Welcome

The Vermont Center on Behavior and Health (VCBH), led by Director Stephen T. Higgins, PhD, is an interdisciplinary research center committed to investigating relationships between personal behavior patterns (i.e., lifestyle) and risk for chronic disease and premature death. Our work has historically focused on health disparities for the most vulnerable populations, particularly among the socioeconomically disadvantaged where these risk factors are overrepresented.

 

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Located in Burlington, VT at the University of Vermont, Larner College of Medicine, VCBH researchers have a specific focus on understanding mechanisms underpinning risk and developing effective interventions and policies to promote healthy behavior. A common thread across VCBH research projects is the application of knowledge from the disciplines of behavioral economics and behavioral pharmacology to increase understanding of vulnerability to unhealthy behavior and the use of incentives and other behavioral and pharmacological interventions to support healthy behavior change interventions and policies.

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Upcoming VCBH Events

Monthly Lecture Series:

November 20:
Joseph McClernon, PhD
Duke University

December 18:
Hugh Garavan, PhD
University of Vermont

Visit the Center on Rural Addiction

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VCBH Career Opportunities

Postdoctoral Research Fellowships
Click here for more information.

VCBH News

Dr. Khadanga Talks Pandemic Side Effect: Sitting

March 5, 2021 by Nicole Twohig

Sherrie Khadanga, MD, a COBRE project director at the Vermont Center on Behavior and Health, cardiologist at the University of Vermont Medical Center, and assistant professor at UVM Larner College of Medicine was interviewed for “The Pandemic’s Heart-Breaking Side Effect: Sitting, Sitting, Sitting,”

Sherrie Khadanga, MD, a COBRE project director at the Vermont Center on Behavior and Health, cardiologist at the University of Vermont Medical Center, and assistant professor at UVM Larner College of Medicine was interviewed by the University of Vermont Medical Center for their coronavirus publication series. The article, “The Pandemic’s Heart-Breaking Side Effect: Sitting, Sitting, Sitting,” highlights how the pandemic has forced a slowdown of our lives and created a more sedentary lifestyle.

Dr. Khadanga importantly points out that “As many as 250,000 deaths per year are attributed to a lack of regular physical activity.” She explains that “people don’t realize that lack of exercise is an independent risk factor for development and progression of heart disease.”

Prior to the pandemic, only 19 percent of women and 26 percent of men typically met the recommended guidelines for exercise. Dr. Khandaga and other experts worry that these numbers have dropped since COVID-19. 

Learn more from Dr. Khadanga, including tips to get moving around the house, how much exercise you should get, and raising your heart rate in this webinar, "Keeping Your Heart and Brain Healthy During COVID-19."