Biobehavioral Health Alumni Profile: Tracy L. Nelson, Ph.D.
B.S 1991 Colorado State University
MPH 1993 University of Northern Colorado
Ph.D. 1998 Biobehavioral Health, The Pennsylvania State University
On the Ph.D. program, in her words:
“The interdisciplinary focus on health and disease with consideration of a broad range of disciplines from the genetic/molecular level to physiological and psychological disciplines to public health applications. The faculty are excellent and the program is organized to facilitate learning and critical thinking skills as well as to have fun!”
“Really try to grasp the interdisciplinary nature of health and disease and don’t be afraid to think out of the box… then use this interdisciplinary background as a backdrop to a more focused area of interest.”
Current areas of professional interest are:
To epidemiologically consider the influence of gene, environment and gene-environment interactions on the development of obesity, cardiovascular disease and diabetes as well as to clinically assess the influence of dietary fat type on emerging cardiovascular risk factors including inflammatory and endothelial factors.
Employment
| 2005 – present | Associate Professor, Health and Exercise Science, Colorado State University |
| 2001 – present | Assistant Professor Adjunct, Preventive Medicine and Biometrics, University of Colorado Health Sciences Center |
| 1999- 2005 | Assistant Professor, Health and Exercise Science, Colorado State University |
| 1998 -1999 | NHLBI Post-Doctoral Fellow, Cardiovascular Epidemiology, University of North Carolina. |
Ph.D. Thesis Title
Genetic and Environmental Implications and Determinates of Abdominal Fat Distribution in an Older Swedish Twin Population.
Brief description: Abdominal fat distribution including the implications, primarily metabolic, as well as the genetic and environmental (e.g. behavioral and psychological factors) determinants. These associations were examined among an older population of twins from Sweden.