Professor Rachel Brown, Our people, Department of Human Nutrition, University of Otago, New Zealand

MSc, PhD(Otago)

Rachel Brown

Rachel Brown is the Deputy Head of Department. She is a graduate of the University of Otago with a BSc, MSc and PhD (1999). Rachel’s research interests lie in the areas of nuts and health, energy metabolism, sports nutrition, and lipid metabolism. Recently she has been involved in research investigating the effects of nut consumption on plasma lipids and lipoproteins, inflammation and endothelial function. This research also investigated whether public health advice regarding nut consumption for the reduction in cardiovascular disease risk is sustainable and achievable. She is also currently involved in a research project investigating potential differences in individuals who report difficulties in losing weight (conservers) compared to individuals who report difficulties in gaining weight (expenders).

Rachel is a member of the Agencies for Action Scientific committee where she has co-authored several reports including “Does the family environment contribute to food habits or behaviours and physical activity in children?”; “Does sedentary behaviour contribute to chronic disease or chronic disease risk in adults?”; and “Are nutrition and physical activity primary prevention interventions in the primary care setting effective at reducing biochemical and physical risk factors?”

Rachel coordinates the following papers:

HUNT451: Nutritional Assessment
HUNT452: Nutrition and Human Health

She also teaches in the following papers:

HUNT221: Obesity
HUNT232: High fat diets
HUNT233: Obesity

HEAL192: Obesity
DENT262: Dietary assessment, obesity, heart disease

Current postgraduate students

PhD

Rebecca Cooke. Characteristics of obesity resistance and susceptibility.

Melyssa Roy. The SWIFT trial: Support strategies for whole food diets, intermittent fasting and training.

Michelle Jospe. The SWIFT study – Effect of support strategies on weight, body composition, and eating and dieting behaviour at one year.

Master of Science

Janet Yong. Barriers and facilitators to nut consumption.

Luke Scullion. The HABIT study: Effects of healthy changes to bread on blood lipids and lipoproteins.

Master of Dietetics

Heidi Taylor. The effects of soaking whole and ground almonds on consumer acceptance.

Shivani Kumari. The effects of soaking on phytic acid and food safety of whole and ground nuts.

Recent graduates

PhD

Siew Ling Tey. Energy Density, energy balance and nuts.

Master of Science

Asika Devi. Is nut-enriched bread an acceptable and effective vechicle to reduce cardiometabolic risk factors?

Jo Slater. Low energy availability in New Zealand athletes (LEANZ).

Master of Dietetics

Alexandra Tully. Nutritional adequacy of three popular diets.

Melanie Park. A cost analysis of three popular diets.

Chloe Hindle. Energy Availability and Macronutrient Content of Elite Rugby Players' Diets.

Claire Gibson. Disordered eating and body image in elite male Rugby Union players during pre-season training.

Katherine Pearson. Nutrient displacement with nut consumption.

Esther Kim. The dietary assessment software requirements of New Zealand Dietitians.

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Publications

Green, T. J., Whitfield, K. C., Daniels, L., Brown, R. C., & Houghton, L. A. (2021). Modeling thiamine fortification: A case study from Kuria atoll, Republic of Kiribati. Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences. Advance online publication. doi: 10.1111/nyas.14561

Meredith-Jones, K., Taylor, R., Brown, R., Cooke, R., Vlietstra, L., Manning, P., Poulton, R., & Haszard, J. (2021). Age- and sex-specific visceral fat reference cutoffs and their association with cardio-metabolic risk. International Journal of Obesity. Advance online publication. doi: 10.1038/s41366-021-00743-3

Tan, S.-Y., Tey, S. L., & Brown, R. (2021). Nuts and older adults’ health: A narrative review. International Journal of Environmental Research & Public Health, 18, 1848. doi: 10.3390/ijerph18041848

Tran, G., Neale, E., & Brown, R. (2021). Perceptions of nut consumption in Australian health professionals and consumers. In S. Iuliano, K. Livingstone, W. Stonehouse & A. Coates (Eds.) Proceedings, 72(1), 3.31. doi: 10.3390/proceedings2021072001

Kumari, S., Gray, A. R., Webster, K., Bailey, K., Reid, M., Han Kelvin, K. A., Tey, S. L., Chisholm, A., & Brown, R. C. (2020). Does ‘activating’ nuts affect nutrient bioavailability? Food Chemistry, 319, 126529. doi: 10.1016/j.foodchem.2020.126529

Chapter in Book - Research
Journal - Research Article

Chapter in Book - Research

Tey, S. L., Chisholm, A. W.-A. H., & Brown, R. C. (2016). Nut consumption and metabolic syndrome. In I. Dichi & A. Name Colado Simão (Eds.), Nutritional intervention in metabolic syndrome. (pp. 289-312). Boca Raton, FL: CRC Press. doi: 10.1201/b19099-23

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Journal - Research Article

Jospe, M. R., Roy, M., Brown, R. C., Haszard, J. J., Meredith-Jones, K., Fangupo, L. J., Osborne, H., Fleming, E. A., & Taylor, R. W. (2020). Intermittent fasting, Paleolithic, or Mediterranean diets in the real world: Exploratory secondary analyses of a weight-loss trial that included choice of diet and exercise. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 111, 503-514. doi: 10.1093/ajcn/nqz330

Houghton, L. A., Brown, R. C., Beaumont, S., Jennings, S., Bailey, K. B., Haszard, J. J., … Daniels, L., & Gibson, R. S. (2019). Micronutrient status differs among Maasai and Kamba preschoolers participating in a supplementary feeding program in Kenya. Maternal & Child Nutrition, 15, e12805. doi: 10.1111/mcn.12805

Black, K. E., Hindle, C., McLay-Cooke, R., Brown, R. C., Gibson, C., Baker, D. F., & Smith, B. (2019). Dietary intakes differ by body composition goals: An observational study of professional rugby union players in New Zealand. American Journal of Men's Health, 13(6), 1-10. doi: 10.1177/1557988319891350

Gibson, C., Hindle, C., McLay-Cooke, R., Slater, J., Brown, R., Smith, B., … Black, K. (2019). Body image amongst elite rugby union players. Journal of Strength & Conditioning Research, 33(8), 2217-2222. doi: 10.1519/jsc.0000000000002312

Brown, R. C., Gray, A. R., Yong, L. C., Chisholm, A., Leong, S. L., & Tey, S. L. (2018). Current nut recommendation practices differ between health professionals in New Zealand. Public Health Nutrition, 21(6), 1065-1074. doi: 10.1017/S1368980017003469

Roy, M., Williams, S. M., Brown, R. C., Meredith-Jones, K. A., Osborne, H., Jospe, M., & Taylor, R. W. (2018). High-intensity interval training in the real world: Outcomes from a 12-month intervention in overweight adults. Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, 50(9), 1818-1826. doi: 10.1249/mss.0000000000001642

Black, K., Slater, J., Brown, R. C., & Cooke, R. (2018). Low energy availability, plasma lipids, and hormonal profiles of recreational athletes. Journal of Strength & Conditioning Research, 32(10), 2816-2824. doi: 10.1519/jsc.0000000000002540

Tan, S.-Y., Tey, S. L., & Brown, R. (2018). Can nuts mitigate malnutrition in older adults? A conceptual framework [Review]. Nutrients, 10(10), 1448. doi: 10.3390/nu10101448

Stamm, R. A., March, K. M., Karakochuk, C. D., Gray, A. R., Brown, R. C., Green, T. J., & Houghton, L. A. (2018). Lactating Canadian women consuming 100μg folic acid daily have high circulating serum folic acid above a threshold concentration of serum total folate. Journal of Nutrition, 148(7), 1103-1108. doi: 10.1093/jn/nxy070

Taylor, H., Webster, K., Gray, A. R., Tey, S. L., Chisholm, A., Bailey, K., Kumari, S., & Brown, R. C. (2018). The effects of 'activating' almonds on consumer acceptance and gastrointestinal tolerance. European Journal of Nutrition, 57(8), 2771-2783. doi: 10.1007/s00394-017-1543-7

Brown, R. C., Gray, A. R., Yong, L. C., Chisholm, A., Leong, S. L., & Tey, S. L. (2018). A comparison of perceptions of nuts between the general public, dietitians, general practitioners, and nurses. PeerJ, 6, e5500. doi: 10.7717/peerj.5500

Brown, R. C., Yong, L. C., Gray, A. R., Tey, S. L., Chisholm, A., & Leong, S. L. (2017). Perceptions and knowledge of nuts amongst health professionals in New Zealand. Nutrients, 9, 22. doi: 10.3390/nu9030220

Tey, S. L., Robinson, T., Gray, A. R., Chisholm, A. W., & Brown, R. C. (2017). Do dry roasting, lightly salting nuts affect their cardioprotective properties and acceptability? European Journal of Nutrition, 56(3), 1025-1036. doi: 10.1007/s00394-015-1150-4

Jospe, M. R., Roy, M., Brown, R. C., Williams, S. M., Osborne, H. R., Meredith-Jones, K. A., McArthur, J. R., Fleming, E. A., & Taylor, R. W. (2017). The effect of different types of monitoring strategies on weight loss: A randomized controlled trial. Obesity, 25(9), 1490-1498. doi: 10.1002/oby.21898

Brown, R. C., Gray, A. R., Tey, S. L., Chisholm, A., Burley, V., Greenwood, D. C., & Cade, J. (2017). Associations between nut consumption and health vary between omnivores, vegetarians, and vegans. Nutrients, 9(11), 1219. doi: 10.3390/nu9111219

Jospe, M. R., Taylor, R. W., Athens, J., Roy, M., & Brown, R. C. (2017). Adherence to hunger training over 6 months and the effect on weight and eating behaviour: Secondary analysis of a randomised controlled trial. Nutrients, 9(11), 1260. doi: 10.3390/nu9111260

McLay-Cooke, R. T., Gray, A. R., Jones, L. M., Taylor, R. W., Skidmore, P. M. L., & Brown, R. C. (2017). Prediction equations overestimate the energy requirements more for obesity-susceptible individuals. Nutrients, 9(9), 1012. doi: 10.3390/nu9091012

Yong, L. C., Gray, A. R., Chisholm, A., Leong, S. L., Tey, S. L., & Brown, R. C. (2017). Barriers to and facilitators and perceptions of nut consumption among the general population in New Zealand. Public Health Nutrition, 20(17), 3166-3182. doi: 10.1017/S1368980017002464

Slater, J., Brown, R., McLay-Cooke, R., & Black, K. (2017). Low energy availability in exercising women: Historical perspectives and future directions. Sports Medicine, 47(2), 207-220. doi: 10.1007/s40279-016-0583-0

Pearson, K. R., Tey, S. L., Gray, A. R., Chisholm, A., & Brown, R. C. (2017). Energy compensation and nutrient displacement following regular consumption of hazelnuts and other energy-dense snack foods in non-obese individuals. European Journal of Nutrition, 56(3), 1255-1267. doi: 10.1007/s00394-016-1176-2

Brown, R. C., Tey, S. L., Gray, A. R., Chisholm, A., Smith, C., Fleming, E., & Parnell, W. (2016). Nut consumption is associated with better nutrient intakes: Results from the 2008/09 New Zealand Adult Nutrition Survey. British Journal of Nutrition, 115(1), 105-112. doi: 10.1017/S0007114515004122

Bradbury, K. E., Williams, S. M., Mann, J. I., Oey, I., Aitchison, C., Parnell, W., Fleming, L., Brown, R. C., & Skeaff, C. M. (2016). Serum and erythrocyte folate status of New Zealand women of childbearing age following a countrywide voluntary programme by the baking industry to fortify bread with folic acid. Public Health Nutrition, 19(16), 2897-2905. doi: 10.1017/S136898001600121X

Eyres, L., Eyres, M. F., Chisholm, A., & Brown, R. C. (2016). Coconut oil consumption and cardiovascular risk factors in humans. Nutrition Reviews, 74(4), 267-280. doi: 10.1093/nutrit/nuw002

Slater, J., McLay-Cooke, R., Brown, R., & Black, K. (2016). Female recreational exercisers at risk of low energy availability. International Journal of Sport Nutrition & Exercise Metabolism, 26(5), 421-427. doi: 10.1123/ijsnem.2015-0245

Devi, A., Chisholm, A., Gray, A., Tey, S. L., Williamson-Poutama, D., Cameron, S. L., & Brown, R. C. (2016). Nut-enriched bread is an effective and acceptable vehicle to improve regular nut consumption. European Journal of Nutrition, 55, 2281-2293. doi: 10.1007/s00394-015-1038-3

McLean, A., Brown, R. C., & Black, K. E. (2016). The fluid and electrolyte balance of New Zealand European and Maori/Pacific Island athletes: An observational study. European Journal of Sport Science, 16(3), 336-343. doi: 10.1080/17461391.2015.1017539

Miller, J. C., Smith, C., Williams, S. M., Mann, J. I., Brown, R. C., Parnell, W. R., & Skeaff, C. M. (2016). Trends in serum total cholesterol and dietary fat intakes in New Zealand between 1989 and 2009. Australian & New Zealand Journal of Public Health, 40(3), 263-269. doi: 10.1111/1753-6405.12504

Brown, R., Sam, C. H. Y., Green, T., & Wood, S. (2015). Effect of GutsyGum™, a novel gum, on subjective ratings of gastro esophageal reflux following a refluxogenic meal. Journal of Dietary Supplements, 12(2), 138-145. doi: 10.3109/19390211.2014.950783

Brown, R. C., McLay-Cooke, R., Gray, A. R., & Tey, S. L. (2015). Oral fatty acid sensitivity among obesity resistant and obesity susceptible individuals. Clinical Nutrition & Dietetics, 1(1), 7. Retrieved from http://clinical-nutrition.imedpub.com/archive.php

Jospe, M. R., Brown, R. C., Roy, M., & Taylor, R. W. (2015). Adherence to hunger training using blood glucose monitoring: A feasibility study. Nutrition & Metabolism, 12, 22. doi: 10.1186/s12986-015-0017-2

Tey, S. L., Robinson, T., Davis, H., Gray, A. R., Chisholm, A. W., & Brown, R. C. (2015). The effect of regular hazelnut consumption on cardiovascular risk factors and acceptance in Māori and European. Journal of Nutrients, 2(2), 39-53.

Brown, R. C., Tey, S. L., Gray, A. R., Chisholm, A., Smith, C., Fleming, E., & Parnell, W. (2015). Association of nut consumption with cardiometabolic risk factors in the 2008/2009 New Zealand Adult Nutrition Survey. Nutrients, 7(9), 7523-7542. doi: 10.3390/nu7095351

Black, K. E., Skidmore, P., & Brown, R. C. (2014). Fluid balance of cyclists during a 387-km race. European Journal of Sport Science, 14(Suppl. 1), S421-S428. doi: 10.1080/17461391.2012.711860

Brown, R. C., Tey, S. L., Gray, A. R., Chisholm, A., Smith, C., Fleming, E., Blakey, C., & Parnell, W. (2014). Patterns and predictors of nut consumption: Results from the 2008/09 New Zealand Adult Nutrition Survey. British Journal of Nutrition, 112(12), 2028-2040. doi: 10.1017/s0007114514003158

Haywood, B. A., Black, K. E., Baker, D., McGarvey, J., Healey, P., & Brown, R. C. (2014). Probiotic supplementation reduces the duration and incidence of infections but not severity in elite rugby union players. Journal of Science & Medicine in Sport, 17(4), 356-360. doi: 10.1016/j.jsams.2013.08.004

Bradbury, K. E., Williams, S. M., Mann, J. I., Brown, R. C., Parnell, W., & Skeaff, C. M. (2014). Estimation of serum and erythrocyte folate concentrations in the New Zealand adult population within a background of voluntary folic acid fortification. Journal of Nutrition, 144(1), 68-74. doi: 10.3945/jn.113.182105

Brown, R. C., McLay-Cooke, R. T., Richardson, S. L., Williams, S. M., Grattan, D. R., & Chisholm, A. W.-A. H. (2014). Appetite response among those susceptible or resistant to obesity. International Journal of Endocrinology, 2014, 512013. doi: 10.1155/2014/512013

Cosgrove, S. D., Love, T. D., Brown, R. C., Baker, D. F., Howe, A. S., & Black, K. E. (2014). Fluid and electrolyte balance during two different preseason training sessions in elite rugby union players. Journal of Strength & Conditioning Research, 28(2), 520-527. doi: 10.1519/JSC.0b013e3182986d43

Black, K. E., Huxford, J., Perry, T., & Brown, R. C. (2013). Fluid and sodium balance of elite wheelchair rugby players. International Journal of Sport Nutrition & Exercise Metabolism, 23, 110-118.

Tey, S. L., Gray, A. R., Chisholm, A. W., Delahunty, C. M., & Brown, R. C. (2013). The dose of hazelnuts influences acceptance and diet quality but not inflammatory markers and body composition in overweight and obese individuals. Journal of Nutrition, 143(8), 1254-1262. doi: 10.3945/jn.113.174714

Richmond, K., Williams, S., Mann, J., Brown, R., & Chisholm, A. (2013). Markers of cardiovascular risk in postmenopausal women with type 2 diabetes are improved by the daily consumption of almonds or sunflower kernels: A feeding study. ISRN Nutrition, 2013, 626414. doi: 10.5402/2013/626414

Smith, C., Parnell, W. R., Brown, R. C., & Gray, A. R. (2013). Providing additional money to food-insecure households and its effect on food expenditure: A randomized controlled trial. Public Health Nutrition, 16(8), 1507-1515. doi: 10.1017/s1368980012003680

Smith, C., Parnell, W. R., Brown, R. C., & Gray, A. R. (2013). Balancing the diet and the budget: Food purchasing practices of food-insecure families in New Zealand. Nutrition & Dietetics, 70(4), 278-285. doi: 10.1111/1747-0080.12043

Black, K. E., Skidmore, P. M. L., & Brown, R. C. (2012). Energy intakes of ultraendurance cyclists during competition: An observational study. International Journal of Sport Nutrition & Exercise Metabolism, 22(1), 19-23.

Black, K. E., Skidmore, P., & Brown, R. C. (2012). Case study: Nutritional strategies of a cyclist with celiac disease during an ultraendurance race. International Journal of Sport Nutrition & Exercise Metabolism, 22(4), 304-310.

Tey, S. L., Brown, R. C., Gray, A. R., Chisholm, A. W., & Delahunty, C. M. (2012). Long-term consumption of high energy-dense snack foods on sensory-specific satiety and intake. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 95, 1038-1047. doi: 10.3945/ajcn.111.030882

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