Faculty of the KU Department of Dietetics and Nutrition are currently engaged in significant research projects in a variety of areas of immediate public health concern in our community. Browse the list below in alphabetical order by researcher's last name and click researcher's name for more information (faculty profile or research group Web site).
Efforts involve conducting a qualitative study of children’s perception of dairy foods. Barkley is also a member of the research team for the KIDS study – a controlled randomized study of elementary school age children. The KIDS study is investigating the effects of dairy snacks on blood pressure and other outcomes such as body mass index and blood lipids.
Current research in obesity aims to measure cognitive restraint, disinhibition and susceptibility to hunger in obese individuals as part of an open-label, feasibility study of the peripheral sympathetic nerve stimulation system for weight reduction. Baxter is also working in personalized medicine to develop and implement a valid, reliable, and sensitive Nutrition Quality of Life survey that can be used to advance success in behavioral changes related to food.
Beyer's primary research interests include the role of diet and nutrition in gastrointestinal disorders and applied clinical nutrition in general.
Docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) intake during pregnancy and infancy and its effect on infant/child development including cognitive and visual acuity development is the primary research focus. A highly interdisciplinary collaboration with Dr. John Colombo and Dr. Kathleen Gustafson bridges work in this area across several independent research laboratories on different campuses at the University of Kansas.
Research is focused upon bone and cartilage biology, mineralization, matrix vesicles proteomics, and skeletal repair at the Bone Research Laboratory. Current projects include study into the role of bone morphogenetic proteins in skeletal cell differentiation and functions.
Providing nutrition expertise through a weight management program entitled Project RENEW (Recovering Energy Through Nutrition, Exericse and Weight Loss), Dr. Goetz's research has focused on helping to improve the quality of life and overall health of individuals with serious mental illness.
The scope of her research has expanded to address food insecurity among this vulnerable population.
Dr. Griffith is exploring the use of informatics technology to improve dietary records for more accurate assessments of dietary intakes and to improve teaching methodologies. A goal of her work is to reduce complication rates and to improve outcomes in nutrition support (parenteral and enteral feeding) in both hospitalized and home care patients.
Dr. Sullivan is evaluating the impact of dairy intake on the blood pressure and body composition of children in a large, school-based study. In addition, she provides nutrition expertise in collaboration on several studies with researchers from the Energy Balance Laboratory on KU's Lawrence campus.
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