies to support study design.
- Diet Assessment: Training and administration of Food Frequency Questionnaires (FFQ) and 24-hour recalls, along with professional review of food records by registered dietitians (RDs).
- Physical Activity Assessment: Consultation, training, and support for assessing physical activity and sleep behaviors using self-report tools and wearable devices. Services include device rental, data analysis, customized reporting, and quality control to support high-quality research outcomes.
- Behavioral Intervention: Development of tailored meal plans, calorie & physical activity prescriptions, intervention materials, and provision of both group and individual behavioral counseling, health coaching sessions.
Team
Drew Sayer, PhD
Community and Family Medicine
School of Medicine
Kelly Berg, MS, RD
Department of Nutrition Sciences
School of Health Professions
Olivia Krantz, MS, RD
General Internal Medicine and Population Sciences
School of Medicine