Jayna Markand Dave, Ph.D.

Associate Professor

(713) 798-7195

Email

jmdave@bcm.edu

Positions

Associate Professor: Pediatrics-Nutrition
Baylor College of Medicine
Houston, TX, US

Member: Dan L Duncan Comprehensive Cancer Center
Baylor College of Medicine
Houston, Texas, United States

Adjunct Assistant Professor: Austin Regional Campus
University of Texas School of Public Health
Austin, Texas

Faculty Affiliate: Kinder Institute of Urban Health, Rice University
Houston, Texas

Faculty Member: Biomedical Research Base Baylor Diabetes Research Center
Houston, Texas

Addresses

USDA/ARS Children's Nutrition Research Center (Office): 1100 Bates St., Room: CNRC 2040
Houston, TX, 77030
United States
Phone: (713) 798-7195
jmdave@bcm.edu

Education

PhD from University Of South Carolina: 08/2007 - Columbia, South Carolina, United States

MS from University Of South Carolina: 12/2004 - Columbia, South Carolina, United States

Post-Doctoral Fellowship at Children's Nutrition Research Center, Baylor College of Medicine: 12/2010 - Houston, Texas, United States

BSc from SVT College of Home Science: 12/2000 - Mumbai, India; Applied Nutrition

Graduate Certificate at SNDT University: 05/2002 - Mumbai, India; Sports Science and Nutrition

Honors & Awards

2020/2021 TCH/BCM Young Investigator Award: Baylor College of Medicine (12/2020)

AdHoc Reviewer: National Institute of Health

Professional Interests

Health Disparities
Obesity and Chronic Disease Prevention
Food Assistance Programs
Behavioral Nutrition
Children and Families
Food/Nutrition Security
Population Health

Professional Statement

My research focuses on population health addressing health disparities as it relates to obesity and chronic disease prevention among children and parents from low-income, racial/ethnic minority populations through research, training and policy involvement. My research work can be placed in to three categories: food insecurity, hunger, and racial and economic disparities in diet; effects of food assistance programs on nutrition and health outcomes; and community-engaged approaches to population health including design, implementation, and evaluation of interventions in preschool, schools, and family- and community-based settings.

Websites

Jayna Dave Lab

NCBI Publications List

Selected Publications

Onugha EA, Banerjee A, Horahenage DV, Nobleza KJ, Nguyen DT, Racette SB, Dave J. " Dietary sodium and potassium patterns in adults with food insecurity in the context of hypertension risk " Nutr Health. 2026 Jan ; [Epub ahead of print] : doi: 10.1177/02601060251410454.
Pubmed PMID: 41525227.
Black MM, Bruening MM, Carroll-Scott A, Dave JM, Ebi KL, Iannotti LL, Johnson SL, Ritchie LD, Jimenez EY, Steiber AL, Raiten DJ. " Understanding the nutrition ecology and related distal and proximal research gaps impacting school-aged children's and adolescents' functioning- a report from the BOND-KIDS Project Working Group 2 " J Nutr. 2025 Oct ; [Epub ahead of print] : doi: 10.1016/j.tjnut.2025.10.020.
Pubmed PMID: 41093113.
Onugha EA, Ernest DK, Banerjee A, Nobleza KJ, Nguyen DT, Rosales O, Oluyomi A, Dave JM, Samuels JAQ. " Race or place: Neighborhood determinants of adolescent obesity " J Adolesc Health. 2025 Oct ; 77 (4) : 685-691.
Pubmed PMID: 40693988.
Almohamad M, Li R, Heredia NI, Dave JM, Calloway EE, Sharrief AZ, Sharma SV. " When access isn’t enough: The role of utilization barriers in nutrition security and cardiometabolic risk " Nutrients. 2025 Jun ; 17 (12) : 2031.
Pubmed PMID: 40573142.
Ernest DK, Onugha EA, Singh B, Sharma SV, Dave JM. " A scoping review of the social determinants of pediatric and adolescent obesity " Int J Pediatr. 2025 Apr ; 2025 : Article ID 8871022.
Pubmed PMID: 40330280.
Fairless BM, Fawole O, Nguyen DT, Banerjee A, Nobleza KJ, Oluyomi A, Rosales O, Dave JM, Onugha EA. " Neighborhood disadvantage and inequities in pediatric kidney transplantation access " Kidney360. 2025 Mar ; 6 (6) : 1007-1019.
Pubmed PMID: 40117583.
Onugha EA, Banerjee A, Nobleza KJ, Nguyen DT, Rosales O, Oluyomi A, Dave JM, Samuels J. " School neighborhood deprivation is associated with a higher prevalence of hypertension " Ann Epidemiol. 2025 Mar ; 103 : 9-15.
Pubmed PMID: 39894185.
Almohamad M, Li R, Heredia NI, Dave JM, Calloway EE, Sharrief A, Sharma S. " SNAP participation as a moderator of food and nutrition security and combined cardiometabolic conditions: A mixed regression approach " Nutrients. 2025 Feb ; 17 (3) : 576.
Pubmed PMID: 39940434.
Dhanjani S, Allen H, Varman B, Callender C, Dave JM, Thompson D. " Community-based participatory obesity prevention interventions in rural communities: A scoping review " Nutrients. 2024 Jul ; 16 (14) : 2201.
Pubmed PMID: 39064643.
Dave JM, Chen TA, Castro AN, White MA, Onugha EA, Zimmerman S, Thompson D. " Urban-rural disparities in food insecurity and weight status among children in the United States " Nutrients. 2024 Jul ; 16 (13) : 2132.
Pubmed PMID: 38999879.
Song S, Tabares E, Ishdorj A, Crews M, Dave J. " The quality of lunches brought from home to school: A systematic review and meta-analysis " Adv Nutr. 2024 Jun ; 15 (8) : 100255.
Pubmed PMID: 38876395.
Almohamad M, Dave JM, Calloway EE, Li R, Sharma S. " Relationship between food security, nutrition security and diabetes: The role of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program participation " Curr Dev Nutr. 2024 May ; 8 (5) : 102153.
Pubmed PMID: 38693968.
Thompson D, Callender C, Dave JM, Jibaja-Weiss ML, Montealegre JR. " Health equity in action: Using community-engaged research to update an intervention promoting a healthy home food environment to Black/African American families " Cancer Causes Control. 2024 Feb ; 35 (2) : 311-321.
Pubmed PMID: 37736870.
Dave JM, Chen TA, Castro AN, White M, Onugha EA, Zimmerman S, Thompson D. " Regional variability in the prevalence of food insecurity and diet quality among United States children " Nutrients. 2024 Jan ; 16 (2) : 224.
Pubmed PMID: 38257117.
Thompson D, Miranda J, Callender C, Dave JM, Appiah G, Musaad SMA. " See me, hear me, know me: Perspectives on diet and physical activity influences among teens living in rural Texas communities " Nutrients. 2023 Nov ; 15 (21) : 4695.
Pubmed PMID: 37960349.
Thompson D, Mirabile Y, Islam N, Callender C, Musaad SMA, Miranda J, Moreno JP, Dave JM, Baranowski T. " Diet quality among pre-adolescent African American girls in a randomized controlled obesity prevention intervention trial " Nutrients. 2023 Jun ; 15 (12) : 2716.
Pubmed PMID: 37375620.
Almohamad M, Marshall A, Dave JM, Chuang RJ, Markham C, Sharma S. " Dietary behaviours during COVID-19 among households at risk for food insecurity " J Nutr Sci. 2023 May ; 12 : e54.
Pubmed PMID: 37180484.
Metoyer BN, Chang RJ, Lee MJ, Markham C, Brown EL, Almohamad M, Dave JM, Sharma SV. " Fruit and vegetable intake and home nutrition environment among low-income minority households with elementary-aged children " Nutrients. 2023 Apr ; 15 (8) : 1819.
Pubmed PMID: 37111037.
Metoyer BN, Chuang RJ, Lee MJ, Markham C, Brown E, Almohamad M, Dave JM, Sharma SV. " Fruit and vegetable shopping behavior and intake among low-income minority households with elementary-aged children " Children (Basel). 2022 Dec ; 10 (1) : 82.
Pubmed PMID: 36670633.
Alexis TD, Unruh D, Wang W, Dave JM, Miketinas DC, Chen TA, Moore CE. " Implementation of a food scholarship program improves nutrient intake and dietary quality of college students " J Am Coll Health. 2022 Nov ; 70 (8) : 2281-2288.
Pubmed PMID: 33320786.
Marshall AN, Chuang RJ, Chow J, Ranjit N, Dave JM, Mathur M, Markham C, Sharma SV. " Food insecurity among low-income households with children participating in a school-based fruit and vegetable co-op " Children (Basel). 2022 Aug ; 9 (8) : 1250.
Pubmed PMID: 36010140.
Dave JM, Chen TA, Almohamad M, Cotto-Moreno S. " Dietary intake among children attending child-care centers: Impact of the new CACFP meal guidelines " Nutrients. 2022 Aug ; 14 (16) : 3394.
Pubmed PMID: 36014900.
Song S, Ishdorj A, Dave JM. " Gender differences in nutritional quality and consumption of lunches brought from home to school " Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2021 Dec ; 18 (24) : 13168.
Pubmed PMID: 34948778.
Castro AN, White MA, Ishdorj A, Thompson D, Dave JM. " The impact of COVID-19 pandemic on food distribution at emergency food assistance organizations in the southwestern United States: A qualitative investigation " Nutrients. 2021 Nov ; 13 (12) : 4267.
Pubmed PMID: 34959818.
Callender C, Velazquez D, Adera M, Dave JM, Olvera N, Chen TA, Alford S, Thompson D. " Perspectives of Black and Hispanic children living in under-resourced communities on meal preparation and grocery shopping behaviors: Implications for nutrition education " Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2021 Nov ; 18 (22) : 12199.
Pubmed PMID: 34831953.
Chen TA, Reitzel LR, Obasi EM, Dave JM. " Did school meal programs and SNAP participation improve diet quality of US children from low-income households: Evidence from NHANES 2013-2014? " Nutrients. 2021 Oct ; 13 (10) : 3574.
Pubmed PMID: 34684575.
Thompson D, Callender C, Velazquez D, Adera M, Dave JM, Olvera N, Chen TA, Goldsworthy N. " Perspectives of Black/African American and Hispanic parents and children living in under-resourced communities regarding factors that influence food choices and decisions: A qualitative investigation " Children (Basel). 2021 Mar ; 8 (3) : 236.
Pubmed PMID: 33803630.
Callender C, Velazquez D, Adera M, Dave JM, Olvera N, Chen TA, Alford S, Thompson D. " How minority parents could help children develop healthy eating behaviors: Parent and child perspectives " Nutrients. 2020 Dec ; 12 (12) : 3879.
Pubmed PMID: 33353032.
Li PP, Mackey G, Callender C, Dave JM, Olvera N, Alford S, Thompson D. " Culinary education programs for children in low-income households: A scoping review " Children (Basel). 2020 May ; 7 (5) : 47.
Pubmed PMID: 32414003.
Dave JM. " Assessing long-term impact of dietary interventions: important but challenging " Am J Clin Nutr. 2019 Jan ; 109 (1) : 5-6.
Pubmed PMID: 30624574.
Dave JM, Cullen KW. " Foods served in child care facilities participating in the Child and Adult Care Food Program: Menu match and agreement with the new meal patterns and best practices " J Nutr Educ Behav. 2018 Jun ; 50 (6) : 582-8.
Pubmed PMID: 29475767.
Dave JM, Liu Y, Chen TA, Thompson DI, Cullen KW. " Does the Kids Café Program's nutrition education improve children's dietary intake? A pilot evaluation study " J Nutr Educ Behav. 2018 Mar ; 50 (3) : 582-8.
Pubmed PMID: 29395880.
Ramirez B, Chen TA, Moore CE, Dave JM, Cullen KW. " The costs and calorie content of à la carte food items purchased by students during school lunch " Prev Med Rep. 2018 Mar ; 10 : 162-66.
Pubmed PMID: 29868361.
Dave JM, Thompson DI, Svendsen-Sanchez A, McNeill LH, Jibaja-Weiss M. " Development of a nutrition education intervention for food bank clients " Health Promot Pract. 2017 Mar ; 18 (2) : 221-8.
Pubmed PMID: 27903768.
Cullen KW, Dave JM. " The new federal school nutrition standards and meal patterns: Early evidence examining the influence on student dietary behavior and the school food environment " J Acad Nutr Diet. 2017 Feb ; 117 (2) : 185-191.
Pubmed PMID: 27964947.
Dave JM, Thompson DI, Svendsen-Sanchez A, Cullen KW. " Perspectives on barriers to eating healthy among food pantry clients " Health Equity. 2017 Jan ; 1 (1) : 28-34.
Pubmed PMID: 30283833.
Cullen KW, Chen TA, Dave JM, Jensen H. " Differential improvements in student fruit and vegetable selection and consumption in response to the new National School Lunch Program regulations: A pilot study " J Acad Nutr Diet. 2015 May ; 115 (5) : 743-50.
Pubmed PMID: 25556770.
Dave JM, Chen TA, Thompson DI, Oceguera AM, Cullen KW. " Outcome evaluation of a pilot study using "nudges". " Int J Child Health Nutr. 2015 ; 4 (1) : 33-39.
Cullen KW, Chen TA, Dave JM. " Changes in foods selected and consumed after implementation of the new National School Lunch Program meal patterns in southeast Texas " Prev Med Rep. 2015 ; 2 : 440-443.
Pubmed PMID: 26101737.
Hilmers A, Chen TA, Dave JM, Thompson D, Cullen KW. " Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program participation did not help low income Hispanic women in Texas meet the dietary guidelines " Prev Med. 2014 May 31; 62 : 44-48.
Pubmed PMID: 24530319.
Cullen KW, Dave JM, Chen A, Elliott L, Walker F, Jensen H. " Implementing the new school meal regulations: Do elementary school children select and eat 1 fruit and 2 vegetable servings when allowed?. " J Acad Nutr Diet. 2013 Sep ; 113 (9) : A11.
Skala K, Chuang RJ, Evans A, Hedberg AM, Dave J, Sharma S. " Ethnic differences in the home food environment and parental food practices among families of low-income Hispanic and African-American preschoolers " J Immigr Minor Health. 2012 Dec ; 14 (6) : 1014-22.
Pubmed PMID: 22262411.
Hilmers A, Hilmers DC, Dave J. " Neighborhood disparities in access to healthy foods and their effects on environmental justice " Am J Public Health. 2012 Sep ; 102 (9) : 1644-54.
Pubmed PMID: 22813465.
Dave J, Cullen KW. " Dietary intakes of children from food insecure households " J Appl Res Child. 2012 ; 3 (1) : Article 7.
Pubmed PMID: 26064778.
Dave JM, Evans AE, Condrasky MD, Williams JE. " Parent-reported social support for child's fruit and vegetable intake: Validity of measures " J Nutr Educ Behav. 2012 Mar ; 44 (2) : 132-9.
Pubmed PMID: 22230473.
Cullen KW, Watson KB, Dave JM. " Middle-school students' school lunch consumption does not meet the new Institute of Medicine's National School Lunch Program recommendations " Public Health Nutr. 2011 Oct ; 14 (10) : 1876-81.
Pubmed PMID: 21557875.
Evans A, Chow S, Jennings R, Dave J, Scoblick K, Sterba KR, Loyo J. " Traditional foods and practices of Spanish-speaking latina mothers influence the home food environment: implications for future interventions " J Am Diet Assoc. 2011 Jul ; 111 (7) : 1031-8.
Pubmed PMID: 21703381.
Hingle MD, O'Connor TM, Dave JM, Baranowski T. " Parental involvement in interventions to improve child dietary intake: A systematic review " Prev Med. 2010 Aug ; 51 (2) : 103-11.
Pubmed PMID: 20462509.
Dave JM, Evans AE, Pfeiffer KA, Watkins KW, Saunders RP. " Correlates of availability and accessibility of fruits and vegetables in homes of low-income Hispanic families " Health Educ Res. 2010 Feb ; 25 (1) : 97-108.
Pubmed PMID: 19654221.
Dave JM, An LC, Jeffery RW, Ahluwalia JS. " Relationship of attitudes toward fast food and frequency of fast-food intake in adults " Obesity (Silver Spring). 2009 Jun ; 17 (6) : 1164-70.
Pubmed PMID: 19247277.
Dave JM, Evans AE, Saunders RP, Watkins KW, Pfeiffer KA. " Associations among food insecurity, acculturation, demographic factors, and fruit and vegetable intake at home in Hispanic children " J Am Diet Assoc. 2009 Apr ; 109 (4) : 697-701.
Pubmed PMID: 19328265.
Evans AE, Dave J, Tanner A, Duhe S, Condrasky M, Wilson D, Griffin S, Palmer M, Evans M. " Changing the home nutrition environment: effects of a nutrition and media literacy pilot intervention " Fam Community Health. 2006 Jan ; 29 (1) : 43-54.
Pubmed PMID: 16340677.

Memberships

American Society of Nutrition

International Society of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity

Nutrition Society of India

American Public Health Association

Society for Nutrition Education and Behavior

Funding

Examine Drivers of Obesity Risk in Youth from Under-Represented Families #3092-10700-068-002S: (10/01/2024 - 09/30/2029); Grant funding from USDA/ARS; Co-Principal Investigator The major goals are to: 1) assess fruit and vegetable (FV) purchases among SNAP households with children and how they compare with FV purchases among non-SNAP households; and 2) assess the relationship between FV purchases, availability of FV at home, and food and nutrition security among SNAP and non-SNAP households with children.

Empowering Nutrition and Breaking Barriers: Comprehensive Strategy for Improving Food Insecurity in Pediatric Patients with Chronic Kidney Disease: (07/01/2024 - 09/30/2025); Grant funding from National Kidney Foundation; Co-Principal Investigator (Elizabeth Onugha, Contact PI) The purpose of our study is to conduct a pilot randomized controlled trial (RCT) to determine the preliminary impact of a clinic-integrated Food Rx intervention on reducing food insecurity, measured using the 18-item USDA food insecurity screen as the primary outcome, among 6-18-year-old children with chronic kidney disease stage 3-5 (eGFR 15-59 ml/min/m2).

Super Chef: Family Fun in the Kitchen! #R34 HL163376: (07/01/2022 - 06/30/2026); Grant funding from NIH/NHLBI; Co-Investigator (PI: Thompson, Deborah I) Super Chef is an online intervention for parents and 10-12 year old children living in lower income households. Its goal is to promote healthy child nutrition by learning ways to modify their family’s favorite recipes to add more fruits, vegetables, and whole grains.

Integrating Food Rx with Best Feeding Practices for Chronic Disease Prevention among EFNEP Participants #USDA 2021-08579: (04/01/2022 - 03/31/2026); Grant funding from USDA/NIFA; Principal Investigator The goal of this randomized controlled trial is to assess the impact of integrating best feeding practices and food prescription with EFNEP programming to prevent chronic diseases in young children.

Smart Eating Active Living (SEAL): A comprehensive SNAP-Ed Initiative for Texans #HHS001018600002: (10/01/2021 - 09/30/2026); Grant funding from Texas Department of Health and Human Services; Principal Investigator of Subcontract (PI: White, Jacquelyn) Smart Eating Active Living (SEAL) is the proposed SNAP-Ed program that will empower children, adolescents, adults, seniors, and communities through evidence-based programs to promote healthy eating, physical activity behaviors, and food resource management strategies along with implementing policy, systems, and environmental (PSE) change initiatives in 18 counties across TX. Dr. Dave leads the evaluation of the project.

Languages

Gujarati, Hindi, Marathi