Tanja V.E. Kral, PhD

Tanja V.E. Kral, Ph.D., is an Assistant Professor in the School of Nursing (primary appointment) and in the Perelman School of Medicine (secondary appointment). Dr. Kral received her B.S. (1998) in Ecotrophology from the University of Applied Sciences in Muenster, and her M.S. (2001) and Ph.D. (2003) in Nutritional Sciences from The Pennsylvania State University.

Dr. Kral’s research focuses on the cognitive, sensory, and nutritional controls of appetite and eating in children and adults and their relevance to obesity; with specific research attention devoted to identifying familial and environmental risk factors for overeating. Dr. Kral uses a combination of behavioral genetic and experimental research methods to study human ingestive behavior and its implications for the prevention and treatment of obesity.

Dr. Kral can be contacted at the School of Nursing at the University of Pennsylvania, 418 Curie Blvd, Philadelphia, PA 19104-4217. Phone: 215-573-7512. Her email address is: tkral@nursing.upenn.edu.

Recent publications include:

Kral, T.V.E., Whiteford, L.M., Heo, M., Faith, M.S. (2011). Effects of eating breakfast compared with skipping breakfast on ratings of appetite and intake at subsequent meals in 8- to 10-year-old children. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 93: 284-291.

Kral, T.V.E., Rauh, E.M. (2010). Eating behaviors of children in the context of their family environment. Physiology & Behavior, 100: 567-573.

Kral, T.V.E., Kabay, A.C., Roe, L.S., Rolls, B.J. (2010). Effects of doubling the portion size of fruit and vegetable side dishes on children’s intake at a meal. Obesity, 18(3): 521-527.

Kral, T.V.E., Moore, R.H., Stunkard, A.J., Berkowitz, R.I., Stettler, N., Stallings, V.A., Kabay, A.C., Tanaka, L.M., Faith, M.S. (2010). Adolescent eating in the absence of hunger and relation to discretionary calorie allowance. Journal of the American Dietetic Association, 110(2): 1896-1900.