Dr. Benita Hosseini joins Dalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto

The Dalla Lana School of Public Health at the University of Toronto welcomes Dr. Benita Hosseini as its new Assistant Professor, marking a significant addition to the institution’s distinguished faculty. Dr. Hosseini brings a wealth of knowledge and expertise to her role, contributing to various research programs and supervising graduate students pursuing the Master of Public Health (MPH) in Nutrition and Dietetics and Doctor of Public Health (DrPH) degrees.

Dr. Hosseini is a Research Scientist at Upstream Lab, leading research projects focused on the intersection of nutrition, respiratory infections, and social determinants of health. Additionally, she is a Co-Principal Investigator for the Canadian Adaptive Platform Trial of Treatments for COVID in Community Settings (CanTreatCOVID), a nationwide trial evaluating COVID-19 treatments. Dr. Hosseini recently received an award from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research to investigate the effectiveness of antioxidant therapy for COVID-19 treatments.

Prior to joining the Upstream Lab, Dr. Hosseini completed her Postdoctoral Fellowship at the University of Montreal. During that period, she contributed to many research projects centred around the impact of dietary intervention on respiratory illnesses in children and adults. Her research focuses on a comprehensive approach to managing respiratory diseases, ranging from acute infections to chronic conditions such as asthma. The multifaceted exploration includes dietary interventions, application of diagnostic tools, and the implementation of AI solutions. She is particularly interested in translating these findings into actionable strategies to enhance respiratory health, especially within vulnerable populations.

Dr. Hosseini will work with the Head of the Division of Clinical Public Health to determine key research and mentorship areas in the MPH and DrPH programs that will greatly benefit from her expertise. She is also an Assistant Professor (Status-Only) in the Department of Family and Community Medicine at the University of Toronto.