Vallianatos, Helen

Assistant ProfessorHelen Vallianatos

Contact Information:

Office: 13-22 Tory Bldg.
Office phone: 492-0132
E-mail: vallianatos@ualberta.ca
Mailing address: 13-15 HM Tory
University of Alberta
Edmonton, Alberta
Canada T6G 2H4

Degrees:

PhD (Anthropology), University of Oregon
Graduate Certificate (Women’s & Gender Studies), University of Oregon
MS (Anthropology), University of Oregon
BA (Anthropology & Psychology), McMaster University
BSc (Biology), McMaster University

Research Interests:

1) In my work with South Asian and Arabic immigrants, my overarching research objective is to understand how social determinants shape health by exploring the ways in which place and culture interact in influencing food and activity patterns of families, and family members’ perceptions and understandings of obesity and health. In my past and ongoing work with South Asian and Arabic immigrant women, I've been investigating how migration affects cultural meanings of food, body size and health, with the aim of improving our understanding of the “healthy immigrant effect” and the health needs of immigrants, and developing culturally-appropriate community-based interventions.

2) How do local food cultures interact with socioeconomic status as social determinants of food practices within families, in ways that produce, reproduce, resist and/or transform nutritional inequities? This work provides intriguing illustrations of the different ways parents and teenagers in varied social locations think about food, talk about food, and make decisions about what to eat, and is a collaborative project funded by CIHR and led by Dr. Gwen Chapman (UBC) and Dr. Brenda Beagan (Dalhousie).

3) In four communities across Alberta, an interdisciplinary team of researchers, led by Dr. Candace Nykiforuk (School of Public Health, UA), are investigating how the built environment shapes food and physical activity behaviours. The goal of this particular project is to develop an understanding of the role of place in promoting healthy living, and to use this information to develop interventions aimed at reducing/preventing obesity and its associated diseases. By incorporating theories and concepts of place into development of health promotion, we hope to increase the success of these interventions. This project is funded by the HSF of Canada.

Teaching Areas:

Courses:

Fall 2011:
Anthr 372: Anthropology of Food

Winter 2012:
Anthr 460/560: Nutritional Anthropology
Anthr 485/521: Engendering Food, Bodies, Health

Other Courses:
Gender, Age, and Culture
Health and Healing
The Anthropology of Gender
Anthropology of Parenting
Anthropology of the Human Lifecycle
Anthropology of the Senses
Growth and Development
Introduction to Anthropology

Selected Recent Publications:

Vallianatos, H. & Raine, K. 2008. Consuming Food, Constructing Identities: A Symbolic Analysis of Diet among Arabic and South Asian Immigrant Women. Food, Culture & Society 11:355-373.

Vallianatos, H., Brennand, E.A., Raine, K., Stephen, Q., Petawabano, B., Dannenbaum, D., & Willows, N.D. 2008. Cree women speak – Intergenerational perspectives on weight gain in pregnancy and weight loss after pregnancy. Journal of Aboriginal Health 4:6-14.

Vallianatos, H. & Raine, K. 2007. Reproducing Home: Arabic Women’s Experiences of Canada. Al-Raida 24:35-41.

Vallianatos, H (2006) Poor and Pregnant in New Delhi, India. Edmonton, AB: IIQM Press.;

Vallianatos, H, Brennand, EA, Raine, K, Stephen, Q, Petawabano, B, Dannenbaum, D, and Willows, ND (2006) First Nations Women’s Beliefs and Practices Concerning Weight Gain in Pregnancy and Lactation: Implications for Women’s Health. Canadian Journal of Nursing Research 38:102-119.;

Moreno-Black, G and Vallianatos, H (2005) Young women’s experiences of menstruation and athletics. Women’s Studies Quarterly 33:50-67.