Sorry to be posting so many questions. This will be short. I always read “A university test of 13 male subjects showed…” How do I get in with that? Seems to me that being paid to lift and use crazy pharmaceuticals is awesome!
Most of the fun studies are not paid. There is something to think about. There are tons of studies to get involved with, but they are often very specific and may not accept people who are actively training because they need more control of bodily changes. To find out what is going on at universities near you, find out who the department heads are in the Nutrition, Physiology, Exercise Science or related fields and call or email them. Tell them that you are interested in participating in research studies and would like to know if anybody needs subjects. They can often tell you what is going on and provide email/phone contact numbers to the Primary Investigators or Research coordinators. I’ve been on both sides of the coin - as the PI and as the subject. There are fun studies (if you were involved in mine, you would have got to get your body composition measured by DXA, hydrostatic weighing, the Bod Pod, skinfolds, Total body electrical conductivity and deuterium isotope dilution) that are relatively painless. There are other studies where I have been a research assistant and a subject. These have involved measuring exercise performance during ozone exposure or heat exposure. Not quite as fun, but still interesting. Lots to think about. Make sure you read the informed consent thoroughly and understand what you will be involved in.
Look in the paper, both the ‘normal’ one and ‘free’ ones. there are studies listed quite frequently in my city. I live near a major research hospital though so that may be part or it. Most that I have seen pay a few hundred bucks, but you can’t be taking any perscription drugs or smoke, etc. Some require blood tests or taking a new medication.
When I was in college, they advertised those in the school newspaper. I saw one that was to study people’s response to glucose, and thought it’d be cool to participate until I learned that they’ll draw blood 8 times/day, and they need to do it twice: beginning and end. I don’t care how much they pay me, but they’re NOT drawing my blood 8 times/day without me eating anything but some crackers they’re gonna feed me.
TJ who really hates needles…
check out clinicaltrials.com for direct info on studies in your area and specific areas of medicine.