It's Not Your Fault; Talking Health & Obesity, with Medical Sociologist Gabriele Ciciurkaite
Dr. Gabriele Ciciurkaite is medical sociologist in the Department of Sociology at Utah State University who believes that the most common misconception about obesity is that it is a moral failure. Instead, she argues that the trends we see across the United States suggest there are other factors at play. Gabriele‘s research covers two topics: (1) The role of social context in creating and sustaining inequalities in health and (2) chronic illness prevention and management among vulnerable populations.
Dr. Ciciurkaite‘s early research takes us to Kentucky, where she studied the effect of diabetes on low–income Americans. She outlines the web of problems which can impact diabetes management, including everything from struggling to buy insulin to finding fresh food in a sea of fast food. Her later research contextualizes the impacts from food security which impacts nearly 13.5 million Americans. Dr. Ciciurkaite’s research indicates that food security serves as a chronic stressor that can impact mental health, physical health, and self esteem.
Dr. Ciciurkaite will be a featured speaker at Understanding Obesity: New insights into body fat measurement, disordered eating, and external factors on January 13, 2021, part of our Blue Plate Research series. You can learn more and RSVP.
