Deborah Sloboda

Deborah Sloboda is a Professor in the Department of Biochemistry and Biomedical Sciences at McMaster University, with associate memberships in Obstetrics, Gynecology, and Pediatrics. She maintains an Honorary Research Fellow position at the Liggins Institute in New Zealand and leads the Sloboda Lab, focusing on developmental programming and maternal-fetal health.

• Tier 2 Canada Research Chair in Perinatal Programming (2012–2022)
• Founding Co-President, DOHaD Society of Canada
• Former Secretary, International Society for Developmental Origins of Health and Disease

Research Interests span developmental programming, maternal nutrition, placental function, and long-term health outcomes. Her work integrates evolutionary anthropology, epigenetics, and microbiome studies to understand how early-life nutritional adversity affects metabolic and reproductive systems.

Scientific Awards

• International Society of DOHaD Nick Hales Award (2015)
• Hamilton YWCA Woman of Distinction Award in Science, Trade, and Technology (2017)

Publications (>130) emphasize sex-specific effects of maternal diets, glucocorticoid exposure, and microbiome-immune interactions in pregnancy. Recent work explores syndemic effects of food insecurity and epigenetic impacts of paternal obesity.