John.Batsis@unc.edu
919-966-5945
John A. Batsis, MD
CRC Medical Director, Associate Professor of Medicine
Dr. Batsis has dedicated his professional career to caring for older adults through clinical care, research and education. The privilege of helping older adults maximize their physical function and quality of life through patient-centered, compassionate care serves as a daily motivation in his work. His role as a clinician-researcher allows him to apply scientific principles of inquiry to enhance clinical care for an older adult population. Through learning and discovery, he aims to advance healthy aging by improving goal-directed care and healthcare delivery for older adults.
Dr. Batsis’s academic work focuses on three main areas: (a) understanding the relationships between obesity and sarcopenia (loss of muscle mass, strength and/or function with aging) and important outcomes for older adults; (b) developing multicomponent interventions (diet and exercise) to improve physical function in older adults; and (c) using novel technologies (telemedicine, remote monitoring, Internet-of-Things devices) and collaborating with transdisciplinary scientists (engineers and computer scientists) to improve the health and well-being of older adults.
Read: Dr. John Batsis Presents Keynote at AI Technology Center Consensus Guidelines Workshop
Read: Dr. Batsis Presents at American Diabetes Association Annual Meeting
Read: Dr. Batsis talks to Stat about new weight loss drugs
Watch: Dr Batsis – ‘Everyone has their own secret sauce’
Read: Doctors Assess Opportunities Gained, Lost through Medicare’s Annual Wellness Visits
Read: Batsis Discusses Five Common Medications That Can Cause Weight Gain
In the News
Experts Say More Research Is Needed to Understand Obesity-Cancer Link
This article originally appeared on PharmacyTimes.com. Written by: Aislinn Antrim, Assistant Managing Editor Evidence has shown that reversing pro-cancer effects requires significant weight loss as...
NRI-Hosted Symposium on Future Directions in Choline
First established as an essential nutrient in 1998, choline is a nutrient with critical roles in the health and development of the brain, liver, and more. The past 25 years have seen significant...
NRI Postdoctoral Research Associate Promoted to Assistant Professor of Nutrition
The UNC Nutrition Research Institute is pleased to welcome Nipun Saini, PhD, to its faculty. Previously, Saini worked as a postdoctoral research associate in the Smith Lab. Saini worked in the Smith...
Curiosity. Intellect. Altruism.
The future of personalized nutrition is in its emerging thinkers. At the NRI our postdoctoral fellows and doctoral students apply these qualities of curiosity, intellect and altruism to their quests...
Publications
2026
2025
The Relationship Between a Mediterranean Diet and Frailty in Older Adults: NHANES 2007-2017.
Changes in senescence markers after a weight loss intervention in older adults with obesity.
Editorial: Clinical uses and alternative approaches of frailty determination.
Tailoring Obesity Management to Support Physical Function in Older Adults.
Treating Sarcopenic Obesity in the Era of Incretin Therapies: Perspectives and Challenges.
New Drugs and Same Blind Spots-Rethinking Obesity Care in Later Life.




