Sheila Rodwell

OBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

(née Harrison; March 7, 1947 – June 16, 2009), known professionally by her first married name Sheila Bingham, was a British nutritional

epidemiologist Epidemiology is the study and analysis of the distribution (who, when, and where), patterns and determinants of health and disease conditions in a defined population. It is a cornerstone of public health, and shapes policy decisions and evidenc ...

known for conducting detailed studies into clarify the

biological Biology is the scientific study of life. It is a natural science with a broad scope but has several unifying themes that tie it together as a single, coherent field. For instance, all organisms are made up of cells that process hereditary ...

mechanisms underlying the effects of different diets on health and

disease A disease is a particular abnormal condition that negatively affects the structure or function of all or part of an organism, and that is not immediately due to any external injury. Diseases are often known to be medical conditions that a ...

, especially

cancer Cancer is a group of diseases involving abnormal cell growth with the potential to invade or spread to other parts of the body. These contrast with benign tumors, which do not spread. Possible signs and symptoms include a lump, abnormal bl ...

Education

Bingham was educated at

Loughborough High School ) , established = , closed = , type = Independent , religion = Christian , president = , head_label = Headmistress , head ...

and graduated from Queen Elizabeth College with a BSc in

Nutrition Nutrition is the biochemical and physiological process by which an organism uses food to support its life. It provides organisms with nutrients, which can be metabolized to create energy and chemical structures. Failure to obtain sufficien ...

in 1968, and 1969 with a

Postgraduate Diploma A postgraduate diploma (PgD, PgDip, PGDip, PG Dip., PGD, Dipl. PG, PDE) is a postgraduate qualification awarded after a university degree, which supplements the original degree and awards them with a graduate diploma. Countries that award pos ...

in Dietetics as

dietitian A dietitian, medical dietitian, or dietician is an expert in identifying and treating disease-related malnutrition and in conducting medical nutrition therapy, for example designing an enteral tube feeding regimen or mitigating the effects of ...

. In 1984, she was awarded her

PhD PHD or PhD may refer to: * Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), an academic qualification Entertainment * '' PhD: Phantasy Degree'', a Korean comic series * ''Piled Higher and Deeper'', a web comic * Ph.D. (band), a 1980s British group ** Ph.D. (Ph.D. albu ...

from the

University of London The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in post-nominals) is a federal public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The university was established by royal charter in 1836 as a degre ...

for her work on the development of biomarkers of nutritional intake.

Career

After having worked as a hospital dietitian, Bingham became a

research officer A research assistant (RA) is a researcher employed, often on a temporary contract, by a university, a research institute or a privately held organization, for the purpose of assisting in academic or private research. Research assistants are not ...

at the MRC Dunn Human Nutrition Unit. She was one of the founding investigators of the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition and the EPIC

Norfolk Norfolk () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in East Anglia in England. It borders Lincolnshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the west and south-west, and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the Nort ...

cohort in and around

Norwich Norwich () is a cathedral city and district of Norfolk, England, of which it is the county town. Norwich is by the River Wensum, about north-east of London, north of Ipswich and east of Peterborough. As the seat of the Episcopal see, See of ...

. She became deputy director of the MRC Dunn Human Nutrition Unit in 1997 and leader of the "Diet and Cancer" group. In 2006, she became director of the new MRC Centre for Nutritional Epidemiology in Cancer Prevention and Survival at the

University of Cambridge , mottoeng = Literal: From here, light and sacred draughts. Non literal: From this place, we gain enlightenment and precious knowledge. , established = , other_name = The Chancellor, Masters and Schola ...

. She was honorary professor of Nutritional Epidemiology at the University of Cambridge and lifelong fellow at Clare Hall.

Research

Bingham's research concerned the association between diet and disease, and in particular objective methods for the objective assessment of dietary exposure.

Personal life

Bingham married Roger Bingham in 1970; in 2000 she married Simon Rodwell.

References

External links

* 1947 births 2009 deaths Officers of the Order of the British Empire British women epidemiologists Fellows of Clare College, Cambridge People associated with Queen Elizabeth College People from St Albans People educated at Loughborough High School 20th-century British women scientists {{UK-scientist-stub