Dr. McDermid is a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist who earned her PhD from the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine in the United Kingdom. Her research interests have focused on the relationship between nutrition and infectious diseases, including the contributions of breast milk and breastfeeding practices in a global context. Dr. McDermid is a co-investigator of a large Tanzanian clinical trial investigating breast milk factors associated with healthy growth and development, a co-investigator in an international consortium investigating breast milk composition and infant growth, and an expert consultant to the Academy’s NIH-funded scoping review of breast milk composition. She has numerous peer-reviewed research publications and presentations on breast milk and breastfeeding, and she has taught undergraduate and graduate students, dietetic interns and medical fellows on these topics during her service as a professor. Dr. McDermid has also developed and delivered knowledge and skills-based workshops on exclusive breastfeeding practices in rural sub-Saharan Africa to midwifes, nurses, and community health workers. Dr. McDermid is the 2023-24 Chair of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics Council on Research.