Olivia M. Thompson
Assistant Professor
Olivia M. Thompson, Ph.D., M.P.H. has over 10 years of experience working at national, state, and local levels of public health. Dr. Thompson currently works as an assistant professor of public health for the College of Charleston, Charleston, SC where she teaches public health courses and directs policy- and environmental-focused initiatives designed to prevent and control chronic diseases. Prior to this appointment, she served as an assistant professor for the University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, NE (she is currently adjunct faculty) and as a consultant in government subcontract to the National Institutes of Health (NIH), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). Dr. Thompson has also served as a consulting scientist and program evaluator for a number of state- and community-based public health organizations and continues to consult on a per-project basis.
Education
- Postdoctoral Fellowship – National Institutes of Health, National Cancer Institute, Division of Cancer Control and Population Sciences, Bethesda, MD
- Ph.D. – The University of Washington, Seattle, WA
- Nutritional Sciences with Specialization in Epidemiology and Health Policy
- Predoctoral Fellowship – The Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Public Health Sciences Division, Seattle, WA
- Postgraduate Fellowship – Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, Division of Nutrition, Physical Activity, and Obesity, Atlanta, GA
- M.P.H. – Emory University, Atlanta, GA
- Behavioral Sciences and Health Education
- B.S. – The College of Charleston, Charleston, SC
- Psychology Major and Biology Minor
Research Interests
- Systems Science in the Prevention and Control of Chronic Diseases
- Public Health Nutrition
- Public Health Advocacy
- Health Policy and Economics
- Program Evaluation
Courses Taught
Undergraduate (The College of Charleston)
HEAL 216: Personal and Community Health
HEAL 230: Global Health
HEAL 350: Epidemiology
Proposed: Public Health Nutrition
Undergraduate (Other Institutions)
Human Nutrition
Human Sexuality
Human Fitness
Health and Human Wellness
Graduate (Other Institutions)
Health Education and Behavior
Public Health Nutrition
Publications
Selected
Erinosho TO, Thompson OM, Moser RP et al. Fruit and vegetable intake of U.S. adults participating in the Health Information National Trends Survey (HINTS) 2007: comparing intake by survey mode. The Journal of the American Dietetic Association. 2011;111(3):408-13.
Blanck HM, Thompson OM, Nebeling L et al. Improving fruit and vegetable intakes: Use of farmers’ markets and farm-to-consumer approaches among U.S. adults. Preventing Chronic Disease. 2011;8(2):1-5.
Thompson FE, Willis GB, Thompson OM et al. The meaning of ‘fruits’ and ‘vegetables’. Public Health Nutrition. 2011:1-7.
Thompson OM, Yaroch AL, Moser RP et al. Fruit and vegetable knowledge of and adherence to recommendations: Results of the 2003 Health Information National Trends Survey (HINTS). The Journal of Health Communication. 2010;15:1-13.
Thompson OM, Yaroch AL, Moser RP et al. Relationship between self-reported vending machine purchasing and vending machine access and dietary behaviors among children and adolescents: Results from the 2005 YouthStyles Survey. The Journal of School Health. 2010;80(5):225-32.
Thompson OM, Beresford SAA, Kirk EA et al. Increased serum leptin and decreased serum adiponectin levels and risk of Barrett’s esophagus in adult men and women. Obesity. 2010;18(11):2204-11.
Thompson OM, Beresford SAA, Kirk EA et al. Increased vegetable and fruit intake and risk of Barrett’s esophagus in adult men and women. The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. 2009;89(3):890-6.
Thompson OM, Ballew C, Resnicow K et al. Dietary pattern as a predictor of change in BMI z-score among adolescent girls. International Journal of Obesity. 2006;30:176-182.
Thompson OM, Ballew C, Resnicow K et al. Eating food prepared away from home as a predictor of change in BMI z-score among adolescent girls. International Journal of Obesity. 2004;28:282-289.
Yaroch AL, Tooze J, Thompson FE, Blanck HM, Thompson OM et al. (In Review). Evaluation of three short dietary instruments to assess fruit and vegetable intake: The National Cancer Institute’s (NCI) Food Attitudes and Behaviors (FAB) Survey. Journal of the American Dietetic Association.
Erinosho TO, Thompson OM, Moser RP et al. (In Review). Attitudes and knowledge of the fruit and vegetable recommendations among adults using the National Cancer Institute (NCI) Food Attitudes and Behaviors Survey. Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior.
