Rafael Perez-Escamilla, PhD
Biography
Research & Publications
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Locations
Appointments
Biography
Rafael Pérez-Escamilla, Ph.D., is Professor of Public Health, Director of the Office of Public Health Practice, and Director of the Global Health Concentration at the Yale School of Public Health. He is the PI of the Yale-Griffin CDC Prevention Research Center (PRC). His global public health nutrition and food security research program has contributed to improvements in breastfeeding and other maternal, infant and young child nutrition outcomes, iron deficiency anemia among infants, household food security, and early child development. His health disparities research involves assessing the impact of community health workers at improving behavioral and metabolic outcomes in vulnerable communities. He has published over 280 research articles, 3 books/monographs, and numerous journal supplements, book chapters, and technical reports. He is a member of the U.S. National Academy of Medicine (elected in 2019) and served in the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine (NASEM) Food and Nutrition Board from 2012-18. He has been a senior advisor to maternal-child community nutrition programs as well as household food security measurement projects funded by the World Health Organization, the Pan American Health Organization, UNICEF, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS), the U.S. Agency for International Development, The U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH),The World Bank, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, and Governments in Latin America & Caribbean, sub-Saharan Africa, Asia and Europe . He obtained his BS in Chemical Engineering from the Universidad Iberoamericana in Mexico City and his MS in Food Science and his PhD in Nutrition from the University of California at Davis. His postdoctoral training at UC Davis focused on the link between nutrition and early childhood development.
Education & Training
- Postdoctoral fellowUC Davis (1994)
- PhDUniversity of California at Davis (1991)
- MSUniversity of California at Davis (1985)
- BSUniversidad Iberoamericana, Chemical Engineering (1982)
Honors & Recognition
Award | Awarding Organization | Date |
---|---|---|
Member of the National Academy of Medicine | U.S. National Academy of Medicine | 2019 |
Doctor Honoris Causa | Universidad de Guadalajara, Mexico | 2016 |
Patricia Martens Award for Excellence in Breastfeeding Research | International Lactation Consultants Association (ILCA) | 2015 |
2010 & 2015 Dietary Guidelines Scientific Advisory Committee | Appointed by US Secretaries of Agriculture and Health | 2008 |
Professional Service
Organization | Role | Date |
---|---|---|
The Lancet | Early Child Development Lancet Series- Steering Committee | 2013 - Present |
IOM | Food and Nutrition Board | 2013 - Present |
American Society for Nutrition Global Nutrition Council | Past-President | 2010 - 2012 |
American Society for Nutrition Minority Affairs Committee | Minority Affairs Committee | 2010 - 2011 |
SustiNet | Health Disparities & Equity Advisory Committee | 2010 |
International Society for Research in Human Milk and Lactation | President | 2009 - 2016 |
USDA & DHHS | 2010 Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee | 2008 - 2010 |
Maternal and Child Nutrition (Co-Editor-In-Chief since January 2016), Global Food Security (since 2012), Journal of Nutrition (2002-2007) Journal Human Lactation (1999-date) Journal of Hunger and Environmental Nutrition (2006-date) | Editorial boards | 1999 - 2016 |
peer reviewed journals | Acta Paediatrica Scandinavica Am J Clin Nutr American Journal Obstetrics & Gynecology American Journal of Public Health, Am J Prev Med British Journal Nutrition Bull World Health Organization Ethnicity & Disease Eur J Clin Nutr Food & Nutrition Bulletin, Food & Foodways Human Organization International Breastfeeding Journal, J Am Diet Assoc J Amer Med Women Assoc Journal Developmental Psychobiology J Epi Community Health J Health Population and Nutrition J Human Lactation J Nutr J Nutr Education and Behavior J of Health Care for the Poor and Underserved J Pediatrics J Pediatric Gastroenterology Nutrition Lancet Maternal Child Nutrition Mexican J Public Health Mexican Studies Nutrition Reviews Panamerican J Public Health Pediatrics Psychological Review Public Health Nutrition Soc Sci Med Studies in Family Planning | 1990 - 2010 |
Departments & Organizations
- Becoming Breastfeeding Friendly
- Center for Methods in Implementation and Prevention Science (CMIPS)
- Climate Change and Health
- Global Health Studies
- Maternal and Child Health Promotion (MCHP) Program
- Obesity Research Working Group
- Office of Public Health Practice (OPHP)
- Social and Behavioral Sciences
- Yale Institute for Global Health
- Yale School of Public Health
- Yale Ventures