Samantha Ehrlich, assistant professor in the University of Tennessee (UT), Knoxville, Department of Public Health, was recognized earlier this month by the Women’s Inter-professional Network of the American Diabetes Association.
Ehrlich, an epidemiologist who has been teaching at UT since 2015, has dedicated her career to reproductive and perinatal health research, focusing on how pregnancy behaviors and exposures impact the development of obesity and diabetes in women and their children.
The award, granted in the category of Behavioral Medicine, Nutrition, Education, and Exercise, was for an abstract describing her study, “Effects of First Trimester Exercise on Pregnancy Hyperglycemia and Gestational Diabetes (GDM),” which was conducted in collaboration with scientists in the Division of Research of Kaiser Permanente Northern California. The study is expected to be completed later this year.
“It was an honor to have my abstract recognized by the Women’s Inter-professional Network of the American Diabetes Association,” said Ehrlich. “This year, we celebrated the life and legacy of Dr. Lois Jovanovic, who passed in late 2018. Her pioneering work enabled women with diabetes to have healthy babies, whereas historically, they were told to not become pregnant because the risks to the baby were too high. It was inspiring to come together and celebrate the contributions of so many talented female scientists, clinicians, and diabetes educators in the field.”
