Susan Carnell, PhD
Highlights
Languages
- English
Gender
FemaleJohns Hopkins Affiliations:
- Johns Hopkins School of Medicine Faculty
About Susan Carnell
Primary Academic Title
Associate Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences
Background
Susan Carnell received her BA in Experimental Psychology from the University of Oxford and completed a PhD in Health Psychology focusing on parental feeding style and children's eating behavior at University College London. She was then awarded an ESRC/MRC Interdisciplinary Post-doctoral Research Fellowship, in which she used behavioral genetic data from a national twin study to examine genetic and environmental influences on child appetite and obesity. Following this, she moved to the New York Obesity Nutrition Research Center at Columbia University where she spearheaded studies of circadian and stress-related variation in neural (fMRI) and hormonal responses to food and food cues among obese and lean adults with and without binge eating. Here she was also awarded a K99/R00 Pathway to Independence award to investigate neural responses to food cues in obese and lean adolescents varying in familial and genetic obesity risk. In 2013 she became faculty at the Division of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, where she leads a program of research investigating eating behavior and obesity throughout the lifespan, including neuroimaging studies in infants, children and adolescents.
Clinical Trials Summary
We are conducting a study of the brain and appetite in children (9-11 y old). The study involves a blood draw and MRI scan, 2 urine collections, body composition measurements (height, weight, waist, body composition), questionnaires, buffet meals, games, and prizes. Children and their families earn $345 for completing 1 screening + 3 study visits spread out over 1 year. If interested, please email beam@jhmi.edu.
Recent News Articles and Media Coverage
- Binge Eating at Night? Your Hormones May Be to Blame, The New York Times (January 30, 2018)
- How to lose weight? Get your brain under control, The Boston Globe (August 23, 2017)
- When Fatty Feasts Are Driven by Automatic Pilot, The New York Times (July 11, 2011)
- Eating to Live or Living to Eat? The Wall Street Journal (July 13, 2010)
- British study finds genetic link to child obesity, The Guardian (February 12 2008)
Contact for Research Inquiries
600 N. Wolfe Street
Phipps 300
Baltimore, MD 21287
Phone: (410) 955-7192
Fax: (410) 614-3676
susan.carnell@jhmi.edu
Research Interests
Appetite, Child obesity, Eating behavior, Eating disorders, Genetics, Gut hormones, Neuroimaging, Obesity, Parent feeding, Stress
Lab Website
The Appetite Lab - Lab Website
Research Summary
Why do some people develop obesity while others remain lean? We propose that individuals differ in appetite-related characteristics that manifest early in life, show genetic influence, and interact with environmental factors (e.g. family feeding practices) to predict eating behavior and weight.
To understand more about the character and origins of these characteristics (e.g. food cue responsiveness, satiety sensitivity), my lab uses a range of methods including behavioral tests, self- and parent-report questionnaires, genotyping, hormonal assays, and neuroimaging techniques (fMRI, MRI, PET).
Ongoing research projects include investigations of appetite and body weight in infants, children, adolescents and adults, including studies of eating behavior in anorexia nervosa, attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder, cystic fibrosis, and individuals undergoing bariatric surgery.
Selected Publications
Carnell S, Benson L, Papantoni A, Chen L, Huo Y, Wang Z, Peterson BS & Geliebter A (2022) Obesity and acute stress modulate appetite and neural responses in food word reactivity task. PLoS One. 2022 Sep 28; 17(9):e0271915. PMID 36170275.
Carnell S & Wardle J (2007) Measuring behavioural susceptibility to obesity: validation of the Child Eating Behaviour Questionnaire. Appetite, 48, 104-113. PMID: 16962207
Carnell S, Benson L, Chang K, Wang Z, Huo Y, Geliebter A & Peterson BS (2017) Neural correlates of familial obesity risk and overweight in adolescence. Neuroimage, 159, 236-247. PMID: 28754348
Carnell S, Grillot C, Ungredda T, Ellis S, Mehta N, J Holst & Geliebter A (2017) Morning and afternoon appetite and appetite hormone responses to meal and stress challenges in obese individuals with and without Binge Eating Disorder. International Journal of Obesity. Epub ahead of print 2017 Dec 13. PMID: 29235554
Carnell S, Haworth CMA, Plomin R & Wardle J (2008) Genetic influence on appetite in children. International Journal of Obesity, 32, 1468-1473. PMID: 18679413
Dinkevich E, Leid L, Pryor K, Wei Y, Huberman H & Carnell S (2015) Mothers' feeding behaviors in infancy: do they predict child weight trajectories? Obesity, 23(12):2470-2476. Epub Nov 5. PMID: 26537027
Honors
- Ethan Sims Young Investigator award finalist, The Obesity Society, 10/1/10
- New Investigator award finalist, International Association for the Study of Obesity, 6/1/10
- Student Researcher Award for PhD work on parental feeding style and child obesity, UK Association for the Study of Obesity, 7/1/05
Memberships
- Society for Study of Ingestive Behavior - Board Member
- The Obesity Society, Fellow
Professional Activities
PsychologyToday.com, Blogger
Additional Training
University College London, London, England, 2007, Department of Epidemiology and Public Health Health Behaviour Research Center; Columbia University, New York City, New York, 2013, New York Obesity Nutrition Research Center, St. Luke''s-Roosevelt Hospital