Sophie van Bakel

Sophie van Bakel is a Researcher in the Department of Anesthesiology at Maastricht University. Her research focuses on chemosensory function in COPD patients, CT-derived muscle biomarkers in COVID-19, and personalized nutrition strategies to reduce hospital food waste. She has published extensively in Clinical Nutrition and Chest, including a 2024 doctoral thesis on food perception in COPD and a 2023 CT-based mortality predictor for COVID-19. Her work intersects respiratory medicine, clinical nutrition, and healthcare logistics, with collaborations across Maastricht University Medical Center+ and institutions studying sarcopenia and nutritional assessment. Recent findings highlight the dissociation between chemosensory dysfunction and sarcopenia risk in COPD, and the efficacy of personalized food interventions in hospital settings.