Pennington Biomedical’s Study of Assumption Parish Shares Initial, Surprising Data
March 16, 2026 · Baton Rouge, LA
Collaborating with Communities to Improve Rural Health at Scale
Researchers at LSU’s Pennington Biomedical Research Center are collaborating on a large, first-of-its-kind study to find out why people who live in rural areas suffer disproportionally from heart and lung diseases, stroke, diabetes, and obesity. LSU’s team has been working with two rural Louisiana parishes, Assumption and Franklin, which—despite similar demographics—see radically different health outcomes: some of the best (Assumption) and some of the most challenging (Franklin) among rural communities across the South.
After collecting data from one in every two dozen adults in Assumption Parish, the researchers are sharing initial findings with parish residents this month. One of the key takeaways so far is this: Your health is strongly tied to your education level—and much more so than to your income or age. For example, residents who didn’t graduate from high school are more than twice as likely to have high blood pressure and high cholesterol than those who went to college.
Now, the research team is collaborating with the parish to get this new data into the hands of residents and those who can use it to improve lives.
“These initial data open up a lot more questions, but we see them as conversation starters, not conversation enders,” said Dr. Stephanie Broyles, lead researcher on the study and director of the Contextual Risks Factors Laboratory at LSU’s Pennington Biomedical Research Center. “Why is it we’re seeing more disease in people with lower education levels? Is it because they’re working in jobs that don’t carry health insurance? Is it because they know less about behaviors that could improve their health? We’re not sure, and it’s premature to assume why we’re seeing these patterns. Just because there is a strong correlation between two data points doesn’t mean one is the cause of the other.”
For more information contact:
Joe Coussan, Media Relations Manager, joe.coussan@pbrc.edu, 225-763-3049 or Ernie Ballard, Senior Director of Communications & Marketing, ernie.ballard@pbrc.edu, 225-263-2677.
About the Pennington Biomedical Research Center
The Pennington Biomedical Research Center is at the forefront of medical discovery as it relates to understanding the triggers of obesity, diabetes, cardiovascular disease, cancer and dementia. Pennington Biomedical has the vision to lead the world in promoting nutrition and metabolic health and eliminating metabolic disease through scientific discoveries that create solutions from cells to society. The Center conducts basic, clinical and population research, and is a campus in the LSU System.
The research enterprise at Pennington Biomedical includes over 600 employees within a network of 44 clinics and research laboratories, and 16 highly specialized core service facilities. Its scientists and physician/scientists are supported by research trainees, lab technicians, nurses, dietitians and other support personnel. Pennington Biomedical is a globally recognized state-of-the-art research institution in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. For more information, see www.pbrc.edu.
Pennington Biomedical Research Center
6400 Perkins Road
Baton Rouge, LA 70808
