Barkat Ullah, Ph.D.

Barkat Ullah
  • GGNB Alumni
Bio

Class of 2018

Major Professor: Katherine G. Dewey

Research Interests:  Maternal and Child Health and Nutrition. Infant and Young Child Feeding.

Bio: Under-nutrition is a major public health problem in my country, Bangladesh. Almost half of preschool children and one third of pregnant mothers suffer from under-nutrition, as well as nutritional deficiencies.  Since 1998, I have been working in the field of maternal and child health and nutrition after I completed my MBBS (Bachelor in Medicine and Bachelor in Surgery) and saw the nutritional deficiencies, under-nutrition, and their consequences on mothers and children of my country,  particularly in rural areas. My firsthand experiences motivated me to study nutrition so that I can help the people of my country achieve good nutrition. In December 2012, I  began working in a research project jointly implemented by UC Davis and ICDDR'B. During my work with this project, I had an opportunity to know more about the Nutritional Biology Department at UC Davis, interacting with Professor Kathryn Dewey, learning about her work with GGNB, many other research projects of others renowned scientists of this department in Bangladesh and other "so-called" developing countries. These research projects motivated me to apply to study nutrition at UC Davis at the doctoral level. 

I would like to continue working in research projects by writing research proposals and designing and implementing research projects to improve the nutritional status of mothers and children in Bangladesh while collaborating with UC Davis and the ICDDR'B. I would also like to work on prevention of obesity and chronic diseases as recently these two problems are increasing rapidly in my country.