Departmental Affiliations
Center & Institute Affiliations
Research Interests
dietary patterns; ultraprocessed food; nutrition; cardiovascular disease; kidney disease
Experiences & Accomplishments
Valerie Sullivan is an Assistant Scientist in the Department of Epidemiology. She is a Registered Dietitian and nutrition scientist interested in building the evidence base that informs dietary guidance and translating this knowledge into practice. Her research broadly investigates how dietary patterns affect cardiometabolic disease risk.
Select Publications
Sullivan VK, Martínez-Steele E, Garcia-Larsen V, Rebholz CM. Trends in plant-based diets among United States adults, 1999-March 2020. J Nutr. 2024;154(12):3575-3584.
Sullivan VK, Kim HK, Caulfield LE, Steffen LM, Selvin E, Rebholz CM. Plant-based dietary patterns and incident diabetes in the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities (ARIC) Study. Diabetes Care. 2024;47(5):803-809.
Sullivan VK, Appel LJ, Anderson CAM, Kim H, Unruh ML, Lash JP, Trego M, Sondheimer J, Dobre M, Pradhan N, Rao PS, Decker I, Chen J, He J, Rebholz CM. Ultra-processed foods and kidney disease progression, mortality, and cardiovascular disease risk in the CRIC Study. Am J Kidney Dis. 2023;82:202-212.
Sullivan VK, Appel LJ, Seegmiller JC, McClure ST, Rebholz CM. A low-sodium DASH dietary pattern affects serum markers of inflammation and mineral metabolism in adults with elevated blood pressure. J Nutr. 2021;151(10): 3067–3074.
Sullivan VK, Johnston EA, Firestone MJ, Yi SS, Beasley JM. Self-rated diet quality and cardiometabolic health among U.S. adults, 2011–2018. Am J Prev Med. 2021;61(4):563-575.