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Daniela Rodrigues

Orcid profile

Ciência Vitae profile

Research Interests
Childhood obesity
Physical activity
Screen time
Diet patterns
Health inequalities

I hold a PhD in Anthropology, specialization in Biological Anthropology from the University of Coimbra, where I am currently a Postdoctoral Fellow, who will start a new cohort of preschool-aged children to study the trajectories of screen media use and its impact on obesity and mental health. I have published several articles, participated in several national and international scientific meetings, and I am a member of national and international scientific associations in the field of obesity, physical activity and health. In September 2020, one of my articles was the Editor’s Choice in the American Journal of Human Biology (vol 32, nº5) based on the impact of the topic and the scientific quality. In February 2022, my work (DOI: 10.1111/apa.15708) was awarded the Best Scientific Text-Young Biologic Anthropologist by the Portuguese Anthropological Association. I have collaborated with several national and international R&I Units (Center for Health Studies and Research, Univ Coimbra; Sport, Exercise and Health Sciences, Univ Loughborough, UK; Federal University of Minas Gerais, Brazil). Between 2018 and 2021, I worked as a Science Manager in CIAS (e.g., organized national and international meetings, coordinated outreach activities) and was an editorial assistant in the peer-review journal Antropologia Portuguesa (ISSN 0870-0990).

Main Publications

Rodrigues D, Machado-Rodrigues AM, Gama A, et al. The Portuguese economic crisis is associated with socioeconomic and sex disparities on children’s health-related behaviors and obesity: a cross-sectional study. American Journal of Human Biology, 2022 (In press): e2376. DOI: 10.1002/ajhb.23796

Rodrigues D, Nogueira H, Gama A, et al. Parental perception of the social and physical environment contributes to gender inequalities in children’s screen time. Journal of Physical Activity and Health, 2022; 19(2): 108-117. DOI: 10.1123/jpah.2021-0436

Rodrigues D, Gama A, Machado-Rodrigues AM, et al. Home vs. Bedroom media devices: socioeconomic disparities and association with childhood screen- and sleep-time. Sleep Medicine, 2021; 83 (July): 230-234. DOI: 10.1016/j.sleep.2021.04.012

Rodrigues D, Muc M, Machado-Rodrigues AM, Padez C. Less obesity but higher inequalities in Portuguese children: trends of childhood obesity between 2002-2016. Acta Paediatrica, 2020; 111(8): 1612-1614. DOI: 10.1111/apa.16365

Rodrigues D, Padez C, Machado-Rodrigues AM. Active parents, active children: the importance of parental organized physical activity in children’s extracurricular sport participation. Journal of Child Health Care, 2018; 22(1): 159-170. DOI: 10.1177/1367493517741686

Research Projects

(Maria de Sousa 2022 Award) UPSEE HEALTH Project – Urban Places and Sensory Experiences of Everyday in HEALTH • 2023 • 2025 • Principal Investigator (30 000.00€)

07652.PTDC • SCREENHEALTH – Screen Media Use Trajectories, Inequalities, and Long-Term Effects on Children’s Obesity and Mental Health • 2023 • 2026 • Principal Investigator (243 868.88€)

03966.CEECIND • STOPMEH – Screen Time, Obesity, Poor Mental and Emotional Health: a longitudinal study on socioeconomic inequalities in childhood • 2021 • 2026 • Principal Investigator (Postdoc contract)

PTDC/DTP-SAP/1520/2014 Inequalities in childhood obesity: the impact of the socioeconomic crisis in Portugal from 2009 to 2015 • 2016 • 2020 • Investigator (199 201.00€)

SFRH/BD/90737/2012 Association of social, cultural and environmental factors with participation in extracurricular sport and obesity indicators in 6-10-year-old children living in urban and non-urban settings • 2013 • 2016 • Principal Investigator (PhD Fellowship)

Creative Output

Co-organized the Photography Exhibition “PHENOMENA”, about climatic changes in the Portuguese territory at Café TAGV (Teatro Académico de Gil Vicente, Coimbra) – 2021/10/15 – 2021/11/10 https://tagv.pt/agenda/phenomena/

Cover photo of the American Journal of Human Biology, vol 30, issue 6 (November/December 2018)

Cover photo of the American Journal of Human Biology, vol 34, issue 5, (May 2022)