Ana Lydia Sawaya

Ana Lydia Sawaya graduated in Biological Sciences from the University of São Paulo (1979), obtained two master’s degrees - in Physiology from the University of São Paulo (1982) and in Nutrition from the University of Cambridge (1983) -, and a Ph.D. in Nutrition from the University of Cambridge (1985). She held her postdoctoral and was a visiting scientist at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and Tufts University (1992-1994). Currently she is an associate professor at the Federal University of São Paulo. Her research is on the effect of protein-energy malnutrition in children, adolescents and adults, and its association with obesity and risk of chronic diseases. More recently, the focus is on the effect of nutritional recovery of malnourished children. Sawaya studies populations that live in slums and tenements in various parts of Brazil. In 1994 she started the University Extension Project: Center for Recovery and Nutritional Education (CREN), coordinating it until 2006. Currently she is currently its Scientific Director. The CREN has been recognized as a national reference for combating malnutrition and has received national and international awards for its performance. Sawaya coordinates the IEA-USP’s Nutrition and Poverty Research Group. Since 2002, this group organizes symposia, seminars and workshops in order to promote dialogue and joint work between the university, the government and stakeholders. She also participates in a network of international research with the Atomic Energy Agency of the UN (IAEA), and in a national network with the Federal University of Alagoas and the University of São Paulo.