Carol L. Cheatham, PhD
Associate Professor, Psychology & Neuroscience
carol_cheatham@unc.edu
704-250-5010
Lab Website
An important member of the UNC Nutrition Research Institute’s research team, Carol L. Cheatham, PhD, focuses on how nutrition can improve children’s brain function. Specifically, her team studies the importance of nutrients for the development of memory and attention abilities.
Broadly defined, Dr. Cheatham’s research focuses on the relationship between an individual’s genome and the metabolism of nutrients, and how this leads to differences in cognitive and social development. Specifically, she is interested in the development of memory and attention as they are the basis for learning, and therefore school readiness. For example, her research asks if the supplementation of children’s diets with omega-3 fatty acids have an effect on their memory abilities over a determined period of time. Many different methods and tools are used in the Cheatham lab to assess abilities, including taking turns with the children building unique toys and the use of special equipment to read their brain activity while they are watching pictures on a computer screen.
“Dr. Cheatham is an expert on the importance of omega-3 fatty acids (fish oils) for normal brain development,” said NRI Director Steven Zeisel, MD, PhD, “This is an exciting and promising area of research that is changing the way women eat during pregnancy and lactation.”
Show More
Daniella Carballo
Research Assistant, Cheatham Lab
Daniella, a graduate from the University of Oregon, holds a Bachelor of Science in Neuroscience with a minor in Psychology. Driven by a profound passion for psychiatric research, she aspires to pursue a Ph.D. in Clinical Neuroscience. Her goal is to conduct groundbreaking research and educate future generations in higher education, contributing significantly to the field.
Mandi Rider
Research Assistant, Cheatham Lab
Mandi graduated from Transylvania University in Lexington, KY in May 2023 with a BA in Neuroscience with a Biology Emphasis and a Minor in Sociology. Originally from New Holland, PA, she is excited to be living in warmer weather and to have the opportunity to work in the Cheatham Lab. In her free time, she enjoys reading, exercising, staying in touch with her friends and family, and is learning to crochet.
NRI expertise makes news
The UNC Nutrition Research Institute is an internationally recognized center that conducts innovative basic and translational science studying how individual differences in requirements and responses to diet affect our nutritional needs. Using cutting-edge tools in...
New study indicates wild blueberries improve brain’s processing speed
In a research study where volunteer participants with cognitive issues consumed wild blueberries daily for six months, the ability of the participants’ brains to process information improved. The findings from this double-blind, placebo-controlled, randomized clinical...
AFL Recap: New Year, New You
Many of us in the new year resolve to be healthier. It’s a great goal, but how do we accomplish it? Kendra Nelson, MPH, a registered dietitian and member of the Voruganti lab here at the UNC Nutrition Research Institute, has provided us with some great guidelines to...
Cheatham Awarded Grant to Explore Synergy of Nutrients and the Prevention of Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders
Carol Cheatham, PhD, was recently awarded an R21 grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA). Her proposed preclinical study will explore the synergy of nutrients (which will be controlled by diet) and...