Celebrating Excellence: Associate Professor Andrew Reynolds Receives Rowheath Trust Award and Carl Smith Medal for Research Impact

Associate Professor Andrew Reynolds from the Department of Medicine at Ōtākou Whaikahu Waka | University of Otago, whose contribution to human nutrition and public health is globally recognised, has been awarded the Rowheath Trust Award and Carl Smith Medal. 

The Rowheath Trust Award and Carl Smith Medal is one of the University of Otago's highest research honours, and is awarded annually to recognise the outstanding performance of an early-career researcher. Reynolds said he has been lucky to work with people who genuinely support each other, and this award reflects his team. 

"It's a really lovely acknowledgment to the tribe of people supporting me and working with me over the last nine years. Research is never done in isolation: I have mentors, I have colleagues, I have advisors, I have students, and I have staff."

Reynolds is a leading voice in nutrition research, with a career spanning biochemistry, food science, and public health. After earning degrees from La Trobe and Otago Universities and a coveted Erasmus Mundus Masters programme, he's focused on how fibre, whole grains, and carbohydrate quality can help prevent chronic diseases like diabetes and heart disease. His expertise has shaped global nutrition policy through his work with the World Health Organization, and he continues to advise key health organisations, including the Heart Foundation.

His unwavering dedication to health equity and nutrition advice from an evidence base means that he supports not only people with long-term conditions but also health professionals in prescribing meaningful lifestyle advice to their patients. Reynolds says that while doctors and nurses are a trusted source of nutrition advice in the community, they often don’t receive the right training to do so.

"One of the main themes in my work is nutrition education, focusing more on guiding policy, health professionals, and organisations than individuals. It’s a bit like a train-the-trainer model, if I can support GPs and nurses in what to discuss with their patients, then I’ll have a greater impact than working one-on-one. Likewise, if I can change the food environment around people so healthy choices are easy choices, then that will require less effort and agency for everyone."

One of Reynolds' recent contributions is the collaborative Te Kāika DiRECT trial, which partnered with a community health provider in South Dunedin, in response to patients' calls for more support with weight loss. With significant weight loss outcomes and overwhelmingly positive feedback, the trial exemplifies the research excellence that earned him this recognition.

Read about the Kāika DiRECT clinical trial