We study how nutrition before, during, and after pregnancy shapes later maternal and infant health. We also focus on infant nutrition and growth and the role of caregivers in healthy infant feeding. Our ultimate goal is to improve the health and livelihood of mothers and their children. Our laboratory applies an interdisciplinary life course approach to the intersection of nutrition sciences with reproductive, perinatal, pediatric, and nutritional epidemiology.

We develop and apply advanced analytic methods to rigorously evaluate the role of nutrition during the first 1,000 days of life on short and long-term health. In our work, we integrate advanced body composition assessment methods including imaging, quantitative methods, non-parametric trajectory modeling, and structural equation modeling. The Widen lab’s interdisciplinary research program is at the nexus of nutrition sciences and pediatric, perinatal, and life course epidemiology. We aim to improve the nutrition, health, and livelihood of mothers and their children.

Meet our Widen Lab Team Members and learn about our current research projects.