Catherine L. Mah, MD, FRCPC, PhD

Biography

Dr. Catherine L. Mah MD FRCPC PhD is Professor and Canada Research Chair in Promoting Healthy Populations in the School of Health Administration at Dalhousie University. She is an internationally recognized scholar in nutrition and food policy. Dr. Mah publishes widely in health and social science, with a particular focus on the consumer food environment and its role in social equity, population diet, food access, and food affordability. She was an appointee to Health Canada’s Nutrition Science Advisory Committee (2020-2023) and the inaugural Canadian Food Policy Advisory Council (2020-2022). In 2022, Dr. Mah was the recipient of a Queen Elizabeth II Platinum Jubilee Medal from Nova Scotia for exemplary public service.

Education

• PhD (Health Services Research-Health Policy), University of Toronto
• FRCPC (Paediatrics), Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada
• MD, University of Calgary

Teaching

• Healthcare policy (HESA 6310)
  
• Epidemiology and population health (HESA 5320)
  

Selected Publications

* indicates trainees supervised

• Mah, Catherine L., Laura Kennedy*, Nathan Taylor*, Taylor Nicholson, Emily Jago, and Brenda MacDonald. 2023. Effect of a relative pricing intervention and active merchandising to incentivize healthier snack purchases in the hospital consumer food environment: interrupted time series analysis of a retailer-led strategy. International Journal of Behavioural Nutrition and Physical Activity 20(1):1.
• Taylor, Nathan*, Gabriella Luongo*, Emily Jago, and Catherine L. Mah. 2023. Observational study of population level disparities in food costs in Canada: A digital National Nutritious Food Basket (dNNFB). Preventive Medicine Reports, 2023 Apr 1;32:102162 (senior responsible author).
• Mah, Catherine L., Karen Foster, Emily Jago, Mohammad Hajizadeh, Gabriella Luongo*, Nathan Taylor*, Daniel Fuller, Yanqing Yi, Olukorede T. Esan*, Ryan Lukic*, Maria Clarke*, Wieslawa Dominika Wranik, Julie Brimblecombe, and Anna Peeters. 2022. Study protocol for CELLAR (COVID-related Eating Limitations and Latent dietary effects in the Atlantic Region): population-based observational study to monitor dietary intakes and purchasing during COVID-19 in four Atlantic Canadian provinces. BMJ Open 12(4): e061660. doi: 10.1136/bmjopen-2022-061660 (lead author). CIHR FRN VR5 172691.
• Luongo, Gabriella*, Valerie Tarasuk, Yanqing Yi, and Catherine L. Mah. 2022. Feasibility and measurement error in using food supply data to estimate diet costs in Canada. Public Health Nutrition, March 2022 online ahead print (senior responsible author). CIHR FRN PJT-162373.
• Mah, Catherine L., Bruce Knox*, Meghan Lynch*, and Lynn McIntyre. 2020. Who is food insecure? Political storytelling on hunger, household food choices, and the construction of archetypal populations. Journal of Hunger and Environmental Nutrition, online ahead of print, August 2020 (lead author).
• Julie Brimblecombe, Emma McMahon, Megan Ferguson, Khia De Silva, Anna Peeters, Edward Miles, Thomas Wycherley, Leia Minaker, Luke Greenacre, Anthony Gunther, Emma Chappell, and Catherine L. Mah. 2020. Effect of restricted retail merchandising of discretionary food and beverages on population diet: a pragmatic randomised controlled trial. The Lancet Planetary Health 4(10): e463-e473 (senior responsible author). FRN: Australian National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) ID 1138629.
• Mah, Catherine L., Gabriella Luongo*, Rebecca Hasdell*, Nathan G.A. Taylor*, and Brian C.K. Lo*. 2019. A systematic review of the effect of retail food environment interventions on diet and health with a focus on the enabling role of public policies. Current Nutrition Reports 8(4): 411-428 (lead author).