Amanda Raffoul

At a Glance

• Dr. Raffoul’s research uses mixed methods to address the prevention of disordered eating, the promotion of mental health, and strategies to improve health equity through nutrition policy.
• She is also interested in bolstering the use of research evidence among key decision-makers in nutrition policymaking through youth and community engagement.

 Research Synopsis

Dr. Amanda Raffoul is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Nutritional Sciences. She received her MSc and PhD from the University of Waterloo School of Public Health Sciences, where her research focused on the unintended consequences of weight and nutrition policies (such as calorie menu labelling) on disordered eating risk among adolescents and young adults. Dr. Raffoul completed her post-doctoral training, supported by a Canadian Institutes of Health Research Fellowship, with the Strategic Training Initiative for the Prevention of Eating Disorders (STRIPED) based at Boston Children’s Hospital and the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. Her multi- and mixed-methods research aims to investigate and promote the uptake of evidence-based policies to prevent eating disorders and promote healthy dietary patterns among populations. In collaboration with national and international organizations, she collaborates on knowledge dissemination and legislative advocacy efforts to regulate social media misinformation related to weight and nutrition, ban the sale of harmful weight-loss and muscle-building pills to minors, and prohibit weight discrimination. In collaboration with affected communities, her current research aims to explore the differential impacts of nutrition policy on disordered eating risk and examine avenues through which youth engagement in knowledge translation may impact decision-makers’ use of research evidence in nutrition policy.