The Nutrition and Metabolism Graduate Program has faculty trainers from over 19 departments on the UW-Madison campus. These faculty use state-of-the-art approaches and cutting-edge technologies to expand our knowledge of nutrition in four broad areas of research. All of our trainers are doing exciting nutrition-related research and most fall into one or more of the following thematic areas.
Energy metabolism, obesity, diabetes, and related diseases
Includes how metabolism of energy-yielding nutrients occurs and is regulated to affect how our bodies grow, develop, and function, and how dysregulation of those processes impacts human health conditions (e.g. obesity) and diseases such as diabetes and metabolic syndrome.
Micronutrient metabolism, function, and regulation
Includes how vitamins and minerals participate in biochemical processes and hormonal signaling and how alterations in their availability, metabolism, storage, and excretion impacts health and disease.
Digestive biology, gut microbiome, and related diseases
Includes factors that influence gastrointestinal function and digestion, surgical interventions to control metabolic disease, and how assimilation of the diet impacts cellular and systemic metabolism and the onset and progression of chronic disease.
Epidemiology, population health, and community nutrition
Includes studying the incidence, distribution, and control of nutrition-related diseases and the science behind efforts to improve nutrition and health in populations across the state and around the world.
