2.b Study brochure

Attachment 3.b.

The LIFE
Study

Did you know that
approximately one in ten
Americans will have
difficulty having a baby?

A study of how lifestyle and
the everyday environment
might affect the ability to
have a baby

Site-specific contact information

Attachment 3.b.

What is the LIFE Study?
The Longitudinal Investigation of Fertility
and the Environment (LIFE) Study is a
research project being done to help us
learn more about how the everyday
environment and lifestyle might affect a
couple’s ability to have a baby.
This National Institutes of Health study is
being conducted in three states, including
Maryland, Michigan, and Texas. The
National Institute of Child Health and
Human Development is leading the study
as part of its mission to sponsor research
focusing on factors impacting human
reproduction and development (42 US
285g).
Why is this study being done?
It is estimated that approximately 10
percent of U.S. families will experience
difficulty having a child. Very little is known
about what types of things might affect a
couple’s ability to get pregnant and a
woman’s ability to carry a pregnancy to
term. The data collected during the LIFE
Study may provide doctors with the
information that they need to better advise
couples that wish to have a child.
Who is eligible to participate?
We are currently enrolling couples in
committed relationships who are thinking
about trying to have a baby.

If we choose to participate, what will
we be asked to do?

What are the benefits of
participation?

If you choose to participate, you and
your partner will be asked to keep
journals and complete a series of
questionnaires as you try to get
pregnant. If you conceive, we will also
ask you to keep a journal throughout
the pregnancy.

During the course of the study, you
will receive health information and
home monitors that will help you
maximize your ability to have a
baby. In addition, you and your
partner will be contributing to an
effort that may help doctors better
advise future generations.

As an incentive for participation, we
will give you a digital fertility monitor
that will help identify the fertile period.
The monitor will be yours to keep,
even after the study is completed.
You will also be given free home
pregnancy test kits so that you can
learn that you are pregnant as soon as
possible.
In addition to providing us with the
other information, we will also ask you
to provide us with specimens such as
blood and urine for the measurement
of environmental pollutants. If you are
willing to cooperate, you will receive
up to $75 each.

Are there any costs involved in
participation?
All of the information and study
materials will be provided to you and
your partner free of charge. The
only cost to you will be your time and
effort.
How do we find out more about
the LIFE Study?
One of our research assistants will
contact you within the next few
weeks to tell you more about the
study and ask for your help. In the
meantime, you can contact us at
(800) XXX-XXXX or visit our website
at www.lifestudy.us.