2024 News Feed

Dr. Jennifer Caldwell against a purple background

Pennington Biomedical Researcher Dr. Jennifer Caldwell Awarded Pilot Funding from Forge AHEAD Research Center

Dr. Caldwell, who is an assistant professor at Pennington Biomedical, was selected for her upcoming project “Linking GAINS: Linking Genetics and Improving Nutrition in Scotlandville.” The support from Forge AHEAD is a testament to the center’s dedication to funding projects that can meaningfully contribute to fostering community-focused health initiatives and combating health disparities.

Learn More
PBRC DoD

Pennington Biomedical and the U.S. Military

Since 1988, the Pennington Biomedical Research Center has supported the U.S. Military and has become the No. 1 provider of nutrition science for the Department of Defense, or DOD. Over the years, that relationship has grown to include research focused on all aspects of readiness, performance and resilience. Over the past 35 years, Pennington Biomedical has attracted researchers from around the world to its Baton Rouge campus with the purpose of helping people live longer, healthier lives. These internationally renowned scientists collaborate with their colleagues in 240 academic institutions in 24 countries. Their work has generated close to 400,000 citations in scientific literature with five scientists ranking among the most cited researchers in the world

Learn More
A graphic of the a paper published in the NEJM, overlaying a timeline of research developments

Pennington Biomedical’s Dr. Steven Heymsfield and Colleague Publish Guidance on Energy and Macronutrients Across the Life Span

In the long history of recommendations for nutritional intake, current research is trending toward the concept of “food as medicine” – a philosophy in which food and nutrition are positioned within interventions to support health and wellness. In the paper – “Guidance on Energy and Macronutrients Across the Lifespan” – by Pennington Biomedical Research Center’s Dr. Steven Heymsfield, he shares the latest clarity and recommendations in the rich and storied history of energy and macronutrient intake.

Learn More
Office Jog

Ways to Work Out in the Workplace

Chances are you’ve heard it before: To stay in shape, you need to eat less and move more. Eating less may be difficult. But, moving more may seem nearly impossible given the demands of family, school and work—not to mention the commute among all three. Over the past 35 years, Pennington Biomedical has attracted researchers from around the world to its Baton Rouge campus with the purpose of helping people live longer, healthier lives. These internationally renowned scientists collaborate with their colleagues in 240 academic institutions in 24 countries. Their work has generated close to 400,000 citations in scientific literature with five scientists ranking among the most cited researchers in the world

Learn More
PBRC Lab

March 2024 Publications

The following are recent publications by the researchers at the Pennington Biomedical Research Center.

Learn More
Color-coded world map indicating rates of obesity by country

More Than One Billion People Around the Globe are Facing Obesity

Obesity is now the most common form of malnutrition in most countries, with the rates rising in all categories of men, women, children and adolescents since 1990. Obesity rates in adult men have nearly tripled since 1990, with obesity rates in woman doubling in that time. The rates of obesity in children and adolescents quadrupled in that time frame, as well. As of 2022, nearly 880 million adults and nearly 160 million children were living with obesity.

Learn More
Grade Study

Comparative Study of Type 2 Diabetes Medications Shows Differences in Medication Acceptance, Quality-Of-Life, Insulin Secretion and Mortality

Diabetes affects more than 1 in 10 — or more than 38 million — Americans. People with diabetes who keep their blood sugar levels in the near-normal range generally have a much lower risk of developing diabetes complications such as heart, kidney, and eye diseases. The challenge is that most people with diabetes require more than one medication to control blood sugar levels over time.

Learn More
Dr. Justin Brown

A Father's Legacy: Dr. Justin Brown's Cancer Research

What do you do when one of the world's deadliest diseases hits your home? You use it as fuel. Meet Dr. Justin Brown, Director of Pennington Biomedical's Cancer Metabolism Program, and hear the inspirational story behind his passion. Every 18 seconds someone is diagnosed with cancer in the United States and every 52 seconds someone succumbs to this devastating disease. Individuals living with cancer and those at risk for developing cancer deserve to know how purposeful changes to their lifestyle can alter their clinical course. Over the past 35 years, Pennington Biomedical has attracted researchers from around the world to its Baton Rouge campus with the purpose of helping people live longer, healthier lives. These internationally renowned scientists collaborate with their colleagues in 240 academic institutions in 24 countries. Their work has generated close to 400,000 citations in scientific literature with five scientists ranking among the most cited researchers in the world

Learn More
Small Shifts

Health Across the Lifespan Begins with Small Shifts

At Pennington Biomedical, our passion is straightforward: prevent disease, treat disease, end disease. Through innovative research, and with the involvement of the Baton Rouge community, we are applying cutting edge technologies to improve human health. But in addressing nutrition, obesity and diabetes, many approaches do not employ state-of-the-art lab equipment. Addressing them requires small shifts.

Learn More
Dr. Justin Brown

National Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month: A Father’s Legacy Leads to a Research Passion for Dr. Justin Brown

Growing up, Dr. Justin Brown thought his career path would bring him to be a union carpenter in New York City, but when he was 14 years old, his father passed away following a battle with colon cancer. From then on, Dr. Brown’s future career became instantly clear. “My mission is motivated by the need to prevent children from having to watch their parents melt away from cancer,” Dr. Brown said.

Learn More