DrSilvia Bel-Serrat

I am a graduate in Human Nutrition and Dietetics and in Food Science and Technology. My PhD investigated the association of dietary behaviours and lifestyle factors with cardiovascular disease risk factors in a large sample of European children and adolescents. After the completion of my PhD, I took up a position as Postdoctoral Researcher in the Dietary Exposure Assessment group at the International Agency for Research on Cancer (WHO-IARC) in Lyon (France) which primarily involved the development of a standardised dietary assessment tool for use in Mexico and Brazil. Following this, I joined the UCD School of Public Health, Physiotherapy and Sports Science as the manager of the National Nutrition Surveillance Centre. My research work was mainly carried out within the WHO Childhood Obesity Surveillance Initiative (COSI) which monitors the progress of overweight and obesity among school-aged Irish children. I have participated in several large-scale international studies (HELENA, IDEFICS, Eurreca, iFamily, EuroDISH, DEDIPAC) funded by the European Commission. Currently, I am leading a project funded by the Health Research Board on how to promote vegetable intake among Irish adolescents from deprived areas. My research interests include the role of diet on childhood obesity and cardiovascular risk factors in young populations, behaviour change interventions to promote healthy eating in adolescents using participatory research techniques, and the development, application and evaluation of dietary intake assessment methodologies for use with children and adolescents.