Our Sections run conferences and provide other activities and resources to ensure that the needs of the members are fulfilled and that their professional interests are developed. This also applies to students just starting out on their nutrition science journeys - we can offer inspiration, knowledge and support at every step and further as they settle into their careers.
Student Section
A significant proportion of Nutrition Society members are students completing undergraduate and post-graduate degrees. One of the key aims of the Society is to support and develop our student members through their university years, as they graduate and then begin their careers.
Eva-Leanne is a Registered Associate Nutritionist having graduated from the University of Surrey with a BSc in Nutrition. She continued her studies across Europe studying at La Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, the University of Reading and Università di Torino under EIT Food’s Master in Food System Programme with a focus on personalised nutrition and functional foods. Eva is currently embarking on a new academic journey as a Doctoral Researcher at Queen’s University Belfast.
She has been a member of the Nutrition Society Student Section since September 2019, occupying the Communications Representative role. Eva looks forward to optimising her comms skills in her new role as student section chair, serving to enhance opportunities available to student members, increase their uptake and help student voices be heard.
Tala is a 2nd year undergraduate student at UCL studying Nutrition and Medical Sciences. She is looking forward to taking on the role of International Student Representative and working with the Student Section on future endeavours.
First year PhD student at Abertay University in Dundee researching preconception nutrition.
I have had an interest in Mother and Infant Nutrition and public health since my undergraduate degree, which I also studied at Abertay University. I have been a student member of the Nutrition Society since 2018 and really enjoy all the events and benefits being a member of the Nutrition Society brings. I am passionate about promoting the Nutrition Society within my university and in Scotland, as I feel it is a great way to enter and gain an understanding of the world of nutrition science, especially academia and research.
Clíona Ní Chonnacháin (ANutr) is a PhD student in the UCD Institute of Food and Health, supervised by Professor Eileen Gibney. She graduated from UCD in 2021 with a first class honours in Human Nutrition (BSc). Clíona's research focuses on the effects of dairy intake on the gut microbiome and gastrointestinal health, working on various Food for Health Ireland projects.
Mairi is a PhD student, Registered Associate Nutritionist (AfN) and personal trainer studying at Abertay University. Her research involves investigating the concept of refined sugar addiction and its relation to obesity and public health. Mairi loves the events organised by the Nutrition Society and wanted to get involved in the committee and to promote it within her university. Mairi believes attending these is a great way to meet other professionals in the field of nutrition and learn more about this fascinating topic.
Kyle Kennedy is a third-year Human Nutrition and Dietetics Student at Glasgow Caledonian University (GCU). Kyle is also the British Dietetics Associations (BDA) Student Representative for 2023/2024, Secretary for the BDA’s Public Health Specialist Group, President of The Dietetics Society at GCU, and The Nutrition Society Student University Ambassador at GCU.
Kyle has also authored two public health nutrition articles: “The Social Normality of Alcohol Consumption in Students” and “Misinformation in The Media” and writes monthly introduction statements for the BDA EZINE. Kyle looks forward to drawing on his public writing experiences and other extracurriculars in order to best serve the Nutrition Society student community and Student Section as Communications Representative.
I’m currently in my second year of my undergraduate degree at University of Roehampton studying Nutrition and Health. I am particularly interested in gut health and learning about the connection between nutrition and mental health, and would love to pursue this area in my future career. In my spare time I love to read, drink tea, and put my hiking boots on for some fresh air.
I am in my 2nd year studying for a BSc in Nutrition at Leeds Beckett University, and in the future I aspire to be a public health researcher. I find the area of obesity increasingly interesting, and I would love to be able to contribute to the incredible advances being made in helping people living with obesity.
Maria Wesolowska is a PhD researcher within the Nutrition Innovation Centre for Food and Health (NICHE) at Ulster University. She graduated from Ulster University with a BSc Hons in Human Nutrition. Her PhD research investigates fish as a source of selenium during pregnancy and its implications for mother and child health as part of the International Seychelles Child Development Study.
Maria is delighted to act as the Irish Section Student Representative for the Nutrition Society and to have the opportunity to promote the Society to fellow early career researchers and students who are passionate about nutrition.
Chidera is an MSc in Nutrition with Obesity and Weight Management at Sheffield Hallam University. She is also the Nutrition Society Student Ambassador for Sheffield Hallam University. Chidera is passionate about promoting the Nutrition Society at Sheffield Hallam and other universities with the aim of optimizing student membership.
Chidera’s role in the Student Section is focused on driving the Nutrition Futures Conference planning and ensuring it’s the leading careers conference for students and graduates in Nutrition Science.
Scottish Section
The Scottish Section of Nutrition Society exists to arrange research meetings easily accessible to Scottish members and to provide a forum for nutrition education and research in Scotland.
Dr Alexandra Mavroeidi, is a Senior Lecturer in Physical Activity for Health. She has worked in the field of nutrition, exercise/sedentary behaviour, and bone health for the past 22 years. She had been involved in several studies looking at the relative contributions of sunlight, diet, and physical activity on vitamin D status in women living in the north of the UK.
She became a state registered dietitian in 2000 and moved to Aberdeen the following year to undertake her MSc in Sports Nutrition. In 2002, she joined the Osteoporosis Research Unit and carried out her PhD looking at the effect of habitual physical activity on the bone mass of older postmenopausal women. She stayed in Aberdeen as a Lecturer in Exercise/Human Physiology at the University of Aberdeen until 2015.
In 2015 she relocated to Glasgow due to family circumstances, where she undertook a 1-year lecturing position with the University of Glasgow as the level 3 BSc (Hons) Physiology co-ordinator. In 2016 she joined the Ageing Well Research Group at the Glasgow Caledonian University as a Research Fellow.
In 2018 she joined the Physical Activity for Health Group at Strathclyde University, as a Senior Lecturer. She is an active member of several professional societies including the Royal Osteoporosis Society, American Society of Bone and Mineral Research and American College of Sports Medicine. She was part of the scientific panels reviewing the vitamin D clinical guidelines on behalf of the Royal Osteoporosis Society (2019), and updated the current CMO’s UK Physical Activity Guidelines for Older Adults (2019). She has been a committee member of the Scottish Section of the Nutrition Society since 2017, and as Secretary since 2022.
In 2023, Alex moved back to Glasgow Caledonian University to assume the role of Head of Department for Occupational Health and Nutrition & Dietetics.
I am Technical Manager of the Institute of Aquaculture at the University of Stirling with responsibility for 30 members staff. I have overall responsibility for the technical operations, and provision of resources necessary to ensure a standard of service which delivers on the University Strategic Plan
I have 36 years experience within the university since joining the Department of Biological Science in 1983, where I was trained in electron microscopy, histology, and tissue culture and worked in laboratories to supervise students in their practical classes. After obtaining an HNC in Biological Science, I joined the Natural Environment Research Council Unit of Aquatic Biochemistry under Professor J. Sargent in 1987, as a Grade 3 technician, and after promotion through the grades to Chief Technician in 1993, transferred to the Institute of Aquaculture in 1998.
I have participated in management training programmes including ILM5. I have also been a member of University Court as a representative of the staff assembly and participated in a number of University, Faculty and Divisional committees.
I have been appointed by the University Secretary as the Institution Lead in support of our participation in the Technician Commitment Initiative (TCI).
I have 30+ years experience with a wide variety of state-of-the-art analytical techniques. I possess a wide range of skills that provide advice and analysis to the aquafeed, fish farming and processing, agricultural and food producing sectors. I have also developed a novel blood test for the measurement of the omega 3 fatty acid status of human blood samples.
Working with Professor J.R. Sargent, Professor J.G. Bell, Professor D.R. Tocher and Doctors M.V. Bell and R.J. Henderson, I have 80 publications in scientific journals to which I have contributed both technically and intellectually.
First year PhD student at Abertay University in Dundee researching preconception nutrition.
I have had an interest in Mother and Infant Nutrition and public health since my undergraduate degree, which I also studied at Abertay University. I have been a student member of the Nutrition Society since 2018 and really enjoy all the events and benefits being a member of the Nutrition Society brings. I am passionate about promoting the Nutrition Society within my university and in Scotland, as I feel it is a great way to enter and gain an understanding of the world of nutrition science, especially academia and research.
As a Research Impact Officer with the University of Aberdeen, I work with a great team of stakeholders to maximise the potential of the Diet and Health Inequalities (DIO Food) project, funded through the Transforming the UK Food System for Healthy People and a Healthy Environment SPF Programme, delivered by UKRI. My role is to improve communication with stakeholders, including patients and the public, by making research outputs more accessible.
Dr James Dorling is Lecturer in Human Nutrition at the University of Glasgow. His research is broadly focused on three areas: (1) the impact of nutrition and physical activity interventions on obesity-related endpoints and biomarkers of aging; (2) the regulators of appetite and eating behaviours; and (3) the changes in appetite and eating behaviours in response to health interventions.
Mairi is a PhD student, Registered Associate Nutritionist (AfN) and personal trainer studying at Abertay University. Her research involves investigating the concept of refined sugar addiction and its relation to obesity and public health. Mairi loves the events organised by the Nutrition Society and wanted to get involved in the committee and to promote it within her university. Mairi believes attending these is a great way to meet other professionals in the field of nutrition and learn more about this fascinating topic.
Prof. Alex Johnstone is based in The Rowett Insitute, at the University of Aberdeen, where she is Theme Lead for Obesity, Nutrition and Disease. She is a UK registered Nutritionist with the Association for Nutrition. Alex manages a research team to successfully lead high calibre research activities, in collaboration with internal and external colleagues. She is actively engaged in organising and delivering teaching/learning excellence and the translation of the team’s innovative science to a range of stakeholders, while also achieving high impact, through sustained knowledge exchange activities, and having real commercial and community benefit. Alex has experience in leading UKRI and EU funded multi-disciplinary projects in nutrition, with emphasis on obesity and energy balance and currently leads the £1.6M ‘FIO Food’ research grant, funded from UKRI Transforming Food Systems, which is research on Food Insecurity and Obesity, with emphasis on the retail food sector.
Ms Caroline Litts is an AfN Registered Nutritionist (Nutrition science) and lecturer in Nutrition and Food science at Robert Gordon University (RGU).
Caroline graduated from RGU with a First-class Honours in Nutrition, and The University of Aberdeen with an MSc in Human Nutrition (distinction). Caroline worked for The World Obesity Federation, Community Food Initiatives Northeast, and The Rowett Institute before joining RGU.
Caroline now lectures at RGU on the undergraduate course BSc (Hons) Food, Nutrition and Human Health and the online postgraduate course MSc Public Health Nutrition. Her research interests include obesity, its’ associated comorbidities and the role of nutritional components in development and management of these diseases
To follow
Dr Carrie Ruxton PhD, lead consultant at Nutrition Communications, has over 20 years' experience as a registered dietitian and nutrition expert. Dr Carrie Ruxton is an award-winning dietitan, health writer and TV nutritionist. With a PhD in Child Nutrition and over 100 published articles on diet and health, Carrie has a strong grounding in nutrition science. She has an understanding of the food industry and its important role in the nation's diet.
As well as helping companies to develop healthy, innovative food and beverage products, Carrie regularly appears in magazines and newspapers, and has a number of radio and TV credits (Channel Four news, BBC Three's 'Honey We're Killing the Kids', Radio Scotland, Five Live, BBC Belfast).
Carrie has worked with a wide range of organisations including the NHS, Food Standards Agency, major food companies, ingredient manufacturers, the European Commission, PR agencies and national newspapers.
Carrie's expertise in communicating clear, evidence-based nutrition and diet messages has involved her in many different projects all over the world.
Dr Suzanne Zaremba is an AfN Registered Nutritionist (Nutrition Science) and Lecturer in Nutrition at the School of Medicine, University of Dundee. Suzanne teaches nutrition predominantly on the University of Dundee MBChB and University of St Andrews Scottish Graduate Entry Medicine MBChB curriculums. Her research interests include appetite, primary school food provision and optimising diet and lifestyle to improve health outcomes, particularly for cancer prevention. Suzanne is a Fellow of the Scottish Cancer Prevention Network.
Irish Section
The Irish Section of the Nutrition Society exists to arrange research meetings easily accessible to Irish members and to provide a forum for nutrition education and research in Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland.
Professor Alison Gallagher is currently Head of Doctoral College (Coleraine/Magee) at Ulster University.
With over 90 peer-reviewed publications (h-index of 30), Alison contributes to the research conducted within the Nutrition Innovation Centre for Food and Health (NICHE) at Ulster. Her research interests resonate within the area of obesity and include development of risk factors for disease, low-energy/non-nutritive sweeteners and their potential impact on health, physical activity and health (including implementation of lifestyle interventions at key stages across the lifecycle).
After completing her BSc Hons Human Nutrition and PhD at Ulster, Alison worked as Research Fellow (University of Strathclyde), then Research Officer (Northern Ireland Young Hearts Project) before returning to Ulster as Lecturer in 1999; being promoted to Senior Lecturer and subsequently Professor of Public Health Nutrition. A Registered Nutritionist (Public Health), she was the first Fellow of the Association of Nutrition (FAfN) on the island of Ireland. Alison is a passionate advocate for the European Nutrition Leadership Platform (ENLP), having participated in the ENLP seminar in 1997 and being involved with this international leadership programme ever since, and is the current Chair/President of the ENLP Board (www.enlp.eu.com). Alison is also a member/Vice-chair of Northern Ireland Chest Heart Stroke Scientific (NICHS) Research Committee, expert member on the Scientific Advisory Panel on Sweeteners supported by the International Sweeteners Association (ISA), member/Chair of the Editorial Advisory Board of the Nutrition Bulletin and a member of the UK Nutrition and Health Claims Committee (https://www.gov.uk/government/groups/uk-nutrition-and-health-claims-comm...).
An active member of the Nutrition Society, Alison Chaired the Scientific Committee for the Federation of Nutritional Sciences (FENS) 13th European Nutrition Conference (www.fens2019.org) and was appointed as Editor-in-Chief for Proceedings of the Nutrition Society in 2021.
Dr. Emma Feeney is a Lecturer / Assistant Professor in UCD’s Institute of Food and Health, where she co-ordinates modules in Human eating behaviour, Food Ingredients, and Sensory science, and was recently nominated for a Teaching and Learning Award at UCD in recognition of her teaching practice.
With a background in Genetics, Human Nutrition, and Sensory Science, Emma’s research interests and publications span a range of aspects including sensory evaluation, taste and appetite measurement, nutritional intake assessment, dairy food consumption, sodium reduction, food bioactives, and food structure. She has overseen human intervention studies in a number of clinical and research settings, and has experience in dietary assessment of both children and adults, presenting her research at numerous national and international conferences.
In addition to her teaching and research commitments, Emma is an Associate Editor at BMC Nutrition, and a First Editor at the British Journal of Nutrition.
Clíona Ní Chonnacháin (ANutr) is a PhD student in the UCD Institute of Food and Health, supervised by Professor Eileen Gibney. She graduated from UCD in 2021 with a first class honours in Human Nutrition (BSc). Clíona's research focuses on the effects of dairy intake on the gut microbiome and gastrointestinal health, working on various Food for Health Ireland projects.
To follow.
Dr. Aileen McGloin was appointed as Director of Nutrition in March, 2022 having acted as Marketing and Communications Director for the previous four years. Her role focuses on addressing key public health nutrition issues such as obesity and food poverty. Aileen leads the nutrition team at safefood, working in many areas, from policy development, to managing research and community programmes.
Prior to that, Dr McGloin was safefood’s Communications Manager for Digital and Health. Combining her background in food, health and behaviour change with experience in PR, marketing and digital communications, she led safefood's digital communications since 2010.
Aileen holds a 1st Class honors degree in Human Nutrition from the University of Ulster and a PhD in obesity in children. She has 20 years of experience working in research, management and health communication roles across the food industry, public relations, academia and public service.
Sharleen O'Reilly (BSc, PhD, RD) is based at University College Dublin in the School of Agriculture and Food Science. Sharleen is a member of the UCD Institute of Food and Health and the UCD Perinatal Research Centre. She is the Programme Director for the BSc Human Nutrition and a member of the programme board for the MSc Clinical Nutrition and Dietetics and MSc Food, Nutrition and Health.
Sharleen graduated from Trinity College Dublin with a BSc(Hons) in Human Nutrition and Dietetics and her PhD. She worked as a dietitian in both Ireland and the UK before moving to Melbourne, where she worked at Victoria University (Lecturer) and Deakin University (Senior Lecturer). Sharleen's research led her to holding two prestigious Fellowships during her 12 years in Australia - the National Health and Medical Research Council's Translating Research Into Practice Fellowship and an Australia Awards-Endeavour Executive Fellowship. Sharleen held Advanced Accredited Practising Dietitian (AdvAPD) status from 2016-2019, this advanced credential is held by <1% of Australian dietitians. She also holds teaching excellence awards from her time at Deakin University. Sharleen has attracted €11M research funding over the past 10 years. In 2019 she was awarded 'Research Dietitian of the Year' by the Irish Nutrition and Dietetic Institute. Her current research interests lie in research translation and how chronic disease prevention and management can be better implemented in the real world. Her work is focused on taking what we know works in clinical research settings and developing implementable solutions to improve population health. Sharleen is the Chair of the European Federation of the Associations of Dietitians (EFAD) Research and Evidence-Based Practice.
Dr Kirsty Pourshahidi graduated from Ulster University with a BSc Hons (first class) Human Nutrition (2007), followed by a PhD in Nutrition (2011). Kirsty is currently working as a Lecturer in Food Science and Technology at Ulster University and is responsible for the delivery of Food Science, Nutrition in the Food Industry, and Vitamin D/Calcium Nutritional Biochemistry teaching for BSc/MSc Food, Nutrition and Dietetics students.
With over 10 years’ experience in academic research based at the Nutrition Innovation Centre for Food and Health (NICHE), Kirsty has co-authored more than 50 peer-reviewed publications (H-index, 19) investigating various aspects of agri-food nutrition and consumer innovation, food choice, vitamin D and health. Kirsty has also supervised a number of PhDs to successful completion across these research areas.
Kirsty has experience of conducting controlled human intervention studies in different population and clinical groups, and regularly presents her research at a range of national and international scientific meetings. In 2014, Kirsty was the inaugural recipient of the Julie Wallace Medal Lecture awarded by the Nutrition Society in recognition of early-stage scientific excellence in the field of nutrition.
As well her teaching and research commitments at Ulster, Kirsty also co-ordinates the ‘Digital Engagement, Communications & Impact’ team at NICHE, and is a Senior Member of ‘NNEdPro’s Collaborators Network’, a member of the ‘European Nutrition Leadership Platform’ and an Academic member of Senate at Ulster University.
Dr Marianne Walsh is Nutrition Manager at the National Dairy Council. With over 15 years’ experience, she has worked mainly in Nutrition Research but also as a consultant, with private clients and the food industry. She holds a first-class honours degree in Human Nutrition from the University of Ulster and received a scholarship to complete her PhD in Metabolomics at Trinity College Dublin. Following this, she worked as a Project Manager and Research Fellow at University College Dublin, researching the impact of genetics on individual dietary requirements. During this time, she was an occasional lecturer at the university and also held the post of Nutritionist at the UCD Elite Athlete Academy, where she worked with a wide range of athletes including Olympians and a Para-Olympian. She has been a guest speaker at several international conferences on nutrition and has published her work in leading academic journals.
Maria Wesolowska is a PhD researcher within the Nutrition Innovation Centre for Food and Health (NICHE) at Ulster University. She graduated from Ulster University with a BSc Hons in Human Nutrition. Her PhD research investigates fish as a source of selenium during pregnancy and its implications for mother and child health as part of the International Seychelles Child Development Study.
Maria is delighted to act as the Irish Section Student Representative for the Nutrition Society and to have the opportunity to promote the Society to fellow early career researchers and students who are passionate about nutrition.