Close

Dr Fernanda Morales Berstein

Research Fellow in Epidemiology and Population Health

United Kingdom

I am a Research Fellow in Epidemiology and Population Health in the Department of Public Health, Environments and Society. I have a background in Nutritional Epidemiology and a PhD in Molecular, Genetic and Lifecourse Epidemiology from the University of Bristol. My research focuses on strengthening causal inference in nutritional epidemiology by triangulating evidence from multiple epidemiological approaches. I am currently working with Steven Cummins and others in the Population Health Innovation Lab (PHI-Lab), investigating the impact of food system changes on population and environmental health. I am also finalising a project I started during my PhD, examining the genetic architecture of ultra-processed food (UPF) consumption in the EPIC cohort, Lifelines, the Nurses Health Study (I and II) and the Health Professionals Follow-up Study.

Affiliations

Department of Public Health, Environments and Society
Faculty of Public Health and Policy

Research

Nutrition, ultra-processed foods, cancer and other non-communicable diseases, developmental origins of health and disease, public health policy and causal inference methods. 

Research Area
Epidemiology
Nutrition
Human genetics
Disease and Health Conditions
Cancer
Obesity
Non-communicable diseases
Country
United Kingdom
United States of America
Region
European Union

Selected Publications

Circulating metabolites and fatty acids associated with ultra-processed food consumption: results from the EPIC study.
Blanco-Lopez, J; Yammine, S; Rothwell, JA; His, M; Biessy, C; Keski-Rahkonen, P; Chimera, B; Jacobs, I; Al Nahas, A; Koc Cakmak, E; Robinson, O; MORALES BERSTEIN, F; Cairat, M; Chang, K; Vamos, EP; Millet, C; Bertazzi Levy, R; Rauber, F; Rinaldi, S; Vineis, P; Harewood, R; Sánchez, M-J; Guevara, M; Huerta, JM; Crous-Bou, M; ... Huybrechts, I.
2026
Critical reviews in food science and nutrition
Assessing the impact of maternal blood pressure during pregnancy on perinatal health: a wide-angled Mendelian randomization study.
Morales-Berstein, F; Gonçalves-Soares, A; Yang, Q; McBride, N; Bond, T; Al Arab, M; Fernández-Sanlés, A; Magnus, MC; Sanderson, E; Hart, E; Fraser, A; Birchenall, KA; Lawlor, DA; Clayton, GL; Borges, M-C;
2026
BMC medicine
Reassessing the link between adiposity and head and neck cancer: a Mendelian randomization study.
MORALES BERSTEIN, F; Khouja, J; Gormley, M; Ebrahimi, E; Virani, S; McKay, JD; Brennan, P; Richardson, TG; RELTON, CL; Davey Smith, G; Borges, MC; Dudding, T; Richmond, RC;
2025
eLife
Plant-based dietary patterns and breast cancer risk in the European prospective investigation into cancer and nutrition (EPIC) study.
Shah, S; Laouali, N; Mahamat-Saleh, Y; Biessy, C; Nicolas, G; Rinaldi, S; Zamora-Ros, R; Papadimitriou, N; Morales-Berstein, F; Dahm, CC; Christensen, AK L; Mellemkjaer, L; Nielsen, AM O; Mancini, FR; Ren, X; Marques, C; Katzke, V; Le Cornet, C; El-Khoury, C; Schulze, MB; Agnoli, C; Simeon, V; Tumino, R; Milani, L; Castro-Espin, C; ... Dossus, L.
2025
European journal of epidemiology
Reassessing the link between adiposity and head and neck cancer: a Mendelian randomization study.
Morales-Berstein, F; Khouja, J; Gormley, M; Ebrahimi, E; Virani, S; McKay, J; Brennan, P; Richardson, TG; RELTON, CL; Smith, GD; Borges, MC; Dudding, T; Richmond, RC;
2025
medRxiv
Reassessing the link between adiposity and head and neck cancer: a Mendelian randomization study
Morales-Berstein, F; Khouja, J; Gormley, M; Ebrahimi, E; Virani, S; McKay, J; Brennan, P; Richardson, TG; Relton, CL; Davey Smith, G; Borges, MC; Dudding, T; Richmond, RC;
2025
eLife Sciences Publications, Ltd
Associations between degree of food processing and colorectal cancer risk in a large-scale European cohort.
Al Nahas, A; Yammine Ghantous, S; MORALES BERSTEIN, F; Cakmak, EK; Biessy, C; Nicolas, G; Kliemann, N; Lopez, JB; Jacobs, I; Gonzalez-Gil, EM; Cairat, M; Pinho, MG M; Bertazzi Levy, R; Rauber, F; Vamos, EP; Chang, K; Millett, C; Touvier, M; Kesse-Guyot, E; Severi, G; Marques, C; Hajji, M; Macciotta, A; Masala, G; Fordellone, M; ... Huybrechts, I.
2025
International journal of cancer
Adherence to the Mediterranean Diet and Obesity-Linked Cancer Risk in EPIC.
Aguilera-Buenosvinos, I; MORALES BERSTEIN, F; González-Gil, EM; Dossus, L; Gunter, MJ; Biessy, C; Masala, G; Santucci De Magistris, M; Laouali, N; Shah, S; Marques, C; Heath, AK; Tsilidis, KK; Cross, AJ; Ferrari, P; Castro-Espin, C; Debras, C; Tumino, R; Tjønneland, A; Halkjær, J; Drake, I; Ericson, U; Guevara, M; Rodríguez-Barranco, M; Skeie, G; ... Toledo Atucha, E.
2025
JAMA network open
Associations between degree of food processing and all-cause and cause-specific mortality: a multicentre prospective cohort analysis in 9 European countries.
González-Gil, EM; Matta, M; MORALES BERSTEIN, F; Cairat, M; Nicolas, G; Blanco, J; Kliemann, N; Bertazzi Levy, R; Rauber, F; Jacobs, I; Al Nahas, A; Cakmak, EK; Vamos, EP; Chang, K; Yammine, SG; Millett, C; Touvier, M; Matias Pinho, MG; Tsilidis, KK; Heath, AK; Lill, CM; Pala, V; Moreno-Iribas, C; De Magistris, MS; Dahm, CC; ... Huybrechts, I.
2025
The Lancet regional health. Europe
Cesarean delivery and blood DNA methylation at birth and childhood: Meta-analysis in the Pregnancy and Childhood Epigenetics Consortium.
Wang, S; Casey, E; Sordillo, J; Aguilar-Lacasaña, S; MORALES BERSTEIN, F; Biedrzycki, RJ; Brescianini, S; Chen, S; Hough, A; Isaevska, E; Kim, WJ; Lecorguillé, M; Li, SS; Page, CM; Park, J; Röder, S; Salontaji, K; Santorelli, G; Sun, Y; Won, S; Zillich, E; Zillich, L; Annesi-Maesano, I; Arshad, SH; Bustamante, M; ... Hivert, M-F.
2024
Science advances
See more information