Last Updated: 7/11/2006

Clinical Interests
Large-scaled populations in the US, China, Russia, the Philippines, Norway, Brazil and a number of other developing countries.

Research Interests
I am a Professor of Nutrition at UNC-CH and head the Division of Nutrition Epidemiology in the School of Public Health. I also Direct the cross-campus NIH Roadmap center the Interdisciplinary Obesity Center (IDOC). My research focuses on dynamic changes in diet, physical activity and inactivity, body composition, and the factors responsible for these changes as well as some consequences and program and policy options for change. There are a number of dimensions to this work. One involves understanding patterns and trends of healthy lifestyles as they relate to diet and activity. A second focuses on the role that environmental and socioeconomic forces play in determining these patterns. As such I have dozens of publications and many grants that focus on understanding factors that affect good and bad dietary and physical activity patterns. Another element of my work on the nutrition transition focuses on the rapid changes in obesity.

I am actively involved in research in the US and a number of other countries around the world. Included are detailed longitudinal studies that I direct in China and Russia, active involvement with longitudinal studies in the Philippines (that I started and funded for its first decade) and related work in Brazil and several other countries. In addition, I am head of an effort to fund a l2-country rather monstrous longitudinal study entitled the "WHO Multicountry Study on Obesity, Non-Communicable Diseases, and Aging in Countries in Transition." As part of this effort I have met with key NCI leaders and right now am working with the Director of NIH and key staff to understand if and how a mechanism of his new roadmap might exist for a transNIH method of reviewing and considering this initiative. This multi country initiative will focus squarely on understanding dietary and physical activity, obesity patterns and trends, and the major environmental determinants (e.g., food prices, location of eating options, the built environment, pollution, etc.) of these patterns and trends. There will be biological components but that is not my interest or thrust with this effort.

My US program is equally active. Included are a series of studies focused on understanding dietary behavior with a focus on eating patterns, trends, and socio-demographic determinants. Included is involvement in the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health, a study of physical activity and inactivity patterns and obesity among 20,000 US adolescents studied in 1995, 1996, and 2001. In this study my focus is on the area that is dearest to my heart, an understanding of the way the social (crime, traffic safety, etc.) and physical built environment (connectivity of neighborhood, recreation options) affects physical activity patterns and obesity over the adolescence to adult period. I have also started to work with CARDIA-a IS-year follow-up of about 6000 black and white young adults. In that effort I am in charge of environmental issues related to both diet and activity.

How am I a cancer scholar? My research does not address in any way carcinogenesis. However, just as tobacco prevention is a key element of the cancer agenda, so is prevention of obesity and certain poor dietary and physical activity patterns. I currently have two R01's funded by the NCI. My work in the US and around the world has established me as a leader in understanding these patterns and their causes. This has included work related to fruit and vegetable consumption (e.g., I keynoted the 2003 Berlin international conference on the Global 5-a-day program and a more recent AICR- WCRF meeting in London). I am also on the policy group with M Marmot and a few others for the updated AICR-WCRF Nutrition and Cancer review. My career has and will continue to focus on shifting the agenda to seeing the broad-based nature of these changes and the types of large-scale policy and program changes needed to ameliorate the negative trends and enhance the positive ones.

As is evidenced by my current grants, only two come from the NCI. I have in the past had AICR and WCRF funding. Nevertheless my research has brought me into close working relationships with many cancer researchers around the world and I will continue this role within the framework of my current set of interests.

Recent Accomplishments and Honors
Recipient ofthe 1998 Society for International Nutrition Research Kellogg Prize for outstanding nutrition research.

Training
University of Wisconsin-Madison | M.S. | 1969 | Economics
Cornell University, Ithaca, NY | Ph.D. | 1974 | Agricultural Economics

Publications
Publications selected from 241 peer-reviewed:

Popkin, Barry M., and S.J. Nielsen (2003) The Sweetening of the World's Diet. Obesity Research 11:1325-1332

Bell, A Colin, L.S. Adair, and B.M. Popkin (2004) Understanding the role of mediating risk factors and proxy effects in the association between socio-economic status and untreated hypertension. Social Science and Medicine 59: 275-283.

Bray, George A., S.J. Nielsen, and B.M. Popkin (2004) Consumption of high-fructose corn syrup in beverages may play a role in the epidemic of obesity. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition 79: 537-543.

Gordon-Larsen, Penny, L.S. Adair, M.C. Nelson, and B.M. Popkin (2004) Five-year obesity incidence in the transition period between adolescence and adulthood: the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition 80: 569-575

Monteiro, Carlos A., W.L. Conde, B. Lu, and B.M. Popkin (2004) Obesity and inequities in health in the developing world. International Journal of Obesity 28: 1181-1186.

Monteiro, Carlos A, Erly C. Moura, Wolney L. Conde and Barry Popkin (2004) Socioeconomic status and obesity in developing countries: A review. Bulletin of the World Health Organization
82: 940-46.

Popkin, Barry M. and Penny Gordon-Larsen (2004) The Nutrition Transition: Worldwide Obesity Dynamics and their Determinants International Journal of Obesity 28: s2-s9.

Mendez, M.A. Monteiro, Carlos A., and B.M. Popkin (2005) Overweight now exceeds underweight among women in most developing countries! American Journal of Clinical Nutrition ; 81: 714-21.


Popkin, Barry M. (2005) Using research on the obesity pandemic as a guide to a unified vision of nutrition. Public Health Nutrition 8:724-29.

Popkin, Barry M., D. Barclay, and S.J. Nielsen (2005)Water and Food Consumption Patterns of U.S. Adults 1999-2001. Obesity Research 13: 2146-2152

Kim Soowon and B.M. Popkin. (2006) Commentary: Understanding the epidemiology of overweight and obesity: a real global public health concern. International Journal of Epidemiology 35: 60-67.

Gordon-Larsen, Penny, M.C. Nelson, P. Page, and B.M. Popkin (2006) Inequality in the built environment underlies key health disparities in physical activity and obesity. Pediatrics 117: 417-424.

Liu, Ying, F. Zhai, and B.M. Popkin (2006) Trends in eating behaviors among Chinese children (1991–1997). Asia Pacific Journal of Clinical Nutrition15:72-80

Popkin, Barry M., L. Armstrong, G.M. Bray, B. Caballero, B. Frei, and W.C. Willett. (2006) A new proposed guidance system for beverage consumption in the United States. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition 83: 529-542.

Wang, Hujuin, S. Du, F. Zhai, and B.M. Popkin (2006) “Trends in the Distribution of Body Mass Index among Chinese Adults, Aged 20–45 Years (1989 to 2000) International Journal of Obesity 38:1-7.

Popkin, Barry M., S. Kim, E.R. Rusev, S. Du, and C. Zizza. (In press) Measuring the full economic costs of diet, physical activity, and obesity-related chronic diseases. Obesity Reviews

Tudor-Locke, Catrine, B.A. Ainsworth, L.S Adair, and B.M. Popkin. (In press) Comparison of physical activity and inactivity patterns in Chinese and Filipino youth. Child: Care, Health & Development

Popkin, Barry M. (In press) Technology, transport, globalization and the nutrition transition. Food Policy

Popkin, Barry M. (In press) Global nutrition dynamics: the world is shifting rapidly toward a diet linked with noncommunicable diseases (NCDs)" American Journal of Clinical Nutrition

Nelson, Melissa C., P. Gordon-Larsen, Y. Song, and B.M. Popkin (in press, August 2006)"Patterns in the built and social environment are associated with adolescent overweight and activity.," American Journal of Preventive Medicine.

E-mail: popkin@unc.edu
Telephone: 919-966-1732
FAX: 919-966-9159
Address: 123 W. Franklin St Chapel Hill, NC 27514
URL: www.nutrans.org

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