About

Stephanie Martin’s research focuses on the design, implementation, and evaluation of social and behavioral interventions to improve nutrition during pregnancy, lactation, and childhood. Dr. Martin is currently examining interventions to increase fathers, grandmothers, and other family members support for infant feeding and nurturing care in Zambia; support exclusive breastfeeding among women working in the informal sector in urban Tanzania; and improve adolescent nutrition in informal settlements in Kenya. She also conducts implementation research as part of a USAID-funded nutrition project in Zambia and to identify challenges health workers experience when providing lactation support to families in North Carolina and Appalachia. Her previous research identified successful strategies to increase adherence to prenatal micronutrient supplementation in Ethiopia and Kenya. All of her research is conducted in partnership with academic, non-governmental organization, or government partners in the locations where she works.

In the news

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  Engaging Family Members to Support Breastfeeding and Anti-Retroviral Therapy, to Prevent Mother-to-Child Transmission of HIV

  Children who are HIV-exposed and uninfected experience poor growth and development compared to children who are HIV-unexposed and uninfected. Exclusive breastfeeding with adherence to anti-retroviral therapy is a recommended practice for preventing mother-to-child transmission, but there are barriers to adherence.   A pilot study led by Stephanie Martin, PhD, an assistant professor in the Department … Read more