Chia Airu-mid-shot

Senior Research Fellow

CHIA Airu

Airu is a Senior Public Health Scientist at the NUS Saw Swee Hock School of Public Health. She holds a PhD in Epidemiology and has extensive experience in population health research, with a focus on lifestyle behaviours, cardiometabolic health, and maternal and child health in Asian populations. Her expertise includes systematic reviews and meta-analyses, longitudinal data analysis, metabolomics, and survey and app development. She is actively involved in teaching undergraduate and postgraduate students, and has led and contributed to multiple nationally and internationally funded projects, including large birth cohort and multi-country studies across Southeast Asia.

Affiliation

  • NUS Saw Swee Hock School of Public Health

Research Areas

  • Lifestyle epidemiology
  • Metabolomics
  • Systematic review and meta-analysis

Teaching Areas

  • Epidemiology
  • Public health research methods
  • Systematic review and meta-analysis
  • Data literacy

Academic/Professional Qualifications

  • Doctor of Philosophy, Epidemiology, National University of Singapore
  • Bachelor of Science, Life Sciences, National University of Singapore

Awards/Honours

  • Research Fellow Teaching Award, Saw Swee Hock School of Public Health, 2024

Selected Publications

  • Lim GH, Tan YC, Lee E, Loo CK, Kumar N, Chong MF, Chia A. Adolescent Dietary Intake and Breast Cancer in Adulthood: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Advances in Nutrition. 2025 Aug 26:100503.
  • Chia A, Toh JY, Natarajan P, Cai S, Ong YY, Descarpentrie A, Lioret S, Bernard JY, Müller-Riemenschneider F, Godfrey KM, Tan KH. Trajectories of lifestyle patterns from 2 to 8 years of age and cardiometabolic risk in children: the GUSTO study. International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity. 2024 Jan 26;21(1):9.
  • Chia A, Shou Y, Wong NM, Cameron-Smith D, Sim X, Van Dam RM, Chong MF. Complexity of consumer acceptance to alternative protein foods in a multiethnic Asian population: A comparison of plant-based meat alternatives, cultured meat, and insect-based products. Food Quality and Preference. 2024 May 1;114:105102.
  • Lim SX, Lim CG, Müller-Riemenschneider F, van Dam RM, Sim X, Chong MF, Chia A. Development and validation of a lifestyle risk index to screen for metabolic syndrome and its components in two multi-ethnic cohorts. Preventive medicine. 2024 Feb 1;179:107821.
  • Chia A, Chew MN, Tan SY, Chan MJ, T Colega M, Toh JY, Natarajan P, Lança C, Shek LP, Saw SM, Müller-Riemenschneider F. A web-based time-use application to assess diet and movement behavior in Asian schoolchildren: development and usability study of My E-Diary for Activities and Lifestyle (MEDAL). Journal of Medical Internet Research. 2021 Jun 9;23(6):e25794.
  • Chia AR, de Seymour JV, Wong G, Sulek K, Han TL, McKenzie EJ, Aris IM, Godfrey KM, Yap F, Tan KH, Shek LP. Maternal plasma metabolic markers of neonatal adiposity and associated maternal characteristics: The GUSTO study. Scientific Reports. 2020 Jun 10;10(1):9422.

Media Coverage

Back to Faculty Directory
Scroll to Top