Dr Snehal Pinto Pereira, Associate Professor in the Division of Surgery and Interventional Science has been awarded a £1.8m Senior Non-Clinical Fellowship (SNCF) from the Medical Research Council (MRC). The award will support her team of postdocs and PhD students over a period of five years.
The main aim of her work is to understand how to maximise and maintain physical fitness levels, in the general population, for as long as possible. Physical fitness is essential for disease prevention, maintaining mobility and independence. Maximising and maintaining physical fitness is therefore essential in order to live long and healthy lives.
There are three main aspects of physical fitness: body composition, aerobic fitness, and muscle strength. They are all affected by physical activity, and they all are associated with major diseases like cardiovascular disease and frailty. They develop and change over a lifetime, and, importantly, as adults, we can improve them to benefit our health. Dr Pinto Pereira explains, “Evidence on these three components of fitness have mostly been generated in silos, but the fact is they are interrelated. I want to study how these aspects of fitness are interrelated and how they affect health together, in the general population. I am hoping that this work will form part of the evidence base that will help fine-tune and update our physical activity guidelines.”
Expressing her gratitude, Dr Pinto Pereira stated, "I am honoured to receive the MRC Senior Non-Clinical Fellowship and excited to begin this new chapter of my career. This recognition is not only a personal achievement but also a testament to the collaborative efforts and strong support network I have both here at UCL and beyond."
Find out more about Dr Pinto Pereira and her research