Nutrition Year in Review
The Department of Nutrition has three areas of focus: public health nutrition, cellular and molecular nutrition, and dietetics. At the graduate level, the public health nutrition program not only trains students to be leaders in the field of public health and community nutrition intervention, but also provides outstanding research opportunities for those students who are interested in pursuing research careers. Likewise, cellular and molecular nutrition focuses on nutrient-gene interaction and provides cutting-edge research designed to combat the growing obesity epidemic and more effectively develop nutritional intervention strategies to combat chronic diseases such as cancer. We also offer clinical training for those graduate students who seek advanced training in clinical dietetics, in conjunction with their main area of graduate study. At the undergraduate level, we offer one of the best preparatory curricula for undergraduate students interested in careers in research, public health nutrition, or clinical dietetics.
Jay Whelan We began the year by hiring a new faculty member, Dr. Lisa Jahns. Dr. Jahns came to us from the University of North Carolina where she obtained her Ph.D. in Nutritional Epidemiology. Her expertise in nutrient data analysis complements the existing research programs in the department, both in the basic sciences and in public health, and has generated a number of cross-campus collaborations.
Dr. Betsy Haughton is the director of our Public Health Nutrition Program. This program trains graduate students to become future leaders in public health dealing with community-based nutrition issues.
This year Dr. Haughton and her graduate students in maternal and child health have developed a plan to promote cultural competence at the individual and organizational levels. This plan has been pilot-tested with the Knox County Health Department staff and will be implemented in 14 Eastern states during 2005 and 2006. In another project, funded by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), Dr. Haughton is investigating the impact of our aging work force on the stability of the state’s public health infrastructure. It has been estimated that as many as 50% of the state’s public health professionals will be retiring within the next 10 years. She is also promoting food safety knowledge and practices with a focus on staff at child-care facilities (funded by USDA). These individuals play a pivotal role in food safety for infants and young children.
Dr. Sonya Jones is a national leader in participatory research. She has current funding from the American Heart Association (AHA) and the USDA investigating new intervention strategies to combat childhood obesity in Monroe County schools. Her research involves development, implementation, and evaluation of nutrition intervention strategies designed to facilitate healthier food choices by students. Her intervention strategy uniquely utilizes members of the student population as research partners.
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