HYDERABAD: Dr R Hemalatha, director of ICMR-National Institute of Nutrition, has been unanimously elected as a member of the executive committee of Federation of Asian Nutrition Societies (FANS) for a period of four years from 2019 to 2023. FANS is an international body that brings together professional nutrition societies and associations from across Asia, aims to foster international fellowship among nutrition scientists of the region and promote cooperative working arrangements, particularly in the furtherance of nutrition research, training and action programmes in the region.
In her new role, Dr Hemalatha, along with all the newly-elected office-bearers, will encourage the exchange of information and experiences in nutrition research, training and action programmes among the member countries.
She is known for her extensive research in the realm of nutrition, infection and immunity, with special emphasis on women and child health. She has contributed significantly in the area of preconception nutrition and the first 1,000 days of life.
She also conducted a battery of studies on probiotics and gut, as well as vaginal microbiome profiling in pregnant women that has generated vital information on the impact of inflammation on foetal growth and pregnancy outcomes.