Associate Professor Debbie Palmer
National Allergy Centre of Excellence Food Allergy Stream Co-chair
- Head of the Childhood Allergy and Immunology Research Team, Telethon Kids Institute
- Adjunct Senior Research Fellow, the University of Western Australia
- Chief Investigator, Centre for Food & Allergy Research
After 10 years of clinical paediatric dietetic experience specialising in the area of food allergy, Associate Professor Debbie Palmer launched her research career. She is now one of a few dietitians worldwide undertaking research in nutritional strategies for allergy prevention.
A/Prof Palmer heads the Childhood Allergy and Immunology Research Group at the Telethon Kids Institute in Western Australia, investigating nutritional strategies for allergic disease prevention. She is also a Chief Investigator for the NHMRC-funded Centre for Food & Allergy Research, hosted at the Murdoch Children’s Research Institute.
Internationally renowned for leading two clinical trials, the STEP and STAR Trials, she has contributed towards the paradigm shifting approach of earlier, regular egg consumption in infant diets to reduce egg allergy development. Her current research focuses on immunomodulatory nutrients like prebiotics (SYMBA Study), and maternal food allergen consumption of eggs and peanuts during pregnancy and breastfeeding (the PrEggNut Study).
She is an Adjunct Senior Research Fellow at the University of Western Australia and has more than 75 peer-reviewed publications. She is a Chief Investigator on 22 grants worth $10.7 million, including six NHMRC project or development grants, and CIA on nine other competitive grants.
RECENT PUBLICATIONS
Editorial Comment on "Feasibility and safety of introducing cashew nut spread in infant diets - a randomized trial". Pediatric Allergy and Immunology. Jun 2023
Maternal peanut and egg consumption during breastfeeding randomized pilot trial. Pediatric Allergy and Immunology. Sept 2022
Changes to the Gut Microbiome in Young Children Showing Early Behavioral Signs of Autism. Frontiers in Microbiology. Jul 2022
Study Protocol for a Randomised Controlled Trial Investigating the Effects of Maternal Prebiotic Fibre Dietary Supplementation from Mid-Pregnancy to Six Months’ Post-Partum on Child Allergic Disease Outcomes. Prebiotics and Probiotics in Immune Health. Jun 2022
PrEggNut Study: protocol for a randomised controlled trial investigating the effect of a maternal diet rich in eggs and peanuts from. BMJ Open. Jun 2022
Food Proteins in Human Breast Milk and Probability of IgE-Mediated Allergic Reaction in Children During Breastfeeding: A Systematic Review. The Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology: In Practice, May 2022
Pre-and Postnatal Vitamin D Status and Allergy Outcomes in Early Childhood. Biomedicines. Apr 2022
Circulating Epithelial Cell Cytokines Are Associated With Early-Onset Atopic Dermatitis. Journal of Investigational Allergology and Clinical Immunology. Feb 2021
SELECTED STUDIES:
- Maternal peanut and egg consumption during breastfeeding randomized pilot trial
- PrEggNut Study
- SYMBA Study
- The CASHEW Study - Introducing Cashew Nuts During Infancy
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