Speaker: Anju Aggarwal, PhD; Acting Assistant Professor, Epidemiology, UW

Lecture Summary: Being healthy takes a lot more than just your genetics. It is a manifestation of who you are (including your income and education, your lifestyle, and your eating behaviors and priorities) and where you live. Our research studies have examined the interplay among these individual- and environmental-level factors in relation to diets and obesity in the US. The question that remains is: What matters the most?

About the Winter Seminar Series: Food equity, defined as access to safe, affordable, and nutritious foods, is increasingly being viewed as a basic human right. While access to healthy foods can be compromised by war and conflict, geography and climate change, it can also be affected by inequities in socioeconomic status, race/ethnicity, education, and income and for groups that are low income, elderly, or chronically ill. Diet quality, weight status, and even life expectancy are determined by where people live because their food environment defines how—and where—they get their food. Locally within Seattle and King County, sharp disparities in diet quality and health have been observed. The rising prevalence of non-communicable diseases and the role of the environment, as well as health equity and social justice, are themes that the UW Population Health Initiative are addressing and each is connected to foods and nutrition. The Winter 2017 Seminar will address all of these issues directly, drawing on population health experts from within and outside the UW. The seminar is open to all UW faculty, staff, and students.