Ph.D. in Health Sciences
Latest Highlights
The third annual Health Sciences Research Night was a resounding success, thanks to the coordination of Dr. Christie Ward-Ritacco and her team. From over 80 poster presentations, attending faculty judges selected the best presentations within each student category.
Winners for Best Poster Presentation were:
Doctoral Category: Maruth Emilcar (Health Sciences; Nutrition concentration) Link to Presentation
Master’s Category: Hadley St. Cyr (Kinesiology) Link to Presentation
Undergraduate Category: Zoe Catrambone (Kinesiology) Link to Presentation
Student Publications
Lodge, M.T., Catrambone, Z.R., Kraus, E., Cirella, S.M., Logan, N.E., & Ward-Ritacco, C.L. (2026). From Validation to Application: A Methodological Review of Relative Energy Deficiency in Sport (REDs) Screening. Performance Nutrition.https://doi.org/10.1186/s44410-026-00020-2
Lodge, M.T., Logan, N.E., & Ward-Ritacco, C.L. (2025). Low Energy Availability and Disordered Eating Risk Do Not Change Over a Collegiate Cross-Country Season. Translational Journal of the American College of Sports Medicine. DOI: 10.1249/TJX.0000000000000337
Lodge, M.T., Cirella, S.M., Hartman, M.E., Logan, N.E., & Ward-Ritacco, C.L. (2025). The Association of Low Energy Availability Knowledge and Risk in Female Track and Field Athletes. Journal of Women’s Sports Med. DOI: https://doi.org/10.53646/e3r1jh65
Logan, N.E., Gaudreau, J., Owens, B.A., Oaks, B.M., Ward-Ritacco, C.L. & Sabik, N.J. (2025). Heightened Menopausal Symptoms Mediate the Associations Between Stress and Depressive Symptoms Among Midlife Women. Menopause. DOI: 10.1097/GME.0000000000002596
Lodge, M.T., Cirella, S.M., Hartman, M.E., Logan, N.E., & Ward-Ritacco, C.L. (2025). Risk of Low Energy Availability, Disordered Eating, Eating Disorders, and Bone Stress Injuries in United States Female Track and Field. Journal of Exercise and Nutrition. https://doi.org/10.53520/jen2025.103192
Owens, B.A., Sabik, N.J., Tovar, A., Ward-Ritacco, C.L., Melanson, K.J., Guerriero, B.S., & Oaks, B.M. (2024) Higher Morning Cortisol is Associated with Lower Intuitive Eating in Midlife Women. Psychoneuroendocrinology. 162: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psyneuen.2024.106958.
Lodge, M.T., Ward-Ritacco, C.L., & Melanson, K.J. (2023). Contributions of Low Carbohydrate Availability (LCA) to Relative Energy Deficiency in Sport (RED-S) in Female Distance Runners. Nutrients. 15(20):4457. doi: 10.3390/nu15204457.
Owens, B.A., Sabik, N.J., Tovar, A., Ward-Ritacco, C.L., & Oaks, B.M. (2023). Higher Intuitive Eating is Associated with Lower Adiposity in Midlife Women. Eating Behaviors. doi: 0.1016/j.eatbeh.2023.101796.
Pavlidis T., Mortreux M., Charidemou E. (2026). Nutrition-based-interventions for mitigating space radiation-induced DNA damage: A systematic review and meta-analysis” Life Sciences in Space Research, https://doi.org/10/1016/j.lssr.2026.04.002
Santilli, J., Leedahl, S., Juris, J., Liebermann, E., & McGregor, C. (2026). Advancing digital equity: A qualitative case study using the Implementation Research Logic Model.Implementation Science Communications.
Scrivano, R.M., Juris, J., Colvin, M., Santilli, J. Jarrott, S.E., & Leedahl, S.N. (2025). Applying the Dynamic Sustainability Framework to evaluate the implementation of an intergenerational technology program in higher education. Innovation in Aging.
Tavares, K. L. & Tsotsoros, C. E. (2024). The relationship between adverse childhood experiences and health behaviors in adult women. American Journal of Health Promotion. https://doi.org/10.1177/08901171241229829
Tsotsoros, C. E., Pascuzzi, E., Brasher, M., Capolino, A., Souza, K., Leedahl, S. N. (2024). Pilot testing the engaging generations (eGen) programs to address social well-being among lower-income older adults. Frontiers in Public Health, 12. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpubh.2024.1341713
Tsotsoros, C., Pascuzzi, E., Brasher, M., Souza, K., & Leedahl, S.N.(2024).Pilot testing the Engaging Generations (eGen) Program to address social well-being among lower income older adults. Frontiers in Public Health, 12, 1-11. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpubh.2024.1341713
Leedahl, S.N., Pascuzzi, E., McCurdy, K, & Porto, N. (2023). Beyond employment: Lower-income participants’ experiences in a healthcare training program for medical assistants, pharmacy technicians, and certified nursing assistants. Internet Journal of Allied Health Sciences & Practice, 21(3), Article 24, 1-13. https://nsuworks.nova.edu/ijahsp/vol21/iss3/24/
Leedahl, S.N., Souza, K., Capolino, A., Brasher M., Pascuzzi, E., Azzinaro, C., Ellison, T.A., Estus, E., & Maigret, M. (2023). Improving technology use, digital competence, and access to community resources among older adult participants in the University of Rhode Island Cyber-Seniors digiAGE Pilot Study. Journal of Elder Policy, 2(3), 55-92. doi: 10.18278/jep.2.3.3
News and Events
As humans spend longer periods of time in outer space and venture further from Earth, it’s increasingly important for scientists to learn how varied gravity levels affect muscle function and muscle loss, and how those effects can be counteracted or minimized. Theodoros Pavlidis, a second-year doctoral student who is pursuing a Ph.D. in health sciences with a specialization in nutrition at the University of Rhode Island, is seeking solutions to these challenges by studying compounds in foods. Learn more.
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Adeleke Justin Akinkurolere (NUT, 2029, mentor: Kathleen Melanson) was selected as a finalist to participate in the American Society for Nutrition’s Emerging Leaders in Nutrition Science Poster Competition. The top 10% of ~750 abstract submissions were chosen for this. He will present his research to judges at NUTRITION 2026, an international gathering of nutrition professionals on July 25-28 in National Harbor, Maryland.
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Alexandra Larcom (NUT, 2025, mentor: Kathleen Melanson) presented her dissertation work at several conferences in 2025:
- the Institution for the Advancement of Food and Nutrition Sciences (IAFNS) Food Classification Research Roundtable on Processing, Formulation and Nutrition in Washington, DC;
- the American Society for Nutrition Annual Meeting in Orlando, FL;
- the American Society for Nutrition Annual Meeting in Chicago, IL.
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Qisi Yao (NUT, December 2025, mentor: Maya Vadiveloo) presented her research at the American Heart Association Lifestyle Meeting in March 2026 in Boston, MA.
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Theo Pavlidis, a first-year doctoral student (NUT; mentor: Marie Mortreux) presented his work on nutrition to mitigate space radiation damage (see Publications) in the 2026 3-Minute Thesis competition.
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Josie Santilli (mentor: Skye Leedahl) presented a poster entitled Progressing from intervention efficacy to practice: How implementation science advances digital literacy success at the 2025 Gerontological Society of America Annual Scientific Meeting in Boston, MA.
Karina Tavares (mentor: Cindy Tsotsoros) presented a poster entitled A Double-Blind Trial to Test if NAD+ Improves Cognition at the 2025 Gerontological Society of America Annual Scientific Meeting in Boston, MA.
At the 2024 Gerontological Society of America Annual Scientific Meeting held in Seattle, WA, Karina Tavares (mentor: Cindy Tsotsoros) presented a poster entitled How Childhood Neglect Affects Later Life Loneliness.
At the 2023 Gerontological Society of America Annual Scientific Meeting in Tampa, FL, Karina Tavares (mentor: Cindy Tsotsoros) presented a paper titled Adverse Childhood Experiences as a Predictor of Health Behaviors in Women.