Dr. Nicole Avena is an expert in the fields of nutrition, diet and addiction. She received a PhD in Psychology and Neuroscience from Princeton University in 2006, followed by a postdoctoral fellowship at Rockefeller University. Dr. Avena presently holds a faculty position of Assistant Professor at Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York. She is also a Visiting Professor at Princeton University. Dr. Avena has published over 90 scholarly journal articles on topics related to diet, nutrition and overeating. Her research achievements have been honored by awards from groups including the NY Academy of Sciences, the American Psychological Association, and the National Institute on Drug Abuse.
Dr. Avena is the author of several books including Why Diets Fail, What to Eat When You’re Pregnant, and What to Feed Your Baby and Toddler where she reviews the research on food addiction as well as the nutritional effects on brain development and behavior. Her latest book, What to Eat When You Want to Get Pregnant is due for release in the spring. She has edited two academic titles, Hedonic Eating, and Animal Models of Eating Disorders (now in its second edition).