Faculty

Mandy Fretts

Associate Professor, Epidemiology

206-543-9236

Education

PhD Epidemiology, University of Washington, 2011
MPH Epidemiology, University of Washington, 2007

Contact

206-543-9236

University of Washington
Box 351619
Department of Epidemiology
Hans Rosling Center for Population Health, 873
Seattle, WA 98195

Bio

Dr. Fretts is a cardiovascular and nutritional epidemiologist with a focus on observational and interventional research aimed at improving cardio-metabolic health in underserved and rural communities (with a focus on American Indian communities). Her work aims to work with community partners to integrate observational and interventional research to mitigate obesity-related health disparities and improve health behaviors and health outcomes. Dr. Fretts’ research primarily focuses on nutrition, food insecurity, the food environment, physical activity, obesity, fatty acids, and diabetes. She is the Principal Investigator of the Dakotas field site for the Strong Heart Study, a large cohort study of heart disease and its risk factors in 12 American Indian communities in Arizona, Oklahoma, North Dakota and South Dakota, that has been on-going since 1988. She is also Principal Investigator of a community-based diet and cooking skills intervention (randomized trial) designed to improve blood sugar control and other cardiovascular risk factors for American Indians with type 2 diabetes. In addition to her work with American Indian communities, she is involved in several on-going projects related to fatty acids, diet, diet*gene interactions, diabetes, and cardiovascular outcomes in the Cardiovascular Health Study and the Fatty Acids and Outcomes Research Consortium (FORCE) consortium.

Research Interests

  • American Indian health
  • Diabetes
  • Interventions
  • Nutrition
  • Physical activity
  • Lifestyle
  • Social epidemiology
  • Health disparities
  • Obesity
  • Fatty acids
  • Cardio-metabolic disease prevention

Recent Publications (PubMed)

Associations of Plasma Trimethylamine N-Oxide-Related Metabolites with the Development and Progression of Albuminuria: The Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis.
(2025 Sep 25)
Clin J Am Soc Nephrol
Wang M, Tang WHW, Li XS, de Oliveira Otto MC, Lemaitre RN, Fretts A, Nemet I, Sotoodehnia N, Sitlani CM, Budoff M, DiDonato JA, Wang Z, Siscovick DS, Sarnak MJ, Mozaffarian D, Hazen SL

Circulating Sphingolipids and Incident CKD: The Strong Heart Family Study.
(2025 Sep 24)
Kidney360
Fretts AM, Jensen PN, Lidgard B, Sitlani CM, Siscovick DS, King IB, Mokiao RH, Hoofnagle AN, Umans JG, Lemaitre RN

Strong Heart, Strong Smile: Tooth Loss and Incidence of CVD in American Indian Populations.
(2025 Aug 31)
Community Dent Oral Epidemiol
Mabbutt LM, Jensen P, Fretts A, Best L, Cunha-Cruz J

Culturally-Informed Food Insecurity Screening: Evidence From Northern Navajo Medical Center.
(2025 Sep)
J Nutr Educ Behav 57(9): 842-853
Benally TR, Begay KW, Kim L, Makadia P, Fretts AM, Nguyen CJ

Self-Reported Resilience During the COVID-19 Pandemic.
(2025 Jul 1)
JAMA Netw Open 8(7): e2520360
Ogungbe O, Wang T, Balte PP, Slone SE, Meyer D, Allen NB, Buhr RG, Hirsch JA, Hinckley Stukovsky K, Kucharska-Newton A, Gabriel KP, Regan EA, Xanthakis V, Isasi CR, Talavera G, Daviglus M, Perreira KM, Sims M, Contreras JG, Kandula NR, Lee JS, Howard VJ, Judd SE, Woodruff P, Ortega VE, Fretts AM, Wenzel SE, Phipatanakul W, Putcha N, Hansel N, Oelsner E, Post WS

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