معرفی
Dr Michelle McKinley is a Professor at Queen's University Belfast within the School of Medicine, Dentistry and Biomedical Sciences, holding core affiliations with the Centre for Public Health and Institute for Global Food Security. She actively supervises PhD students in nutrition, obesity, and chronic disease prevention research.
Her primary research investigates dietary interventions to modify nutritional status and reduce chronic disease risk, with specialized focus on diabetes and cardiovascular conditions. She develops and evaluates complex behavior change programs across life stages including school environments, pregnancy transitions, and type 2 diabetes management, increasingly incorporating e-health and m-health technologies. Current work examines vitamin D supplementation for insulin resistance in prediabetes and Mediterranean diet impacts on cognitive aging.
Recent publications (2024-2025) show concentrated work on life-cycle nutrition interventions, spanning protein metabolism in aging populations, preconception health disparities, school food system innovations, and culturally tailored postpartum weight management. Her scholarship demonstrates growing emphasis on digital tools and habit-formation techniques for vulnerable groups.
Scientific recognition includes:
- Shortlisting for 2021 Vice-Chancellor’s Research Prizes (Research Engagement category) for Project Daire
Dr McKinley has supervised PhD students on gestational diabetes in Jordan, vitamin D research in prediabetes, dietary patterns for cardiovascular health, and body composition interventions. Major funding sources include:
- NIHR Public Health Research Programme (Projects 14/67/20, 14/185/09)
- Food Standards Agency
- Medical Research Council
- R&D Office Northern Ireland
- Northern Ireland Chest Heart and Stroke
- Centre for Ageing Research and Development in Ireland (CARDI)
- INTERREG
- EIT Food
She leads collaborative initiatives through the Centre for Public Health and Institute for Global Food Security, contributing to networks like GENIUS (school food systems) and JPI PREVNUT Consortium. Current projects include PROMED-COG on protein-enriched Mediterranean diets for cognitive aging and NICOLA studies on diet-microvascular health relationships.
