Ian Janssen

PhD (Queen’s University)

MSc (Queen’s University)

BPHE(Hon) (Laurentian University)

Undergraduate Courses

HLTH 270 – Movement Behaviours and Health

Graduate Courses

KHS 891 – Statistics

Research Summary

The research conducted in my laboratory uses epidemiological approaches to examine the influence of movement behaviours (i.e., physical activity, sedentary behaviour, sleep) on the health and well-being of children, youth, and adults.  Here are some of the research questions my lab addresses in our research:

• What are the movement behaviour levels of the Canadian population and how have these changed over time?
• What are the appropriate volumes, durations, intensities, types, and patterns of physical activity needed for optimal health and well-being? 
• How do different durations, types, and patterns of sedentary behaviour influence health?
• What is the inter-relationships between physical activity, sedentary behaviour, and sleep? 
• How does the movement behaviour composition influence health?

How do factors of a person’s social environment and the built environments of their school/workplace, neighbourhood, and community influence their movement behaviour levels?

Physical Activity Epidemiology Website

Graduate Student Opportunities

Opportunities exist for undergraduate students, master’s students, doctoral students, and postdoctoral fellows to develop expertise in epidemiological aspects of physical activity, sedentary behaviour, and sleep.  Internal funding is available to support highly qualified graduate student applicants.  Applicants are also encouraged to apply for external funded from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research and other funding bodies.

Current Funding

Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR), Heart and Stroke Foundation, and the Public Health Agency of Canada

Examples of Recent Publications

I have published over 275 scientific journal articles and 20 book chapters.  A complete list and PDF copies of these publications is available on my ResearchGate profile.  Below, a list 10 recent example publications has been provided. The underlined author names are graduate students that I have supervised. 

Talarico R, Janssen I.  Compositional associations of time spent in sleep, sedentary behavior, and physical activity with obesity measures in children.  International Journal of Obesity.  2018;42:1508-1514. 

Williams GC, Borghese MM, Janssen I.  Objectively measured active transportation to school and other destinations among 10-13 year olds.  International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity.   2018;15:11. 

Borghese MM, Janssen I.  Development of a measurement approach to assess time children participate in organized sport, active travel, outdoor active play, and curriculum-based physical activity.  BMC Public Health.  2018;18:396. 

Nguyen A, Borghese MM, Janssen I.  Pedestrian traffic safety and outdoor active play among 10-13 year olds living in a mid-sized city.  Preventive Medicine Reports.  2018;10:304-309. 

Lin Y, Borghese MM, Janssen I.  Bi-directional association between sleep and outdoor active play among 10-13 year olds.  BMC Public Health.  2018;18:224. 

Borgundvaag E, Janssen I.  Objectively measured physical activity and mortality risk in American adults.  American Journal of Preventive Medicine.  2017;52:e25-e31. 

Janssen I, Roberts KC, Thompson W.  Adherence to the Canadian 24-Hour Movement Guidelines among 10- to 17-year-old Canadians.  Health Promotion and Chronic Disease Prevention in Canada. 2017;37:369-375.

Janssen I.  Kids move more when outdoors.  Canadian Journal of Public Health.  2016;107:e497-e499. 

McMillan R, McIsaac M, Janssen I.  Family structure as a correlate of organized sport participation among youth.  PLoS One.  2016;11(2):e0147403.

Janssen I.  Estimating whether replacing time in active outdoor play and sedentary video games with active video games influences youths’ mental health.  Journal of Adolescent Health.  2016;59:517-522.