Staff Profile
Dr Frances Hillier
Contact Dr Frances Hillier (email at frances.hillier@durham.ac.uk)
Biography
Frances has a degree in Biochemistry from the University of Leeds (2003); an MSc Human Nutrition specialising in Public Health Nutrition from the University of Glasgow (2004); and a PhD in Health Sciences from Durham University titled “The development and evaluation of a novel online tool for assessing dietary intake and physical activity levels for use in adult populations” (2011).
Frances previously worked at Teesside University on the systematic review of food, nutrition and physical activity determinants of weight gain as part of the World Cancer Research Fund Systematic Literature Review (SLR) Centre, and the systematic review of the effect of diet on learning and performance of school aged children, funded by the Food Standards Agency (FSA). She transferred to Durham University in October 2008 to continue leading the Community Challenge Project, a three-year FSA-funded programme aimed at promoting healthy diets and levels of physical activity in adults living in the Tees Valley.
Frances joined the Department of Geography in February 2011 where she is based in the Wolfson Research Institute. She is currently working on two systematic reviews on the effectiveness of public health interventions at reducing socio-economic inequalities in obesity amongst children and adults funded by NIHR. Her research interests include dietary and physical activity assessment, behaviour change, intervention evaluation and health inequalities.
Research Groups
Research Projects
Selected Publications
Journal papers: academic
- Bambra, C.L., Hillier, F.C., Moore, H.J. & Summerbell, C.D. Tackling inequalities in obesity: a protocol for a systematic review of the effectiveness of public health interventions at reducing socioeconomic inequalities in obesity amongst children. BMC Systematic Reviews. 2012;1:16.
- Hillier, F., Batterham, A., Crooks, S., Moore, H.J. & Summerbell, C.D. The development and evaluation of a novel internet-based computer program to assess previous-day dietary and physical activity behaviours in adults: The Synchronised Nutrition and Activity Program for Adults (SNAPATM). British Journal of Nutrition. 2012;107:1221-1231.
- Hillier, F.C., Pedley, C. & Summerbell, C.D. Evidence-base for primary prevention of obesity in children and adolescents = Evidenzbasierung von Primärprävention der Adipositas bei Kindern und Jugendlichen. Bundesgesundheitsblatt. 2011;54:259-264.
- Summerbell, C.D., Douthwaite, W., Whittaker, V., Ells, L.J., Hillier, F., Smith, S., Kelly, S., Edmunds, L.D. & Macdonald, I. The association between diet and physical activity and subsequent excess weight gain and obesity assessed at 5 years of age or older: a systematic review of the epidemiological evidence. International Journal of Obesity. 2009;33:S1-S92.
- Ells, LJ, Hillier, FC, Shucksmith, J, Crawley, H, Harbige, L, Shield, J, Wiggins, A & Summerbell, CD A systematic review of the effect of dietary exposure that could be achieved through normal dietary intake on learning and performance of school-aged children of relevance to UK schools. British Journal Of Nutrition. 2008;100:927-936.
Books: sections
- Summerbell, CD. & Hillier, F. Community Interventions and Initiatives to Prevent Obesity. In: Crawford, D., Jeffery, R., Ball, K. & Brug, H. Obesity Epidemiology: From Aetiology to Public Health. Oxford: Oxford University Press; 2010:395-408.