Karen Charlton

Professor Karen Charlton is a nutritional epidemiologist and domain leader in Public Health Nutrition at the University of Wollongong's School of Medical, Indigenous and Health Sciences. Her research focuses on diet and lifestyle interventions, aging in developing countries, iodine nutrition, and strategies to reduce hypertension. She has been instrumental in advocating for salt reduction policies in South Africa and leads projects addressing food affordability, cognitive health through dietary interventions, and sustainable food systems.

Her work spans global health, with longitudinal studies in Ghana and South Africa examining nutritional status and aging outcomes. She supervises numerous PhD students exploring topics like food insecurity, chronic disease risk reduction, and circular economy approaches to agri-food systems. Professor Charlton has secured significant funding, including an Australian Research Council Future Fellowship for sustainable food system research and grants targeting dementia risk reduction and financial inclusivity in higher education.

Her contributions to policy include evidence-based frameworks for salt regulation and collaborative efforts to improve meal programs for older adults. She actively engages with civil society organizations to advance equitable food systems and has co-authored over 480 research outputs, with recent work emphasizing anthocyanin's role in cognitive health and the affordability of healthy diets in regional Australia.

Professor Charlton’s interdisciplinary approach bridges clinical care, public health, and policy, with a focus on translating research into actionable strategies for vulnerable populations. Key themes in her work include planetary health, food security, and leveraging nutrition to address chronic disease burdens globally.