What Course(s) did you graduate from at CNELM and when did you graduate?

I graduated from the MSc Personalised Nutrition in 2016.

What did you do before doing this course?

I worked for 10 years as a research/corporate analyst for a Life Sciences research and consulting company.

What made you decide to embark on this course of study and what attracted you to CNELM?

In 2010, having just relocated back to the UK and given birth to my second son, I began evaluating more family-friendly career options and I came across nutrition. I have a scientific background, but not in biology and physiology, so undertook these as access courses followed by the first year of the Nutritional Therapy diploma course at the Institute of Optimal Nutrition, London. Whilst this helped to confirm my interest in Nutrition, I found that the course at the time did not go into the scientific depth that I was looking for, so following recommendations, I attended the CNELM open day and made the switch to the CNELM MSc course. I’m pleased to say that the course didn’t disappoint and I thoroughly enjoyed doing the MSc and the journey to complete it.

Tell us about the scientific review papers on omega-3 fatty acids you’re writing for the field of Nutritional Immunology and your collaboration with Prof Calder at Southampton University.

Once I had gained the MSc in Personalised Nutrition, I didn’t have the intention to go into Nutritional Therapy practice as unfortunately this is not where my skillset lies! My interests are focused more on the science of nutrition and research/analysis and writing. With this in mind, I made contact with Philip Calder, Professor of Nutritional Immunology at the University of Southampton and offered to help him with any literature reviews or writing that he may need. Prof Calder’s area of research expertise is, amongst other things, omega-3 fatty acids; an area that I had focused on in my research dissertation and find of great interest. It so happened that he did require help in these areas, and a collaboration was formed! 

I was granted academic visitor status and initially started with tasks such as turning medical students’ projects into publishable papers for Clinical Nutrition and Nutrition Journal, which soon progressed to writing up speakers’ presentations at an ESPEN ‘Lipids in the ICU’ workshop for publication in Clinical Nutrition. Most recently I have co-authored a paper on omega-6 fatty acids and inflammation and written a systematic review of my own of the differential effects of EPA and DHA on cardiometabolic risk factors. I’ve also had the opportunity to draft a clinical trial paper for Nutrients journal for a study investigating omega-3 fatty acids in patients with NAFLD, which has just been submitted.

From this, I have expanded my knowledge gained at CNELM on omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids in the clinical setting and learnt a lot about writing scientific papers for publication and the publication process.

For those interested in the papers themselves these are:

  • Tobin, D.; Brevik-Andersen, M.; Qin, Y.; Innes, J.; Calder, P. Evaluation of a High Concentrate Omega-3 for Correcting the Omega-3 Fatty Acid Nutritional Deficiency in Non-alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease and effects on Hepatic Steatosis (CONDIN). Preprints 2018, 2018070240 (doi: 10.20944/preprints201807.0240.v1
  • Innes JK, Calder PC. Omega-6 fatty acids and inflammation. Prostaglandins, Leukotrienes and Essential Fatty Acids. 2018 May 1;132:41-48.
  • Innes JK, Calder PC. The Differential Effects of Eicosapentaenoic Acid and Docosahexaenoic Acid on Cardiometabolic Risk Factors: A Systematic Review. International Journal of Molecular Sciences. 2018 Feb 9;19(2):532.
  • Calder PC, Adolph M, Deutz NE, Grau T, Innes JK, Klek S, Lev S, Mayer K, Michael-Titus AT, Pradelli L, Puder M. Lipids in the intensive care unit: Recommendations from the ESPEN Expert Group. Clinical Nutrition. 2018;37;1;1-18.
  • Abdulrazaq M, Innes JK, Calder PC. Effect of ω-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids on arthritic pain: A systematic review. Nutrition. 2017 Aug 31;39:57-66.
  • Edward RR, Innes JK, Marino LV, Calder PC. Influence of different intravenous lipid emulsions on growth, development and laboratory and clinical outcomes in hospitalised paediatric patients: A systematic review. Clinical Nutrition. 2018; 37;3;765-783.

Is there anything you wish you’d known before finishing your studies that you might have prepared for differently?

No!

What or who has most inspired you in your work?

Having worked with Prof Calder for just a couple of years, I am constantly impressed by his breadth of knowledge on essential fatty acids gained over many, many years, and how he manages to juggle all his varied academic roles within and outside of the University.

Do you have any tips, hints, things you’d have done differently...?

I don’t think I would have changed anything that has happened so far. I’m a firm believer that if you work hard, grab opportunities as they arise, and always do your best, then you will get where you want to be.

Last modified: Monday, 20 July 2020, 2:33 PM