Saima Hasnin

Saima Hasnin serves as an Assistant Professor in both Food Science and Human Nutrition and Nutritional Sciences at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. She earned her Doctoral Degree in Human Sciences from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln in 2023 after completing her program from 2017-2023.

Dr. Hasnin's research centers on early childhood nutrition with particular focus on vegetable consumption patterns among preschool children and dietary assessment methodologies. Her work investigates how family child care settings influence children's eating behaviors, with special attention to the Child and Adult Care Food Program. She employs innovative techniques like pressure-mediated reflection spectroscopy to measure skin carotenoids as biomarkers of fruit and vegetable intake in young children. Her research addresses critical issues related to childhood obesity prevention through improved dietary quality in childcare environments.

Her recent publications demonstrate a cohesive research trajectory examining practical interventions to improve children's nutrition in childcare settings. Dr. Hasnin frequently employs multi-method research approaches and collaborates with interdisciplinary teams to study plate waste reduction, vegetable serving challenges, and dietary assessment validity. Her work bridges nutrition science with practical applications in early childhood education settings.

Dr. Hasnin has published 11 research outputs including 9 articles and 2 review articles in prominent journals such as Journal of Nutrition, Childhood Obesity, Nutrients, and Journal of Nutritional Science. Her systematic review on reflection spectroscopy-based skin carotenoid assessment has been particularly influential, generating substantial attention with 54 social media interactions and multiple news mentions.

Her research has established important connections between childcare practices and children's dietary behaviors, with findings that have practical implications for childcare providers and nutrition policy. Dr. Hasnin's work on family-style meal service demonstrates how specific serving approaches can significantly reduce food waste in childcare settings while improving children's vegetable consumption.