The second pillar of the M Foundation is EDUCATE, a pillar that The M Foundation sees as integral to the overall health and well-being of both professional and citizen athletes. The M Foundation plans to initiate investigative projects to study sports-related ailments affecting athletes both on and off the field.
The M Foundation will select and fund at least one project each year based on several factors including feasibility, impact, significance, and uniqueness.
First, The M Foundation will initiate a request for applications to a broad range of investigators interested in athletes and skin health. Dr. Brian Adams, on behalf of The M Foundation, will make this request to any researchers examining a clinical aspect of sun safety or treatment and/or prevention of any and all traumatic skin conditions. Targeted investigators include, but are not limited to, physicians, PhDs, athletic trainers, physical therapists and student-athletes affected by these issues. On a similar note, The M Foundation will reach out to college, high school and club coaches to solicit interest in research participation.
Second, we are pleased to announce that The M Foundation's first study will be led directly by Dr. Adams and will serve as a follow-up to the initial work with NCAA athletes and their use of sunscreen (Published in the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology, by Drs. Hamant and Adams in 2005 ("Sunscreen Use Among Collegiate Athletes" Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology 2005, Vol. 53, Issue 2, Pages 237-241) - which revealed that 85% of cross-country and soccer athletes from several Midwestern NCAA Division I schools failed to use any sunscreen.
Dr. Adams intends to investigate the trends of sunscreen use among high school outdoor athletes. The study will specifically document the sunscreen use of high school athletes based on 1) skin type, 2) gender, 3) age, 4) grade, 5) sport, and 6) school. The study will also examine reapplication rates as well as the reasons for lack of sunscreen use. Finally, the study will compare its results of high school athletes with the previous study of NCAA athletes.
This study from The M Foundation, which we believe is unprecedented, will be implemented on a much larger scale than the 2005 study in order to increase its "generalizability."
As with all research funded by The M Foundation, our athlete-partners will participate in media tours and events to communicate and share the findings with the public at large, particularly young athletes for whom the information will be most relevant.
