Amanda Thompson

Amanda Thompson, PhD is a Professor and Chair of the Department of Anthropology, as well as a Professor in the Department of Nutrition at the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill's Gillings School of Global Public Health. She specializes in human biology and nutrition, focusing on how early life environments—social, behavioral, and physical—shape obesity and chronic disease risk through biological pathways.

• Education: PhD in Anthropology and MPH in Public Nutrition/Global Health from Emory University (2007)

Her research integrates laboratory science, anthropology, and epidemiology to examine:

• Intestinal microbiome development as a mediator of infant feeding practices and obesity
• Structural, social, and maternal factors contributing to obesogenic environments
• Physical/social environments linked to inflammation across age groups

Key publication trends reveal a focus on gut microbiome dynamics (2015), early feeding practices (2013-2015), inflammatory biomarkers (2014), and global health disparities (North Carolina, China, Ecuador). Thompson directs the Center for Galapagos Studies and leads the Human Biology Laboratory, addressing cross-cultural and longitudinal health determinants.