Rate My Professor Janelle Skinner

Dr. Janelle Skinner is a Postdoctoral Researcher and Research Officer in the School of Health Sciences, College of Health, Medicine and Wellbeing at the University of Newcastle, Australia. She is also an Accredited Practising Dietitian (APD). Skinner completed her Doctor of Philosophy in the School of Health Sciences and her Bachelor of Nutrition and Dietetics (Honours) at the University of Newcastle. Her research focuses on addictive eating and objective biomarkers that may characterise compulsive overeating behaviours. She has a special interest in how people react to food cues, particularly hyperpalatable foods, and the physiological responses this elicits in the body. Her specializations include clinical nutrition, behaviour change, dietary assessment, and food addiction.

In her academic career at the University of Newcastle, Skinner has held positions as Research Officer and Casual Academic in the School of Health Sciences. She has authored or co-authored over 30 publications, contributing significantly to the understanding and treatment of addictive eating. Key works include the book Food & Addiction (2024); the chapter Food addiction in children and adolescents by Burrows T and Skinner J (2024); Neural, appetite, and cardiometabolic markers in those with and without food addiction: A pilot fMRI study (Neuroscience, 2026); Dietary and quality-of-life outcomes of the FoodFix intervention for addictive eating: a short report (Journal of Human Nutrition and Dietetics, 2024); The effectiveness of the TRACE online nutrition intervention in improving dietary intake, sleep quality and physical activity levels for Australian adults with food addiction: a randomised controlled trial (Journal of Human Nutrition and Dietetics, 2024); A three-arm randomised controlled trial of a telehealth intervention targeting improvement in addictive eating for Australian adults (the TRACE program) (Appetite, 2024); The Relationship between Addictive Eating and Dietary Intake: A Systematic Review (Nutrients, 2022); and Food Addiction: a Deep Dive into 'Loss of Control' and 'Craving' (Current Addiction Reports, 2022). These publications detail systematic reviews, intervention trials like the TRACE program, and explorations of addictive eating's links to diet, mental health, and biomarkers, advancing evidence-based approaches in nutrition and addiction research.