Jeanette Gustat
Clinical Associate Professor
Areas of Expertise
Biography
Dr. Jeanette Gustat's primary research interest is in the assessment of how behavior and the physical environment impacts health outcomes. Her training is in nutritional epidemiology, and she has focused primarily on health outcomes of physical inactivity, obesity and cardiovascular risk factors. She is a co-investigator of the Tulane Prevention Research Center and the Bogalusa Heart Study. She is a part of the Physical Activity Policy Research Network of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and researches physical activity policies on both national and statewide levels. Gustat has also worked with members of the New Orleans' community to develop and implement an intervention to increase physical activity in the community. She has been funded by the NIH, CDC, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, the Greater New Orleans Foundation, and the Tulane Center for Public Service. She is the course director for the core methods course in the department and teaches an undergraduate course in nutrition and chronic disease.
Education
Tulane University
Tulane University
Valaparaiso
Articles
Use of a public park for physical activity in the Caribbean: evidence from a mixed methods study in Jamaica
2019
Small island Caribbean countries such as Jamaica are now facing an epidemic of obesity and decreased physical activity (PA) levels. Public parks have been shown to be important resources for PA that also provide psychological and social benefits associated with increased PA. There are no studies that document PA in parks in the Caribbean.
The association between sleep chronotype and obesity among black and white participants of the Bogalusa Heart Study
2019
Research indicates that sleep duration and quality are inter-related factors that contribute to obesity, but few studies have focused on sleep chronotype, representing an individual’s circadian proclivity, nor assessed these factors in racially diverse middle-aged samples.
Development and Testing of a Brief Play Space Audit Tool
2019
Spaces that promote play are important for the physical, social, and psychological growth of children. Public spaces, including playgrounds, provide an important venue for children to engage in play. A simple tool is needed to evaluate playground features and conditions.
Media Appearances
The Pros and Cons of Being a Weekend Warrior
“Many people don’t do much during the week, but do have a little more free time on the weekends, and that’s when they get involved in activities,” says Jeanette Gustat, an associate professor of clinical epidemiology at Tulane University School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine in New Orleans.
