Dr Catherine Hankey
- Senior Lecturer (Medical Undergraduate School)
- Associate Academic (Institute of Health and Wellbeing)
telephone: 01412115443
email: Catherine.Hankey@glasgow.ac.uk
Dr Hankey’s research spans:
- clinical and public health aspects of obesity and weight management
- development and evaluation of approaches to optimise dietary intakes in health and disease
Further details
1. Obesity research has focussed on weight changes across the life course, particularly for women. This has included the postnatal and post menopausal periods. The approach developed and tested here in Glasgow for weight management in adults (Leslie et al 2002) is advocated as the preferred approach in Obesity clinical Guidelines UK wide (SIGN 2010, NICE, 2006). Other work, which quantified the effects of long term obesogenic medications, is of national relevance and appears in these guidelines (Leslie et al 2007). The current issue of minimising weight gain during smoking cessation, within existing smoking cessation services, has been examined, within a recently completed FSA funded cluster randomised trial. This has led to publications (Mackenzie et al, 2010) and to further grant applications to the Chief Scientist Office of the Scottish Executive. Dr Hankey’s research activity in obesity has been recognised by the British Dietetic Association and by SIGN as a member of the SIGN Guideline obesity working group.
2. Work with colleagues in the field of Intellectual Disabilities (ID), nutrition and obesity, published in Obesity and ID journals, has led to a body of work to scope weight management needs in this vulnerable group. Subsequently the focus is how best to tackle obesity in this group, who are known to experience poorer health than the general population. This work with individuals with ID and obesity has now developed and piloted weight management interventions specific to them.
3. Development and testing of a resource to encourage individuals to optimise their dietary intakes and implement the principles of healthy eating within government healthy eating guidelines is currently ongoing. This is the FSA funded eatwell week.
4. The issue of chronic under nutrition in older people, particularly those living in a supported setting has been a long term interest. The implementation of dietetic principles to enhance dietary intake in this group using food fortification has been considered in a recent cluster randomised trial. Extension of this work to those residing freely in the community to maintain body weight and sustain independent living is proposed.
Over the last decade Dr Hankey and colleagues have secured funding from the Food Standards Agency, Chief Scientist Office of the Scottish Executive, The Meat and Livestock Commission, GlaxoSmithKline and the Islamic Government of Iran.
- Developing a weight loss maintenance program for adults with intellectual disabilities and obesity
NHS GGC Primary Care Liaison Team
2010 - 2012
- The eatwell week sample menu: the application of eatwell plate advice to weekly food intake
Food Standards Agency Scotland
2009 - 2011
- A pilot study of a weight loss intervention for adults with learning disabilities and obesity
NHS GGC Primary Care Liaison Team
2009 - 2010
- A pilot study of a weight loss intervention for adults with learning disabilities and obesity
Scottish Executive Health Department
2009 - 2010
- Food Choice and changes in body weight and shape in those attempting smoking cessation
Food Standards Agency
2007 - 2010
- Measuring the dietary intakes and levels of physical activity of persons with learning disabilities
West of Scotland Research and Development
2005 - 2006
- Is iron status in dieting pre-menopausal women affected by red meat consumption?
Meat and Livestock Commission
2005 - 2006