Lauren Butler is a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist and serves as an Assistant Professor in the Nutrition and Foods Program at Texas State University. Butler holds a doctoral degree in Nutrition from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Gillings School of Global Public Health, where she was trained as a nutrition epidemiologist. Butler completed postdoctoral work with the University of Florida’s Health Disparities Research and Intervention Program, where she conducted community- engaged research and interventions. Butler’s research aims to advance social justice and health equity through weight-inclusive and non-diet behavioral health interventions. She utilizes a mixed methods systems-approach to develop population-specific strategies to eliminate weight stigma, heal body image and disordered eating behaviors, and improve cardiometabolic health among marginalized communities. Butler leads the Food Freedom Research Team through which she mentors graduate and undergraduate students to address internal and external fatphobia, healthism, ableism, racism, weight bias and mental health stigma. Her recent work includes understanding perspectives on using a weight-inclusive approach to address body image concerns and disordered eating among LGBTQ+ community members.

Dr Poulton is paediatrician specialising in treating children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). She studied medicine at Girton College Cambridge and Guy’s Hospital London, qualifying in 1982. After training in paediatrics in Stoke-on-Trent and Birmingham UK, she migrated to Australia. Alison completed her advanced training in Melbourne and Sydney and gained the FRACP in 1993. She works at Nepean Hospital, at Penrith Child and Youth Mental Health Service and in private practice in Penrith. Dr Poulton has also raised a family of four children. In 2011, Dr Poulton was awarded her MD from the University of Cambridge. This was based on research into the collateral effects of stimulant medication on children’s height, weight, physical maturity and body composition.

Eye physician and surgeon, Chris A. Knobbe, MD, had been in practice nearly 20 years when, in 2013, he asked himself the question, “Could macular degeneration be a ‘Westernized disease’? Could AMD be a disease that is the result of a Westernized diet?” That question would forever change his life. Dr. Knobbe began his practice of ophthalmology in 1994, after completing his residency training at the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center, in Denver, Colorado, USA. He was certified by the American Board of Ophthalmology in 1997 and has remained board-certified since then. In 2001, Dr. Knobbe was invited to become an Associate Clinical Professor of Ophthalmology at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, in Dallas, Texas. He held that position until April 30, 2017, when he relinquished his position to lead Cure AMD Foundation™, the goal of which is to spread the message regarding he and his colleagues’ research and theory, prevent vision loss from AMD and, finally, to pursue additional research regarding Dr. Knobbe’s thesis. So how is it that Dr. Knobbe became a nutrition researcher — and developed this hypothesis — you ask? In 2011, when a few dietary changes drastically improved the arthritis that Dr. Knobbe had suffered with for more than 15 years, he was compelled to learn everything he could about nutrition. And that is how and why he eventually asked himself that critical question regarding the genesis and progression of macular degeneration. On February 25, 2015, after four years of nutrition research and enough compelling evidence to support his hypothesis that AMD was caused by “Westernization of the diet,” Dr. Knobbe left his full-time practice of general ophthalmology to pursue full-time investigative research on this very subject. It would be nearly a year-and-a-half of intensive study, research, investigation, interviews, and writing, before he had completed his research and was ready to deliver this scientific breakthrough to the world. That message would come in the form of presentations, a scientific paper, a book, and ultimately, the founding of this very organization. The hypothesis that Dr. Knobbe would proffer holds that macular degeneration, which is the leading cause of irreversible vision loss and blindness in developed nations, is not only preventable, but treatable in the early to moderate stages, with an ancestral diet. Research shows us that somewhere in the range of 190 million people currently are affected by AMD, worldwide. Yet, just a century ago, the disease was an extreme medical rarity, worldwide. If Dr. Knobbe’s hypothesis is correct, every single patient’s macular degeneration is caused by diet. And every single case of early to moderate dry AMD is treatable with diet. That’s right, every single one. And now it is the goal of Dr. Knobbe, affiliated colleagues, and the Cure AMD Foundation™ team, to bring this revolutionary hypothesis and research to you, for free (we have no markup on books, and ebooks are “sold” for the cost of a credit card transaction to maintain security).

Dr Sarah Hellewell is a Research Fellow at the Faculty of Health Sciences, Curtin University, and The Perron Institute for Neurological and Translational Science. Her research incorporates both clinical and preclinical research programs spanning the spectrum of brain injury severity, enabling her to rapidly identify clinical problems and translate “bedside to bench” and back again. Dr Hellewell’s clinical neuroimaging research focuses on the development and implementation of objective tools to quantify and monitor progression of brain pathology in concussion and neurodegenerative disease.

Dr Anju Joham is a Senior Research Fellow at Monash at the Monash Centre for Health Research and Implementation, Monash University. She is an endocrinologist at Monash Health, Melbourne. Dr Joham was awarded her PhD focusing on Polycystic Ovary Syndrome, obesity and insulin resistance in 2015. During her PhD, she was involved in a mechanistic insulin resistance study that examined insulin resistance in lean and obese women with PCOS compared to controls. She also worked on a large epidemiological study, the ongoing Australian Longitudinal Study on Women’s Health (ALSWH). Key areas examined were PCOS prevalence, key predictors of PCOS, the relationship of PCOS to obesity and reproductive and metabolic complications. Dr Joham was an awarded a NHMRC Early Career Fellowship to conduct her postdoctoral studies in the area of women’s health, with a particular focus on Polycystic Ovary Syndrome. In her postdoctoral studies, she worked with two large longitudinal cohort studies, the ALSWH and the Raine cohort from Western Australia to understand the interplay of body weight in the development of metabolic, reproductive and psychological sequelae in women with PCOS compared to women without PCOS, with the aim of studying the natural history of PCOS over the reproductive lifespan from adolescence, young adulthood to menopause. Dr Joham established a statewide multidisciplinary Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS) Service based at Monash Health in 2018 in response to consumer needs identified following stakeholder engagement. She was involved in the international 2018 Evidence-Based Guideline for PCOS diagnosis and management guideline development group to provide the updated International guidelines and will be co-leading the upcoming guideline update.

Dr Chau Thien (Jillian) Tay is an endocrinologist and clinical academic. After obtaining her medical degree at the University of Tasmania, she completed her RACP Basic and Advanced Physician Training in Endocrinology rotating though Flinders Medical Centre, Lyell McEwin Hospital and Monash Health. Jillian attained her PhD from Monash University in 2021 and has since then continued to pursue her research interest in polycystic ovary syndrome and women’s health. Jillian has received several prestigious awards including the Outstanding Abstract Awards from the Endocrine Society Annual Meeting in 2020, the AHRA Women’s Health Research and Translation Network Early and Mid-Career Researcher Funded Award in 2021, and the Roger Bartop Research Establishment Fellowship from RACP in 2022. She also holds several leadership roles including the Chair of the international Androgen Excess and Polycystic Ovary Syndrome Society (AEPCOS) Early Career Special Interest Group, Chair of the national Centre of Research Excellence in Women’s Health in Reproductive Life (CRE WHiRL) Early to Mid-Career Researcher Collective, Co-editor of the AEPCOS newsletter and a member of the CRE WHiRL’s Training and Mentoring Committee. Research interests Polycystic ovary syndrome Women’s health Reproductive endocrinology Translational, implementation and evaluation research Epidemiology research Clinical activities Monash Health Department of Diabetes and Vascular Medicine Expertise related to UN Sustainable Development Goals In 2015, UN member states agreed to 17 global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to end poverty, protect the planet and ensure prosperity for all. This person’s work contributes towards the following SDG(s):

Dr Melissa Bochner trained in breast and thyroid surgery at the Royal Adelaide Hospital and the Edinburgh Breast Unit and has a Masters of Surgery from the University of Sydney. Her current positions are Head of Unit and Staff Specialist Surgeon, CALHN Breast and Endocrine Unit, and Visiting Surgeon, Womens and Children Hospital, and St Andrews Private Hospital, Adelaide. She is a Clinical Senior Lecturer at the University of Adelaide. She has interests in oncoplastic surgery, teaching and research. Dr Bochner is the current Chair of the Breast Quality Audit subcommittee of BreastSurgANZ.

Dr. Naomi Rutten is an esteemed General Practitioner and Psychotherapist with a focus on developmental and complex trauma, as well as behavior disorders. With a rich background in various therapeutic approaches, she is dedicated to enhancing the provision of high-quality psychological care. Dr. Rutten is particularly renowned for her innovative work with Ducks In A Row Trainings, an initiative aimed at improving access to mental health services for those in need. As a vital member of the Australian Society of Psychological Medicine, she plays a critical role in shaping education and training for fellow general practitioners.

Prof Zoltán Sarnyai is a medically-trained PhD neuroscientist with an active research program in the neurobiological mechanisms of stress and psychiatric disorders, including drug addiction, schizophrenia and depression. After a postdoctoral training at Harvard Medical School he held an independent research position at the Rockefeller University, supported by two prestigious fellowships. Zoltán was involved in setting up a behavioural neuroscience focussed biotech company and later directed its research effort to develop new animal models for psychiatric disorders. Prior to establishing the Psychiatric Neuroscience Laboratory at JCU in 2012 he was a University Lecturer in Pharmacology and Fellow of Pembroke College at the University of Cambridge. Zoltán has skills and experience in preclinical and clinical stress research as well as in behavioural neuroscience and animal modelling of complex human neuropsychiatric disorders. Zoltán is Head of the Laboratory of Psychiatric Neuroscience within the Australian Institute of Tropical Health and Medicine and the Convenor of the Community of NeuroScientists at JCU (CNS@JCU), a network of academics, doctors and other health professionals interested in broadly defined neuroscience and brain research. Zoltán’s particular focus is on determining how psychosocial environment shapes the brain through hormones, immune and metabolic factors during the course of the development of neuropsychiatric disorders. He applies basic neuroscience approaches to study disadvantaged and minority populations, including Indigenous Australians, as they are disproportionally affected by mental illness. Zoltán also has a strong interest in the emerging field of nutritional psychiatry and has a number of research projects on dietary factors and mental health.

I am a Reader in Metabolic medicine and a consultant physician with specialism in Diabetes and Endocrinology. I treat patients with type 2 diabetes and obesity at University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust. I have particular research interest in older adults with diabetes, Diabetic Kidney Disease ,epidemiology of type 2 diabetes and new therapies for type 2 diabetes. have been a Chief and Principal Investigator in a number of clinical trials. I have published over 80 peer reviewed articles in major medical journals. I have held many leadership roles in the NHS and also serve on the editorial board of three journals.

In 2010 I completed my degree in Human Biology at the University of Huddersfield and began my PhD at Aston focusing on medicines research. Here, formulation of oral liquid antihypertensives formed the initial stages of my project; here an understanding of drug action on a molecular level in a physiological setting was essential. In vitro and In vivo characterisation of developed formulations utilising cell and rodent based models paved the way for subsequent genomic investigations into intestinal transporter expression profiling using microarray technology and bioinformatics. Following my PhD I worked as a postdoctoral research fellow at Aston on a project focused on in vitro assessment of taste and was carried out in collaboration with market leading pharmaceutical companies AstraZeneca, GSK, Pfizer and Bristol Myers Squib as well as UCL. During this time I also elevated my teaching profile and arrived at Aston University as a Lecturer in Pharmacy in 2015. Since my lectureship appointment I have been heavily involved with teaching on the MPharm degree programme and I am pursuing my own line of research in formulation design and development. I have recently been awarded funding internally for a PhD studentship investigating the application of 3D printing technology in tablet production which commenced in January 2018. More recent research tracks have seen innovation in the application of nanoparticle formulations to better target administration in hospital settings.

Duane Mellor is an award winning registered dietitian and science communicator (BDA Media Spokesperson of the Year 2021), who is the Aston Medical School lead for Nutrition and Evidence Based Medicine. Having a background in clinical dietetics supporting people living with diabetes he moved into medical education when joining Aston University. He is also the Associate Dean for Education (Quality Enhancement) in the College of Health and Life Sciences. where he works to support innovative teaching practice alongside engaging students as fellow professionals on the first steps of their careers. After initially working in the areas of clinical trials, Duane’s current research interests focus on improving nutrition and health by working with communities to celebrate their heritage through food and help tackle barriers resulting from societal inequalities. Alongside this Duane has a keen interest in science communication and developing scientifically accurate messages to help individuals make informed decisions about their own food choices and health. After initially working in the areas of clinical trials, Duane’s current research interests focus on improving nutrition and health by working with communities to celebrate their heritage through food and help tackle barriers resulting from societal inequalities. Alongside this Duane has a keen interest in science communication and developing scientifically accurate messages to help individuals make informed decisions about their own food choices and health. Duane is a regular contributor to the Science Media Centre and is a British Dietetic Association spokesperson having contributed to online, print, radio and television stories about food and nutrition. He is a member of the British Dietetic Association Healthier You magazine editorial board which aims to promote healthy food stories to the public as well as being an Associate Editor of the academic Journal of Human Nutrition and Dietetics. He is a member of a number of scientific committees including British Nutrition Foundation.