Dr. Andrea Bersamin's research interests focus around the design and evaluation of chronic disease prevention programs tailored to the specific needs of medically underserved populations. She is particularly interested in the health of indigenous populations as they transition from a traditional to a Western lifestyle. Having received a B.A. in anthropology from the University of California Berkeley and a Ph.D. in nutrition from the University of California Davis, she tries to incorporate theory from both disciplines into her work.
As a graduate student, Dr. Bersamin's research focused on identifying dietary and physical activity risk factors for chronic disease in a Yup'ik Eskimo population living in remote communities along the Bering Sea. Working in these communities gave her a keen appreciation of the important role the environment plays in shaping dietary and physical activity behaviors. As a postdoctoral fellow at the Stanford Prevention Research Center, her research currently focuses on applying the socio-ecological model to an intervention in a predominantly Mexican-American agricultural community
