Dr. Catherine Chan, PhD 

Catherine Chan PhD is Professor of Nutrition and Physiology at the University of Alberta in Edmonton. She has many research interests including the development, implementation and evaluation of nutrition and physical activity programs to improve diabetes outcomes and prevent complications. She is also active in research on pre-clinical research on the healthful properties of foods and the role of the gut microbiome in development of metabolic diseases. 

She has published over 145 peer reviewed papers and co-authored the Nutrition Therapy and Diabetes Remission chapters of the  Diabetes Canada Clinical Practice Guidelines. In addition, with Dr. Rhonda Bell, she published the menu plan and recipe book “Pure Prairie Eating Plan” to assist people with diabetes to stick to a healthy diet.

Dr. Caroline Richard, RD, PhD 

Dr. Richard specializes in human and animal nutritional studies and has expertise in obesity-related cardiometabolic complications, immunology and choline. 

Her research program focuses on understanding the role of nutrition in mitigating the immune dysfunction associated with chronic diseases including obesity, type 2 diabetes and chronic kidney diseases.  

Her work and areas of expertise can be found here:
https://mcvd.ualberta.ca/research/dr-caroline-richard/

Dr. Rose Yeung, MD

Dr. Rose Yeung is an Associate Professor of Endocrinology & Metabolism in the Faculty of Medicine with a research and clinical interest in nutrition and diabetes. She is also a Medical Director for the Office of Lifelong Learning and Physician Learning Program, and is working to generate research and educational offerings that advance the rationale use of nutrition and pharmacotherapy for diabetes care. She is interested in co-creating research and medical interventions with people living with diabetes, clinicians, and others to ensure interventions are relevant and feasible for practice. 

Some of her current work can be found here:

Reshaping type 1 diabetes care with people living with type 1 diabetes in Alberta: https://www.reshapet1d.com/

Reset for T2D Remission: Low energy diet and structured exercise for type 2 diabetes remission https://www.ualberta.ca/alberta-diabetes/clinical-research/clinical-research-studies/participate-in-a-study.html?details=102

isCGM With Education and Feedback for Non-Insulin Dependent Type 2 Diabetes (iCUDE): https://classic.clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT05319496

Paulina Blanco Cervantes, MSc

Paulina is a Research Coordinator and phlebotomist working on the KETO-IM study.  She completed her Bachelor of Science in Nutrition at the University of Sonora (Mexico) in 2014 where she is Registered as a Dietitian. She worked in her own private practice as a dietitian in Mexico for 2 years. She moved to Canada to pursue her MSc in Nutrition and Metabolism at the University of Alberta, graduating in 2019. 

Paulina coordinates activities related to recruitment of participants, study visits, and oversees many tasks to help the KETO-IM Study run smoothly. 

Alexander Makarowski

Alexander is a senior Laboratory Technician with expertise in flow cytometry and inflammation measurements. He completed an honours Diploma in Biological Sciences-Laboratory and Research at NAIT in 2019 as a program ambassador. Afterwards, he has worked for Dr. Caroline Richard on clinical and pre-clinical projects. 

Alexander will oversee the training, human sample processing and analysis in our laboratory for the KetoIM project.

Jodie Harbarenko, BSc, RD

Jodie is a registered dietitian, she received her bachelor of science with honours degree from Acadia University in 2018.  As a practicing dietitian, Jodie has experience with chronic disease management, including diabetes and obesity, with a special interest in GI health.  Prior to becoming a dietitian, Jodie received a diploma in Business Administration from Southern Alberta Institute of Technology and worked in management and business finance roles.  In her spare time, Jodie enjoys traveling, reading, making quilts and spending time with her husband and dogs.

Current graduate work:

Supervisors: Dr. Catherine Chan and Dr. Caroline Richard

Jodie will be working on the KETO-IM study, investigating the primary study outcomes related to cardiovascular disease risk of the ketogenic diet, with the objective of determining if replacing saturated fats with unsaturated fats like canola oil can contribute to lower LDL cholesterol levels and lower inflammation.

Cheryl Nickurak

Good nutrition from quality food choices is key for a healthy body and mind. Cheryl Nickurak (she/her) is a Registered Dietitian/ Registered Nutritionist in the College of Dietitians of Alberta. She is a member of the Diabetes Canada Professional Section, Dietitians of Canada member and active in networks: and advocate for patient-oriented research. Cheryl has extensive and varied experience and help support prevention and management with people with prediabetes, diabetes, cardiometabolic risk, Kidney problems, allergies and gastrointestinal issues. Cheryl can help navigate to celebrate positive results.

Cheryl enjoys listening and playing good music, yoga, cycling, gardening and permaculture (has one Permaculture Design Certificate), promotes good music and is a forever folk festival and CKUA Radio Network volunteer.  She has worked in three cities in Alberta and collaborates extensively.

Sally Ho

Sally Ho is a Registered Dietitian and Certified Diabetes Educator with her own private practice – Motivate Nutrition.  She graduated from the University of Alberta with a Bachelors degree in Nutrition Science, and University of Calgary with a Bachelors degree in Biological Science.  Sally has worked in various hospitals and clinics in Alberta, and was the Alberta coordinator for two nation-wide nutrition research studies.  Now she is excited to be part of the KETO-IM team as she believes that some of the best nutrition research studies are the ones that address questions the general public have.  She is passionate about making the latest nutrition research simple to understand since she believes the most effective ways for people to take care of their health is through understanding how food affects their body.

In her free time, Sally loves to sew and make paper crafts.  She also loves to garden, bake, and cook with her kids, and of course eat the creations she made with her kids.   It is said “The way to a man’s heart is through his stomach”, which also applies to this food-loving dietitian.