Dr Paul Amuna

Dr Paul Amuna graduated in Medicine from the University of Ghana Medical School and completed postgraduate training in Human Nutrition at the Faculty of Medicine, University of Sheffield, UK, in 1993. He also holds a postgraduate certificate in higher education teaching (PGCHE) from London South Bank University. He is a registered public health nutritionist and Fellow of the Royal Society of Medicine. He is a renowned specialist in international nutrition and serves on a number of boards and committees including the Council of the Nutrition Society, the Learned Society for Nutrition in the UK and Ireland, and the Association for Nutrition (AfN), the professional accreditation board for nutritionists in the UK and Ireland.

Dr Amuna has over 17 years teaching and research experience in UK higher education and been involved in the development of undergraduate and postgraduate nutrition programmes in three UK universities. He is the Programme Leader for the postgraduate programme in nutritional sciences at the University of Greenwich and chairs the School of Science health, safety and research ethics committees. He has also been involved in research training of postgraduate nutrition students from the University of Sheffield since 2000.

His teaching and research focuses on micronutrient nutrition, energy balance and links between poverty, food security and non-communicable diseases (NCDs) especially in developing countries in economic and nutritional transition, and among migrants in developed countries. He has published and delivered numerous keynote lectures at national and international conferences on the nutrition transition and the rise of diabetes and other chronic NCDs in developing countries. He has led diabetes research in the Arab Gulf focusing on patient-centred and culturally targeted education interventions for self-management of diabetes. He has also recently led a project on maternal nutrition and birth outcomes in Nepal, South Asia.

Dr Amuna is a co-originator of the food multimix (FMM) concept and is involved in food product development for clinical and dietetic applications among vulnerable groups employing this concept. He is also involved in health workforce capacity building projects in developing countries and has led training activities in Africa and the Arab Gulf. He has contributed to nutrition curricular in a number of institutions in Africa and South Asia and has represented the Nutrition Society on the Capacity-building Committee for science and technology in developing countries of UK Learned Societies over the past few years. He is co-convener of the Africa Nutritional Epidemiology Conference (ANEC), the leading conference on nutrition in Africa, and is a trustee of the African Nutrition Society, the learned body for nutritional sciences in Africa which he co-founded. He is a regular invited panellist at European Union Roundtables on Development and Health Policy. He is currently working with the WHO Malnutrition Task force to promote training of health personnel in treatment of severe acute malnutrition and the African Nutrition Society (ANS) to promote harmonisation of nutrition training in Africa.

Prior to joining the University of Greenwich, Dr Amuna spent five years (1994–99) helping to develop the nutrition programme at London South Bank University during which time he worked closely with and was mentored by Professor (Emeritus) John W.T. Dickerson. Between 1998 and 2004 he was also instrumental in developing the public health nutrition programme at the centre for food, nutrition and public health at the University of Westminster, London where he worked closely with Professor Margaret Blunden (Deputy Vice Chancellor) and Howard Tyers on international development health partnerships.

Responsibilities within the university

• Programme Leader for the MSc Nutritional Science programme
• Involved in undergraduate and postgraduate teaching in life and sports sciences and pharmaceutical sciences
• Postgraduate research training, mentoring and supervision.

Course participation

Undergraduate and postgraduate teaching provision across the life sciences including human physiology, medical biochemistry, human nutrition and medicinal therapeutics.

Current visiting lectureships

2010: University of Hohenheim, Stuttgart, Germany

PhD completions

• 2010: Tolu Adewuya – Assessment of impact of food based intervention on nutritional status and pregnancy outcomes among women of low socio-economic status, Gauteng province, South Africa
• 2010: Badriya Al-Lenjawi – Development and Implementation of culturally targeted diabetes patient education toolkit (DPET) in self management of type 2 diabetes in Qatar
• 2008: Hasan Al-Shammari – Assessment of risk factors for childhood obesity and risk of chronic disease in school-ahe children in Kuwait
• 2007: Abdulla Al Hamaq – Design and implementation of a HACCP system for food safety in food outlets (restaurants) in Doha, Qatar.
• 2006: Francis Zotor – The Food Multimix Concept: Use of scant traditional food ingredients in the design of nutrient-rich recipes for dietetic applications among vulnerable groups in developing countries
• 2004: Sandra Mutuma – Assessment of lifestyle and dietary factors and their impact on pregnancy outcome in middle-income mothers in a London borough
• 2001: Kilduff, L.P. – Investigation of effects of creatine on isometric bench-press performance in resistance-trained humans.

External MPhil and PhD examinations

2010: Appointed PhD Examiner, University of Teeside, UK
2007: Appointed External MPhil Examiner, University of Ghana Medical School, College of Health Sciences, University of Ghana
2007: Appointed External PhD Examiner, Avinashilingham University for Women, Tamil Nadu India
2000 to date: Supervisor and MSc Examiner, University of Sheffield, UK
2000–04: MSc Supervisor/Examiner, University of Westminster, UK

External assessor /course validations

2010: External Advisor, undergraduate and postgraduate programmes in nutrition and dietetics, Department of Biological Sciences, University of Chester, UK
2011: External Advisor, postgraduate programmes, Department of Clinical Sciences, University of Chester, UK

Research and grants

Dr Amuna started his research training in energy metabolism and quantifying the energy cost of common childhood infections and bronchopulmonary dysplasia in pre-term infants and children at the Northern General hospital in Sheffield in the early 1990s working under the leadership of Professor Maureen Duggan.

His interest in food security, dietary energy deficiency and associated micronutrient deficiencies led him to undertake and lead research in food product development harnessing scant traditional food sources to develop nutrient-rich recipes for vulnerable groups in resource-poor countries, including weanlings, children of school-going age, malnourished children at different stages of rehabilitation, pregnant women, and HIV/AIDS patients. The research employed the Food Multimix (FMM) concept which he co-originated with Dr Francis Zotor and in collaboration with colleagues and postgraduate students at the University of Sheffield.

He has led randomised controlled food-based interventions to test their impact on pregnancy outcomes in low income communities in South Africa as well as maternal lifestyle and dietary factors and pregnancy outcome in England. With a special interest in epigenetics and the nutrition transition, Dr Amuna has developed his research portfolio further to focus on the double-burden of disease in developing countries and in particular, the links between poverty, early life exposures and experiences, birth outcomes and risk of chronic disease in later life.

Recent research has focused on examining the nutritional transition in developing countries and trends in chronic disease among migrants from resource-poor countries to richer countries. Paul has recently led research into risk factors for childhood obesity and chronic disease in Kuwait and the impact of culturally targeted educational intervention on patient self-management and clinical outcomes among type 2 diabetes patients in Qatar.

He is currently leading a project on current intervention strategies and their cost-benefit among South Asian patients with diabetes in Medway, Kent.

Grants

• 2009: British Academy and Royal Society Travel Grant (£2,500). Keynote speaker celebrating 350 years of the Royal Society – Chronic Disease Conference, Accra, Ghana
• 2007: Delphi (UK DFID) Grant (£45,000 over three years). Project – Utilisation of traditional wild plants for nutritional interventions among low income groups in Zimbabwe
• 2007: RERA (UK) Research and Enterprise Grant (£23,000). Project – vitamin and phytochemical analyses in foods and their dietetic applications
• 2002: British Council Links Grant (£30,000 over three years). Project – Nutrition and Health Training programme in partnership with Agha Hospital Mombassa, Kenya and Centre for Nutrition and public health, University of Westminster.

Grant reviews

• 2007: Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) grant reviewer
• 2007 to date: Developmental partnerships in Higher Education (DelPHE), British Council/DFID member of college of Advisors and Grant reviewer
• 2009 to date: International Health Links Funding Scheme (IHLFS) DFID/British Council Grants reviewer.

Book chapters

• 2011 In progress: Current Trends in Chronic Diseases in Developing Countries. Editors: Dr P. Amuna, (University of Greenwich UK) Prof. Nigel Unwin (School of Public Health, University of Newcastle, UK), Dr Charles Agyeman (School of Public Health, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam Medical Centre, The Netherlands). Bentham Publishers.
• 2006 Co-authored two chapters of Community Nutrition: Nutrition Materials for healthcare workers in resource-poor areas. CD published by UNICEF & TALC (2006).

Selected publications

Zotor, F.B., Amuna, P., Tetteh, J., and Ndanu, T (2009) Age and gender influences on sensory perceptions of novel low-cost nutrient-rich food products developed using traditional Ghanaian food ingredients. Ann Nutr Metab, 54, pp. 247–248.

Amuna, P., and Zotor, F.B. (2009) The Food Multimix concept: potential of an innovative food-based approach on nutritional status in pregnant women in resource-poor communities. Ann Nutr Metab, 55, suppl 1, p. 247.

Zotor, F.B., and Amuna, P. (2009) Application of the Food Multimix concept in nutritional support for HIV/AIDS patients: new strategies in HIV/AIDS management in developing countries. Ann Nutr Metab, 55, Suppl 1, p. 523.

Amuna, P. et al. (2009) Assessment of the nutritional value of wild leaf vegetables consumed in the Buhera district of Zimbabwe: a preliminary study. ISHS Acta Horticulturae. P. 806.

Committees, consultation/services

University committees

• 2010: Member, Biotechnology and Biomaterials Research Cohort, School of Science, University of Greenwich
• 2008: Chairman, School of Science Research Ethics Committee
• 2005: Member, Medway Campus Health and Safety Committee
• 2004: Chairman, School Health and Safety Committee
• 2001: School of Science representative, University of Greenwich Research Ethics Committee
• 2000–04: Technical advisor and academic lead, postgraduate centre for food, nutrition and public health, University of Westminster
• 1996–99: Member, University Academic Staff Recruitment Panel, London South Bank University.

External committees, panels and consultations/service

• 2011: External assessor, postgraduate nutrition and health programmes, University of Chester (January)
• 2010: United Nations Scaling Up Nutrition Interventions (SUN) strategic meeting, DFID (December)
• 2010: External assessor, undergraduate nutrition and dietetics programmes, University of Chester (January)
• 2010: Chairman, international scientific committee, the Fourth Africa Nutritional Epidemiology Conference (ANEC4), Nairobi, Kenya (4–8 October)
• 2010: Member, international scientific committee, the First Africa Nutritional Epidemiology Conference (ANEC1), Vanderbilt Park, South Africa (4–8 October)
• 2009: Invited panellist/discussant, Friends of Europe: EU Aid Architecture and developing countries (February)
• 2008–11: Board member, Association for Nutrition (AfN), the professional accreditation body for nutrition professionals in the UK and Ireland. Responsibility for Global Affairs
• 2008: Invited panellist/discussant, European Alliance Against Malaria, HIV and Tuberculosis: Red Cross, Brussels, Belgium (June)
• 2008: Invited panellist/discussant, Friends of Europe: EU Aid Architecture and developing countries (May)
• 2008: Chairman, international scientific committee, the Third Africa Nutritional Epidemiology Conference (ANEC3), Cairo, Egypt (13–16 October)
• 2008: Member of Board of Trustees, African Nutrition Society
• 2008: Member, UK Learned Societies Committee on Capacity Development in Science and Technology in Developing Countries (June)
• 2007–11: Council member and focal point for international nutrition, Nutrition Society, the learned society for nutritional sciences for UK and Ireland
• 2006: Chairman, international scientific committee, the Second Africa Nutritional Epidemiology Conference (ANEC2), Accra, Ghana (12–16 August).

Other activities

• 2004: South African National Research Foundation (NRF), official reviewer of grant proposals on projects on nutrition and sustainable development.
• 2003: Official mentor and student liaison representative, Nutrition Society
• 2003: Expert in international nutrition and public health. Currently involved in external collaborative training (short courses in nutrition and Public health) in developing countries
• 2002–05: Technical advisor and facilitator of national school health and nutrition projects, Ghana Health Service and Ghana Education Service
• 2002–04: External consultant and training facilitator, Qatar Ministry of Public Health. Qatar National Nutrition & Health Survey.

Editorial committees and peer reviews

• 2011: Editor designate, African Journal of Nutrition, an international journal of nutritional science
• 2010: Associate editor, World Review of Science, Technology and Sustainable Development
• 2010: Food and Nutrition Bulletin, peer reviewer
• 2010: European Journal of Clinical Nutrition, peer reviewer
• 2008–09: International Journal of the Science of Food and Agriculture, peer reviewer
• 2005–07: Consulting editor, Academic Journal of the Vaal University of Technology, South Africa.

Conferences

Conference organisation, participation and proceedings

2011. Co-convener and chairman, scientific committee, Diabetes Spring Conference, Medway, April 2011.
2002. Co-convener of the Africa Nutritional Epidemiology Conferences (ANEC), the leading nutritional conference in Africa, from 2002.

Recent conference proceedings

2010. Nutrition Society, Scottish Section, Edinburgh. Chairman, two scientific sessions on international nutrition and nutritional epidemiology, 28 June–1 July

Zotor, F.B., and Amuna, P. 2009. International Union of Nutritional Sciences (IUNS), Bangkok, Thailand. Application of the Food Multimix concept in nutritional support for HIV/AIDS patients: new strategies in HIV/AIDS management in developing countries, 4–9 October.

Zotor, F.B., and Amuna, P. 2009. The Food Multimix concept: potential of an innovative food-based approach on nutritional status of pregnant women in resource-poor communities, 4–9 October.

2009. Nutrition Society; University of Surrey. Chairman, two scientific original communication sessions on international nutrition, 27–30 June.

Amuna, P. 2009. British Academy/Royal Society-Ghana Academy of Arts & Sciences, British Council. Accra, Ghana. Keynote address: Models of interaction of biological and environmental influences on risk of chronic diseases in Africa, 12–18 February.