Melissa Melough
Melissa Melough, PhD, RD
Assistant Professor
Office Location:
317 Tower at STAR
Dr. Melough is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Health Behavior and Nutrition Sciences, specializing in nutritional epidemiology. She studies nutritional and environmental factors influencing human health and aims to identify dietary approaches to promote health or mitigate the harmful effects of environmental chemicals. Her research focuses on populations with greatest vulnerability to nutritional inadequacies or harmful chemical exposures such as those in key developmental life stages and historically disadvantaged communities. Dr. Melough’s current research projects examine the roles of endocrine disruptors in the development of obesity, the influences of maternal nutrition on childhood outcomes, and novel dietary approaches to reduce chemical exposures or their associated health consequences.
Education and Training:
Postdoctoral Researcher, Seattle Children’s Research Institute, 2019-2022
PhD, Nutritional Epidemiology, University of Connecticut, 2019
Dietetic Intern, Yale-New Haven Hospital, 2012
BS, Nutritional Sciences, Cornell University, 2011
Courses
- HBNS 632: Nutrition Epidemiology
- HBNS 609: Survey Research Methods
- HBNS 222: Introduction to Epidemiology
View a full list of publications here
Baker BH, Melough MM, Paquette AG, Barrett ES, Day DB, Kannan K, Nguyen RH, Bush NR, LeWinn KZ, Carroll KN, Swan SH, Zhao Q, Sathyanarayana S. Ultra-processed and fast food consumption, exposure to phthalates during pregnancy, and socioeconomic disparities in phthalate exposures. Environ Int. 2024 Jan;183:108427.
Melough MM, Maffini MV, Otten JJ, Sathyanarayana S. Diet quality and exposure to endocrine-disrupting chemicals among US adults. Environ Res. 2022 Aug;211:113049.
Melough MM, Murphy LE, Graff JC, Derefinko KJ, LeWinn KZ, Bush NR, Enquobahrie DA, Loftus CT, Kocak M, Sathyanarayana S, Tylavsky FA. Maternal Plasma 25-Hydroxyvitamin D during Gestation Is Positively Associated with Neurocognitive Development in Offspring at Age 4-6 Years. J Nutr. 2021 Jan 4;151(1):132-139.
Melough MM, Sakaki J, Liao LM, Sinha R, Cho E, Chun OK. Association between Citrus Consumption and Melanoma Risk in the NIH-AARP Diet and Health Study. Nutr Cancer. 2021;73(9):1613-1620.
Sakaki JR, Melough MM, Provatas AA, Perkins C, Chun OK. Evaluation of estrogenic chemicals in capsule and French press coffee using ultra-performance liquid chromatography with tandem mass spectrometry. Toxicol Rep. 2020;7:1020-1024.
ADDITIONAL LINKS
Connect
Tower at STAR: 100 Discovery Blvd, Newark, DE 19713<br> Health Sciences Complex: 540 S. College Ave, Newark, DE 19713 chs-info@udel.edu Phone: 302-831-1060