Help Cassie Go To Conference To Present Research

I am a recent graduate from SJSU, and I received my Master's in Nutritional Science in December, 2023, after I received a Bachelor's in Nutritional Science with a concentration in Dietetics in 2020. During my undergraduate studies, I decided that research was something that called to me, so I took on an extra-curricular research project with one of my professors. This sizable project continued into my master’s years and I decided to extend this research project for my thesis.

The two research questions we explored were 1) Which food ingredients that are regularly consumed by Americans contain prebiotics and which of these are typically eaten in daily quantities that can confer a health benefit? And 2) What is the relationship between prebiotic consumption and depression? In order to answer these questions, we used publicly available National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey data.

Last summer I received a scholarship to attend the 2023 American Society for Nutrition (ASN) conference in Boston to present the preliminary findings of our research. Our discoveries included the number of foods that contain prebiotics in varying ranges and the 10 foods with the highest prebiotic content. Our research was determined by the ASN to likely draw media attention, and we received media promotion of our findings. News sources such as Newsweek, Yahoo News, and Fox published articles about our research.

SEE LINKS OF NEWS ARTICLES WE APPEARED IN HERE!

After returning home from the conference, I finished my thesis and excitingly enough, we were the first research project to find a significant relationship between prebiotic intake and depression in the female population. We found that prebiotic intake is significantly inversely associated with the outcome of depression in the adult female population- if females have a prebiotic intake lower than 5 grams, their odds of having depression are higher. My thesis was approved in January, my degree was conferred, and I recently received my diploma in the mail.

My work didn't stop there though! My graduate advisor and I started working toward publishing the findings of my thesis in a peer-reviewed journal. I then submitted an abstract of our research to the American Society of Nutrition (ASN) Conference for summer of 2024, in Chicago, and the abstract was accepted. However, covering the costs associated with attending this conference will be a challenge. I am not sure if I will be able to find a job in my field in time to cover the conference costs.

The costs will be:

Round trip plane tickets: $400

4 nights at a hotel: $1,200

Registration for the conference as an early career member: $600

TOTAL CONFERENCE COSTS: $2,200

Please help me attend the 2024 ASN Nutrition Conference! I truly believe in the importance of the findings of our research. Sharing these results concerning the role prebiotic intake plays in depression status can broaden the scope of the microbiota's relationship to mental health. By meeting with other people in the nutrition field, I can work to inspire other researchers to further investigate this integral component of the health of the microbiota, and together we can broaden our understanding of one of the many pathways between the mind and the body. Furthermore, I can utilize my attendance at this conference to launch myself into the nutrition research field while continuing to work towards my goals of participating in scientific progress and helping people achieve better microbiome health.