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Muzi Na
Muzi Na
Assistant Professor
Broadhurst Career Development Professor for the Study of Health Promotion and Disease Prevention
Broadhurst Career Development Professor for the Study of Health Promotion and Disease Prevention
Summary Statement
Dr. Muzi Na’s research program explores food insecurity, nutrition, sleep and mental health connections that weave together multiple psychosocial and behavioral factors.
Department
Education
Currently Accepting Graduate Students
Phone
Email
Office Address
108C Chandlee Lab
University Park, PA 16802
University Park, PA 16802
Fax
814-863-6103
Professional Credentials
PhD, MHS
Interests
- Food insecurity
- Feeding behaviors
- Mental health
- Sleep
Professional Experience
Dr. Muzi Na is a nutritional epidemiologist and her primary research interest is to understand the mechanisms leading to health disparities in disadvantaged populations, particularly with interests in modifiable factors such as food insecurity, dietary behavior, psychosocial exposures, and their complex relationship to mental and sleep health. After completion of her doctorate, Dr. Na has focused on food insecurity assessment and its behavioral and nutritional consequences in South Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa. Currently, Dr. Na primarily examines food insecurity, diet, psychosocial factors and their link to behavioral, mental health and sleep outcomes in both domestic and international populations.
Grants and Research Projects
- Food insecurity, social support and mental wellbeing in Sub-Saharan Africa. FAO Voices of the Hungry Project. 06/2016-12/2019. (Role: PI)
- Diet and stress responses in low-income rural adults under the dynamics of food insecurity. The Pennsylvania State University. 09/2018-06/2020 (Role: PI)
- Regional landscape analysis of trends and predictors of young children’s diets in selected countries in UNICEF’s West and Central Africa Region. UNICEF. 07/2019-02/2020 (Role: PI)
- Partnership to Evaluate Wellbeing and Food Resources of Young Adults. West Virginia University. 07/2019-07/2021 (Role: Co-I)
Publications
- Na, M., Shamim, A. A., Mehra, S., Labrique, A., Ali, H., Wu, L. S., Shaikh, S., Klemm, R., Christian, P., & West, K. P. (2020). Maternal nutritional status mediates the linkage between household food insecurity and mid-infancy size in rural Bangladesh. British Journal of Nutrition.
- Kris-Etherton, P. M., Petersen, K., Velarde, G., Barnard, N., Miller, M., Ros, E., O’Keefe, J., Williams, K., Van Horn, L., Na, M., Shay, C., Douglass, P., Katz, D. L., & Freeman, A. M. (2020). Barriers, opportunities, and challenges in addressing disparities in diet-related cardiovascular disease in the U.S. Journal of the American Heart Association.:10.1161/JAHA.119.014433
- Ma, C., Na, M., Neumann, S., & Gao, X. Low-density lipoprotein cholesterol and risk of hemorrhagic stroke: a systematic review and dose-response meta-analysis of prospective studies. Current Atherosclerosis Reports [In Press].
- Na, M., Eagleton, S. G., Jomaa, L., Lawton, K., & Savage, J. S. Food insecurity is associated with suboptimal sleep quality among low income Head Start preschool aged children. Public Health Nutrition [In Press].
- Na, M., Dou, N., Ji, N., Xie, D., Huang, J., Mitchell, D. C., Tucker, K. L., & Gao, X. (2019). Food insecurity and cognitive function in middle to older adulthood: a systematic review. Advances in Nutrition.
- Zhuang, S., Na, M., Winkelman, J. W., Ba, D., Liu, C.-F., Liu, G., & Gao, X. (2019). Association of restless legs syndrome with risk of suicide and self-harm. JAMA Network Open, 2(8) e199966-e199966.
- Na, M., Miller, M., Ballard, T., Mitchell, D., Hung, Y. W., & Melgar-Quiñonez, H. (2018). Does social support modify the relationship between food insecurity and poor mental health? Evidence from 39 sub-Saharan African countries. Public Health Nutrition, 22(5), 874-881.
- Na, M., Aguayo, V. M., Arimond, M., Mustaphi, P., Stewart, C. P. (2018). Predictors of complementary feeding practices in Afghanistan. An in-depth analysis of the 2015 Demographic and Health Survey. Maternal & Child Nutrition, 14(S4).
- Na, M., Aguayo, V. M., Arimond, M., Narayan, A., Stewart, C. P. (2018). Stagnating trends in complementary feeding practices in Bangladesh: an analysis of national surveys from 2004‐2014. Maternal & Child Nutrition, 14(S4).
- Na, M., Aguayo, V. M., Arimond, M., Dahal, P., Lamichhane, B., Pokharel, R., ... & Stewart, C. P. (2017). Trends and predictors of appropriate complementary feeding practices in Nepal: An analysis of national household survey data collected between 2001 and 2014. Maternal & Child Nutrition, 14(S4).
- Na M, Aguayo VM, Arimond M, Stewart CP. (2017). Risk factors of poor complementary feeding practices in Pakistani children aged 6-23 months. A multi-level analysis of the Demographic and Health Survey 2012-2013. Maternal & Child Nutrition, 13(S2).
- Na, M., Caswell BL, Talegawkar SA, Palmer AC. (2017). Monthly food insecurity assessment in rural Zambia: a longitudinal analysis. BMC Public Health 17(1), 260
- Na, M., Mehra S, Christian P, Ali H, Shaikh S, Shamim AA, Labrique A, Klemm R, Wu L, West KPJ. (2016). Maternal dietary diversity decreases with household food insecurity in rural Bangladesh: a longitudinal analysis. Journal of Nutrition 146(10):2109-16.
- Na M, Gross AL, Lewis BL, Talegawkar SA, Palmer AC. (2016). Internal validity of the Food Access Survey Tool in assessing household food insecurity in rural Zambia. Food Security 8(3):679-88.
- Na M, Jennings L, Talegawkar SA, West KPJ, Ahmed S. (2015). Association between women’s empowerment and infant and child feeding practices in low and middle-income countries: an analysis of Demographic and Health Surveys. Public Health Nutrition 18(17), 3155–3165
- Na M, Gross A, West KPJ. (2015). Validation of the Food Access Survey Tool to assess household food insecurity in rural Bangladesh. BMC Public Health, 15:863.
- Jennings L, Na M, Cherewick M, Hindin M, Mullany B, Ahmed, S. (2014). Women's empowerment and male involvement in antenatal care: analyses of Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS)in selected African countries. BMC Pregnancy and Childbirth, 14(1), 297.
Additional Information
Courses Taught
- NUTR 251 - Introductory Principles of Nutrition
- NUTR 583 – Nutritional Epidemiology