Sonja Y. Hess, Ph.D.

Sonja Hess

Research Nutritionist | Interim Director Institute for Global Nutrition

3147 Meyer Hall
Education
  • MSc, Food Science Engineering, Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich, Switzerland, 1998
  • Ph.D. Human Nutrition, Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich, Switzerland, 2003
Research Interests

Dr. Sonja Hess' research interests involve the design, implementation, and evaluation of interventions to prevent micronutrient deficiencies and improve diet quality among children and women, with the overarching goal of promoting health and wellbeing. Her work also focuses on the collection, analysis, and interpretation of diet and micronutrient status data to inform evidence-based program design, implementation, and policy decisions.

Selected Publications

Hess SY, Angeles-Agdeppa I, Kinabo J, et al. A Global and Some National Perspectives on the Current Evidence of Interventions on Fruit and Vegetable Intake in Low-, Middle-, and High-Income Countries. Food Nutr Bull. 2025. DOI<https://doi:%2010.1177/03795721251357385>

Brown KH, Hess SY, Moore SE, et al. Neglected micronutrients-considering a broader set of vitamins and minerals in public health nutrition programs worldwide: a narrative review. Am J Clin Nutr 2025. DOI<https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ajcnut.2025.06.030>

Hess SY, Wessells KR, Haile D, et al. Comparison of published estimates of the national prevalence of iron, vitamin A and zinc deficiency and sources of inconsistencies. Adv Nutr, 2023. DOI<https://doi.org/10.1016/j.advnut.2023.08.011>

Hess SY, Owais A, Jefferds MED, et al. Accelerating action to reduce anemia: Review of causes and risk factors and related data needs. Ann N Y Acad Sci 2023. DOI<https://doi.org/10.1111/nyas.14985>

Smith TJ, Arnold CD, Fischer PR, Trehan I, Hiffler L, Sitthideth D, Stein-Wexler R, Yeh J, Jones KS, Hampel D, Tancredi DJ, Schick MA, McBeth CN, Tan X, Allen LH, Sayasone S, Kounnavong S, Hess SY. A Predictive Model for Thiamine Responsive Disorders among Infants and Young Children: Results from a Prospective Cohort Study in Lao People's Democratic Republic. J Pediatr 2024. DOI<doi:%2010.1016/j.jpeds.2024.113961>

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